Research Process

A research proposal is a simply a structured, formal document that explains what you plan to research (i.e. your research topic and question), why it’s worth researching (i.e. your justification), and how you plan to investigate it (i.e. your research approach - research and sampling methods).

Managing resources is essential for any research project. Time management is essential. Examples of items that may be useful for filing and recording include a display folder, a small exercise book (for your IRP diary), a USB drive and document storage folders. Another option is to record information on smart phone or tablet apps. As you acquire information, add it into the appropriate file or folder immediately to ensure sources of information aren’t lost. Whichever system you choose, remember to back up your information in case of a computer or app crash.

Your research project is dependant on how well you manage the resources you access.

Sources of data are imperative to your research. Individuals and Groups / Print and digital are the sources of primary or secondary data that must be assessed in order to choose the most appropriate sources of data for the topic.

Your first step should be to search secondary data for what has already been written about your chosen topic. Look at both digital and print sources of data. Your primary data will primarily come from individuals and groups, however you must choose sample groups that allow for reliable and valid research.

Example: The sources of data you chose for your topic.

No matter what forms of secondary data you use, the most important source of data for a research project is primary data. Primary data may include interview, survey or questionnaire responses, and observation details, from individuals, organisations or groups.

Your research methods will form the foundation of your primary data. They need to be prepared, distributed and collected in a logical, thoughtful and systematic manner to be most effective. You must think carefully about the sample method and sample size depending on your research topic.

Example: The research method and sample method you chose and how you recorded that data.

Documenting progress and issues is an important part of research in order to learn and propose ways to improve research in the future. This is usually done through a project diary, which is a record of the steps taken during the development of your research. Your diary also includes the problems that arise and way to overcome each issue. This allows you to reflect on the research process throughout the research.

Example: The diary you kept that helped you reflect and overcome issues.

There are two basic ways that data can be presented - Quantitative or Qualitative.

Quantitative data is in a numerical form, so it can be can be counted and then presented through the use of bar, line or pie graphs; or tables with statistics or percentages. This allows trends to be clearly seen and easily compared.

Qualitative data, such as interview data, is descriptive and often cannot be reduced to numerical form. It is often presented as a written report that describes the main ideas and trends that emerged from the research, and it includes quotes and anecdotes.

Example: How you presented data in your IRP.

All data should be included in an analysis of your results. Before you can interpret your research findings, you need to analyse them. This means that you describe what you can see in the evidence provided in your graphs or tables. This is done by identifying the trends that you can see in your presented data

Example: How you analysed and compared data (Graphs and questionnaire responses) in your IRP.

Drawing conclusions from your research is an extremely important part of the process. These conclusions are in relation to your initial research question, problem statement or hypothesis. This may indicate that the hypothesis upon which you have conducted your research has been proven correct OR incorrect. A good conclusion includes what your data shows, how this relates to the research in general, the validity of your findings and possible implications and recommendations from your findings

Example: How you draw conclusions from your research - Did it prove or disprove the hypothesis?