Experimental Research


            According to Thomas and Brubaker (2000) the essential feature of experimental research is that investigators deliberately control and manipulate the conditions which determine the events in which they are interested. At the simplest, an experiment involves making a change in the value of one variable (independent variable) and observing the effect of that change on another variable (dependent variable). An experiment typically consists of applying a treatment to an individual, group, or institution, then describing the apparent effect of the treatment and estimating why that effect occurred. An assumption on which experiments are founded is that events are the result of one or more causal variables (p. 125).


Strengths


            A well designed and implemented experiment can be an adequate method of testing the effects of one variable to another. the strength of experimental research lies in its ability to minimize or to even eliminate the conditions that affect the dependent variable that are not part of the experiment. Another strength is that experimental variable can be manipulated or controlled by the researcher.


Weaknesses


            One of the weaknesses of the experimental research is the difficulty of meeting the requirements of both internal and external validity. Another weakness is experimental research cannot provide empirical generalizations to a larger population. Lastly, experimental research can be time consuming, require considerable coordination, and can be expensive.


Case Study


            A case study is a specific instance that is frequently designed to illustrate a more general principle. The single instance is of a bounded system such as a class, a school, a community or an individual. It provides a unique example of real people in real situations, enabling readers to understand ideas more clearly than simply presenting them with abstract theories or principles. A case study can enable readers to understand how ideas and abstract principles can fit together. Case studies can penetrate situation in ways that are not always susceptible to numerical analysis. Case studies can establish cause and effect. One of their strengths is that they observe effects on real contexts, recognizing that context is a powerful determinant of both causes and effects. Contexts are unique and dynamic, hence case studies investigate and report the complex dynamic and unfolding integration of events, human relationships and other factors in a unique (Cohen et al., 2000, p. 181). 


Strengths


1. The results are more easily understood by a wide audience as they are frequently written in everyday, non-professional language.


2. They are immediately intelligible; they speak for themselves.


3. They catch unique features that may otherwise be lost in larger scale data; these unique features might hold the key to understanding the situation.


4. They are strong on reality.


5. They provide insights into other, similar situations and cases, thereby assisting interpretation of other similar cases.


6. They can be undertaken by a single researcher without needing a full research team.


7. They can embrace and build in unanticipated events and uncontrolled variables (Cohen et al., 2000, p. 184).


Weaknesses


1. The results may not be generalizable except where other readers/researchers see their application.


2. They are not easily open to cross-checking, hence they may be selective, biased, personal and subjective.


3. They are prone to problems of observer bias, despite attempts made to address reflexivity (Cohen et al., 2000, p. 184).


 


Survey


            A survey gather data at a particular point in time with the intention of describing the nature of existing conditions can be compared, or determining the relationship that exist between specific events. Survey research according to Hutchinson (2004) can be defined most simply as a means of gathering information, usually through self-report using questionnaires or interviews (p. 285).


 


 


Strengths


            The attraction of a survey lie in its appeal to generazability or universality within given parameters, its ability to make statements which are supported by large data banks and its ability to establish the degree of confidence which can be placed in a set of findings (Cohen et al., 2000, p. 171). The popularity of survey research is due in large to its utility on countless research situations. Surveys are used for such diverse purposes as needs assessment, program evaluation, attitude measurement, political opinion polling, and policy analysis, as well as for simple descriptions of behaviors, activities, and population characteristics. The scope of surveys can range from large-scale national surveys to smaller surveys confined to a single neighborhood, classroom, or organization. Another strength is its applicability on situations where direct manipulations of variables is either unfeasible to unethical (Hutchinson, 2004, p. 286).


Weaknesses


            Surveys are not applicable if a researcher is concerned to catch local, institutional or small scale factors and variables – to portray the specificity of a situation, its uniqueness and particular complexity, its interpersonal dynamics and to provide explanations of why a situation occurs or why a person or group of people returned a particular set of results or behaved in a particular way in a situation. The degree of explanatory potential that surveys offer is limited. Another weakness in the reliance on self-report. The validity of conclusions drawn from surveys is dependent on the integrity of the responses. Surveys also require extensive time in the design and implementation and it also demands diversity of skills from the researchers (Hutchenson, 2004, p. 299).  


 


Secondary Data (Existing Data)


            Secondary data are data that have been collected for some other purpose. Secondary data can provide a useful source from which to answer the research question(s).


Strengths


            Punch (1998) mentions several advantages of using existing data. Expenditure on obtaining data can be significantly reduced and data analysis can begin immediately, so saving time. Also, the quality of some data may be superior to anything the researcher could have created alone (Thomas, 2004, p. 191).


Weaknesses


            Data that have been gathered by others for their own purposes can be difficult to interpret when they are taken out of their original context. It is also much more difficult to appreciate the weak points in data that have been obtained by others. The data may be only partially relevant to the current research question (Thomas, 2004, p. 191).


 


References


Cohen, L., Manion, L. and Thomas, M. (2000).  Research Methods in Education. London: Routledge Falmer.


 


Hutchinson, S. R. (2004). Survey Research. In K. DeMarrais and S. D. Lapan (Eds.), Foundations for Research: Methods of Inquiry in Education and the Social Sciences (pp. 283-302). Mahwah NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates.


 


Punch, K.F. (1998) Introduction to Social Research: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches, London: Sage.


 


Thomas, R. M. and Brubaker, D. L. (2000). Theses and Dissertations: A Guide to Planning, Research, and Writing. Westport CT: Bergin and Garvey.


 


Thomas, A. B. (2004). Research Skills for Management Studies. London: Routledge.


           



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