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Understanding the Research Process

Research can be defined as a systematic investigation to establish facts about a topic. The primary purpose of research is to advance human knowledge across many scientific fields and about our world and universe. Research uses the scientific method to form hypotheses, gather and analyze data, and test hypotheses to reach conclusions. Scientific research relies on applying the scientific method and uses curiosity to provide explanations and theories about nature. It is funded by public and private organizations to make practical applications possible.

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7 views2 pages

Understanding the Research Process

Research can be defined as a systematic investigation to establish facts about a topic. The primary purpose of research is to advance human knowledge across many scientific fields and about our world and universe. Research uses the scientific method to form hypotheses, gather and analyze data, and test hypotheses to reach conclusions. Scientific research relies on applying the scientific method and uses curiosity to provide explanations and theories about nature. It is funded by public and private organizations to make practical applications possible.

Uploaded by

navpreetlove
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Research

Research can be defined as the search for knowledge or any systematic investigation to establish
facts. The primary purpose for applied research is discovering, interpreting, and the development
of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge on a wide variety of scientific
matters of our world and the universe. Research can use the scientific method, but need not do
so.

Scientific research relies on the application of the scientific method, a harnessing of curiosity.
This research provides scientific information and theories for the explanation of the nature and
the properties of the world around us. It makes practical applications possible. Scientific research
is funded by public authorities, by charitable organizations and by private groups, including
many companies. Scientific research can be subdivided into different classifications according to
their academic and application disciplines.

Research is used to describe an entire collection of information about a particular subject.

Research processes
Scientific research

Scientific method

Generally, research is understood to follow a certain structural process. Though step order may
vary depending on the subject matter and researcher, the following steps are usually part of most
formal research, both basic and applied:

 Formation of the topic


 Hypothesis
 Conceptual definition
 Operational definition
 Gathering of data
 Analysis of data
 Test, revising of hypothesis
 Conclusion, iteration if necessary

A common misunderstanding is that by this method a hypothesis can be proven or tested.


Generally a hypothesis is used to make predictions that can be tested by observing the outcome
of an experiment. If the outcome is inconsistent with the hypothesis, then the hypothesis is
rejected. However, if the outcome is consistent with the hypothesis, the experiment is said to
support the hypothesis. This careful language is used because researchers recognize that
alternative hypotheses may also be consistent with the observations. In this sense, a hypothesis
can never be proven, but rather only supported by surviving rounds of scientific testing and,
eventually, becoming widely thought of as true (or better, predictive), but this is not the same as
it having been proven. A useful hypothesis allows prediction and within the accuracy of
observation of the time, the prediction will be verified. As the accuracy of observation improves
with time, the hypothesis may no longer provide an accurate prediction. In this case a new
hypothesis will arise to challenge the old, and to the extent that the new hypothesis makes more
accurate predictions than the old, the new will supplant it.

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