Dekra OUHBI
Each choice in a research should be :
1- Conscious
2- Informed
3- Justifiable
4- relevant and consistent
Research is a process we should follow at each stage ( narrow down the topic )
Research onion:
1- Philosophy :
The set of beliefs the research is built upon. Research philosophy can be described from either
an ontological or epistemological point of view.
In simple terms, ontology is the “what” and “how” of what we know – in other words, what is
the nature of reality and what are we really able to know and understand.---> qu est ce qu'on
cherche derriere cette recherche
Epistemology, on the other hand, is about “how” we can obtain knowledge and come to
understand things – in other words, how can we figure out what reality is, and what the limits
of this knowledge are.---> comment on va proceder ?
Positivism:
Dekra OUHBI
knowledge exists outside of what’s being studied.
can only be done so objectively
it cannot include opinions or personal viewpoints
there is only one reality
Interpretivism :
The influence that social and cultural factors can have on an individual.
focuses on people’s thoughts and ideas
the researcher plays an active role in the study, as it’s necessary to draw a holistic
view of the participant and their actions, thoughts and meanings
Pragmatism:
using the best tools possible to investigate phenomena
research from a practical point of view ,where knowledge is not fixed, but instead is
questioned and interpreted.
pragmatism is not committed to (or limited by) one specific philosophy
2- approach :
Inductive ( from specific to general):
generating theories from research
Deductive ( from general to specific):
begin with a theory and aim to build on it (or test it) through research
inductive approaches are usually used within qualitative research
quantitative research tends to reflect a deductive approach, usually informed by positivist
philosophy.
To recap , To decide on the right approach for your study, you need to assess the type of
research you aim to conduct.
3- methodological choices :
Choosing to use a mono method means that you’ll only make use of one data type – either
qualitative or quantitative.
If you were to make use of both quantitative and qualitative data, you’d be taking a mixed-
methods approach.
there’s multi-method. With a multi-method approach, you’d make use of a wider range of
approaches, with more than just a one quantitative and one qualitative approach.
4- strategy to collect data :
How research can be conducted
Strategy 1: Experimental research
Dekra OUHBI
-Experimental research involves manipulating one variable (the independent variable) to
observe a change in another variable (the dependent variable) – in other words, to assess the
relationship between variables. The purpose of experimental research is to support, refute
or validate a research hypothesis. This research strategy follows the principles of the
scientific method.
-aims to test existing theories , is deductive in nature. Experimental research aligns with the
positivist research philosophy(knowledge can only be studied objectively and in isolation
from external factors such as context or culture)
Strategy 2: Action research
-it involves learning through
-Action research is conducted in practical settings
-focus on the participants
-a practical solution is given to a problem and it is generated by the combination of researcher
and community feedback.
-Action research is most commonly adopted in qualitative studies
Strategy 3: Case study research
-The objective here is to gain an in-depth understanding within the context of the study – not
(necessarily) to generalize the findings.
-when conducting case study research, you take the social context and culture into account,
which means that this type of research is qualitative in nature and tends to be inductive.
-since the researcher’s assumptions and understanding play a role in case study research, it is
interpretivist.
Strategy 4: Grounded theory
Strategy 5: Ethnography
Strategy 6: Archival research
5- Time horizon:
The time horizon simply describes how many points in time you plan to collect your data at.
--->you’d need to collect data over multiple points in time – perhaps over a few weeks,
months, or even years. Therefore, you’d make use of a longitudinal time horizon.
--->to study at a certain point in time, you’d make use of a cross-sectional time horizon.
6-Techniques and Procedures :
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--the centre of the onion, this is where you get down to the real practicalities of your research
to make choices regarding specific techniques and procedures.
--these techniques and procedures need to align with all the other layers of the research onion.
--This is where you’ll:
Decide on what data you’ll collect and what data collection methods you’ll use (for
example, will you use a survey? Or perhaps one-on-one interviews?)
Decide how you’ll go about sampling the population (for example, snowball sampling,
random sampling, convenience sampling, etc).
Determine the type of data analysis you’ll use to answer your research questions (such
as content analysis or a statistical analysis like correlation).
Set up the materials you’ll be using for your study (such as writing up questions for a
survey or interview)