RESEARCH

METHODOLOGY
&
IPR
 Contents :

• Meaning of Research,
• Objectives of Engineering Research,
• and Motivation in Engineering Research,
• Types of Engineering Research,
• Finding and Solving a Worthwhile Problem.
• Ethics in Engineering Research,
• Ethics in Engineering Research Practice,
• Types of Research Misconduct,
• Ethical Issues Related to Authorship.
 Meaning of Research
• Research defn:

• Creation of new knowledge

• Or in a new and creative way so as to generate new concepts

• the use of existing knowledge

• This may include analysis of previous research to the extent that it leads to new and creative
outcomes.
• or
• Research refers to a careful,
• well-defined (or redefined),
• objective,
• and systematic method of search for knowledge

• Or

• Formulation of a theory that is driven by investigate for that which is unknown

and useful on a particular aspect so as to make an original contribution to expand
the existing knowledge base.
• Research involves
• formulation of hypothesis
• Or
• proposition of solutions,
• data analysis,
• and deductions
• and ascertaining whether the conclusions.
• Research is not just about reading a lot of books and finding a lot of, gathering a lot of
existing information.
• It is instead adding, maybe small and specific, yet original, contribution to that
existing body of knowledge.
• So, research is about how one poses a question which has relevance to the world
Objective of a good research
• 1. Descriptive Objectives:
• Aim to provide --A detailed and accurate description of a phenomenon,
event, or subject.
• Focus- on answering questions about what, who, where, and when.
• Example:
• “No of working hours and Result.”

• 2. Exploratory Objectives:
• When researchers wants to gain a better understanding of a topic,
especially when there is limited existing knowledge.
• They often involve preliminary investigations.
• Example:
• “To investigate the possible determinants impacting consumer
inclinations towards sustainable products.”
• Investigate the potential effects of a newly developed technology on a particular
industry.
• 3. Explanatory Objectives
• designed to identify the relationships between variables
and explain the causes or reasons behind certain phenomena.
• Example:
• “To examine the causal relationship between smoking habits
and the development of health issues.”
• 4. Comparative Objectives
• involve comparing two or more variables, groups, or situations
to identify similarities, differences, patterns, or trends.
• Example:
• “To compare the performance of two different marketing
strategies in terms of their impact on sales.”
• 5. Predictive Objectives
• Aim :
• forecast or predict future outcomes
• or
• trends based on existing data or patterns.
• Example
• “To forecast customer attrition rates within an online
subscription service by utilizing historical usage patterns and
satisfaction data.”
• 7. Qualitative Objectives:
• Subjective and non-measurable.
• These types of objectives are felt more than they can be measured.
The importance of those kinds of objectives is usually undermined due to their
unmeasurable nature. But using qualitative objectives in the right way could help
you to achieve in life and business life.
• Used to explore and understand experiences, perceptions, and
behaviors in-depth
• Example: “To reveal the latent motivations and emotions of
participants within a qualitative interview investigation.”
• 8. Quantitative Objectives:
• Involve the collection and analysis of numerical data to
measure and quantify specific phenomena.
• Example:
• “To ascertain(make sure) the relationship between income
levels and the availability of educational resources among a
selected group of households.”
• 9. Longitudinal Objectives
• Involve studying the same subjects or entities over an extended
period to track changes or developments.
• Example:
• “To assess the cognitive development of children from preschool
through high school graduation.”
• cognitive development :
• The process of growth and change in mental abilities like
thinking, reasoning, and understanding. It's a key part of overall
growth and development.
• 10. Cross-Sectional Objectives
• Involve the study of a sample at a single point of time to gather
data about a population’s characteristics or attitudes.
• Example:
• “To assess the present employment situation and job
satisfaction levels among healthcare sector employees.”
• The choice of research objective type depends on the nature of
the research, the research questions or hypotheses, and the
overall goals of the study.
• Researchers often use a combination of these types to address
different aspects of their research inquiries
 Examples of Research
Objectives
• 1. Healthcare Research
• To investigate the relationship between regular physical
activity and the incidence of cardiovascular diseases in adults
aged 40-60.
• To assess the effectiveness of a new drug in reducing
symptoms of a specific medical condition over a six-month
period.
• To identify the factors influencing healthcare-seeking behavior
among a specific demographic group.
• 2. Educational Research
• To examine the impact of technology integration in the
classroom on students’ academic performance in mathematics.
• To determine the effectiveness of a new teaching method for
improving reading comprehension in elementary school
children.
• To explore the factors that contribute to student dropout rates in
a particular educational institution.
• 3. Environmental Science Research
• To analyze the effects of climate change on the migration
patterns of a specific bird species in a particular region.
• To investigate the long-term impact of deforestation on local
biodiversity in a tropical rainforest.
• To assess the effectiveness of a conservation program in
preserving a critically endangered species.
• 4. Business and Marketing Research
• To evaluate consumer preferences for eco-friendly packaging
materials in the cosmetics industry.
• To analyze the market potential for a new product in a
specific geographical area.
• To identify the key factors influencing customer loyalty in the
fast-food restaurant industry.
• 5. Social Science Research
• To examine the relationship between socioeconomic status
and access to quality healthcare in urban areas.
• To investigate the influence of adolescents’ use of social
media on their mental well-being.
• To investigate the factors contributing to workplace diversity
and inclusion in a multinational corporation.
• 6. Psychological Research
• To investigate the effects of mindfulness meditation on
reducing symptoms of anxiety in adults.
• To explore the relationship between early childhood
experiences and attachment styles in adulthood.
• To analyze the factors influencing decision-making in
individuals with specific personality traits.
 Types of Research
• 1. Descriptive Vs Analytical Research.

• 2. Applied Vs Fundamental Research

• 3. Quantitative Vs Qualitative Research

• 4. Conceptual vs. Empirical

• 5. Some other types of research

 1. Descriptive Vs Analytical
Research
• Descriptive research consists of surveys and fact-finding enquiries of different types.
• Objective :Describing the state of affairs as it prevails at the time of study.
• The term ‘ex post facto research‘ is quite often used for descriptive research studies in social
sciences and business research. The most distinguishing feature of this method is that the
researcher has no control over the variables here. He/she has to only report what is happening
or what has happened.
• Majority of the ex post facto research projects are used for descriptive studies in which the
researcher attempts to examine phenomena, such as the consumers‘ preferences, frequency of
purchases, shopping, etc.
• Despite the inability of the researchers to control the variables, ex post facto studies may also
comprise attempts by them to discover the causes of the selected problem. The methods of
research adopted in conducting descriptive research are survey methods of all kinds, including
correlational and comparative methods.
• Meanwhile in the Analytical research, the researcher has to use the already available facts or
information, and analyze them to make a critical evaluation of the subject.
• Descriptive is fact finding to describe the state of affairs Analytical Research is using already
available information and analyse to make a critical evaluation of the material.
Aspect Descriptive Research Analytical Research
To understand or explain why
To describe the current state of a
Objective and how certain phenomena
variable or condition.
occur.
Analyzing and interpreting
Focus Observing and recording data.
data.
Data Minimal, mainly focused on In-depth, focused on
Analysis describing. understanding relationships.
Insights, explanations, and
Detailed description of the
Outcome understanding of causal
subject.
relationships.
Question What are the sales figures for the Why did sales increase in the
Example past year? last quarter?
Statistical analysis,
Methodolo Surveys, observations, case
hypothesis testing, regression
gy studies.
analysis.
Requires a hypothesis to
Hypothesis Generally not required.
guide the research.
 2. Applied Vs Fundamental Research
• An attempt to find a solution to an immediate problem encountered by a firm, an
industry, a business organization, or the society is known as applied research.
• Researchers engaged in such researches aim at drawing certain conclusions
confronting a concrete social or business problem.
• Fundamental research mainly concerns generalizations and formulation of a theory.
• In other words, ―Gathering knowledge for knowledge‘s sake is termed pure or basic
research (Young in Kothari, 1988).
• Researches relating to pure mathematics or concerning some natural phenomenon
are instances of Fundamental Research.
• Likewise, studies focusing on human behaviour also fall under the category of
fundamental research. Applied aims at finding a solution to the problem faced by the
society/ organisation. Fundamental Research is concerned with generalization and
formulation of a theory
Attribtes Applied Research Fundamental Research
Improve understanding of
Expand knowledge of processes of
particular business or management
business and management.
problem.
Results in universal principles
Purpose Results in solution to problem. New
knowledge limited to problem.
relating to the process and its
relationship to outcomes.
Findings of practical relevance and
Findings of significance and value
value to manager(s) in
to society in general.
organization(s).
Context
Undertaken by people based in a
Undertaken by people based in
variety of settings including
universities.
organizations and universities.
Objectives negotiated with Choice of topic and objectives
originator. determined by the researcher.
Tight time scales. Flexible time scales.
3. Quantitative Vs Qualitative
Research
• Quantitative research relates to aspects that can be expressed in terms of quantity.
• It involves the measurement of quantity or amount.
• Various available statistical and econometric methods are adopted for analysis in such research.
• Which includes correlation, regressions and time series analysis etc Qualitative research is
concerned with qualitative phenomena, or more specifically, the aspects related to or involving
quality or kind.
• For example, an important type of qualitative research is Motivation Research‘, which
investigates into the reasons for certain human behavior.
• Aim :
• of this type of research is discovering the underlying motives and desires of in-depth interviews.
• The other techniques employed in such research are story completion tests, sentence
completion tests, word association tests, and other similar projective methods. Qualitative
research is particularly significant in the context of behavioral sciences, which aim at discovering
the underlying motives of human behaviour. Quantitative research is based on quantitative
measurements of some characteristics Qualitative research is concerned with qualitative
phemomenon
 Difference between Qualitative and Quantitative Research ev
Qualitative Research Quantitative Research
A method for developing a better understanding of human and It is the method used to generate numerical data by using a lot
social sciences, in understanding human behaviour and of techniques such as logical, statistical and mathematical
personalities better techniques

It employs a subjective approach It employs an objective approach

It is generally expressed using words It is expressed using graphs and numbers
It has open-ended questions It has multiple choice questions
Qualitative research needs only a few respondents Quantitative research requires many respondents

The data collection methods involved are interviews, focus The data collection methods involved are experiments,
groups, literature review, ethnography surveys, and observations expressed in numbers

Qualitative research is holistic in nature Quantitative Research is particularistic in nature

The reasoning used to synthesise data in this research is The reasoning used to synthesise data in this research is
inductive deductive
This method involves a process-oriented inquiry This method does not involve a process-oriented inquiry

It develops the initial understanding of data It recommends a final course of action

The data taken in the Qualitative research method is pretty The data taken in this method is pretty measurable
verbal
 4. Conceptual vs. Empirical

• The research related to some abstract idea or theory is known as Conceptual Research.
• Generally, philosophers and thinkers use it for developing new concepts or for reinterpreting the
existing ones.
• Empirical Research, on the other hand, exclusively relies on the observation or experience with hardly
any regard for theory and system.
• Such research is data based, which often comes up with conclusions that can be verified through
experiments or observation.
• Empirical research is also known as experimental type of research, in which it is important to first
collect the facts and their sources, and actively take steps to stimulate the production of desired
information.
• In this type of research, the researcher first formulates a working hypothesis, and then gathers
sufficient facts to prove or disprove the stated hypothesis.
• He/she formulates the experimental design, which according to him/her would manipulate the
variables, so as to obtain the desired information.
• The results obtained by using the experimental or empirical studies are considered to be the most
powerful evidences for a given hypothesis.
• Conceptual research is related to some abstract idea
Attribute Conceptual Research Empirical Research
Involves research that is based on direct
Involves research that is based on theorizing observation, experimentation, and the collection
Definition and synthesizing ideas and concepts without of measurable evidence.
direct observation or experimentation.

Observable phenomena, data collection, and

Focus Abstract ideas, theories, and conceptual empirical evidence.
understanding.
Generates new, primary data through direct
Uses existing theoretical data and literature;
Nature of Data observations and experiments; relies on
relies on secondary data to form hypotheses
Used measurable and observable data.
and frameworks.
Analytical and interpretative methods, Experimental methods, including controlled
Methodologies including literature review, theoretical experiments, surveys, observations, and statistical
Involved
synthesis, and logical reasoning. analysis.
To clarify, reinterpret, or propose new To test hypotheses, validate theories, and discover
Purpose theoretical frameworks; to organize and new patterns or phenomena through empirical
synthesize existing knowledge. evidence.
No direct data collection; the study uses Involves active data collection, including using
Data Collection existing data and information from various instruments and measurements to gather new
sources. data.
 Empirical Research
Attribute Conceptual Research
Can be both qualitative and quantitative;
Primarily qualitative, focusing on focuses on statistical analysis and testing to
Analysis identifying patterns and constructing derive conclusions from the data.
theoretical propositions.
Produces empirical evidence that supports or
refutes hypotheses, contributing to the body
Produces theoretical insights and of factual knowledge.
Outcome expands understanding through new
models or frameworks.

– Observing behavioral changes in response

– Developing theories of social to a new educational method.
behavior.
Examples – Formulating new economic models
based on existing data. – Conducting clinical trials to test a new
drug.
5. Some other types of research
• One-time research or longitudinal research- depends upon the time of doing
research •
• Field-setting research or laboratory research or simulation research-
• Depends upon the environment in which research is carried on.
• Clinical or diagnostic research- in-depth approaches or case study method may
be employed to analyze the basic causal relations

• Historical Research-
• Sources like historical documents etc. Are utilized to study past events or ideas
• Exploratory research-
• It is preliminary research method that helps researchers
understand a problem, topic, or issue that is not well defined,
has little data, or has not been studied in depth. It is also
known as interpretive research or grounded theory consist of
substantial structure and specific hypotheses to be verified.