Research Methods and Data Analysis

What are the key characteristics of qualitative research methods?

• Focus on exploring and understanding human behavior, emotions, and experiences through non-numerical data collection methods.

• Primarily uses surveys and questionnaires for data collection

• Emphasizes on statistical analysis and numerical data

• Focuses on proving cause-and-effect relationships

Explain the difference between qualitative and quantitative research methods.

• Qualitative research methods focus on studying plants and animals, while quantitative research methods focus on studying human behavior.

• Qualitative research methods rely on numerical data and statistical analysis, while quantitative research methods focus on understanding human behavior.

• Qualitative research methods use surveys and questionnaires, while quantitative research methods use interviews and observations.

• Qualitative research methods focus on understanding human behavior and the reasons behind it, while quantitative research methods focus on numerical data and statistical analysis.

Why is problem formulation important in research?

• To waste time and resources

• To clearly define research objectives, scope, and variables

• To make the research more confusing and ambiguous

• To ensure the research is biased and unreliable

What are the main objectives of conducting research?

• To waste time and resources

• To generate new knowledge, validate existing theories, solve problems, and make informed decisions.

• To confuse people with unnecessary information

• To create chaos and uncertainty

List and explain the various sources of data collection in research.

• Surveys, interviews, observations, existing records, and experiments are the various sources of data collection in research.

• Personal opinions

• Random guessing

• Social media posts

Describe the process of analyzing data in research.

• Randomly selecting, haphazardly analyzing, blindly interpreting

• Skipping, ignoring, avoiding

• Guessing, estimating, assuming

• Organizing, cleaning, transforming, using statistical methods, visualization, and interpretation of results.

What are the advantages of using qualitative research methods?

• The advantages of using qualitative research methods include in-depth exploration, rich and detailed data, and flexibility in the research process.

• Rigid research process

• Superficial exploration

• Limited scope of data collection

What are the limitations of using quantitative research methods?

• Quantitative research methods are not suitable for studying social phenomena

• Quantitative research methods are always more accurate than qualitative methods

• Limitations of using quantitative research methods include the inability to capture the full complexity of human behavior and experiences, and reliance on numerical data which may not always provide a complete understanding of a research topic.

• Quantitative research methods are not based on empirical evidence

How does the research problem guide the selection of research methods?

• The research problem has no impact on the selection of research methods

• Research methods are chosen randomly without considering the research problem

• The research problem only affects the data collection process, not the research methods

• The research problem guides the selection of research methods by determining the specific goals and objectives of the study, which in turn help in choosing the appropriate research methods.

Explain the concept of reliability and validity in research.

• Reliability is the extent to which a research method produces inconsistent and unstable results, while validity is the extent to which a research method inaccurately measures what it is intended to measure.

• Reliability is the extent to which a research method produces consistent and stable results, while validity is the extent to which a research method accurately measures what it is intended to measure.

• Reliability is the extent to which a research method produces random and unpredictable results, while validity is the extent to which a research method accurately measures what it is not intended to measure.

• Reliability is the extent to which a research method produces biased and skewed results, while validity is the extent to which a research method accurately measures what it is intended to measure.