How to Start a Research Project Dr. Pamela Catton, MD, MHPE, FRCPC Ms. Caroline Davey, MRT(T), AC(T), BSc(Hons) Mr. James Catton, MA February 2013 HOW TO GET STARTED For the research-beginner, a research project may sometimes feel like an overwhelming task, a voyage into a daunting and unknown frontier. At other times, it may feel like you are simply rehashing what has been said and done many times before. These feelings are quite normal for the novice researcher to experience. Ultimately, a research project attempts to fit data together, into view hidden or unknown concepts, and to link relationships to observed events. Therefore, a good researcher must constantly engage in a process of educated guesswork, modification of ideas, suggestion, and defense of the facts. To meet these criteria, researchers must have the following abilities: 1. To analyze in creative and disciplined ways 2. To question astutely and 3. To be persistent in the pursuit of answers. The nature of research is such that many problems can affect the accuracy of the findings. For example, the following are but a few problems that must be avoided at all costs. a. b. c. d. Failure to follow experimental procedures Mis-recording data Poor analysis of the data and Researcher bias We want to provide you with a helpful guide, with examples to set you out on the right path at the beginning and to help you avoid known pitfalls when first entering the world of research. We also would like to guide you through the process to the point of writing a research proposal. From experience, it appears that the research process (as a whole) can be divided into a number of steps: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Identify a research problem Perform a literature search Organize a research tem Develop a research strategy Write the research proposal Generate the data Analyze the data Write the report For the purposes of this guide, we will deal with the first five (5) steps only. February 2013 WHAT IS RESEARCH? Although many people have a sense of what research involves, very few can give a satisfactory definition of what it is. The research process takes information about a subject that has existed before and looks at it in new and innovative ways. There are four key elements to this process: 1. Discovery: Your research discovers new information and adds it to the academic world. 2. Integration: Your research integrates disparate views in creative ways. This feature involves relationships, interpreting and linking ideas across disciplinary boundaries. 3. Application: Your research applies information from one area to another. Making theories applicable to other settings and populations is the major purpose behind research in general. 4. Dissemination: Your research findings, generally speaking, are to be disseminated (e.g. to teach and/or to publish). Because the findings are generally distributed for others to use, the rules of research scholarship are quite strict, and written publications are quite often peer reviewed. Perhaps we can define research in this way: research attempts to see what everybody has seen, but to think what nobody has thought. The process of research has evolved over the years and is now generally described as fitting into one of two broad categories: quantative and qualitative. Quantitative Research: Quantitative research seeks causes and facts from an objective, “world-view” perspective. Findings are based on the researcher’s interpretations of the observed phenomena rather than on the subject’s interpretations of events. Investigations are directed at analyzing relationships between selected factors so that causality can be explained, so the relationship between variables will be generalizable and predictable in all settings, at all times. Here are some characteristics of quantitative research: - It identifies all constructs, concepts and hypotheses before data collection. It organizes numerical relationships between variables after data collection. It has a major concern for rigor and replication. It controls bias by randomly selecting a large sample of the representative population. It emphasizes the collection of numerical data and the statistical analysis of hypotheses. February 2013 Qualitative Research: Qualitative research, on the other hand, has an alternative view of reality than quantitative research. It is a view that stresses the importance of social processes, subjective experience and with meaning attributed to social situations. Therefore, qualitative research is works from a “native’s point of view” (e.g. patient, caregiver, relative). In qualitative inquiry, the researcher examines the data for patterns concepts, and relationships between variables, and then it returns to the setting to collect data and hypotheses. Thus qualitative research builds theory inductively over a period of time. Here are a few characteristics of qualitative research: - It is used for problems where little is known about the topic. It operates in a natural setting. It accounts for the social, cultural and historical aspects of the setting. It is flexible and permits modifications of the research and/or techniques. It collects data and analyzes data simultaneously. IDENTIFY A REASEARCH PROBLEM The hardest part of any creative process is getting started. Staring at a blank sheet of paper and imagining the long road that lies ahead can be quite overwhelming. To impose some order on this uncertainty, it is first necessary to clearly identify a research problem that will be for you both interesting and feasible to do. This first question he researcher-beginner must ask is always “What am I going to study?” Knowing how to effectively choose a research area can prevent a great deal of wasted time pursuing dead-ends. The most important thing to remember is that questions do not magically appear out of a vacuum, they evolve out of reviewing many related ideas. The following steps are a guide to help you generate new ideas and formulate a workable research topic: 1. - Answer these questions to generate possible topics that might interest you: What articles catch my eye in the library? What subjects do I think or talk about in general conversation? What unique experiences have I had in clinical practice? What experiences have forced me to re-evaluate ideas about appropriate care? What recommendations of patient care do I have that are not in agreement with current practice? 2. Investigate a subject about which you are either an authority or are able to access a wide variety of published material. Follow these guidelines: - Stay away from subjects based on research that is sketchy, inconclusive or too far removed to obtain up-to-date material. February 2013 - Consider (time permitting) as many topics as you can. Look at dissertations/articles in the library. Seek consultation from your colleagues or fellow students. 3. Select a subject that can be investigated within a reasonable time frame and is feasible”: - Choose a topic that is narrow and specific rather than broad and general. “Breast Irradiation” is too vast a subject and fails to suggest a particular focus. However, “The Management of Acute Skin Reactions from Tangential Breast Irradiation” is more focused and useful. - Don’t make a decision about a topic until the groundwork is done. - Draw up a first thoughts list to see what needs to be focused and clarified. - Read enough to know that you are on the right track. 4. Formulate a preliminary hypothesis and fine-tune the emphasis of your study. Even a tentative hypothesis focuses the project by providing the researcher a guide to test the original hunch. This guide will help you organize facts, limit note taking and eliminate needless background study. Here is a list of steps to follow: - Clarify the aims and objectives of your study. - Make a list of hunches setting down where the answers to the question might go. - Revise and refine your hypothesis as you continue to develop your ideas. - Draw up an initial project outline. - Devise a timetable to check that all stages will be covered; allow time for writing up the results. - Consult an expert to ensure everything is OK. DEVELOP A RESEARCH STRAREGY Selecting a Method: Quantitative or Qualitative? The researcher should choose a research method according to the nature of the problem and what is known about the phenomena to be studied: Nature and Purpose of the Study The nature and the purpose of the study will determine whether qualitative or quantitative methods are necessary. Also, factors like time, availability of external resources and expertise of the researcher can affect whether quantitative or qualitative methods will be used. February 2013 Maturity of the Concept Keep these questions in mind to determine if quantitative or qualitative research is most suitable: a. How much information is available on the subject? (a lot = quantitative; a little = qualitative) b. Large amount of information that is biased or unverified (qualitative) c. Concept wishes to describe a situation or to understand a person or event (qualitative) d. Research question is a stated hypothesis seeking to demonstrate a relationship between two or more variables (quantitative) Constraints There are certain constraints that determine whether quantitative or qualitative methodology will be chosen. For example, are the subjects literate or do they speak another language? What about their age and sex? If the subjects are from another culture, maybe a quantitative questionnaire will be culturally biased and a qualitative questionnaire will be necessary. Researcher Characteristics To a great extent, the method chosen is a product of the researcher. The background knowledge and capabilities of the researcher will decide whether quantitative or qualitative methods will be chosen. Qualitative and Quantitative Research Can Have Many Approaches Library Research Research that collects ideas, theories and reported empirical data within the context of the library and analysis and integrate your findings to illustrate an established conceptual framework. Problem-Solving Research Research that tries to solve a problem in the “real-world”. Exploratory Research Research that takes a problem in which little is known. The goal here is the development and clarification of ideas and the formulation of questions and hypotheses, for more precise subsequent investigation. February 2013 Descriptive Research Research that describes certain characteristics of populations. These approaches take the form of social surveys that seek relationships about variables. Experimental Research Research that establishes the validity of casual theories by testing them experimentally. Action Research Research that involves carefully monitored observation and study to try and solve a problem or to change a situation. Research is directed towards a greater understanding and improvement of practice over a period of time. This means that the step-by-step process is constantly monitored by a variety of mechanisms so that the feedback can be translated into modifications, adjustments and directional changes. Beginning Data Collection When you have decided on a topic, refined it and specified its objectives, then you are in a position to collect the evidence. Before you can decide what is the best way to collect the information, it is helpful to keep in mind a few potential problems that might affect the datagathering process: - How much time, money and resources are available? What is the timing and number of meetings that must take place in the study? Are the subjects willing to participate in the study? How reliable and valid are the data gathering techniques? A note on reliability and validity: Data collection methods should always be examined critically to assess if it is reliable and valid: - - Reliability is the extent to which a test or a procedure produces similar results every time. For example, a question that will produce one type of answer one day and another the next day is unreliable. Ask yourself, in a questionnaire, would two interviewers get the same results of they conducted separate interviews? Validity tells us whether an item measures or described what it is supposed to measure or describe. To ensure validity: o Ask yourself whether another researcher would likely get the same results February 2013 o Tell other people (colleagues, pilot respondents, fellow students) what you are trying to find out and whether the questions or items are likely to do the job. February 2013