Types of research | Different types of research

Susan White / August 18, 2019

Hello friend how are you? Today with the help of this blog I am going to put
some light on a very interesting and mind-boggling part of academics writing. I
am talking about Types of research. You read it right. Today we are going to
discuss more on this topic in a detailed manner. Research is a familiar word
for the students who are doing post-graduation or PhD. Also to all my science-
loving friends, you must be familiar with this word from a long time.

Research and science especially go hand in hand. When we talk about

science, the other word which comes in our mind is research. Research helps
in scientific discoveries. Every new medicine is a product of long research.
But the word research is now not limited to the field of science only. In almost
every discipline different types of research are present currently. Research is
a vital part of the development and discoveries of new things in all academic
subjects. From science to psychology every subject now has some and some
kind of research work in it.

So today with the help of this blog I am going to talk about:

 What Research is?

 Two main types of research

 Difference types of research and a thin line of demarcation in them

 What research is not?

 Why is research helpful to students?

What Research is?

Research is a systematic inquiry on a specific topic. When you want to get the
information on a particular topic, you take a process to enhance your
knowledge. There are different types of research out there. But it depends on
you what type you prefer.
A lot of casual researches these days begins with a Google query (“Who,
what, how?”) and you will end on a Wiki page. Getting informative data is
comparatively easy. The knowledge already exists. You just have to search a
trustworthy source for it. Assessing credibility is the hard part.

Why is research helpful to students?

This question may come to your psyche while you are in your academic
career. You often think that what is a need of doing a research work? Why
universities want us to carry out research. Then read below to find your
answer.

Answer of the question raised above

 It teaches them to inquire about things that are said and done, rather
than accepting or rejecting them at face value;

 It teaches them to gather evidence for things that are said and done,
before making decisions;

 Research teaches them how to gather that evidence, in ways that

minimize bias;

 It teaches them to consider alternatives before making decisions;

 in the process, they learn to evaluate things that are said and done
from the weaknesses and strengths of those arguments or events;

 therefore it increases the chances that their decisions are going to be

helpful/realistic ones;

 It increases the chances that any advice that the student gives will be
well-judged;

 It demonstrates that the experience of doing real-world research is

different from the idea of how that research will go into the researcher’s
imagination, and this insight is valuable. Humans are very prone to
 constructing ideas from nothing other than what is in their heads, and
being able to compare that to reality is important for living a coping life.

So I hope you got your answer to the question of why you need to carry out
research. Lots of students find research work difficult. They often get puzzled
in this and end up in vain. Some students face selecting research approach
from different types of research. To all those students I would suggest to look
out for online assignment help websites. These websites are beneficial for
students in several ways. They will provide you a well-researched research
work in quick time. Moreover, your research paper is from the hands of
the expert writer, so you do not need to think twice for it before submission.

Two main types of Research

Pure research is carried out to generate new human knowledge. To uncover

new facts or fundamental principles you need pure research. The researcher
wants to advance in a specific field, for example, neuroscience, by answering
a specific question, such as “Why do humans sleep?” Pure research is based
on experimentation and observation. The results of your research are
published in peer-reviewed journals. This is science. Rigorous standards and
methodologies exist to preserve objectivity and ensure the credibility of
conclusions. (Things get squishy when corporations fund ostensibly pure
research, as they frequently do.)

Applied research borrows ideas and techniques from pure research to serve

a specific real-world goal. Goals are like creating a super soldier or improving
the quality of hospital care or finding new ways to market any product. While
ethics are as important,  and methods can be more relaxed. By this, I meant
changing the questions you ask while doing a study, or making the most of an
imperfect sample group because you’re tight on time. Your research is
successful only to the extent that it adds to the stated goal. As with pure
research, sometimes you accidentally discover something valuable you
weren’t even looking for, and that’s a fantastic bonus.
Different types of research and a thin line of demarcation in them

So now you have understood about two main types of research in the above
paragraph. But that is not enough. There are further types of research
presentations. You may say these are the subdivision of above-mentioned
types. Now you will learn about different types of research and basic
difference in them.

Generative vs. exploratory research

This is the research you do before you know what you’re doing. This research
leads to ideas and helps in defining the problem. Don’t think of this as just the
earliest research. Even if you’re working on a current product or service, you
might be looking for ideas. You need ideas for additional features. Generative
research includes interviews, reviewing existing literature, and field
observation,

Exploratory research, as the name says, intends to explore the research

questions. It does not make to give conclusive or final solutions for the
existing problems. Exploratory research is conducted with an aim to study a
problem that does not have any solution yet.

The research is done in order to understand the nature of the problem. It is

not done to provide conclusive evidence. But it helps in the better
understanding of the problem.  When a researcher conducts exploratory
research, he/she should be willing to change his/her direction when new data
reveals.

Exploratory research never gives you the final or conclusive answers to your
research questions. But it explores the research topic on different levels. It
has been seen that exploratory research is an initial stage of research.
Exploratory research provides a basis of conclusive research. It will help in
making of research design, sampling methodology and data collection
method. Exploratory research tackles new problems on which no research
has been done.

Descriptive vs. Analytical

Descriptive research consists of surveys and fact-finding inquiries of various
kinds. The major reason to carry out descriptive research is describing the
state of affairs as it exists at present. When we do descriptive result in social
science and business research, we use the term Ex post facto research for
descriptive research work. The main feature of this method is that the
researcher doesn’t have control over the variables; he can only report things
like what has happened or what is happening.

Most of the ex post facto research projects are made for descriptive studies.
In these studies, the researcher seeks to measure items. Examples are;
frequency of shopping, preferences of people, or similar data. Ex post facto
studies also count attempts by researchers to discover causes, even when
controlling variables is out of their hands. The methods of research use for
descriptive research are survey methods of every kind. It includes
comparative and co-relational methods. Whereas, in analytical research,
Research use facts or already available information. He critically evaluates
and analyzes the material.

Applied vs. Fundamental

Research can be of two types. One is applied (or action) research. Second is
fundamental (to basic or pure) research. Applied research works by finding a
solution for an immediate problem. These problems are faced by society or by
industry whereas fundamental research is primarily concerned with the
formulation of a theory. “Gathering knowledge for knowledge’s sake is termed
‘pure’ or ‘basic’ research.” Research which is more concerned with a natural
phenomenon or relating to pure mathematics is fundamental research. Those
research studies which are based on human behavior are also examples of
fundamental research.

But applied research is based at conclusions. These conclusions are facing a

concrete social or business problem. Applied research is to identify social,
economic or political trends. These trends may affect a particular institution or
copy research or marketing research. Thus, the basic aim of applied research
is to find a solution to practical problems. Fundamental research is for finding
information that has a broad base of applications. It is an add-on to the
already existing scientific knowledge.

Quantitative vs. Qualitative

Quantitative research is recognized by its name. It is the measurement of

quantity or amount. It is applicable to all things which we can measure in
terms of quantity. Qualitative research is simply means quality. Something
related to or involving quality or kind is qualitative research. For example,
when we investigate the reason behind human behavior. This type of
research is to discover underlying motives and desires, using in-depth
interviews for the purpose. Other techniques of such research are sentence
completion tests, word association tests, story completion tests.

Attitude or opinion research is also an example of kinds of qualitative

research. Other examples are how people feel about a particular institution.
Behavioral science has an important place for qualitative research. The aim of
this research type is to discover the motives of human behavior. Through
these researches, we can analyze the factors affecting behavior. This will
further help in to motivate people to behave in a proper manner.

Conceptual research vs. Empirical research

Conceptual research is related to some abstract ideas or theory. It is mostly

used by thinkers and philosophers to develop new concepts or to reinterpret
existing ones. On the other hand, empirical research relies on experience or
observation alone, often without due regard for system and theory. It is data-
based research, coming up with conclusions which are capable of being
verified by observation or experiment.

We can also call it as an experimental type of research; in such research, it is

necessary to get the facts first, at their source, and actively to go about doing
certain things to stimulate the production of desired information. In such
research, the researcher must first provide himself with a working hypothesis
or guess as to the probable results. He then works to get enough facts (data)
to prove or disprove his hypothesis. He then sets up experimental designs
which he thinks will manipulate the persons or the materials concerned so as
to bring forth the desired information.
 Such research is thus characterized by the experimenter’s control over the
variables under study and his deliberate manipulation of one of them to study
its effects. Empirical research is appropriate when the proof is sought that
certain variables affect other variables in some way. Evidence that is gathered
through empirical studies or experiments, is today considered to be the most
powerful support possible for a given hypothesis.

When a student begins his research work, he often does not pay attention to
different types of research. In my opinion, selecting a particular research type
from types mentioned above of research is of vital importance. You cannot
neglect your research work and get away with it. If you find difficulty in doing
research, you can get in touch with our Australian assignment experts for
academic writing.

Traits of researcher

1.  An analytical mind

As a market researcher you are constantly analysing a variety of factors. Why does the
client ultimately want to do this research? What is the appropriate methodology? When
should this research take place? What are the appropriate questions to ask and how?
Why did the respondent say that? What are the findings telling us? Why are they telling
us that? How do I best communicate the findings? etc. On a daily basis researchers must
be able to take a step back and analyse the situation presented to them. The obvious
answer is not necessarily the right one” (Gareth Hodgson)

“You have to be able to see the bigger picture as well as the detail. People often find it
easier to do one or the other- it is a skilled researcher that can do both simultaneously”
(Richard Walker)

2.   A people person

“This is important for clients –buyers of research would rather work with professional
AND friendly consultants. Also for respondents – to get the best out of interview / focus
group participants” (Richard Walker)
3. The ability to stay calm

“It can be really stressful as a researcher sometimes, especially when you have pressing
deadlines or are experiencing problems with a data set, for example. When these situations
occur, you just have to keep focused and think logically – there will always be an end
point, even if it doesn’t feel like it!” (Bethan Turner)

4. Intelligence

“Research requires critical analysis but most of all common sense” (Liz Brierley)

5. Curiosity

“You may have the necessary intelligence but if you are not curious enough then you
won’t be passionate about delving deeper to unearth more insight” (Anthony Shephard)

“At the end of the day, the role of a market researcher is to find out about other people’s
business and tell it to other people. To be a market researcher you have to have an inherent
interest in what other people think (potentially about absolutely anything!), and the nosier
you are, the greater depth of information you can extract” (Gareth Hodgson)

6. Quick thinker

“Things don’t always go to plan so you need to be able to think fast” (Anthony Shephard)
7. Commitment

“It’s a tough job – the hours can be long, the deadlines short” (Richard Walker)

8. Excellent written and verbal communication skills

“So different audiences can clearly understand the findings of the research and what it
means for them” (Jo Iaconianni)

“You have to have excellent written communications and be fluent in the language of
business” (Richard Walker)

9. Sympathetic

“Having a sympathetic ear when listening to some respondents’ moans and groans is
always a good skill to have!” (Liz Brierley

10. Systematic

“Check, check and check again. It sounds simple but I’ve definitely learnt that building in
a proper amount of time for checking your work always pays dividends. This can be
applied to all parts of the research process” (Bethan Turner)

“Attention to detail – the ability to ensure that data is accurately presented and reported”
(Anthony Shephard)
 Types of Research
How do we know something exists? There are a numbers of ways of
knowing…

 -Sensory Experience
 -Agreement with others
 -Expert Opinion
 -Logic
 -Scientific Method (we’re using this one)

The Scientific Process (replicable)

Identify a problemDefinitions of research:

There are several definitions of research, proposed by famous authors and scholars of their time. You will
find out that the basic meaning and the context of these definitions are same. The difference between these
definitions lies only in the way the author has undertaken research in his discipline.

1. Research comprises “creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock
of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of knowledge to
devise new applications.”[1]
2. Scientific research is a systematic way of gathering data, a harnessing of curiosity. This research
provides scientific information and theories for the explanation of the nature and the properties of the
world. 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. Scientific
research is a widely used criterion for judging the standing of an academic institution, such as business
schools, but some argue that such is an inaccurate assessment of the institution, because the quality of
research does not tell about the quality of teaching (these do not necessarily correlate totally).[2]
3. A broad definition of research is given by Martyn Shuttleworth – “In the broadest sense of the
word, the definition of research includes any gathering of data, information and facts for the advancement
of knowledge.”[3]
4. Another definition of research is given by Creswell who states that – “Research is a process of
steps used to collect and analyze information to increase our understanding of a topic or issue”. It consists
of three steps: Pose a question, collect data to answer the question, and present an answer to the question.
[4]

1.
2. Clarify the problem
3. Determine what data would help solve the problem
4. Organize the data
5. Interpret the results
General Types of Educational Research

 Descriptive — survey, historical, content analysis, qualitative

(ethnographic, narrative, phenomenological, grounded theory, and
case study)
 Associational — correlational, causal-comparative
 Intervention — experimental, quasi-experimental, action research (sort
of)

Researchers Sometimes Have a Category Called Group Comparison

 Ex Post Facto (Causal-Comparative): GROUPS ARE ALREADY

FORMED
 Experimental: RANDOM ASSIGNMENT OF INDIVIDUALS
 Quasi-Experimental: RANDOM ASSIGNMENT OF GROUPS
(oversimplified, but fine for now)

General Format of a Research Publication

 Background of the Problem (ending with a problem statement) — Why

is this important to study? What is the problem being investigated?
 Review of Literature — What do we already know about this problem or
situation?
 Methodology (participants, instruments, procedures) — How was the
study conducted? Who were the participants? What data were
collected and how?
 Analysis — What are the results? What did the data indicate?
 Results — What are the implications of these results? How do they
agree or disagree with previous research? What do we still need to
learn? What are the limitations of this study?