Research Methodology:

Research topic, title and problem

Starting your research journey with the first three steps.

By Juan-Pierré Bruwer
Table of contents

 Understanding the niche area.

 Research topic and title.
 The research problem.
 Starting your research journey.
 Conclusion.
Understanding the niche area

 A niche area is a „specific‟ area of focus, within a

field of study. An example of a niche are of the
School of Accounting at University Z reads as
follows:

“The effective management of SMMEs”

Understanding the niche area

 The niche area of the School of Accounting at

University Z reads as follows:

“The effective management of SMMEs”

When a business is effective, it performs.

When it performs, we need to measure its performance.

Performance is measured in terms of:

• Non-financial measures (survival, sustainability, etc.)
• Financial measures (profitability, liquidity, solvency, etc.)
Understanding the niche area

 The niche area of the School of Accounting at

University Z reads as follows:

“The effective management of SMMEs”

Management has to do with the Planning, Organising, Leading

and Controlling of all business components.

As soon as there is some form of measurement, you will be able to

manage (you can not manage what you can not measure).
Understanding the niche area

 The niche area of the School of Accounting at

University Z reads as follows:

“The effective management of SMMEs”

SMMEs are defined by the Small Business Act No. 102 of 1996 of
South Africa (1996) as:

“[s]eparate and distinct business entities, including co-operative

enterprises and non-governmental organisations, managed by
one owner or more which is predominantly carried on in any sector
or sub sector of the economy”.
Understanding the niche area

 From the niche area, you will need to develop a

research topic and research title.

 Research topic: An area of focus that falls within the

perimeter of a niche area, which directly relates to a
particular discipline (field of study). (e.g. SMME sustainability)

 Research title: A specialised area of focus that falls both

within the boundaries of a research (delineation) and
the perimeter of a niche area, which directly relates to a
particular discipline. (e.g. The effect of micro-economic factors on the
sustainability of SMMEs operating in the fast food industry in Cape Town)
Research title and topic

 From a soft-drink dispensation, the topic can be

seen as the “name” of a soft drink, whereas the
title is the “flavour” of a soft drink.

 Name:
Fanta (topic)

 Flavour:
Mango and Passion fruit - limited edition (title)
Research title and topic

 In essence the research topic should relate to the

niche area. Below is an example:

“The effective management of SMMEs”

60% focus 30% focus 10% focus
(performance measures) (how, what, etc.) (delineation)

 After you have come up with a suitable topic,

make it more specific so that you have a
research title. (keep in mind your field of study)
Research title and topic

 According to Watkins (2008:23) a research title

should have the following characteristics:

 Short, descriptive and to the point.

 Identify the main variables of the research.
 Allude to the area of study.
 Attract the attention and interest of the reader.
 Make academic sense.
The research problem

 Watkins (2008:35) explains that a research

problem pertains to a particular problem within
the research environment, which will form the
primary focus of a research study.
(a real-life problem which can be mitigated and/or solved)

 Remenyi, Williams, Money and Swartz (2009:46)

intonate that the research problem should be a
clear, unambiguous statement (perception) that is
relevant to the research title, research topic, the
identified niche area and respected discipline alike.
(e.g. It is perceived that SMME sustainability is adversely affected by both macro-
economic factors and micro-economic factors)
Starting your research journey

 Due to the fact that the research topic, title and

research problem is critical to start-off with a
research project, Bruwer (2012) has developed a
framework to guide students in formulating the
latter. This is the PPWF-Framework:
Starting your research journey
 Passion: A researcher should be familiar with the „basics‟ of
his/her respective discipline – in essence the researcher
needs to find five areas within his or her discipline of which
they are passionate about. The reason for this is that a
practical research project needs to be conducted over a
certain time-frame. Hence, if a researcher chooses areas
which are personally regarded as „boring‟ the research will
also tend to become very bored and enthusiasm will be
lost. A good indicator of possible „areas of passion‟ is by
taking into consideration all subjects that were done in a
previous and/or current qualification. It is of paramount
importance that these subjects chosen should „link‟ to the
relevant field of study of the researcher.
Starting your research journey
 Problem statement: Of the five identified „areas of passion‟
the best three should be „linked‟ to the identified niche
area of the School of Accounting and the discipline of the
student at hand. This „linkage‟ between the „areas of
passion‟ and the niche area is regarded as a short
paragraph where a thorough explanation of each chosen
„area of passion‟ is given. This is done to justify the intended
study to form part of the main discipline at hand, and that
it maps to the niche area. A good indicator of whether an
„area of passion‟ is appropriate for research purposes is
when it can be easily „linked‟ to the niche area and the
discipline.
Starting your research journey
 Wording the topic: After the latter, three draft problem
statements will be evident. A problem statement is a real-
life problem that exists in the practical world, which is to be
researched with the main intention to mitigate and/or
possibly solve it.

With these draft problem statements ready for use, the next
phase is to word the provisional topic adequately. It is
important to keep in mind that the provisional topic should
stem from the „linkages‟ made to the niche area and
relevant discipline. If a provisional topic is not evident from
the „linkages‟, it serves as a „sign‟ that the provisional topic
is not truly adequate.
Starting your research journey
 Formulating the research title: Lastly the research needs to
choose the best provisional topic with which a researcher
feels most comfortable with and most passionate about.

Essentially the best provisional topic is to be modified

slightly so that it reads „perfectly‟ - only one provisional
topic should be chosen to „modify‟ into a suitable research
title. It is important to ensure that the research title is very
specific (industry, geographical area, etc.).
Conclusion

 By understanding the first three steps to start-off

your research journey (through means of the
PPWF-Framework), you will be able to improve
your logical reasoning and gain confidence in
the process.
References
 Bruwer, J. 2011. Lecturing Notes on Research Methodology.
CPUT, Cape Town.

 Remenyi, D., Williams, B., Money, A. & Swartz, E. 2009. Doing

research in business and management. London: Sage.

 Watkins, J.A. 2008. Theses / Dissertations / Research Reports: a

Practical guide for students to the preparation of written
presentations of academic research. Cape Town: Content
Solutions