III.

RESEARCH METHODS

Provides an overview of the research design and methodology. Begin the

chapter with a brief description of what the chapter is all about. The common
introductory explanation is as follows:
Example: This chapter presents the discussion on the research methodology of
the study, the subjects, the research environment, sampling technique, research
instruments, procedure of data collection, and statistical treatment that will be used for
accurate data analysis and interpretation.

Research Design
This section specifies what method of research will be used – Qualitative-
Narrative, Qualitative-Ethnographic etc. Describes the overall approach to the study,
including whether it is qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods.
State that it’s a Qualitative-Phenomenology type of research, discuss what is
Qualitative and your approach such as Phenomenology then cite author.
Example: The research design that will be use in this study is Qualitative
Phenomenology research design. Phenomenology is mainly concerned about the
experiences of the individual. It is the study of experience from the perspective of the
individual, ‘bracketing’ taken-for-granted assumptions and usual ways of perceiving
(Newberry, 2011). Researchers choose this design to learn about the life of the
detainees behind bars. This attempts to set aide biases and negative impressions about
detainees. And to understand deeper the phenomena.

Research Environment
The setting of the study.
Example: The study will be conducted in the Philippines. The respondents will
be interviewed in their houses or any comfortable place that the respondents will choose
to. The researchers also gathered respondents residing in USA. These respondents will
be interviewed via video chat. The researchers chose the place of implementation
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because it will give the researchers the needed information for people with spina bifida.
The study will be conducted in the first semester of the academic year 2024-2025.
Research Participants
A distinction should be made between subjects and respondents of the study.
Subjects are persons investigated in the study. When learning abilities of pre-school are
being assessed in the study, the pre-school pupils are the subjects. The pupils’ teachers
and mothers who will be interviewed and asked to fill out a questionnaire are the
respondents of the study. Respondents, therefore, are providers of information needed
in the study, elicited orally in writing.
Discuss your target participants. It is important to state your number of subjects
or respondents and who they are. Also, explain how the number will be decided upon.
How many will be for the Interview and Focus Group. Cite author to support the number
of participants you have selected. Discuss, also the sampling method you will use in
selecting your participants, as well as your inclusion criteria/ criterion measurement.
Example: The participants of this study will be the detainees in Muntinlupa City
Jail. Particularly been in prison for at least 5 years. The researchers will select
participant that could communicate and amenable to share useful experiences regarding
their life behind bars.
Sampling Procedure
Explain what sampling procedures will be used-random, stratified, snowball, etc.-
why you used it, and what procedure will be followed to carry out the technique.
Population- including all people or items with the characteristics one wishes to
understand.
Sampling Frame- list from which the potential respondents are drawn
Sample- a smaller (but hopefully representative) collection of units from a
population used to determine truths about that population (Field, 2005).
Sampling- the process of learning about population on the basis of sample
drawn from it (refer to pdf sent on Chapter III Methodology)
Example: this study will be utilizing purposive sampling method, specifically the
maximum variation also called heterogeneous sampling.this technique allows the
researchers to select participants focusing on particular characteristics of a population
that are of intereset which will be best to answer the formulated research question. It is
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best for the identification and selection of information rich cases re;ated to the
phenomenon of interest.
Research Instruments
A research instrument is a tool used to obtain, measure, and analyze data from
subjects around the research topic. You need to decide the instrument to use based on
the type of study you are conducting: Quantitative, Qualitative, or mixed- method. It can
be Questionnaire, interview, observation, or checklist.
It is necessary to have a separate discussion for this, if several research
instruments have been utilized in the study (refer to pdf sent on Chapter III
Methodology)
Example: The research respondents will be given questionnaires, specifically a
semi-structured questionnaire that seeks response regarding to their specific personal
financial issues and their situations during new normal, and the questions are typical
societal inquiries. The guide questions that will be utilized in the study was validated by
the expert faculty members, correction and suggestions will be incorporated in the drafte
for the next stage of validation, creating high-quality questions and statement for data
gathering.

Data Gathering Procedure

Data collection is defined as the procedure of collecting, measuring, and
analyzing accurate insights for research using standard validated techniques. In most
cases, data collection is the primary and most important step for research, irrespective of
the field of research. The approach of data collection is different for different fields of
study, depending on the required information.
Clearly describe in detail the participants, the data gathering materials
(checklists, questionnaires, surveys, etc.), free and prior consent and the procedure of
gathering the research data.
Example: In gathering the data needed in this study, the researchers will
undertake the following steps:
First, the researchers conduct a preliminary interview to ensure that the selected
participants are qualified. The researcher will select detainees with at least two years
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inside the the jail. After the preliminary interview, the guide questions were validated by
external and internal validators and were given to the authorities for approval.
After the approval of the letter, the researchers will be conducting an in-depth
interview for each participant which will be accompanied by video-audio-recording. In
connection with this, the researcher will distribute the informed consent forms to all
selected research participants to attach their signature as an approval of participation in
the interview. The researcher will conduct the interview during the participants scheduled
time. Additionally, the researcher will observe the participants for a specific period to
promote triangulation. Finally, the response credibility form will be given after
transcribing and analyzing the recorded discussion. It is to assure that all the information
that will be gathered from the participants are interpreted accurately and veraciously.

Data Analysis
In qualitative research, Interpretations are made continuously throughout the
course of study.
1. Prepare and organize your data this. May mean transcribing interview or
typing up fieldnotes.
2. Review and explore your data. Examine the data for patterns or repeated
ideas that emerge.
3. Develop a data coding system. Based on your initial ideas, establish a set of
codes that you can apply to to categorize your data.
4. Assign codes to the data. For example, in qualitative survey analysis, this
may mean going through each participant's responses and tagging them with
codes in a spreadsheet. As you go through your data, you can create new
codes to add to your system if necessary.
5. Identifying recurring themes. Link codes together into cohesive overarching
themes.
There are several specific approached to analyzing qualitative data. Although
these methods share similar processes, they emphasize different concepts.
(refer to pdf sent on Chapter III Methodology)
Example: this study will be utilizing thematic analysis to know the results of the
in-depth interview. The purpose of thematic analysis is to determine patterns of meaning
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across a data set. The researchers will undergo a six-phase process which are the
familiarization of data, coding, searching for themes, reviewing the themes, defining the
themes, and writing up. The researchers chose this analysis for it focuses on human
experiences subjectively which was related to phenomenological study.

NOTE: Always use future tense in writing Chapter 3 research proposal. Past tense
if the study has been conducted. Use third person point of view.