How to write a research

methodology

Prepared
by:

Prof.

Fathi Omar Hareb

12/22/2024 1
 How to write a research methodology

In your thesis or dissertation, you will have to discuss the methods you
used to do your research. The methodology or methods section
explains what you did and how you did it, allowing readers to evaluate
the reliability and validity of the research. It should include:
 The type of research you did
 How you collected your data
 How you analyzed your data
Any tools or materials you used in the research
Your rationale for choosing these methods
The methodology section should generally be written in the past tense
 Table of contents
1. Explain your methodological approach
2. Describe your methods of data collection
3. Describe your methods of analysis
4. Evaluate and justify your methodological choi
ces
5. Tips for writing a strong methodology
6. Frequently asked questions about methodolo
gy
 Step 1: Explain your methodological approach

Begin by introducing your overall approach to the research. What

research problem or question did you investigate, and what kind of data did you
need to answer it?
Quantitative methods (e.g. surveys) are best for measuring, ranking, categorizing,

identifying patterns and making generalizations

Qualitative methods (e.g. interviews) are best for describing, interpreting,

contextualizing, and gaining in-depth insight into specific concepts or phenomena

Mixed methods allow for a combination of numerical measurement and in-depth

exploration

Depending on your discipline and approach, you might also begin with a discussion
of the rationale and assumptions underpinning your methodology.
 Was your aim to address a practical or a theoretical research problem?
Why is this the most suitable approach to answering your research questions?
Is this a standard methodology in your field or does it require justification?
Were there any ethical or philosophical considerations?
What are the criteria for validity and reliability in this type of research?
In a quantitative experimental study, you might aim to produce generalizable
knowledge about the causes of a phenomenon. Valid research requires a carefully
designed study with a representative sample and controlled variables that can be
replicated by other researchers.In a qualitative ethnographic case study, you might
aim to produce contextual real-world knowledge about the behaviors, social
structures and shared beliefs of a specific group of people. As this methodology is
less controlled and more interpretive, you will need to reflect on your position as
researcher, taking into account how your participation and perception might have
influenced the results.
 Step 2: Describe your methods of data
collection
Once you have introduced your overall methodological
approach, you should give full details of the
research methods you used. Outline the tools, procedures
and materials you used to gather data, and the criteria
you used to select participants or sources.
 1. Quantitative methods Surveys

Describe where, when and how the survey was conducted.

How did you design the questions and what form did they
take (e.g. multiple choice, rating scale)?
What sampling method did you use to select participants?
Did you conduct surveys by phone, mail, online or in
person, and how long did participants have to respond?
What was the sample size and response rate?

You might want to include the full questionnaire as an appendix

so that your reader can see exactly what data was collected.
 2. Experiments

Give full details of the tools, techniques and procedures you

used to conduct the experiment.
How did you design the experiment?
How did you recruit participants?
How did you manipulate and measure the variables?
What tools or technologies did you use in the
experiment?
In experimental research, it is especially important to give
enough detail for another researcher to reproduce your results.
 3. Existing data
Explain how you gathered and selected material (such as publications or archival data)
for inclusion in your analysis.
Where did you source the material?

How was the data originally produced?

What criteria did you use to select material (e.g. date range)?

Quantitative methods exampleThe survey consisted of 5 multiple-choice questions and

10 questions that the respondents had to answer with a 7-point Likert scale. The aim
was to conduct the survey with 350 customers of Company X on the company premises
in The Hague from 4-8 July 2017 between 11:00 and 15:00. A customer was defined as a
person who had purchased a product from Company X on the day of questioning.
Participants were given 5 minutes to fill in the survey anonymously, and 408 customers
responded. Because not all surveys were fully completed, 371 survey results were
included in the analysis.
 4. Qualitative methods

Interviews or focus groups



Describe where, when and how the interviews were conducted.

 How did you find and select participants?

 How many people took part?

 What form did the interviews take (structured, semi-structured,

unstructured)?

 How long were the interviews and how were they recorded?
 5. Participant observation

Describe where, when and how you conducted the observation.

What group or community did you observe and how did
you gain access to them?
How long did you spend conducting the research and
where was it located?
How did you record your data (e.g. audiovisual recordings,
note-taking)?
 6. Existing data

Explain how you selected case study materials (such as texts or images) for the focus of your
analysis.
 What type of materials did you analyze?
 How did you collect and select them?

Qualitative methods exampleIn order to gain a better insight into the possibilities for
improvement of the product range, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8
returning customers from the main target group of Company X. A returning customer was
defined as someone who usually bought products at least twice a week from Company X. The
surveys were used to select participants who belonged to the target group (20-45 years old).
Interviews were conducted in a small office next to the cash register, and lasted
approximately 20 minutes each. Answers were recorded by note-taking, and seven interviews
were also filmed with consent. One interviewee preferred not to be filmed.
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 Step 3: Describe your methods of analysis

Next, you should indicate how you processed and analyzed the data. Avoid going into too much detail—

you should not start presenting or discussing any of your results at this stage.

Quantitative methods

In quantitative research, your analysis will be based on numbers. In the methods section you might

include:

How you prepared the data before analyzing it (e.g. checking for missing data, removing outliers,
transforming variables)

Which software you used to analyze the data (e.g. SPSS or Stata)

Which statistical methods you used (e.g. two-tailed t-test, simple linear regression)

Quantitative methods exampleBefore analysis the gathered data was prepared. The dataset was

checked for missing data and outliers. For this the “outlier labeling rule” was used. All values outside

the calculated range were considered outliers (Hoaglin & Iglewicz, 1987). The data was then analyzed

using statistical software SPSS.

 1. Qualitative methods

In qualitative research, your analysis will be based on language, images and observations

(often involving some form of textual analysis). Specific methods might include:

Content analysis: categorizing and discussing the meaning of words, phrases and

sentences

Thematic analysis: coding and closely examining the data to identify broad themes and

patterns

Discourse analysis: studying communication and meaning in relation to their social

context

Qualitative methods exampleThe interviews were transcribed and thematic analysis was

conducted. This involved coding all the data before identifying and reviewing six key

themes. Each theme was examined to gain an understanding of participants’ perceptions

and motivations.
 Step 4: Evaluate and justify your methodological choices

Your methodology should make the case for why you chose these particular methods,

especially if you did not take the most standard approach to your topic. Discuss why

other methods were not suitable for your objectives, and show how this approach

contributes new knowledge or understanding.

You can acknowledge limitations or weaknesses in the approach you chose, but justify

why these were outweighed by the strengths.

Lab-based experiments can’t always accurately simulate real-life situations and

behaviors, but they are effective for testing causal relationships between variables.

Unstructured interviews usually produce results that cannot be generalized beyond

the sample group, but they provide a more in-depth understanding of participants’

perceptions, motivations and emotions.

Step 5:Tips for writing a strong methodology

Remember that your aim is not just to describe

your methods, but to show how and why you

applied them and to demonstrate that your

research was rigorously conducted.

 Focus on your objectives and research questions

The methodology section should clearly show why your

methods suit your objectives and convince the reader that
you chose the best possible approach to answering your
problem statement and research questions. Throughout the
section, relate your choices back to the central purpose of
your dissertation.
 Cite relevant sources

Your methodology can be strengthened by reference to existing

research in the field, either to:

Confirm that you followed established practices for this type of research

Discuss how you evaluated different methodologies and decided on

your approach

Show that you took a novel methodological approach to address a gap

in the literature

Our free citation generators can help you to create MLA citations and

APA citations.
 Write for your audience
Consider how much information you need to give, and don’t go into unnecessary
detail. If you are using methods that are standard for your discipline, you probably
don’t need to give lots of background or justification. But if you take an approach that
is less common in your field, you might need to explain and justify your
methodological choices.
In either case, your methodology should be a clear, well-structured text that makes an
argument for your approach, not just a list of technical details and procedures.

Discuss obstacles
If you encountered difficulties in collecting or analyzing data, explain how you dealt
with them. Show how you minimized the impact of any unexpected obstacles. Pre-
empt any major critiques of your approach and demonstrate that you made the
research as rigorous as possible.
 Step 6: Frequently asked questions about
methodology

What’s the difference between method and me

thodology?
Where does the methodology section go in a re
search paper?
What’s the difference between quantitative an
d qualitative methods?
 Reference

Shona McCombes. “How to write a research methodology”

published February 25, 2019 updated: February 19, 2020

 See References of the Lecture “How to structure a dissertation”

12/22/2024 22
 The End

See
you

in the next
12/22/2024 lecture 23