Research Methods in

Information Systems
Introduction

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

 Outline
 Definition
 The Scientific method
 Characteristics of research
 Benefits/significance of research
 Types of research
 Theory and hypothesis in research
 Ethical issues in research

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 Definitions
 What is research?
 A search for knowledge
 A scientific and systematic search for significant
information on a specific topic
 A careful investigation through search for new
facts in any branch of knowledge
 A voyage of discovery – and so on.

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 Cont’d…
 “If I have seen further it is by standing on
the shoulders of giants” Isaac Newton
 A Scientific Research is one that:
 contributes to a body of science, and
 follows the scientific method

 Scientific research operates at two levels:

 The theoretical level
 The empirical level

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 Cont’d…
 The theoretical level is concerned with
developing abstract concepts about a
natural or social phenomenon and
relationships between those concepts.
 the empirical level is concerned with
testing the theoretical concepts to see
how well they match with observations.

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 Cont’d…
 The cycle of research

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 The Scientific method
 Scientific method refers to a standardized set
of techniques for building scientific
knowledge, such as how to make valid
observations, how to interpret results, and
how to generalize those results.
 It allows researchers to independently and
impartially test preexisting theories and prior
findings, and subject them to open debate,
modifications, or enhancements.

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 Cont’d…
 Four characteristics of the scientific method are:
 Replicability: others should be able to replicate the study
and obtain similar results
 Precision: theoretical concepts must be defined with
precision
 Falsifiability: a theory must be stated in a way that it can be
disproven
 Parsimonious: out of multiple explanations of a
phenomenon, the simplest or the one with the most logically
economical explanation should be accepted. This is also
known as “Occam’s razor”

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 Natural Science, Social Science and
Design Science
 “A natural science is a body of knowledge
regarding a class of beings—objects or
phenomena—of the world …”
(Simon 1996, p. 01).
 The main research activities involving the
natural sciences are to discover how things are
and to justify the reasons for them being so.

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 Cont’d…
 “Social sciences seek to describe, understand, and
reflect on human beings and their actions …”
(Romme 2003)
 Both research works supported by the social
sciences and those founded on the natural sciences
have as their mission the search for the truth, and
their goals are to describe, explain, and predict to
advance the knowledge in a given area (Denyer et al.
2008).

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 Cont’d…
 Design Science is the science of the
artificial.
 Design science researches have
prescription of solutions to problems as
their objective.

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Cont’d…

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 Research Characteristics
1. Originates with a question or problem.
2. Requires clear articulation of a goal.
3. Follows a specific plan or procedure.
4. Often divides main problem into subproblems.
5. Guided by specific problem, question, or hypothesis.
6. Accepts certain critical assumptions.
7. Requires collection and interpretation of data.
8. Research is, by its nature, cyclical or, more exactly, helical
 (1) Originates with a question or problem
 Originates with a question in the mind of the researcher.
 The world is filled with unanswered questions, unresolved
problems.
 Things that cause us to wonder, to speculate, to ask
questions.
 Igniting a chain reaction that terminates in the research
process.
 Inquisitive mind is the beginning of research.
 Do not know, do not understand.
 Why? What’s the cause of that? What does it all mean?

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(2) Requires clear articulation of a goal
 Cannot proceed without a clear articulation of a goal.
 A clear, unambiguous statement of the problem.
 An exercise in intellectual honesty.
 Must set forth in a grammatically complete sentence
exactly what the ultimate goal of the research
 Basic for the success.
 Without it, research is on shaky ground.

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 (3) Requires a specific plan for proceeding
 Requires a specific plan of procedure/method
 A carefully planned search-and-discover
mission that is explicitly planned.
 Logically designed.

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 (4) Principal research problem usually is
made of many subproblems
 In many cases it has sub problems/dividing it into more
manageable subareas.
 Whole is composed of the sum of its parts.
 We break down much more frequently than we realize.
 To proceed logically, should closely inspect the principal
problem to cause the natural floating of the appropriate
and necessary subproblems.
 Researchers who take neither the time nor the trouble
to isolate the lesser problems would find their research
projects as cumbersome and unwieldy.

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(5) Guided by specific questions or hypothesis
 Seeks direction through appropriate hypotheses based
upon logical suppositions or RQ
 Each of the subproblems is then viewed through a
construct called a hypothesis.
 Logical supposition, reasonable guess, an educated
conjecture.
 Direct your thinking to the possible source of facts that will
aid in resolving the research problem.
 They are constant, recurring features of everyday life.
 Natural working of the human mind.
 After the hypotheses, comes facts.
 Greatest discoveries begun as hypotheses.
 Over time, as particular hypotheses are supported by a growing
body of data, they evolve into theories.
 A theory is an organized and matured body of concepts and
principles intended to explain a particular phenomenon.
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 (6) Accepts critical assumptions
 Assumptions are equivalent to axioms in geometry
 Assumptions are bedrock upon which the research rests
 Essential that others know
 Vitally important in judging the quality of the research
 Distinction between a hypothesis and an assumption.
 Assumption is a condition that is taken for granted, without
which the research situation would be impossible.
 Assumptions are self-evident conditions.
 For the beginning researcher, it is better to be over-explicit than
to take too much for granted

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(7) Requires collection and interpretation of data
 Deals with facts and their meaning.
 Next step is to collect whatever facts seem
appropriate and to organize them in meaningful
ways so that they can be interpreted.
 Only facts, events, happenings, observations-
nothing more.
 The significance of the data depends upon the way
in which the human brain extracts meaning from
those data.
 Unprocessed data are worthless in research.
 Data demands interpretation.

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(8) Research is, by its nature, cyclical
or, more exactly, helical
 Is circular
 The research process follows a cycle and begins simply and
follows logical, developmental steps.
1. A questioning mind observes a particular situation and
asks, Why? What caused that? How come? (Subjective
origin of research.)
2. One question becomes formally stated as a problem. (Overt
beginning of research.)
3. The problem is divided into several simpler, more specific
sub-problems.
4. Preliminary data are gathered that appear to shed some
light on the problem.
5. The data seem to point to a tentative solution of the
problem. A guess is made; a hypothesis or guiding question
is formed.

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 Cont…

6. Data are collected, processed, and interpreted.

7. A discovery is made; a conclusion is reached.
8. The tentative hypothesis is either supported by the
data or is not; the question is either answered
(partially or completely) or not answered.
9. The cycle is complete.

This is the format of all research.

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 Cont…
 Circle is, however, deceptive.
 Accurately helix, or spiral is what describes the research
better.
 One comes across additional problems.
 Research begets research.
 Dynamic quality.
 NOT One-time act (static), self-contained, an end in
itself.
 Genuine research creates more problems than it
resolves.
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 What makes people do
research
 Desire to solve challenges in solving the unsolved
problems
 Desire to get a research degree and its benefits
 Desire to formulate appropriate policies
 Desire to contribute to the existing body of knowledge
 Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creative work
 Desire to be of service to the society
 Curiosity about new things
 Direction from government
 ……

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 Benefit/significance of Research
 Research is the fountain of knowledge and an
important source for providing guidelines for
solving different business, governmental and
social problems. Therefore,
 To analysts and intellectuals, research may mean the
generalizations of new theories;
 To philosophers and thinkers, research may mean the outlet
for new ideas and insights;
 To those students who are to write a thesis, it is a way to attain
a high position in the social structure;
 To professionals in research methodology, it is a source of
livelihood;
 ….

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Types of Research

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 Based on Purpose
 Exploratory:
 Descriptive
 Explanatory

 Exploratory: is conducted with the goal of:

 scoping out the magnitude or extent of a particular
phenomenon, problem, or behavior,
 generating some initial ideas (or “hunches”) about that
phenomenon, and
 to test the feasibility of undertaking a more extensive
study regarding that phenomenon.

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 Cont’d..
 Descriptive: is directed at making careful observation
and detailed documentation of a phenomenon of
interest.
 Explanatory: seeks explanations of observed
phenomena, problems, or behaviors.
 While descriptive research examines the what,
where, and when of a phenomenon, explanatory
research seeks answers to why and how types of
questions. It attempts to identify causal factors and
outcomes of the target phenomenon.

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 Cont..
 Applied vs. Fundamental:
 Applied research aims at finding a solution for an immediate problem
facing a society or an industrial/business organization.
 Usually conducted in an organizational context
 Developing a SW that converts word files into database
format
 Innovating new way in doing payroll processing by a
computer
 Developing a program that copies files from a computer to a
mobile phone
 Fundamental research is mainly concerned with generalizations and
with the formulation of a theory
 Usually conducted in an academic context
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 Cont’d..
 Quantitative vs. Qualitative:
 Quantitative research is based on the measurement
of amount/quantity.
 Qualitative research is concerned with quality or
kind.
 Conceptual vs. Experimental (or Empirical):
 Conceptual research is used by philosophers to
develop new concepts or to reinterpret existing
ones.
 Empirical research is data-based research which
can be verified by observation or experiment.

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 Cont…
 Behavioral Vs Design research (IT related)
 Design Science
Studies artificial objects or phenomena
designed to meet certain goals
 Behavioral
Studies the decision processes and
communication strategies within and
between organisms in a social system (IT
users vs IT artifacts)
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 Cont…
 Some Other Types of Research:
 Based on Time => cross-sectional research
or longitudinal research.
 Based on the environment=> field-setting
research or laboratory research or
simulation research.
 Based on orientation=> conclusion-oriented
and decision-oriented

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Theory and Hypothesis
in research

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 Theory
 A theory consists of a coherent set of general
propositions that offer an explanation of some
phenomena by describing the way other
things correspond to this phenomena.
 Put another way, a theory is a formal, testable
explanation of some events that includes
explanations of how things relate to one
another.

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 Concepts and Constructs
 A concept or construct is a generalized idea
about a class of objects, attributes,
occurrences, or processes that has been
given a name.
 Concepts are the building blocks of theory.
 A theory is constructed through
explanation of how concepts relate to other
concepts

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 Variables
 A variable is a measurable representation of
an abstract construct.
 For example:
 A person’s intelligence(Construct) is often measured as
his or her IQ score(Variable).
 Variables that explain others are called
independent variables while those that are
explained by others are called dependent
variables

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 Proposition and Hypothesis
 A proposition is a tentative and
conjectural relationship between
constructs that is empirically testable
(indirectly)
 A hypotheses is the empirical
formulation of propositions, stated as
relationships between variables

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Cont’d..

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 Cont’d..
 Proposition:
 Higher Intelligence leads to better academic
performance

 Hypothesis:
 Higher IQ leads to higher grade

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 Approaches to Theory Development
 There are three types of approaches to
theory development
 Deductive
 Inductive
 Abductive

Slide 1-40
 Cont’d..
 A research is said to follow deductive approach if a
theory is extracted from literature and a research
strategy is designed to test the theory.
 If empirical data is used to explore a phenomenon in
order to generate theory, the approach is said to be
inductive.
 If a theory is generated from a collected data and the
theory is further tested using additional empirical
data, the approach is said to be abductive.

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Cont’d..

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 Ethical issues in research
 Ethics is defined by Webster’s dictionary as
conformance to the standards of conduct of a
given profession or group
 Ethics is the moral distinction between right
and wrong, and what is unethical may not
necessarily be illegal
 A researcher is, however, expected to abide by
ethical norms irrespective of their legal
consequences.

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 Ethical Issues considered before
conducting the study
Issues How to address them
• Gain local permission from • Identify and go through local
site and participants. approvals; find gatekeepers
• Select a site without a vested or key personnel to help.
interest in outcome of study. • Select sites that will not raise
• Negotiate authorship for power issues with
publication. researchers.
• Give credit for work done on
the project; decide on author
order in future publication.

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Ethical Issues considered beginning of
the study
Issues How to address them
• Disclose purpose of the • Contact participants, and inform
study. them of the general purpose of
• Do not pressure the study.
participants into signing • Tell participants that they do
consent forms. not have to sign form.
• Respect norms and • Find out about cultural,
charters of indigenous religious, gender, and other
societies. differences that need to be
• Be sensitive to needs of respected.
vulnerable populations • Obtain appropriate consent
(e.g., children). (e.g., parents, as well as
children).
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 Ethical Issues considered while
collecting data
Issues How to address them
• Avoid deceiving participants. • Discuss purpose of the study and
• Respect potential power how data will be used.
imbalances and exploitation • Avoid leading questions. Withhold
of participants (e.g., sharing personal impressions.
interviewing, observing). Avoid disclosing sensitive
• Do not “use” participants by information. Involve participants
gathering data and leaving as collaborators.
site. • Provide rewards for participating.
• Avoid collecting harmful • Stay to questions stated in an
information. interview protocol.

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 Ethical Issues considered analyzing
data
Issues How to address them
• Avoid siding with • Report multiple
participants (going perspectives.
native). • Report contrary findings.
• Avoid disclosing only • Assign fictitious names or
positive results. aliases.
• Respect the privacy
and anonymity of
participants.

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 Ethical Issues considered Reporting,
sharing, and storing data
Issues How to address them
• Avoid falsifying • Report honestly.
authorship, evidence, data, • See APA (2010) guidelines for
findings, and conclusions. permissions needed to reprint or
• Do not plagiarize. adapt work of others.
• Avoid disclosing • Use composite stories so that
information that would individuals cannot be identified.
harm participants. • Use unbiased language
• Communicate in clear, appropriate for audiences of the
straightforward, research.
appropriate language,

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 Ethical Issues considered Reporting,
sharing, and storing data
Issues How to address them
• Share data with others. • Provide copies of report to
• Keep raw data and other participants and stakeholders.
materials (e.g., details of Share results with other
procedures, instruments). researchers. Consider website
• Do not duplicate or distribution. Consider
piecemeal publications. publishing in different
languages.
• Store data and materials for 5
years (APA, 2010).
• Refrain from using the same
material for more than one
publication.
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 Ethical Issues considered Reporting,
sharing, and storing data
Issues How to address them
• Provide complete • Disclose funders for
proof of compliance research. Disclose who will
with ethical issues and profit from the research.
lack of conflict of • Give credit for ownership
interest, if requested. to researcher, participants,
• State who owns the and advisers.
data from a study.

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