INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

What is a research?

Scientific research is performing a methodical

study in order to prove a hypothesis or search for
an answer to an resolved and perplexing
question

A research must clearly contribute new knowledge

or improve our under standing or remove doubts
or confirms earlier findings of the same problem
in a different setting
What is an hypothesis? an idea or explanation for
something that is based on known facts but has not
yet been proved
Eg a dairy cattle keeper forms a hypothesis that his cow
will produce more milk with addition of molasses on
forages

 A hypothesis should be tested to find the truth.

 Scientific research must be organized and undergo
planning, including performing literature review of past
research and evaluating what questions need to be
answered. Research may involve experimentation

 Experimentation:- an operation or procedure carried out

under controlled conditions in order to discover an
unknown effect or law, to test or establish a hypothesis,
or to illustrate a known law
TYPES OF RESEARCH
 Research is normally divided into two major components
namely Basic and Applied research
Basic Research: Is a research which provide additional
fundamental information needed before practical
solutions can be developed for current or future
problems. Eg.
1.Understanding nutritive value in a pasture ecosystem
2. How did the universe begin?
3. What are protons, neutrons, and electrons composed of?
4. Study of RNA structure of a certain virus
CHARACTERISTICS OF BASIC
RESEARCH
1. It is based on the belief ‘knowledge for knowledge’s
sake.’

2. It involves collection and analysis of data to develop or

enhance theory.

3. It leads to advancement of knowledge.

4. It takes place in a sterile environment.

5. It is carried out for understanding theoretical relationship

between variables.
CHARACTERISTICS OF BASIC
RESEARCH – CONT…..
6. It is explanatory in nature.

7. Its application may or may not have any bearing on any

application in the immediate future or even after a long
time.

8. Basic research lays down the foundation for the applied

science that follows
CHARACTERISTICS OF BASIC
RESEARCH – CONT…..
b ) Applied Research
 Applied research generally focuses on solving specific
problems.
 Applied research acquire knowledge on the practical
application of the theoretical base already built up which
is expected to solve a critical problem
CHARACTERISTICS OF APPLIED
RESEARCH
1. Applied research is solution-specific and addresses
practical questions.

2. It involves collection and analysis of data to examine the

usefulness of theory in solving practical educational
problems.

3. It can be explanatory but usually descriptive.

4. It involves precise measurement of the characteristics

and describes relationships between variables of a
studies phenomenon
EXAMPLES OF APPLIED RESEARCH
 Improve livestock production -use of combination of
certain feeds to improve milk production
 Treat or cure a specific animal disease

 Investigation of drug which can interfere the structure of

RNA of in virus
IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH
 It gives direction to deal with a specific problem eg
Reproduction problems in livestock, Production in
livestock, eruption of a certain disease
 To discover unknown things

 Research leads to important drug advances/innovation

that can benefit cure of different livestock diseases
 It help to confirm for a particular said issue

 It help to remove doubts

TYPES OF RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
a) Qualitative

This type of research methods involves describing in detail

specific situation using research tools like interviews,
surveys, and observations.

Qualitative research is primarily exploratory research.

It is used to gain an understanding of underlying reasons,

opinions, and motivations.

It provides insights into the problem or helps to develop

ideas or hypotheses for potential quantitative research
 Qualitativeresearch method use Some common
methods include focus groups (group
discussions), individual interviews, and
participation/observations

 Thesample size is typically small, and

respondents are selected to fulfil a given quota
B) QUANTITATIVE

 This type of research methods requires quantifiable data

involving numerical and statistical explanations.

 Quantitative Research is used to quantify the problem by

way of generating numerical data or data that can be
transformed into usable statistics.
 Itis used to quantify attitudes, opinions,
behaviors, and other defined variables – and
generalize results from a larger sample
population.

 Quantitative research uses measurable data to

formulate facts and uncover patterns in research
by way of generating numerical data or data that
can be transformed into usable statistics
 Quantitative
data collection methods are much
more structured than Qualitative data collection
methods.

 Quantitative data collection methods include

various forms of surveys – online surveys, paper
surveys, mobile surveys and kiosk surveys, face-
to-face interviews, telephone interviews
C) CORRELATION/REGRESSION
ANALYSIS
 This research method involves determining the strength
of the relationship between two or more variables (e.g.
are violent video games correlated with aggression in
children).
IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
 Determine how accurate the results of a research is.
 is the way of searching or solving the research problem

 Is a path for conduction of a research

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Document that is typically written by a scientist or

academic which describes the ideas for an investigation
on a certain topic OR Is an overall plan, scheme,
structure and strategy designed to obtain answer to the
research questions or problems that constitute your
research project

 The function of research proposal is to provide

objectivity and critical insight before the start of the
research process.
COMPONENTS OF RESEARCH
PROPOSAL
 Reseach proposal components are ;-
 Title

 Abstract or summary

 Aims, Objectives and hypothesis

 Problem statement

 Literature review

 Methodology of investigation and data analysis

 Work plan and schedules

 Budget

 Reference list
A) TITTLE
Tittle: It is normally written after the other sections.
 It is a clear and short statement that captures, reflects and
describes the content of a research
 It enable readers of the proposal to understand the
concepts, methodologies and out put of your proposed
research work eg of research tittle-
Plant population effect on water use efficiency, growth
development of rice in the semi arid areas of Shinyanga
and Tabora
B) ABSTRACT OR SUMMARY
 Summary of a proposal is very important section. It
should provide the reader with an overview of the
information which follows.
 It should summarize all the key information in the
document, including a statement of the problem, a
description of the project, the funding requirements and
the organizations expertise.
C) OBJECTIVES
 Obectives:- Describe the kind of information will be
available after the end of the research.
 Desired end of the research

 This section should describe what the investigator hopes

to accomplish with the research.
 After reading this section, the reader should be clear
about the questions to be asked, the kinds of answers
expected, and the nature of the information to be
provided by the proposed research
General objective
 Some thing which can be achieved and measured

 Eg. to evaluate cattle finishing systems, feed availability

and identify the factors limiting cattle performance in
selected areas of Mwanza region.

Specific objectives
 These are the sub components of general objective.

 Specific objective go to the activity level

 Eg of specific objectives:-
a) To assess the general characteristics of cattle finishing
systems in Ilemela and Magu districts of Mwanza region
b) To determine the growth performance of cattle finished
under different systems
c) To evaluate the seasonal availability and quality of feed
resources for finishing cattle in the study areas
PROBLEM STATEMENT

 A problem statement is a short description of the issues

that need to be addressed by a problem solving team and
should be presented to them (or created by them) before
they try to solve a problem
 In any research proposal a section about the problem is
essential
 A logical and balanced statement helps to portray your
vision of the issue to be investigated.
 Always state the problem in complete gramatical
sentences
 For instance, let's say that we work at a major airline and
that we've noticed that the way passengers board our
planes is an inefficient use of time and resources. In this
case, we might begin our problem statement by
describing an ideal situation where the boarding system
isn't inefficient that the company should shoot for, like
this: "The boarding protocols used by ABC Airlines
should aim to get each flight's passengers aboard the
plane quickly and efficiently so that the plane can take
off as soon as possible .
 The process of boarding should be optimized for time-
efficiency but also should be straight forward enough
that it can be easily understood by all passengers."
 How ever ABC, air lines current passenger boarding
system is inefficient use of the company’s time and
resource.
 By wasting employee man hours, the current boarding
protocols make the company less competitive and by
contributing to a slow boarding process, they create
unfavorable brand image.
 Optimization of current boarding protocols is crucial for
competitiveness of the company. This study will focus
on addressing inefficient use of time and resources
LITERATURE REVIEW
 Literature is any information that is documented , even if
not published can be used as source of literature review
 Existing literature in your area of study, review literature
selected

Methodology of investigation and data analysis

 Is a data collection and handling procedure

 Layout of the study will be clearly stated

 This include experimental procedure, the data to be

collected, data treatment procedure, and data utilization
WORK PLAN AND SCHEDULES

 It is essential to reflect on the tasks and process involved

in the implementation of the research project and
estimate the time required to complete each activity and
hence the project.
BUDGET
 The proposal should present realistically the means and
facilities the project will require
 Budget should cover the costs of acquiring the means
that you don’t posses

 REFFERENCE LIST
EXAMPLE OF RESEARCH TOPICS
 (a) Plant population effect on water use efficiency,
growth development of rice in the semi arid areas of
Shinyanga and Tabora regions

 b) Evaluation of Cattle Finishing systems And

Availability of Animal Feedstuffs in Ilemela and
Magu Districts, Mwanza Region
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
 An aim is “something intended or desired to be obtained
by one’s efforts”.
 On the other hand an objective is to do with achieving an
object, it’s about actions
the aim is the what of the research, and the objective is
the how.
 The aim is about what you hope to do, your overall
intention in the project
 Objectives have to be practical, do-able and achievable
EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH
HYPOTHESIS
 A hypothesis is a logical supposition, a reasonable guess
which may give direction to thinking with respect to the
problem and, thus aid in solving it.
 Having stated problem, the sub problems are the each
viewed through logical constructs called Hypothesis.
 Eg. You switch on light in your classroom, but they do
not come on.
 You now begin a series of reasonable guesses as to the
cause of the trouble.
 In other words, you hypothesize several possibilities:-
 There is no electricity

 The fuse is blown

 The bulb is damaged

 Example of hypothesis

1. Effect of fertilizer on grain yields is direct related to soil

moisture for the two weeks after application
2. Silage feeding increase milk yield on dairy cattle fed hay
alone
LITERATURE REVIEW OF RESEARCH
TOPIC
 Sample Review Literature
 Food crop in many developing countries are far below their potential mainly due to
ineffective control of insects, pests, disease and weeds. For eaxample it is estimated that
pre-harvest losses of 30-50 % of food crops occur in these countries (Aeb, 1977). Weeds
contribute to 50 – 70 % of these loss in yield.
 .
 .
 .
 Varies studies have shown that manual weed control absorbs 20 – 50% of the total crop
production labour (Haswel, 1972; Diaz, 1974)
 .
 .
 Data on the persistence of various herbicides under temperate climate is available
(Bullock, 1980; Savage 1987). However, in tropical and subtropical regions where
climatic and environmental factors are different, the behaviour of herbicides may be
different.
 .
 The overall picture indicates that there is a need to evaluate the soil persistence of pre–
emergence herbicide under tropical climate
ASSIGNMENT
 Topics to be reviewed by students
 1. The effect of Leucaena leucocephala supplementation
to dairy cattle on milk yield
 2. Leucaena leucocephala as a supplement for milk
production on tropical pastures with dual purpose cattle
 3. The impact of Lantana camara on animal Health
STEPS OF RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
a) Experimental procedure:-
o Under this section you should specify:-

 Selected materials for testing or the study area

 The characters to be measured

 The procedure of measuring those characters

o In writing this section refer in shorthand manner to

standard techniques instead of writing them in full

o Write brief description and discussion of approaches the

experiment.
o Put a brief a technical terms and design
b) Data collection
 Describe the types of data you plan to gather in
your study.
 State the standard of data must meet in order to
be included in the study eg number of animals
should be involved in the research in order to get
optimum data for the study.
 State out without ambiguity, methods that you
plan to use in securing the data.
 It is not enough for example to say “grain yield
will be measure”
The choice of data and methods of collection is to a
large extent dependent on:-
 Accuracy and efficiency required

 Needs for facilities, personnel and skills

 The subject requirements

 Objective of the project

 c) Data analysis and interpretation

 Here is how the collected data will be treated

 How to analyze the collected data

 Mention the software for analyzing the collected data

eg SPSS, SAS etc
 PLAN OF WORK (WORK PLAN)
 Plan of work reflect on the task and process involved in
the implementation of a research project.
 It also estimate the time required to complete each
activity, and hence the project.
 The project should be broken into operations and
activities and resource like staff, financial and time
allocated to each operation and activity
Why work plan?
1. To do every thing at once produces confusion
2.One or several tasks may have to be completed before
others can be started
 3. It gives some assurance to the reviewers that the job
will be done in an orderly manner and be completed on
schedule
 EXAMPLE OF WORK PLAN
ACTIVITES
J F M A M J

Proposal development,

Experiment and data collection

Data analysis

Report writing

Report printing, binding and submission

 RESEARCH BUDGET
 Budget is an integral part of research project formulation

IMPORTANCE OF BUDGET
 It makes realistic funding of the project
 It makes the project more specific with regards to costs.
 It helps guide the effective use of funds by the project
activities
 It provides a base for monitoring physical and financial
progress
 It shows that you appreciate the depth and ramification
of the project

 It shows that you are prepared to do the work.

EXAMPLE OF BUDGET
Activity Amount
Proposal preparation 300,000
Transportation 400,000
Accommodation during field work (in Morogoro) 1,000,000
Focus Group meetings 300,000
Data collection through questionnaire 600,000
Chemical analysis of feeds 600,000
Data collection through measurements 400,000
Data processing and report writing 400,000

Grand total 4,000,000

DATA COLLECTING TOOLS
1. Questionnaires
 Series of questions and other prompts for the purpose of
gathering information from respondents
2. Interviews
 Conversation between two or more people where
questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain
information from the interviewee(s)
Focus groups
 A group of people are asked about their attitude towards
a product, service, concept, an idea
Observation
 A group or single learners are asked to perform a specific
task or action. Observations are then made of
behaviours, processes, workflows etc, in a real-life
situation (e.g. the workplace)
 Case study

 Often used to provide context to other data (such as

outcome data), offering a more complete picture of what
happened and why
QUESTIONNAIRES
 Questionnaire No.: _______ Date of Interview:___/___/_____ ID of
Interviewer: ________________
 District: 1 . Kilindi / 2. Handeni. Location of the business
(town/village): ________________
 Population of village/town __________________ Location: 1.
Urban / 2. Rural
 Name of enterprise:
________________________________________________________
______________
 Address of enterprise:
________________________________________________________
____________
 Phone number (mobile, if available)
________________________________________________________
 Gender of the respondent: 1. Male / 2. Female
QUESTIONNAIRES

Function of the respondent in the farm: 1= Owner / 2 =
Q1.

Chief Manager

 Q2. Age of respondent ________

 Q3. How many years have you attended school altogether

(including university, if applicable)? ________

 Q4. How many years have you been running this business?
________
 Q5.

 5.1 How many permanent employees does your farm employ

in total? ________

 5.2 How many seasonal employees does your farm employ at

peak season? ________

 5.3 How many of your permanent employees are members of

your family (apart from yourself)? ______

 5.4 How many of your seasonal employees are members of

your family (apart from yourself)? ________
SAMPLE FOCUS GROUP QUESTIONS
 1. What do you think the government’s role should be in
relation to poverty and poor people? (Probes: Should it
be a safety net? Should the government provide a ladder
of opportunity to families in need?)
 2. What should the government’s priorities be for the
welfare system?
 3. Do you think the current welfare system encourages or
discourages poor people to find work? Why?
SAMPLE FOCUS GROUP QUESTIONS
4. How do you feel about current government spending on
programs to help people on welfare move to work?
5. How do you feel about Parliament promoting marriage
among parents on welfare?
6. What are concerns you have about the current welfare
system? What is your biggest
concern?
7. What do you think the government should do to improve
the welfare system?
 CHECKLIST
 A checklist, is a type of informational job aid used to
reduce failure by compensating for potential limits of
human memory and attention.

 Ithelps to ensure consisting and completeness in

carrying out a task.
 A basic example is ‘to do list’.

 A more advanced checklist which lays out tasks to be

done according to time of a day or other factors.

 The checklist consists of a list of items with a place to

check, or to mark yes or no
USEFULNESS OF CHECKLIST
 To collect acts for educational surveys.
 To record behaviour in observational studies.

 To use in educational appraisal, studies – of

school buildings, property, plan, textbooks,
instructional procedures and outcomes etc.
 To rate the personality.

 To know the interest of the subjects also.

TYPES OF OBSERVATION

 PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION: is when a researcher

participate in the activities of group being observed with
or without their knowledge that they are being observed
 NON PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION; is when the
researcher does not get involved in the activities but
remain passive observer i.e. watching and listening to
their activities and drawing conclusion from it
PROBLEM OF OBSERVATION METHOD
 When people become aware that their being observed
they may change their behavior
 The interpretation drawn from observations may vary
from observer to observer
THE INTERVIEW METHOD

Types:
 Un structured

 Structured

 Semi structured

UN STRUCTURED INTERVIEW
 Are also known as depth interview

 Here the interviewer develops a frame work called an

interview guide within which to conduct the interview
 An interview has a freedom to formulate questions as
they come to mind around the issue being investigated
Advantages
 Is extremely useful in situation where either depth
information is needed

Disadvantages
 Freedom of asking questions that were not prepared before
can introduce investigator bias into study

 Using interview guide as a means of data collection requires

much more skill on part of the investigator than does using a
structured interview

 Since the interview guide does not list specific questions to

be asked comparability of question asked and response
STRUCTURED INTERVIEW

 Here the investigator keeps strictly to the questions

decide before hands (predetermined set of questions) i.e.
using the same wording and order of questions as
specified in the interview schedule.
 An interview schedule is a set of written list if question
either open or closed ended prepared for use by an
interview in person to person interaction
 Face to face

 By telephone

 By other electronic media

NOTE:- An interview schedule is a research tool/
instrument for data collection while interviewing is a
method of data collection

Advantages
 Structured interview provider uniform information
which assumes the compatibility of data
 Structured interview requires fewer interviewing skills
than does unstructured interviewing
ADVANTAGES OF INTERVIEW

 It is useful for collecting in depth information by probing

 Information can be supplemented e.g. with observation

 Question can be explained or clarified

 Interviewing has a wider application i.e. can be used

inmost any type of population like children ,Illiterate or
the very old
DISADVANTAGES OF INTERVIEW

 Time consuming and expensive .especially when

respondents are scattered in wider geographical area
 The quality of data depends upon the quality of the
interviewer_ quality is affected by experience, skills and
commitment of interviewer
 The use of multiple interviewers may magnify the
problems identified
ADMINISTERING A QUESTIONNAIRE
 Mailed

 Telephonic

 Questionnaire delivered by hand

 Personal

 Group

CHOOSING BETWEEN AN INTERVIEW

SCHEDULE AND A QUESTIONNAIRE
 This should base on:-

 .The nature of investigation : if the study where

respondents feel reluctant to discuss with researcher a
questionnaire may be better choice e.g study on family
planning ,indulgence in criminal activities and personal
 .The geographical distribution of study population: if
potential respondents are scattered over a wide
geographical area ,then a questionnaire is better
 The type of study population: if the study population is
illiterate ,very young or old then interviewing is suitable

ADVANTAGES OF A QUESTIONNAIRE
 Less expensive as it can save time, human and financial
resources
 It offers anonymity [secrecy] as no face to face
interaction between respondents and interviewer
DISADVANTAGES OF A QUESTIONNAIRE

 limited to study population that can read and write

 Low response rate-will result into failure of a research

 lack of opportunity to clarify issue -quality of

information provided can differ due to different
interpretation
 Mailed questionnaire are not appropriate when
spontaneous responses are required
 It is possible to consult others
FORM OF QUESTIONS
 Open ended questions
 Closed ended questions

OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS

 In open ended question respondents are not given
possible answers
 In the case of questionnaire the respondents write down
his/her own words
 In the case of an interview schedule the investigator
record the answer
CLOSED ENDED QUESTIONS
 In closed ended question the possible answers are set out in
the questionnaire and the respondents ticks the category that
best describe his /her answer

PRINCIPLES OF FROMULATING QUESTIONS

 Every question must be relevant to the purpose of
study.That must come from the objective of study
 Always use simple and every day language

 Do not use ambiguous question-A question that contains

more than one meaning and that can be interpreted
differently by respondents
 Do not ask double barrelled question
 Double barrelled question within a question (two
questions at ago) e.g. What is your age and
marital status
 Do not ask leading question e.g smoking is
dangerous to your health isn’t it?
 In an interview schedule the possible answers
are set out in the questionnaire and the
investigator ticks the category that describes the
respondents answer
PRE-TESTING OF THE DATA
COLLECTING TOOLS
 Pre-testing is the administration of the data
collection instrument with a small set of
respondents from the population for the full scale
survey.

 Ifproblems occur in the pre-test, it is likely that

similar problems will arise in full-scale
administration.

 The purpose of pre-testing is to identify problems

with the data collection instrument and find possible
solutions.
 Itis not possible to anticipate all of the problems that
will be encountered during data collection.

 Terminology used in questionnaires or interviews may

not be understood by respondents and information to be
retrieved from documents may not be readily available.

 Reducing error to acceptable levels requires the pre-

testing of data collection instruments
PRE-TESTING QUESTIONNAIRES

 One important objective of pre-testing

questionnaires is to get at the thinking behind the
answers so that the auditor can accurately assess
whether the questionnaire is being filled out
properly, whether the questions are actually
understood by respondents, and whether the
questions ask what the auditor thinks they are
asking.

 Pre-testingalso helps assess whether respondents

are able and willing to provide the needed
information.
PRE-TESTING
QUESTIONNAIRES
 In pre-testing, the respondents should actually fill out
the questionnaire, giving their views along the way or
afterward.
 One approach is to give the questionnaire as an
interview, asking for clarification of answers and
clarifying questions along the way.
 The respondents' views can also be obtained during a
post-questionnaire interview or in a focus group.
 Another common approach is to have respondents
think out loud as they answer.
TYPES OF DATA
T here are many ways of classifying data.
 A common classification is based upon who collected
the data.
 Primary data: Data collected by the investigator
himself/ herself for a specific purpose.Examples: Data
collected by a student for his/her thesis or research
project.
 Secondary data: Data collected by someone else for
some other purpose (but being utilized by the
investigator for another purpose)
 Examples: Census data being used to analyze the impact
of education on career choice and earning
 The
 SOME investigator
ADVANTAGES OF USING PRIMARY DATA
collects data specific to the problem under
study.
 There is no doubt about the quality of the data collected (for
the investigator).
 If required, it may be possible to obtain additional data
during the study period.

Disadvantages of using Primary data

1. The investigator has to contend with all the hassles of data
collection-
 deciding why, what, how, when to collect

 getting the data collected (personally or through others)

 getting funding and dealing with funding agencies

 2. Ensuring the data collected is of a high
standard
 All desired data is obtained accurately, and in the
format it is required in
 There is no fake/ cooked up data

 Unnecessary/ useless data has not been included

 3. Cost of obtaining the data is often the major

expense in studies
Some Advantages of using Secondary data:
 The data’s already there- no hassles of data
collection
 It is less expensive

 The investigator is not personally responsible for

the quality of data (“I didn’t do it”)
Some disadvantages of using Secondary data:
 The investigator cannot decide what is collected (if
specific data about something is required, for instance).
 One can only hope that the data is of good quality

 Obtaining additional data (or even clarification) about

something is not possible
 At the highest level, two kinds of data exist:
quantitative and qualitative.
 Quantitative data deals with numbers and things
you can measure objectively: dimensions such as
height, width, and length.
 Also temperature and humidity, prices. area and
volume.
 Qualitative data deals with characteristics and
descriptors that can't be easily measured, but can
be observed subjectively—such as smells, tastes,
textures, attractiveness, and colour.
 When you measure something and give it a number
value, you create quantitative data.
 When you classify or judge something, you create
qualitative data

Quantitative data
 There are two types of quantitative data, which is also
referred to as numeric data: continuous and discrete. As
a general rule, counts are discrete and measurements are
continuous.
 Discrete data is a count that can't be made more
precise.
 Typically it involves integers. For instance, the
number of children (or adults, or pets) in your family
is discrete data, because you are counting whole,
indivisible entities: you can't have 2.5 kids, or 1.3
pets
 Continuous data, on the other hand, could be divided
and reduced to finer and finer levels. For example,
you can measure the height of your kids at
progressively more precise scales—meters,
centimeters, millimeters, and beyond—so height is
continuous data.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++
 Qualitative data: Binomial Data, Nominal Data, and
Ordinal Data
 Binary data place things in one of two mutually
exclusive categories: right/wrong, true/false, or
accept/reject.
 When collecting unordered or nominal data, we assign
individual items to named categories that do not have an
implicit or natural value or rank. If I went through a box
of Jujubes and recorded the color of each in my
worksheet, that would be nominal data.
 When collecting unordered or nominal data, we assign
individual items to named categories that do not have an
implicit or natural value or rank.
 If I went through a box of Jujubes and recorded the color
of each in my worksheet, that would be nominal data.
 This kind of data can be used in many different ways—
for instance, I could use chi-square analysis to see if
there are statistically significant differences in the
amounts of each color in a box
 We also can have ordered or ordinal data, in which
items are assigned to categories that do have some kind
of implicit or natural order, such as "Short, Medium, or
Tall." Another example is a survey question that asks us
to rate an item on a 1 to 10 scale, with 10 being the best.
This implies that 10 is better than 9, which is better than
8, and so on.
SOURCES OF RESEARCH DATA
 Sources of data:
 Libraries

 Radio, television

 News papers, magazines

 People (resource people)

 Information offices

 Reports

 Field experimentations

 Laboratories e.t.c.

 Research
SAMPLING TECHNIQUES OF
RESEARCH DATA
Definitions
 A Sample-is a representative portion of the population.
A sample is used when the population of interest is large
such that complete enumeration of a certain
characteristics is not feasible. For example, a sample of
20 cattle in livestock farm with 200 cattle
 Sampling –is a process of selecting a sample

 Sampling frame- a list of all individuals in which a

sample will be selected
 Sample survey – is a study that obtains data from a
subset of a population, in order to estimate population
attributes.
 IMPORTANCE OF SAMPLING

 Sampling is essential in order to avoid wastage of resources.

 Sampling is important because some individuals are not
reachable because of geographical diversity.
 Sampling should be done, as resources that are used during
this exercise are scarce.
 The fact that some populations are too large, sampling is the
only way to use.
 Sampling is essential because members of the populations
are not exactly the same due to their diversity.
 Reduced work because the researcher deals with few
individuals
 Because of reduced work, results obtained are more precise
CATEGORIES /GROUPS OF SAMPLING TECHNIQUES

 Probability
sampling techniques
 Non-probability sampling techniques

1) Probability sampling techniques

a) Simple random sampling

 Under this method the selection is random such that

each individual has an equal chance of been chosen.
 This method is used when the population is more
homogeneous.
Procedure
 Define the population

 Obtain a population list

 Assign serial numbers for every individual

 Determine sample size

 Select members of the sample

Advantages
 The method is easy and simple

 It is appropriate for homogeneous populations

 Each member of the population has an equal chance of

been selected

Disadvantages
 Difficult to obtain a population list

 Selected units may be geographical dispersed, hence

expensive to reach
 Provide imprecise estimates if the population
characteristics are very variable
 No representativeness when the population is not
SYSTEMATIC SAMPLING

 A systematic sampling method is a practical one that

involves choosing a member of the sample after every
Kth item in the sampling frame.
 To select a sample of n units, we first select a unit at
random and every Kth unit thereafter
 Where Kth = N/n

 N = Population size

 N = Sample size

 Kth = Sample interval

Advantages
 It easy and quick

 Distributes the sample more evenly over the sampling

frame
 Suitable in situations where samples are taken for
inspections and quality control

Disadvantages
 Need sampling frame to be in random order
STRATIFIED RANDOM SAMPLING

 Stratified Sampling is possible when it makes sense to

partition the population into groups based on a factor
that may influence the variable that is being measured.
 These groups are then called strata.

 An individual group is called a stratum.

 With stratified sampling one should:-

 partition the population into groups - homogeneous sub-

groups (strata)
 obtain a simple random sample from each group
(stratum)
 collect data on each sampling unit that was randomly
sampled from each group (stratum)
 Stratified sampling works best when a heterogeneous
population is split into fairly homogeneous groups.
 Under these conditions, stratification generally produces
more precise estimates of the population percents than
estimates that would be found from a simple random sample
Example of stratified sampling
 Suppose a farmer wishes to work out the average milk
yield of each cow type in his herd which consists of
Ayrshire, Friesian, Galloway and Jersey cows. He could
divide up his herd into the four sub-groups and take
samples from these.
EXAMPLES OF STRATIFIED SAMPLES
Example 1 Example 2

Population All students in Buhuri All students in LITA

Campuses

Group (strata) Levels (Level 4, 5 and 8 LITA Campuses

6)

Obtain sample- 20 students in each of 50 students from each

Random sample the 3 levels campus

Sample 20*3 = 60 50*8 = 400

Advantages
 It is easy to use

 Ensures enough cases in each group and hence

increases representativeness
 There is an increased precision of the statistical
estimates
 Gets more information from entire population

Disadvantages
 Prior knowledge of population is required for
stratification
 A MULTI-STAGE RANDOM SAMPLING
 A multistage random sample is constructed by taking a
series of simple random samples in stages.
 This type of sampling is often more practical than simple
random sampling for studies requiring "on location"
analysis, such as door-to-door surveys
 In a multistage random sample, a large area, such as a
country, is first divided into smaller regions (such as
states), and a random sample of these regions is collected
 In the second stage, a random sample of smaller areas
(such as districts) is taken from within each of the
regions chosen in the first stage
 Then, in the third stage, a random sample of even
smaller areas (such as divisions) is taken from within
each of the areas chosen in the second stage
 If these areas are sufficiently small for the purposes of
the study, then the researcher might stop at the third
stage
CLUSTER SAMPLING
Cluster sampling is done by dividing the population into groups or
clusters. Then randomly or systematically clusters are sampled.

Advantages
 Time and cost of travel is reduced

 We do not need full sampling frame

 Disadvantage
 The sample is less representative

 NOTE: Although cluster sampling and stratified sampling bear

some superficial similarities, they are substantially different. In
stratified sampling, a random sample is drawn from all the strata,
where in cluster sampling only the selected clusters are studied.
RESEARCH RESULTS PRESENTATION
FORMS
Definitions of some terminologies
 Class interval-the length of the class which is obtained by
taking the difference between the class limits
 Class limit-the smallest and largest values that can go into
any class OR are the smallest and largest observations (data,
events etc) in each class. Therefore, each class has two
limits: a lower and upper.
 Class mark-the mid point of a class which is obtained by
averaging the two class limits.
 Class frequency-the number of values or items falling into
each class interval
CALCULATION OF CLASS INTERVAL
 Given a set of raw or ungrouped data, how would you
group that data into suitable classes that are easy to work
with and at the same time meaningful?
 The first step is to determine how many classes you want
to have.
 Next, you subtract the lowest value in the data set from
the highest value in the data set and then you divide by
the number of classes that you want to have:
 Example 1:
 Group the following raw data into ten classes.

 Highest value = 29

 Solution:

 The first step is to identify the highest and lowest

number
 Lowest number = 1

 Class interval (width) =



 Class interval should always be a whole number and yet

in this case we have a decimal number. The solution to
this problem is to round off to the nearest whole number.
 In this example, 2.8 gets rounded up to 3. So now our
class width will be 3; meaning that we group the above
data into groups of 3 as in the table below.
Number Frequency
1-3 7
4-6 6
7-9 4
10 - 12 2
13 - 15 2
16 - 18 8
19 - 21 1
22 - 24 2
25 - 27 3
28 - 30 2
CLASS LIMITS AND CLASS
BOUNDARIES

 Class limits refer to the actual values that you see in the
table
 Class limits are divided into two categories: lower class
limit and upper class limit. In the table above, for the
first class, 1 is the lower class limit while 3 is the upper
class limit
 On the other hand, class boundaries are not always
observed in the frequency table. Class boundaries give
the true class interval, and similar to class limits, are also
divided into lower and upper class boundaries
 The relationship between the class boundaries and the
class interval is given as follows:

 Class boundaries are related to class limits by the given

relationships:
BELOW IS A TABLE SHOWN CLASS LIMITS, CLASS
BOUNDARIES AND FREQUENCY
TABLE 1
TABLE 2
Class Frequency
200 – 299 12
300 – 399 19
400 – 499 6
500 – 599 2
600 – 699 11
700 – 799 7
800 – 899 3
Total Frequency 60
 For the first class, 200 – 299
 The lower class limit is 200
 The upper class limit is 299

Class boundaries
 Class Boundaries are the midpoints between the upper class
limit of a class and the lower class limit of the next class in
the sequence
 Eg. From table 2, the first class, 200 – 299

 The lower class boundary is the midpoint between 199 and

200, that is 199.5
 The upper class boundary is the midpoint between 299 and
300, that is 299.5
EXAMPLE OF CLASS INTERVAL
 Using table 2 above, determine the class interv als for
the first class
 The class interval = Upper class boundary – lower class
boundary
 Upper class boundary = 299.5

 Lower class boundary = 199.5

 Therefore, the class interval = 299.5 – 199.5

 = 100
a) Pie charts
 It is one of the graphical data presentation methods

 A pie chart is a circle divided into segments by radii

 The segments are presented in percentages or

degrees
 Each segment size represents the relative
importance of each part of the total.
 A pie chart is used to show the relative size of the
component parts of the total.
 A complete circle represents the total
EXAMPLE OF PIER CHART
b) Histograms
 Histograms are graphical presentation of frequency
distribution
 Histograms are constructed by erecting rectangles on the
horizontal axis
 Along the horizontal axis values of the variable concerned or
class marks are recorded
 Along the vertical axis frequencies of each variable are
recorded
 The heights of rectangles are proportional or equal to their
frequencies
 A histogram is a good visual display of the spread of the data
 If the data are spread to the same extent to the right and left of
the tallest bar in the histogram, the distribution of the data is
said to be symmetrical

B) HISTOGRAMS
C) OGIVE

 An ogive is a graphical presentation of a

cumulative frequency distribution
 Along the horizontal axis class marks are
recorded
 Along the vertical axis cumulative frequencies
are recorded
FREQUENCY, RELATIVE & CUM
FREQUENCY
E) BAR CHARTS
 Bar charts are used for presenting multiple measurement
 They can be used not only to show the proportion of
each constituent, but also actual amounts.
 The length of the bar is proportional to the size of the
items being considered
BAR CHART
DATA DISTRIBUTION
Type of data distribution
 When we measure a quantity in a large number of
individuals we call the pattern of values obtained a
distribution.
 Data collected are assumed to fall under two kinds of
distributions.
 They could fall under NORMAL or SKEWED
DISTRIBUTION
 (I) NORMAL DISTRIBUTION:

 A normal distribution curve is a symmetrical, bell-

shaped, and dies out rather fast at the tails not usually
without touching the X-axis or the horizontal axis.
 A normal distribution curve is a normal case of many
natural phenomena.
 For example, examination grades, body weights,
heights follow normal distribution curve.

 (ii) Skewed distribution

 Skewness is the degree of asymmetry of a
distribution.
 It refers to the lack of symmetry with respect to the
 If the distribution has a longer “tail” to the right of
the centre than to the left, the distribution is said to
be skewed to the right or has positive skewness.
 If the reverse is true it is said to be skewed to the
left or to have negative skewness.
 The greater the imbalance, the greater the degree of
skewness.
 Skewness = Mean – Mode

 Standard deviation


 a. Skewed to the right

 b. Skewed to the left:
MEASURES OF CENTRAL TENDENCY
AND DISPERSION

 Measures of central tendency

 These are measures indicating a centre of the
distribution.


 They are used to understand how the data scatter

about a central point.
 Data can be packed about the central point or
uniformly distributed or there may be large
number of extreme cases. The measures include,
mean, median and mode.
 (i) The mean (Arithmetic mean):
 This is represented by Greek symbols µ for a population
and X for a sample.
 µ is fixed while X varies from sample to sample.

 For a set of numbers, X1, X2, … XN, The mean denoted

by m is defined as
 M = X1, X2, … XN
 N
 ie. = ∑ Xii = 1
 N
 Example:
 (i)Find the mean, for the following list of
values:
 13, 18, 13, 14, 13, 16, 14, 21, 13

 The mean is the usual average, so:
 (13 + 18 + 13 + 14 + 13 + 16 + 14 + 21
+ 13)/9 = 15

 (ii) Find the mean of 11, 14, 17, 20, 16, 10.
 Solution: m = 11 + 14 + 17 + 20 + 16 + 10 = 14.67
6

 A quantity like a mean is called a PARAMETER if it

represents a population value and, it is called a
statistic if it is a value of a sample.

 (iii) The median

 This is the value for which 50% of the observations,
when arranged in order of magnitude, lie on each side.
 When the observations are even the median is the
average of the two middle numbers.
 Example:
 (i) Find the median for the following list of values:
13, 18, 13, 14, 13, 16, 14, 21, 13
 The median is the middle value, so I’ll have to rewrite the list in order:
 13, 13, 13, 13, 14, 14, 16, 18, 21
 There are nine numbers in the list, so the middle one will be the
 (9 + 1) / 2 = 10/2 = 5th number:
 13, 13, 13, 13, 14, 14, 16, 18, 21
 So the median is 14.

 (ii) Find the median of 11,14, 17, 20, 16, 10.
 Arrange them in order = 10, 11, 14, 16, 17, 20
 Since the observations are even, then the median for this set of numbers is
14 + 16 = 20
 2
 Note: The formula for the place to find the median is “( [the number of
data points] + 1) /2”, but you don’t have to use this formula for odd
observations. You can just count in from both ends of the list until you
(iii) Mode
 This is the observation that occurs most frequently, used to construct
a frequency distribution. It is most useful with nominal data.

Example:
 Find the mode of the following numbers:
 11, 14, 17, 14, 14, 20, 16, 10

 From the given set of numbers the mode is 14. A class for which the
frequency is greatest is called a modal class.

 A student has gotten the following grades on his tests: 87, 95, 76
and 88. He wants an 85 or better overall. What is the minimum
grade he must get on the last test in order to achieve that average?
 The unknown score is “X”. Then the desired average is:
 (87 + 95 + 76 + 88 + x) 5 = 85
 Multiplying through by 5 and simplifying, 1 get:
 87 + 95 + 76 + 88 + x = 425

 346 + x = 425

 X = 79

Measures of dispersion (Measures of variation)

 These are measures that describe the extent of
variation / dispersion of the measurements taken.
They include Variance, standard deviation, range
and coefficient of variation.
 (i) Range:
 For a set of numbers the range is the difference between the
largest and the smallest numbers.
 It is obtained by subtraction between the two values.
Although the range does give some indication of the spread
of the data about the mean, it depends solely on the extreme
values, which may be purely accidental, and tells nothing
about the distribution of the varieties between these two
extremes or concentration of the varieties about the centre.

 Example: 11, 14, 17, 14, 14, 20, 16, 10

 Range is 20 – 10 = 10
 (ii) The Variance and Standard Deviation:
 The variance is a widely used measure of dispersion
in statistical analysis.
 Variance of a distribution is equal to the sum of the
square deviation scores divided by the total number
(#) of scores in the distribution (N) the higher the
variance, the more the variability; you must first
calculate the mean of the distribution and then
subtract the mean from each score in the distribution.

 Variability: the spread, dispersion, or scatter of the

data; instead of measuring averages, this will measure
how the scores in the distribution vary.
 For a set of N numbers, X1, X2, ……, XN whose mean is
m the variance denoted by …… is defined as N.

 The square root of the variance is called the standard

deviation.


 δ2 = ∑ (X1 – m)2
•N

 Example:
 Calculate the variance and standard deviation if X1 = 3, X2 = 6, X3 =
12
 Steps: 1 calculate the mean
 In our case m is 7

 Therefore:


 δ = √ ∑ (X1 – m)2
 N



 √ ∑ X21/ N
 i=1


 = √(3 – 7)2 + (6 – 7)2 + (12 – 7)2

 3

= √ 42 = √ 14 = 3.74
 3
 In this case Variance is 14 and standard deviation is 3.74.
(iii) Coefficient of variation (C.V):
 The coefficient of variation is a measure describing the amount of
variation in a population.
 It is used in evaluating experiments of the same nature, probably
performed by different researchers.
 It is calculated by describing the standard deviation as a fraction of
the mean
 C.V = s
 m


 Since it is usually expressed in percentage, then it s multiplied by

100.


 i.e C.V = s *100




 Where:- Cv = Coefficient of variation


 S = Standard deviation


 m = mean
 In order to calculate C.V you need to calculate variance
and standard deviation.
TYPES OF REPORTS

 Research reports vary greatly in length and type.

 In each individual case, both the length and the
form are largely dictated by the problems at hand.
 For instance, business firms prefer reports in the
letter form, just one or two pages in length.
 Banks, insurance organizations and financial
institutions are generally fond of the short balance-
sheet type of tabulation for their annual reports to
their customers and shareholders.
 News items in the daily papers are also forms of
report writing.
 They represent firsthand on-the scene accounts
of the events described or compilations of
interviews with persons who were on the scene.
 In such reports the first paragraph usually
contains the important information in detail and
the succeeding paragraphs contain material
which is progressively less and less important
 Book-reviews which analyze the content of the book
and report on the author’s intentions, his success or
failure in achieving his aims, his language, his style,
scholarship, bias or his point of view.
 Such reviews also happen to be a kind of short
report.
 The reports prepared by governmental bureaus,
special commissions, and similar other organizations
are generally very comprehensive reports on the
issues involved.
 Such reports are usually considered as important
research products.
 Similarly,Ph.D. theses and dissertations are also
a form of report-writing, usually completed by
students in academic institutions.

 The above narration throws light on the fact that

the results of a research investigation can be
presented in a number of ways viz., a technical
report, a popular report, an article, a monograph
or at times even in the form of oral presentation.
 A technical report is used whenever a full written
report of the study is required whether for
recordkeeping or for public dissemination.
 A popular report is used if the research results
have policy implications.
 We give below a few details about the said two
types of reports:
Technical Report
 In the technical report the main emphasis is on
the methods employed, assumptions made in the
course of the study, the detailed presentation of
the findings including their limitations and
supporting data.
A general outline of a technical report can be as
follows:
 Summary of results: A brief review of the main
findings just in two or three pages
 Nature of the study: Description of the general
objectives of study, formulation of the problem
in operational terms, the working hypothesis, the
type of analysis and data required, etc.
 Methods employed: Specific methods used in the
study and their limitations. For instance, in
sampling studies we should give details of
sample design viz., sample size, sample
selection, etc
Popular Report
 The popular report is one which gives emphasis on
simplicity and attractiveness.
 The simplification should be sought through clear
writing, minimization of technical, particularly
mathematical, details and liberal use of charts and
diagrams.
 Attractive layout along with large print, many
subheadings, even an occasional cartoon now and then
is another characteristic feature of the popular report.
 Besides, in such a report emphasis is given on practical
aspects and policy implications. It should follow the
following general outline of a popular report.
 The findings and their implications: Emphasis in
the report is given on the findings of most practical
interest and on the implications of these findings.
 Recommendations for action: Recommendations
for action on the basis of the findings of the study
is made in this section of the report.
 Objective of the study: A general review of how the
problem arise is presented along with the specific
objectives of the project under study.
 Methods employed: A brief and non-technical
description of the methods and techniques used,
including a short review of the data on which the study is
based, is given in this part of the report.
 Results: This section constitutes the main body of the
report wherein the results of the study are presented in
clear and non-technical terms with liberal use of all sorts
of illustrations such as charts, diagrams etc
 Technical appendices: More detailed information on
methods used, forms, etc. is presented in the form of
appendices.
 But the appendices are often not detailed if the report is
entirely meant for general public.
 There can be several variations of the form in which a
popular report can be prepared.
 The only important thing about such a report is that it
gives emphasis on simplicity and policy implications
from the operational point of view, avoiding the
technical details of all sorts to the extent possible.
 GENERAL STRUCTURE OF A
RESEARCH REPORT
Components of research report
 i. Abstract,
 ii. Introduction,
 iii. Literature review
 iv. Methodology,
 v. Results and Discussion
 vi. Conclusion and Recommendations
 vii. References, in which the literature cited in the
text is given.
 viii. Appendices (if any), in which
1. Title: Tells the reader what to expect in the research
report
2. Abstract:-The abstract should be a summary/synopsis of
the report. Is a summary of introduction, objective,
methods, results and conclusions.
3. Introduction: The “why did you do the study”; setting
the scene or laying the foundation or background for the
report.
4. Methods: The “how did you do the study.”
Describe the
 Context and setting of the study

 Specify the study design

 Population (patients, etc. if applicable)

 Sampling strategy

 Identify the main study variables

 Data collection instruments and procedures

 Outline analysis methods

5. Results: The “what did you find” --
 Report on data collection and/or recruitment

 Participants (demographic, clinical condition, etc.)

 Present key findings with respect to the central research

question
 Secondary findings (secondary outcomes)

6. Discussion: Place for interpreting the results

 Main findings of the study

 Discuss the main results with reference to previous

research
 Policy and practice implications of the results

 Strengths and limitations of the study

7. Conclusions: [occasionally optional or not required]. Do
not reiterate the data or discussion. Can state hunches,
inferences or speculations. Offer perspectives for future
work.

8. Acknowledgements: Names people who contributed to

the work, but did not contribute sufficiently to earn
authorship. You must have permission from any
individuals mentioned in the acknowledgements
sections.
References: Complete citations for any articles or other
materials referenced in the text of the article.