Availability of Secondary Data: probably another important criterion that made this research use qualitative research methodology would be the abundance of secondary data that was available at the click of a mouse. He also lists the advantages of savings on cost and time, access to quality data that has been tested, access to difficult populations and availability of longitudinal data. Subject under Study: the researcher is intimately involved in research on cloud computing since it became the buzz word within the IT Industry.
He started off by writing research papers on understanding cloud computing, after a series of other research publications on the same topic, found a knowledge gap and narrowed it down to this research dissertation. Quantitative Research Methodology: however, there are several sections, percentage and statistics provided with the assistance of quantitative analysis to strengthen the case of mobile cloud computing for developing countries.
They are planned, scientific, and value-neutral. What that means is that good research methods don't "just happen. It is not necessary that every theory, technique and information in the topic of research is useful for a particular problem. A researcher has to identify and select materials which are useful to his research study. The function of the research method is to provide for the collection of relevant information with minimal expenditure of effort, time and money.
The design of research method, appropriate for a particular research problem, involves the consideration of the following: 1. Objectives of the Research Study; 2. Method of Data Collection to be Adopted; 3. Source of Data or Information; 4. Tool for Data Collection; and 5. Data Analysis - Qualitative and Quantitative The goal of the research method is to produce new knowledge, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.
This process takes three main forms: Exploratory Research Exploratory research is a type of research conducted for a problem that has not been clearly defined.
Exploratory research helps determine the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects. It should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme caution. Given its fundamental nature, exploratory research often concludes that a perceived problem does not actually exist. The Internet allows for research methods that are more interactive in nature. For example, RSS feeds efficiently supply researchers with up- to-date information; major search engine search results may be sent by email to researchers by services such as Google Alerts; comprehensive search results are tracked over lengthy periods of time by services such as Google Trends; and websites may be created to attract worldwide feedback on any subject.
The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision-making by themselves, but they can provide significant insight into a given situation. Social exploratory research "seeks to find out how people get along in the setting under question, what meanings they give to their actions, and what issues concern them.
The goal is to learn 'what is going on here? Babbie identifies three purposes of social science research. The purposes are exploratory, descriptive and explanatory. Exploratory research is used when problems are in a preliminary stage. Exploratory research is used when the topic or issue is new and when data is difficult to collect.
Exploratory research is flexible and can address research questions of all types what, why, how. Exploratory research is often used to generate formal hypotheses. Skeptics, however, have questioned the usefulness and necessity of exploratory research in situations where priori analysis could be conducted instead Constructive Research Constructive research is perhaps the most common computer science research method.
Nevertheless the conclusions have to be objectively argued and defined. Construct can be a new theory, algorithm, model, software, or a framework Empirical Research Empirical research is a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience. Through quantifying the evidence or making sense of it in qualitative form, a researcher can answer empirical questions, which should be clearly defined and answerable with the evidence collected usually called data.
Research design varies by field and by the question being investigated. Many researchers combine qualitative and quantitative forms of analysis to better answer questions which cannot be studied in laboratory settings, particularly in the social sciences and in education.
In some fields, quantitative research may begin with a research question e. Usually, a researcher has a certain theory regarding the topic under investigation. Based on this theory some statements, or hypotheses, will be proposed e. From these hypotheses predictions about specific events are derived e.
These predictions can then be tested with a suitable experiment. Depending on the outcomes of the experiment, the theory on which the hypotheses and predictions were based will be supported or not. Many researchers and research literature have been found to interchange references and mix definitions and meanings of research methodology, research methods, research design, and research approach.
I have attempted to separate them according to my understanding. Myers and Liu surveyed all the research articles in the AIS basket of six top journals over a ten year period, from to Within this category they classified articles as using the following research methods: survey, case study, laboratory experiment, field experiment, or action research.
They describe the five research methods as follows: Survey: Studies employing this research method gather data through the form of questionnaires, which can be paper-based or web-based. Yin, Laboratory experiment: Studies undertaking laboratory experiments aim for control over the independent variables being measured. Field experiment: As opposed to the controlled environment of a laboratory experiment, field experiments are conducted within a naturally-occurring system. As such, researchers often do not have control over variables under measurement.
Action research: Studies using action research aim to solve a practical problem in the research setting while also contributing to knowledge about the phenomenon. Action research is a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as part of a "community of practice".
In social sciences and later in other disciplines, such as information technology, the following two research methods can be applied, depending on the properties of the subject matter and on the objective of the research: Qualitative Research Understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behaviour.
Asking a broad question and collecting word-type data that is analyzed searching for themes. This type of research looks to describe a population without attempting to quantifiably measure variables or look to potential relationships between variables.
Qualitative research is often used as a method of exploratory research as a basis for later quantitative research hypotheses. Quantitative Research Systematic empirical investigation of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships. Asking a narrow question and collecting numerical data to analyze utilizing statistical methods. The quantitative research designs are experimental, correlational, and survey or descriptive.
Statistics derived from quantitative research can be used to establish the existence of associative or causal relationships between variables. The Quantitative data collection methods rely on random sampling and structured data collection instruments that fit diverse experiences into predetermined response categories.
They produce results that are easy to summarize, compare, and generalize. Quantitative research uses statistics and mathematics to report research findings. Depending on the research question, participants may be randomly assigned to different treatments.
If this is not feasible, the researcher may collect data on participant and situational characteristics in order to statistically control for their influence on the dependent, or outcome, variable. If the intent is to generalize from the research participants to a larger population, the researcher will employ probability sampling to select participants. Examples of qualitative research methods are action research, case study research and ethnography. The motivation for doing qualitative research, as opposed to quantitative research, comes from the observation that, if there is one thing which distinguishes humans from the natural world, it is our ability to talk!
Qualitative research methods are designed to help researchers understand people and the social and cultural contexts within which they live. Just as there are various philosophical perspectives which can inform qualitative research, so there are various qualitative research methods.
A research method is a strategy of inquiry which moves from the underlying philosophical assumptions to research design and data collection. The choice of research method influences the way in which the researcher collects data.
Specific research methods also imply different skills, assumptions and research practices. The four research methods that will be discussed here are action research, case study research, ethnography and grounded theory.
This definition draws attention to the collaborative aspect of action research and to possible ethical dilemmas which arise from its use. It also makes clear, as Clark emphasizes, that action research is concerned to enlarge the stock of knowledge of the social science community.
It is this aspect of action research that distinguishes it from applied social science, where the goal is simply to apply social scientific knowledge but not to add to the body of knowledge. Action research has been accepted as a valid research method in applied fields such as organization development and education. In information systems, however, action research was for a long time largely ignored, apart from one or two notable exceptions e.
Checkland, More recently, there seems to be increasing interest in action research. A brief overview of action research is the article by Susman and Evered An empirical example of action research is the article by Ytterstad et al. Case Study Research The term "case study" has multiple meanings. It can be used to describe a unit of analysis e. The discussion here concerns the use of the case study as a research method.
Case study research is the most common qualitative method used in information systems Orlikowski and Baroudi, ; Alavi and Carlson, Although there are numerous definitions, Yin defines the scope of a case study as follows: A case study is an empirical inquiry that: investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident Yin Case study research can be positivist, interpretive, or critical, depending upon the underlying philosophical assumptions of the researcher.
Yin and Benbasat et al. Ethnography Ethnographic research comes from the discipline of social and cultural anthropology where an ethnographer is required to spend a significant amount of time in the field.
Ethnographers immerse themselves in the lives of the people they study Lewis , p. After early ground-breaking work by Wynn , Suchman and Zuboff , ethnography has now become more widely used in the study of information systems in organizations, from the study of the development of information systems Hughes et. In the area of the design and evaluation of information systems, some very interesting work is taking place in a collaborative fashion between ethnographers on the one hand, and designers, IS professionals, computer scientists and engineers on the other.
Grounded Theory Grounded theory is a research method that seeks to develop theory that is grounded in data systematically gathered and analyzed. According to Martin and Turner , grounded theory is "an inductive, theory discovery methodology that allows the researcher to develop a theoretical account of the general features of a topic while simultaneously grounding the account in empirical observations or data.
Grounded theory approaches are becoming increasingly common in the IS research literature because the method is extremely useful in developing context-based, process-oriented descriptions and explanations of the phenomenon.
Typically, empirical statements are expressed in numerical terms; another factor in quantitative research is that empirical evaluations are applied. Empirical evaluations are defined as a form that seeks to determine the degree to which a specific program or policy empirically fulfills or does not fulfill a particular standard or norm. The process of measurement is central to quantitative research because it provides the fundamental connection between empirical observation and mathematical expression of quantitative relationships.
Quantitative data is any data that is in numerical form such as statistics, percentages, etc. In layman's terms, this means that the quantitative researcher asks a specific, narrow question and collects numerical data from participants to answer the question. The researcher analyzes the data with the help of statistics.
The researcher is hoping the numbers will yield an unbiased result that can be generalized to some larger population. Qualitative research, on the other hand, asks broad questions and collects word data from participants. The researcher looks for themes and describes the information in themes and patterns exclusive to that set of participants.
Source: Wikipedia, Quantitative research is used widely in social sciences such as psychology, economics, sociology, and political science, and less frequently in anthropology and history.
Research in mathematical sciences such as physics is also 'quantitative' by definition, though this use of the term differs in context. In the social sciences, the term relates to empirical methods, originating in both philosophical positivism and the history of statistics, which contrast qualitative research methods.
Qualitative methods produce information only on the particular cases studied, and any more general conclusions are only hypotheses. Quantitative methods can be used to verify, which of such hypotheses are true. Quantitative research involves a collection of numerical data to answer a specific research question.
Taking this definition one step further Christiansen goes on to note that quantitative research is a descriptive type of research where the goal is to attempt to provide an accurate description or picture of a particular situation or phenomenon.
Quantitative research methods are based on the idea that social phenomena can be quantified, measured and expressed numerically. The information about a social phenomenon is expressed in numeric terms that can be analysed by statistical methods. The observations can be directly numeric information or can be classified into numeric variables.
Observations are transformed into a data matrix in which each observation unit e. The data matrix is the starting point for the analysis. Some of the different types of Quantitative Research Methods used in information systems are: Descriptive: descriptive research involves collecting data in order to test hypotheses or answer questions concerning the current status of the subjects of the study.
It determines and reports the way things are. Correlational: correlational research attempts to determine whether and to what degree a relationship exists between two or more quantifiable variables. However, it never establishes a cause-effect relationship. Cause-comparative: causal-comparative research: establishes the cause-effect relationship, compares the relationship, but the cause is not manipulated, such as "gender.
The cause, independent variable makes the difference. The effect, dependent variable is dependent on the independent variable.
One of the major differences between primary and secondary research is that primary research is conducted with the help of the primary sources available whereas secondary research is conducted on the basis of some data collected from someone who had got it from some source.
Let us take an example to point out the difference between primary research and secondary research. Interviewing someone is primary data and it would lead to conducting primary research because of the fact that you conduct the research from the source itself. Imagine you have written a book based on the interview that you have conducted.
If somebody uses the book to prepare or write a report then the data available to that person should be considered secondary in purpose and the research conducted by him based on the book can be called secondary research.
It is interesting to note that primary research is expensive to conduct since it involves primary sources. On the other hand secondary research is not expensive to conduct since it does not involve the primary sources. As with any research method, there are A primary source is a first-hand assessment of a topic or event, while a secondary source is an interpretation of the primary data. Secondary information often quotes primary data and adds a fresh interpretation.
You might choose to gather this data by running a survey, interviewing people, observing behavior, or by using some other market research method. The primary data entails new information which can be collected from the market or company or particular source. There are different techniques and methods to adapt in order to collect appropriate primary data, those techniques include; focus groups, questionnaire, interviews, surveys, semi-structured open-ended interviews, observations and A Classification of Secondary Data Secondary Data Internal External Ready to Use Requires Further Processing Published Materials Syndicated Services Computerized Databases.
This information exist within the organization. Internal Secondary Data Those generated within the organization for which the research is being conducted. The methodology describes the broad philosophical underpinning to your chosen research methods, including whether you are using qualitative or quantitative methods, or a mixture of both, and why Secondary Data Collection Method: Data that are collected on the basis of previous data or research is included under the secondary data collection method.
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Deliver breakthrough contact center experiences that reduce churn and drive unwavering loyalty from your customers. This approach is known as secondary research. Secondary research, also known as desk research, is a research method that involves compiling existing data sourced from a variety of channels. This includes internal sources e. Secondary research comes in several formats, such as published datasets, reports, and survey responses , and can also be sourced from websites, libraries, and museums.
The information is usually free — or available at a limited access cost — and gathered using surveys , telephone interviews, observation, face-to-face interviews, and more. When using secondary research, researchers collect, verify, analyze and incorporate it to help them confirm research goals for the research period. As well as the above, it can be used to review previous research into an area of interest. First, understand what you will be researching and define the topic by thinking about the research questions you want to be answered.
Ask yourself: What is the point of conducting this research? Then, ask: What do we want to achieve? This may indicate an exploratory reason why something happened or confirm a hypothesis. The answers may indicate ideas that need primary or secondary research or a combination to investigate them. If secondary research is needed, think about where you might find the information. This helps you narrow down your secondary sources to those that help you answer your questions.
What keywords do you need to use? Which organizations are closely working on this topic already? Are there any competitors that you need to be aware of? Now that you have the list of data sources, start accessing the data and collect the information into an organized system.
This may mean you start setting up research journal accounts or making telephone calls to book meetings with third-party research teams to verify the details around data results. When you have your data in one place, you need to understand, filter, order, and combine it intelligently.
Data may come in different formats where some data could be unusable, while other information may need to be deleted. After this, you can start to look at different data sets to see what they tell you. You may find that you need to compare the same datasets over different periods for changes over time or compare different datasets to notice overlaps or trends.
Ask yourself: What does this data mean to my research? Does it help or hinder my research? In this last stage of the process, look at the information you have and ask yourself if this answers your original questions for your research. Are there any gaps? If you feel there is more to cover, repeat the steps and delve deeper into the topic so that you can get all the information you need. As you explore further, add to your knowledge and update your findings.
This will help you present clear, credible information. Unlike secondary research, primary research involves creating data first-hand by directly working with interviewees, target users, or a target market.
Primary research focuses on the method for carrying out research, asking questions, and collecting data using approaches such as:. Using these methods, researchers can get in-depth, targeted responses to questions, making results more accurate and specific to their research goals. However, it does take time to do and administer. Unlike primary research, secondary research uses existing data, which also includes published results from primary research.
Researchers summarize the existing research and use the results to support their research goals.
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