My E-Portfolio (KMF2024 Semester 2/2023)
Name: Nurul Fathiyah binti Zainuddin
Matric Number: 80866
Class Number: G11
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHOD
CONTENT CURATION
Introduction
Qualitative research, also known as descriptive research, concerns more about understanding the relationship between the variables and how the occurring phenomena happen (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). The purpose of this method is to get a better understanding of complicated situations (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). The outcome is based on the observation in the nature and may be used to build theory from natural settings (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). This research method involves analyzing and interpreting text, interviews and observations in order to discover meaningful patterns descriptive of a particular phenomenon (Auerbach, n.d.).
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
Auerbach, C. F. (n.d.). An introduction to qualitative research methods for studying trauma. ISTSS. https://istss.org/education-research/istss-research-guidelines/trauma-research-methods/an-introduction-to-qualitative-research-methods-fo?gclid=Cj0KCQjwwISlBhD6ARIsAESAmp7Dgb5SUEJpM9vqkCTGK0FC7b6znKdnb1dWzt8UKD1plgFiscvaD4caAonmEALw_wcB
Method
According to Bhandari (2023), the qualitative research method common approaches include grounded theory, ethnography, action research, phenomenological research and narrative research. This particular research method tends to be more flexible and focuses on retaining rich meaning when interpreting data (Bhandari, 2023). There are many types of data collection methods involve in the qualitative research method including observations (the researcher will record what has been seen, heard, or encountered in detailed field notes), interviews (asking questions personally in conversations), focus groups (asking questions and generating discussion among a group of people), surveys (distributing questionnaires with open-ended questions) and secondary research (collecting existing data from established sources).
The sample selection & sample size
The sample is selected rather than generalized and the sample size is not determined in advance (Auerbach, n.d.). The theory from the research will be generated as the sampling proceeds, and sampling ends when theoretical saturation occurs (Auerbach, n.d.). Therefore, the researcher needs to interview enough participants so that no new information emerges from their stories (Auerbach, n.d.).
Note that the qualitative research method is at risk for certain research biases including the Hawthorne effect, observer bias, recall bias and social desirability bias (Bhandari, 2023). The researcher must be aware of these potential biases in collecting and analyzing the data to prevent them from impacting the results.
References
Auerbach, C. F. (n.d.). An introduction to qualitative research methods for studying trauma. ISTSS. https://istss.org/education-research/istss-research-guidelines/trauma-research-methods/an-introduction-to-qualitative-research-methods-fo?gclid=Cj0KCQjwwISlBhD6ARIsAESAmp7Dgb5SUEJpM9vqkCTGK0FC7b6znKdnb1dWzt8UKD1plgFiscvaD4caAonmEALw_wcB
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is qualitative research?: Methods & examples. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-research/
Process & Data Collection
Data Analysis
There are five steps to analyze data in qualitative research method according to Bhandari(2023):
- Prepare and organize data: This may mean transcribing interviews or typing up fieldnotes.
- Review and explore your data: Examine the data for patterns or repeated ideas that emerge.
- Develop a data coding system: Based on the initial ideas, establish a set of codes that can be used to categorize the data.
- Assign codes to the data.
- Identify recurring themes.
Methods to analyze qualitative data (Bhandari, 2023):
- Content analysis: To describe and categorize common words, phrases and ideas in qualitative data.
- Thematic analysis: To identify and interpret patterns and themes in qualitative data.
- Textual analysis: To examine the content, structure, and design of texts.
- Discourse analysis: To study communication and how language is used to achieve effects in specific contexts.
The data analysis in the qualitative research method using inductive reasoning based on these processes (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022)
- To make specific observations
- To draw inferences about larger and more general phenomena.
Note that the nature of the data is more subjective (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022).
In this method, the main instrument that analyses the data is the researcher (Bhandari, 2023).
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is qualitative research?: Methods & examples. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-research/
Report Findings
To report the findings in the qualitative research method, it is important to construct interpretive narratives from the data and capture the complexity of the phenomena under study (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). The researcher has to use a more personal and literary style and include the participants’ own language and perspectives, therefore, the researcher must have sufficient skills to write clearly (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022).
It is important to reflect and thoroughly explain the choices that have been made in collecting and analyzing the data (Bhandari, 2023).
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is qualitative research?: Methods & examples. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-research/
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths
- Identifying specific responses
- Greater accuracy
- Provide facts
- Results more detailed
- Deep understanding
- Greater scope for prediction
- Margin of error can be calculated
- Natural settings
- Meaningful insights
- Generation of new ideas
- Flexibility
Weaknesses
- Time-consuming
- More expensive
- More complicated
- Low response rates
- Intuitive
- Unmanageable
- Closed questions tend to force answers into limited categories
- Unreliability
- Subjectivity
- Limited generalizability
- Labor-intensive
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is qualitative research?: Methods & examples. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-research/
LEARNING PATH
REFLECTION
In the process of learning qualitative research methods, I learnt many aspects that are involved in the research process. In order to understand in-depth about this method, I am referring to many sources that explain the topic and make revisions outside of the lecture in class. Some sources that I found very helpful are the book written by the UNIMAS’s lecturer entitled Conducting Research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide and some articles I found online. From the sources, I divided this topic into some chapters. The first chapter is the introduction, the second chapter is about the method to plan the research based on the qualitative research method, to be more specific, in this chapter I learnt about the best method to use in the qualitative method and how to collect the data for this type of research method. The third chapter is about the process after the data collection, which is data analysis. The fourth chapter is about the method to report the findings in the most comprehensive way. The final chapter is about the strengths and weaknesses of the qualitative research method. The important thing that I can carry out from learning this type of research method is the importance of the researcher’s skill to observe and interpret the data that have been collected during the data collection process, the skills are very vital as it is the main instrument to collect and analyze the data. The language skill of the researcher is also very important in this type of research because the findings from this type of research must be reported clearly by the researcher. In the future, I think I will use the qualitative research method in research that investigates nature phenomenon that needs in-depth observation and understanding.
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHOD
CONTENT CURATION
Quantitative research is the process of collecting and analyzing numerical data (Bhandari, 2023). This method focuses on numeric and unchanging data and detailed, convergent reasoning rather than divergent reasoning (USC Libraries, n. d.). The goal in conducting quantitative research is to determine the relationship between variables within a population (USC Libraries, n.d.). It is either in descriptive study or experimental study, a descriptive study establishes the associations between the variables, whereby an experimental study establishes causality (USC Libraries). This method study a crucial phenomenon and the findings can be generalized to other situations (Bhandari, 2023).
References
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is quantitative research?: Definition, uses & methods. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/quantitative-research/
USC Libraries. (n.d.). Research guides: Organizing your Social Sciences Research Paper: Quantitative Methods. Quantitative Methods - Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper - Research Guides at University of Southern California. https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/quantitative#:~:text=Quantitative%20research%20deals%20in%20numbers,%2C%20free%2Dflowing%20manner%5D.
Introduction
The research is conducted through structured guidelines where a study begins with determining the research problem, objectives, conceptual framework, research question and/or hypotheses (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022).Then, establishing research methodology and procedures for conducting a research, selecting data collection techniques, discussion about the results of data analysis and finally drawing a conclusion (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022).
In this research method, the researchers can use these methods (Bhandari, 2023):
- Descriptive research (Seek an overall summary of study variables)
- Correlational research(Investigate relationships between variables)
- Experimental research(Examine whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship between variables)
The results may be generalized to broader populations based on the sampling method used results (Bhandari, 2023). Correlational and experimental research can both be used to formally test hypotheses, or predictions, using statistics (Bhandari, 2023).To collect quantitative data, the researchers need to use operational definitions that translate abstract concepts into observable and quantifiable measures (Bhandari, 2023). The methods to collect the data are experiment research method (control or manipulate the independent variable to measure its effect on a dependent variable), survey, observation, and secondary research (Bhandari, 2023).
References
Bhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is quantitative research?: Definition, uses & methods. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/quantitative-research/
Process & Data Collection
Data Analysis
Once the data is collected, the data need to be processed before it can be analyzed (Bhandari, 2023). The data may need to be transformed from words to numbers (Bhandari, 2023). Then, the statistical analysis will be used to explain the research question (Bhandari, 2023). There are two types of statistical analysis that have to be done in quantitative research method (Bhandari, 2023):
- Descriptive statistics: The summary of the data includes measures of averages and variability (Bhandari, 2023). The findings can be presented using graphs, scatter plots and frequency tables to visualize the data and check for trends or outliers (Bhandari, 2023).
- Inferential statistics: Make predictions or generalizations based on the data (Bhandari, 2023). The sample data can be used to estimate the population parameter (Bhandari, 2023).
Note that the researcher also can assess the reliability and validity of the data collection methods to indicate how consistently and accurately the methods actually measure what is needed to be measured (Bhandari, 2023).
References
ABhandari, P. (2023, June 22). What is quantitative research?: Definition, uses & methods. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/quantitative-research/
Report Findings
To report the findings, the data should be presented via graphic techniques, means, medians, correlations and other summarizing statistics (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). Interpretations should be done based on the data and the researcher must avoid personal views (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022). Report should use passive voice style and impersonal language (Ahmad & Bujang, 2022).
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths
- Relatively quick
- Cheap
- Simple
- Offers useful overview
- Helpful as prelude to qualitative
Weaknesses
- Subjectivity
- Higher level of interpretation skill
- Statistical accuracy can be reduced
- Greater chance of bias through difficult interpretation results
- Not in-depth explaination
References
Ahmad, R., & Bujang, S. (2022). Conducting research in Social Sciences, Humanities Economics and Management Studies: A practical guide (Third). RS Group Publishing House.
LEARNING PATH
REFLECTION
For the quantitative topic, I am using similar sources and also divided the topic into similar chapters as the qualitative topic. Different from the qualitative that is more related to more subjective observations, the quantitative method is more focused on the data that can be measured. In the process of quantitative research, the sample of the data is larger, and the instrument will be analyzed based on the numbers. I also used the quantitative method for my group mini-research project. I managed to get a better understanding of this method through the mini-research project. I learnt how to analyze data by using two types of analyses which are descriptive analysis and inferential analysis. The findings from the analysis can be interpreted to answer the problem statement of the research. The finding from this method can be used to describe the phenomenon that happens in the population. I found that the quantitative method is easier and faster compared to the qualitative method, but it does not give an in-depth explanation. I will use this type of research to investigate the phenomenon that involves many people.