Effective Research Process in Arts, Economics, Banking, and Insurance

DEPARTMENT OF ARTS AND ECONOMICS AND DEPARTMENT OF BANKING AND INSURANCE SUBJECT RESEARCH METHODOLOGY TOPIC: RESEARCH PROCESS PREPARED BY : SAYYED ASRA FATMA

Research process B efore going to the details of research m ethodology and techniques, it is appropriate to present a brief overview of the research process. A cursory glance at different published researches suggests that research com prises of a definite sequence of processes. The process involves a num ber of clearly distinct steps. The num ber of steps, their nam es and their sequences m ay vary in different cases. H ow ever, it is necessary to note that the research process involves a num ber of interrelated activities. These activities overlap continuously and do not alw ays follow a prescribed sequence. The operations involved in the research process are so interdependent that the earlier steps m ay determ ine the later steps. Thus, the researcher has to be constantly anticipating at each step, the requirem ents of the subsequent steps. E ven then, it is w orth w hile to determ ine the steps involved in planning a research project. Thus, research process consists of series of actions or steps necessary to effectively carry out research and the desired sequencing of these steps. The chart given below illustrates a research process:

A brief description of the above steps w ill be helpful: 1. 1. Form ulating Form ulating the constitutes the first step in a scientific enquiry. E ssentially tw o steps are involved in form ulating the research problem , viz. understanding the problem thoroughly and rephrasing the sam e into m eaningful term s from an analytical point of view . 2. 2. E xtensive E xtensive L iterature L iterature Survey Survey: : O nce the problem is form ulated, a brief sum m ary of it should be w ritten dow n. A t step the researcher should undertake extensive literature survey connected w ith the problem . For this purpose, the abstracting and indexing journals and published or unpublished bibliographies are the first place to go to. A cadem ic journals, conference proceedings, governm ent reports, books, etc. 3. 3. D evelopm ent D evelopm ent of of W orking W orking H ypotheses H ypotheses: : A fter extensive literature survey, researcher should state in clear term s the w orking hypothesis or hypotheses. W orking hypothesis is a tentative assum ption m ade in order to draw out and test its logical or em pirical consequences. the R esearch R esearch P roblem P roblem : : The form ulation of a general topic into a specific research problem

4. P reparing P reparing the w ill be required to prepare a research design, i.e. he w ill have to state the conceptual structure w ithin w hich research w ould be conducted. The preparation of such a design facilitates research to be as efficient as possible yielding m axim al inform ation. 5. D eterm ining D eterm ining Sam ple Sam ple D esign D esign: : A ll the item s under consideration in any field of inquiry constitute a 'universe' or 'population'. A com plete enum eration of all the item s in the 'population' is know n as a census inquiry. It can be presum ed that in such an inquiry w hen all the item s are covered no elem ent of chance is left and highest accuracy is obtained. 6. . C ollecting C ollecting the the D ata D ata: : In dealing w ith any real life problem it is often found that data at hand are inadequate and hence, it becom es necessary to collect data that are appropriate. There are several w ays of collecting the appropriate data w hich differ considerably in context of m oney costs, tim e and other resources at the disposal of the researcher. P rim ary data can be collected either through experim ent or through survey. If the researcher conducts an experim ent, he observes som e quantitative m easurem ents, or the data, w ith the help of w hich he exam ines the truth contained in his hypothesis. the R esearch R esearch D esign D esign: The research problem having been form ulated in clear cut term s, the researcher

7. E xecution E xecution of of the on correct lines, the data to be collected w ould be adequate and dependable. The researcher should see that the project is executed in a system atic m anner and in tim e. If the survey is to be conducted by m eans of structured questionnaires, data can be readily m achine-processed. In such a situation, questions as w ell as the possible answ ers m ay be coded. If the data are to be collected through interview ers, arrangem ents should be m ade for proper selection and training of the interview ers. 8. . A nalysis A nalysis of of D ata D ata: : A fter the data have been collected, the researcher turns to the task of analyzing them . The analysis of data requires a num ber of closely related operations such as establishm ent of categories, the application of these categories to raw data through coding, tabulation and then draw ing statistical inferences. The data difficult to handle should necessarily be m ade easy by a few m anageable groups and tables for further analysis. Thus, researcher should classify the raw data into som e purposeful and usable categories. C oding operation is usually done at this stage through w hich the categories of data are transform ed into sym bols that m ay be tabulated and counted. E diting is the procedure that im proves the quality of the data for coding. W ith coding the stage is ready for tabulation. Tabulation is a part of the technical procedure w herein the classified data are put in the form of tables. The m echanical devices can be m ade use of at this juncture. A great deal of data, especially in large inquiries, is tabulated by com puters. the project project: : It is a very im portant step in the research process. If the execution of the project proceeds

9. Hypothesis Testing: After analyzing the data as stated above, the researcher is in a position to test the hypotheses, if any, he had formulated earlier. Do the facts support the hypotheses or they happen to be contrary? This is the usual question which should be answered while testing hypotheses. 10.Generalizations and Interpretation: If a hypothesis is tested and upheld several times, it may be possible for the researcher to arrive at generalization, i.e., to build a theory. As a matter of fact, the real value of research lies in its ability to arrive at certain generalizations. If the researcher had no hypothesis to start with, he might seek to explain his findings on the basis of some theory. It is known as interpretation. 11.Preparation of the Report or the Thesis: Finally, the researcher has to prepare the report of what has been done by him. Writing of report must be done with great care keeping in view the structure of a research.