Unit VII Research Paper Research Methods

5

Research Methodology, Design, and Methods

Jovan Maires

Columbia Southern University

Research Methods

Dr. Renee Norris-Jones

24 August 2022

Research Methodology, Design, and Methods

Research Methodology

Research methodology refers to the techniques or the specific procedure that help a researcher to identify, choose, process and analyze information about a specific issue. It indicates the logic of development of the process used to generate theory that is a procedural framework within which the research is conducted (Mohajan, 2018). The chosen research methodology for this research project was qualitative. This research methodology was appropriate for this research project since the objectives point to non-numerical data and they sought to gather in-depth insights into issues such as environmental impacts and employee training.

Research Design

Research design is the overall strategy that a researcher chooses to integrate the various components of the study thus providing an appropriate and logical framework to follow (Sileyew, 2019). The chosen research design for this project was the descriptive research design. It is appropriate for answering the what, when, why, and how questions and thus it is appropriate for this study since the research questions are either what or how questions. For instance, one of the questions sought to evaluate the effectiveness of employee training on safety and health measures. The research design effectively described the situation so that it was effectively understood.

Research Methods

The research method used for this research project is the descriptive research method which involves collecting information through data reviews, surveys, or interviews. It was appropriate for this study because it effectively described the characteristics of the phenomenon under study. In this type of research method, the researcher uncovered details on various issues such as employee training, sound pollution, and environmental impacts. The research method was therefore appropriate for answering the six research questions.

Data Collection Methods

Given the nature of the research questions, objectives, and the selected research methodology and design, the data collection methods that were used were a combination of observation and interviews. Observation entails a record of what participants are doing or what is taking place somewhere. It is useful when a researcher needs a large pool of data that may not be collected within a short time using other data collection methods. Interviews are also useful since they enable researchers to collect first-hand information, opinions, and attitudes from the target population. The two collectively helped to answer the research questions. For instance, the first research question sought to assess the environmental impacts of the waste generated and data on this can be obtained through both observation and interviews. The project also relied on secondary data collection methods such as public records, historical documents, and journals on the issues that were captured by the research questions such as the effectiveness of employee training on safety and health measures.

Sampling Design

A sampling design refers to a mathematical function that gives a researcher the probability of the sample being drawn for research. The sampling design that was used for the data collected is a systematic sampling design where all members of the population are selected and sampled at defined intervals. This sampling design was appropriate because it ensured that the study had a fair representation of a population so that the results were not skewed or biased.

Data Analysis Procedures

The data analysis procedure that was preferred for the RQ1 hypotheses was correlation analysis since it spots patterns within datasets such as the existence of a relationship between the independent and the dependent variables in this case the environment and waste generated. RQ6 hypotheses were also analyzed using correlational analysis. The remaining research questions were analyzed using content analysis which determines the presence of certain themes, words, or concepts within a given qualitative data. Since the research project utilized qualitative research methodology due to the nature of the research objectives and questions, the content analysis helped the researcher to comprehensively analyze the meanings and relationships of certain concepts

References

Mohajan, H. K. (2018). Qualitative research methodology in social sciences and related subjects. Journal of Economic Development, Environment, and People, 7(1), 23-48. https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/85654/1/mpra_paper_85654.pdf

Sileyew, K. J. (2019). Research design and methodology (pp. 1-12). Rijeka: IntechOpen. https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/68505