From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Research comprises "
creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of
knowledge, including knowledge of humans, culture and society, and the use of this stock of knowledge to devise new applications." It is used to establish or confirm facts, reaffirm the results of previous work, solve new or existing problems, support
theorems, or develop new
theories.
A research project may also be an expansion on past work in the field.
Research projects can be used to develop further knowledge on a topic,
or in the example of a school research project, they can be used to
further a student's research prowess to prepare them for future jobs or
reports. To test the validity of instruments, procedures, or
experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the
project as a whole. The primary purposes of
basic research (as opposed to
applied research) are
documentation,
discovery,
interpretation, or the
research and development (R&D) of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge. Approaches to research depend on
epistemologies, which vary considerably both within and between humanities and sciences. There are several forms of research:
scientific,
humanities,
artistic, economic,
social, business,
marketing,
practitioner research, life,
technological, etc.
Etymology
The word
research is derived from the
Middle French "
recherche", which means "to go about seeking", the term itself being derived from the
Old French term "
recerchier" a compound word from "re-" + "cerchier", or "sercher", meaning 'search'. The earliest recorded use of the term was in 1577.
Definitions
Research
has been defined in a number of different ways, and while there are
similarities, there does not appear to be a single, all-encompassing
definition that is embraced by all who engage in it.
One definition of research is used by the OECD, "Any creative
systematic activity undertaken in order to increase the stock of
knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use
of this knowledge to devise new applications."
Another definition of research is given by
John W. Creswell,
who states that "research is a process of steps used to collect and
analyze information to increase our understanding of a topic or issue".
It consists of three steps: pose a question, collect data to answer the
question, and present an answer to the question.
The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines research in more detail as "studious inquiry or examination; especially :
investigation or experimentation aimed at the discovery and
interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the
light of new facts, or practical application of such new or revised
theories or laws"
Forms of research
Original research is research that is not exclusively based on
a summary, review or synthesis of earlier publications on the subject
of research. This material is of a
primary source character. The purpose of the original research is to produce new
knowledge, rather than to present the existing knowledge in a new form (
e.g., summarized or classified).
Original research can take a number of forms, depending on the
discipline it pertains to. In experimental work, it typically involves
direct or indirect observation of the researched subject(s), e.g., in
the laboratory or in the field, documents the
methodology, results, and conclusions of an experiment or set of experiments, or offers a novel interpretation of previous results. In
analytical
work, there are typically some new (for example) mathematical results
produced, or a new way of approaching an existing problem. In some
subjects which do not typically carry out experimentation or analysis of
this kind, the originality is in the particular way existing
understanding is changed or re-interpreted based on the outcome of the
work of the
researcher.
Scientific research is a systematic way of gathering data and harnessing
curiosity. This research provides
scientific information and theories for the explanation of the
nature
and the properties of the world. It makes practical applications
possible. Scientific research is funded by public authorities, by
charitable organizations and by private groups, including many
companies. Scientific research can be subdivided into different
classifications according to their academic and application disciplines.
Scientific research is a widely used criterion for judging the standing
of an academic institution, but some argue that such is an inaccurate
assessment of the institution, because the quality of research does not
tell about the quality of teaching (these do not necessarily correlate).
Research in the humanities involves different methods such as for example
hermeneutics and
semiotics.
Humanities scholars usually do not search for the ultimate correct
answer to a question, but instead, explore the issues and details that
surround it. Context is always important, and context can be social,
historical, political, cultural, or ethnic. An example of research in
the humanities is historical research, which is embodied in
historical method. Historians use
primary sources and other
evidence
to systematically investigate a topic, and then to write histories in
the form of accounts of the past. Other studies aim to merely examine
the occurrence of behaviours in societies and communities, without
particularly looking for reasons or motivations to explain these. These
studies may be qualitative or quantitative, and can use a variety of
approaches, such as queer theory or feminist theory.
Artistic research, also seen as 'practice-based research',
can take form when creative works are considered both the research and
the object of research itself. It is the debatable body of thought which
offers an alternative to purely scientific methods in research in its
search for knowledge and truth.
Scientific research
Scientific research equipment at MIT.
Generally, research is understood to follow a certain structural
process.
Though step order may vary depending on the subject matter and
researcher, the following steps are usually part of most formal
research, both basic and applied:
- Observations and formation of the topic:
Consists of the subject area of one's interest and following that
subject area to conduct subject related research. The subject area
should not be randomly chosen since it requires reading a vast amount of
literature on the topic to determine the gap in the literature the
researcher intends to narrow. A keen interest in the chosen subject area
is advisable. The research will have to be justified by linking its
importance to already existing knowledge about the topic.
- Hypothesis: A testable prediction which designates the relationship between two or more variables.
- Conceptual definition: Description of a concept by relating it to other concepts.
- Operational definition: Details in regards to defining the variables and how they will be measured/assessed in the study.
- Gathering of data:
Consists of identifying a population and selecting samples, gathering
information from or about these samples by using specific research
instruments. The instruments used for data collection must be valid and
reliable.
- Analysis of data: Involves breaking down the individual pieces of data to draw conclusions about it.
- Data Interpretation: This can be represented through tables, figures, and pictures, and then described in words.
- Test, revising of hypothesis
- Conclusion, reiteration if necessary
A common misconception is that a hypothesis will be proven (see, rather,
null hypothesis).
Generally, a hypothesis is used to make predictions that can be tested
by observing the outcome of an experiment. If the outcome is
inconsistent with the hypothesis, then the hypothesis is rejected (see
falsifiability).
However, if the outcome is consistent with the hypothesis, the
experiment is said to support the hypothesis. This careful language is
used because researchers recognize that alternative hypotheses may also
be consistent with the observations. In this sense, a hypothesis can
never be proven, but rather only supported by surviving rounds of
scientific testing and, eventually, becoming widely thought of as true.
A useful hypothesis allows prediction and within the accuracy of
observation of the time, the prediction will be verified. As the
accuracy of observation improves with time, the hypothesis may no longer
provide an accurate prediction. In this case, a new hypothesis will
arise to challenge the old, and to the extent that the new hypothesis
makes more accurate predictions than the old, the new will supplant it.
Researchers can also use a null hypothesis, which states no relationship
or difference between the independent or dependent variables.
Historical research
German historian Leopold von Ranke (1795–1886), considered to be one of the founders of modern source-based history.
The
historical method
comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use
historical sources and other evidence to research and then to write
history. There are various history guidelines that are commonly used by
historians in their work, under the headings of external criticism,
internal criticism, and synthesis. This includes
lower criticism
and sensual criticism. Though items may vary depending on the subject
matter and researcher, the following concepts are part of most formal
historical research:
Artistic research
The
controversial trend of artistic teaching becoming more
academics-oriented is leading to artistic research being accepted as the
primary mode of enquiry in art as in the case of other disciplines. One of the characteristics of artistic research is that it must accept
subjectivity as opposed to the classical scientific methods. As such, it is similar to the
social sciences in using
qualitative research and
intersubjectivity as tools to apply measurement and critical analysis.
Artistic research has been defined by the
University of Dance and Circus (Dans och Cirkushögskolan, DOCH),
Stockholm
in the following manner - "Artistic research is to investigate and test
with the purpose of gaining knowledge within and for our artistic
disciplines. It is based on artistic practices, methods, and
criticality. Through presented documentation, the insights gained shall
be placed in a context." Artistic research aims to enhance knowledge and understanding with presentation of the arts. A more simple understanding by
Julian Klein defines Artistic Research as any kind of research employing the artistic mode of perception. For a survey of the central problematics of today's Artistic Research, see
Giaco Schiesser.
According to artist
Hakan Topal,
in artistic research, "perhaps more so than other disciplines,
intuition is utilized as a method to identify a wide range of new and
unexpected productive modalities".
Most writers, whether of fiction or non-fiction books, also have to do
research to support their creative work. This may be factual,
historical, or background research. Background research could include,
for example, geographical or procedural research.
The
Society for Artistic Research (SAR) publishes the triannual
Journal for Artistic Research (JAR), an international, online,
open access, and
peer-reviewed journal for the identification, publication, and
dissemination of artistic research and its methodologies, from all arts disciplines and it runs the
Research Catalogue (RC), a searchable, documentary
database of artistic research, to which anyone can contribute.
Patricia Leavy addresses eight arts-based research (ABR) genres:
narrative inquiry, fiction-based research, poetry, music, dance,
theatre, film, and visual art.
In 2016
ELIA (European League of the Institutes of the Arts) launched
The Florence Principles' on the Doctorate in the Arts. The Florence Principles relating to the Salzburg Principles and the Salzburg Recommendations of
EUA
(European University Association) name seven points of attention to
specify the Doctorate / PhD in the Arts compared to a scientific
doctorate / PhD The Florence Principles have been endorsed and are
supported also by
AEC,
CILECT, CUMULUS and
SAR.
Steps in conducting research
Research is often conducted using the hourglass model structure of research.
The hourglass model starts with a broad spectrum for research, focusing
in on the required information through the method of the project (like
the neck of the hourglass), then expands the research in the form of
discussion and results. The major steps in conducting research are:
- Identification of research problem;
- Literature review;
- Specifying the purpose of research;
- Determining specific research questions;
- Specification of a conceptual framework, sometimes including a set of hypotheses;
- Choice of a methodology (for data collection);
- Data collection;
- Verifying data;
- Analyzing and interpreting the data;
- Reporting and evaluating research;
- Communicating the research findings and, possibly, recommendations.
The steps generally represent the overall process; however, they
should be viewed as an ever-changing iterative process rather than a
fixed set of steps. Most research begins with a general statement of the problem, or rather, the purpose for engaging in the study. The literature review identifies flaws or holes in previous research which provides justification for the study. Often, a
literature review
is conducted in a given subject area before a research question is
identified. A gap in the current literature, as identified by a
researcher, then engenders a research question. The research question
may be parallel to the
hypothesis.
The hypothesis is the supposition to be tested. The researcher(s)
collects data to test the hypothesis. The researcher(s) then analyzes
and interprets the data via a variety of statistical methods, engaging
in what is known as
empirical research. The results of the data analysis in rejecting or failing to reject the
null hypothesis are then reported and evaluated. At the end, the researcher may discuss avenues for
further research.
However, some researchers advocate for the reverse approach: starting
with articulating findings and discussion of them, moving "up" to
identification of a research problem that emerges in the findings and
literature review. The reverse approach is justified by the
transactional nature of the research endeavor where research inquiry,
research questions, research method, relevant research literature, and
so on are not fully known until the findings have fully emerged and been
interpreted.
Rudolph Rummel
says, "... no researcher should accept any one or two tests as
definitive. It is only when a range of tests are consistent over many
kinds of data, researchers, and methods can one have confidence in the
results."
Plato in
Meno
talks about an inherent difficulty, if not a paradox, of doing research
that can be paraphrased in the following way, "If you know what you're
searching for, why do you search for it?! [i.e., you have already found
it] If you don't know what you're searching for, what are you searching
for?!"
Research methods
The research room at the New York Public Library, an example of secondary research in progress.
Maurice Hilleman is credited with saving more lives than any other scientist of the 20th century.
The goal of the research process is to produce new knowledge or
deepen understanding of a topic or issue. This process takes three main
forms (although, as previously discussed, the boundaries between them
may be obscure):
There are two major types of empirical research design: qualitative
research and quantitative research. Researchers choose qualitative or
quantitative methods according to the nature of the research topic they
want to investigate and the research questions they aim to answer:
- Qualitative research
- This involves understanding human behavior and the reasons that
govern such behavior, by asking a broad question, collecting data in the
form of words, images, video etc that is analyzed, and searching for
themes. This type of research aims to investigate a question without
attempting to quantifiably measure variables or look to potential
relationships between variables. It is viewed as more restrictive in
testing hypotheses because it can be expensive and time-consuming and
typically limited to a single set of research subjects. Qualitative research is often used as a method of exploratory research as a basis for later quantitative research hypotheses. Qualitative research is linked with the philosophical and theoretical stance of social constructionism.
- Quantitative research
- This involves systematic empirical investigation of quantitative
properties and phenomena and their relationships, by asking a narrow
question and collecting numerical data to analyze it 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.
Quantitative research is linked with the philosophical and theoretical
stance of positivism.
The quantitative data collection methods rely on random sampling and
structured data collection instruments that fit diverse experiences into
predetermined response categories. These methods produce results that are easy to summarize, compare, and generalize.
Quantitative research is concerned with testing hypotheses derived from
theory or being able to estimate the size of a phenomenon of interest.
If the research question is about people, participants may be
randomly assigned to different treatments (this is the only way that a
quantitative study can be considered a true experiment).
If this is not feasible, the researcher may collect data on participant
and situational characteristics 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.
In either qualitative or quantitative research, the researcher(s)
may collect primary or secondary data. Primary data is data collected
specifically for the research, such as through interviews or
questionnaires. Secondary data is data that already exists, such as
census data, which can be re-used for the research. It is good ethical
research practice to use secondary data wherever possible.
Mixed-method research, i.e. research that includes qualitative
and quantitative elements, using both primary and secondary data, is
becoming more common.
This method has benefits that using one method alone cannot offer. For
example, a researcher may choose to conduct a qualitative study and
follow it up with a quantitative study to gain additional insights.
Big data
has brought big impacts on research methods so that now many
researchers do not put much effort into data collection; furthermore,
methods to analyze easily available huge amounts of data have also been
developed.
- Non-empirical research
Non-empirical (
theoretical)
research is an approach that involves the development of theory as
opposed to using observation and experimentation. As such, non-empirical
research seeks solutions to problems using existing knowledge as its
source. This, however, does not mean that new ideas and innovations
cannot be found within the pool of existing and established knowledge.
Non-empirical research is not an absolute alternative to empirical
research because they may be used together to strengthen a research
approach. Neither one is less effective than the other since they have
their particular purpose in science. Typically empirical research
produces observations that need to be explained; then theoretical
research tries to explain them, and in so doing generates empirically
testable hypotheses; these hypotheses are then tested empirically,
giving more observations that may need further explanation; and so on.
A simple example of a non-empirical task is the prototyping of a
new drug using a differentiated application of existing knowledge;
another is the development of a business process in the form of a flow
chart and texts where all the ingredients are from established
knowledge. Much of
cosmological research is theoretical in nature.
Mathematics research does not rely on externally available data; rather, it seeks to prove
theorems about
mathematical objects.
Research ethics
Research ethics involves the application of fundamental ethical principles to a variety of topics involving research, including
scientific research. These principles include
deontology,
consequentialism,
virtue ethics and
value (ethics). Ethical issues may arise in the
design and implementation of research involving
human experimentation or
animal experimentation, such as: various aspects of
academic scandal, including
scientific misconduct (such as fraud,
fabrication of data and
plagiarism),
whistleblowing; regulation of research, etc. Research ethics is most developed as a concept in
medical research. The key agreement here is the 1964
Declaration of Helsinki. The
Nuremberg Code is a former agreement, but with many still important notes. Research in the
social sciences presents a different set of issues than those in medical research and can involve issues of researcher and participant safety, empowerment and access to justice.
When research involves human subjects, obtaining
informed consent from them is essential.
Problems in research
Methods of research
In many disciplines, Western methods of conducting research are predominant. Researchers are overwhelmingly taught Western methods of data collection and study. The increasing participation of
indigenous peoples as researchers has brought increased attention to the lacuna in culturally-sensitive methods of data collection.
Non-Western methods of data collection may not be the most accurate or
relevant for research on non-Western societies. For example, "
Hua Oranga" was created as a criterion for psychological evaluation in
Māori
populations, and is based on dimensions of mental health important to
the Māori people – "taha wairua (the spiritual dimension), taha
hinengaro (the mental dimension), taha tinana (the physical dimension),
and taha whanau (the family dimension)".
Linguicism
Periphery scholars face the challenges of exclusion and
linguicism
in research and academic publication. As the great majority of
mainstream academic journals are written in English, multilingual
periphery scholars often must translate their work to be accepted to
elite Western-dominated journals.
Multilingual scholars' influences from their native communicative
styles can be assumed to be incompetence instead of difference.
Publication peer review
Peer review
is a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession
within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain
standards of quality, improve performance, and provide credibility. In
academia,
scholarly peer review
is often used to determine an academic paper's suitability for
publication. Usually, the peer review process involves experts in the
same field who are consulted by editors to give a review of the
scholarly works produced by a colleague of theirs from an unbiased and
impartial point of view, and this is usually done free of charge. The
tradition of peer reviews being done for free has however brought many
pitfalls which are also indicative of why most peer reviewers decline
many invitations to review.
It was observed that publications from periphery countries rarely rise
to the same elite status as those of North America and Europe, because
limitations on the availability of resources including high-quality
paper and sophisticated image-rendering software and printing tools
render these publications less able to satisfy standards currently
carrying formal or informal authority in the publishing industry.
These limitations in turn result in the under-representation of
scholars from periphery nations among the set of publications holding
prestige status relative to the quantity and quality of those scholars'
research efforts, and this under-representation in turn results in
disproportionately reduced acceptance of the results of their efforts as
contributions to the body of knowledge available worldwide.
Influence of the open-access movement
The
open access movement assumes that all information generally deemed
useful should be free and belongs to a "public domain", that of
"humanity".
This idea gained prevalence as a result of Western colonial history and
ignores alternative conceptions of knowledge circulation. For instance,
most indigenous communities consider that access to certain information
proper to the group should be determined by relationships.
There is alleged to be a double standard in the Western knowledge
system. On the one hand, "digital right management" used to restrict
access to personal information on social networking platforms is
celebrated as a protection of privacy, while simultaneously when similar
functions are used by cultural groups (i.e. indigenous communities)
this is denounced as "access control" and reprehended as censorship.
Future perspectives
Even
though Western dominance seems to be prominent in research, some
scholars, such as Simon Marginson, argue for "the need [for] a plural
university world". Marginson argues that the East Asian Confucian model could take over the Western model.
This could be due to changes in funding for research both in the
East and the West. Focussed on emphasizing educational achievement, East
Asian cultures, mainly in China and South Korea, have encouraged the
increase of funding for research expansion.
In contrast, in the Western academic world, notably in the United
Kingdom as well as in some state governments in the United States,
funding cuts for university research have occurred, which some say may lead to the future decline of Western dominance in research.
Professionalisation
In Russia
In present-day Russia, the former
Soviet Union and in some
post-Soviet states the term
researcher (Russian:
Научный сотрудник,
nauchny sotrudnik)
is both a generic term for a person who carried out scientific
research, as well as a job position within the frameworks of the
USSR Academy of Sciences, Soviet universities, and in other research-oriented establishments.
The following ranks are known:
- Junior Researcher (Junior Research Associate);
- Researcher (Research Associate);
- Senior Researcher (Senior Research Associate);
- Leading Researcher (Leading Research Associate);
- Chief Researcher (Chief Research Associate).
Publishing
Cover of the first issue of Nature, 4 November 1869.
Academic publishing is a system that is necessary for academic scholars to
peer review
the work and make it available for a wider audience. The system varies
widely by field and is also always changing, if often slowly. Most
academic work is published in journal article or book form. There is
also a large body of research that exists in either a thesis or
dissertation form. These forms of research can be found in databases
explicitly for theses and dissertations. In publishing, STM publishing
is an abbreviation for academic publications in science, technology, and
medicine.
Most established
academic fields have their own scientific journals and other outlets for publication, though many
academic journals
are somewhat interdisciplinary, and publish work from several distinct
fields or subfields. The kinds of publications that are accepted as
contributions of knowledge or research vary greatly between fields, from
the print to the electronic format. A study suggests that researchers
should not give great consideration to findings that are not replicated
frequently.
It has also been suggested that all published studies should be
subjected to some measure for assessing the validity or reliability of
its procedures to prevent the publication of unproven findings.
Business models
are different in the electronic environment. Since about the early
1990s, licensing of electronic resources, particularly journals, has
been very common. Presently, a major trend, particularly with respect to
scholarly journals, is
open access.
There are two main forms of open access: open access publishing, in
which the articles or the whole journal is freely available from the
time of publication, and
self-archiving, where the author makes a copy of their own work freely available on the web.
Research funding
