module_2_penyataan masalah problem statement

8/10/2019 Module_2_Penyataan Masalah Problem Statement

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BBH

31102

201

4

M

odule

2

Course Code: MBE 12104 Research Methodology in TVET

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BBH 31102 RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY

KAEDAH PENYELIDIKAN

*Bahan dalam modul ini telah diambil dari sumber internet dan diubahsuai bagi

tujuan P& P sahaja. Saya mengucapkan terimakasih kepada penyumbang nota ini

dan penggunaan bahan ini bukan tujuan untuk dikomersilkan. Terima kasih.

Prof Madya Dr Razal Ha!!a"#a$ul% Pe"dd$a" Te$"$al da"

&o$a!o"al' (")er!% Tu"Hu!!e" O"" Malay!a

*H+, - 013./ 00*O5e - 0/.4 4011

*#a$! - 0/.43


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Module 2: STATING THE RESEARCH PROBLEMModule 2: STATING THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

It is already the third semester and I still do not have a

research problem

The problem is finding a research problem

My supervisor tells me that my research problem is too broad and I have

to narrow it down

I think I am going to change my research problem

"You do not need to do a research as everyone already knows the answer"

The above statements are common dilemmas faced by graduate students. When asked,

some students do not even know the meaning of a "research problem". This is

understandable given the numerous definitions of the term "research problem" which

further confuses the beginning researcher. !ome supervisors fail to appreciate that for

many students, it is the first time they are conducting a research #as defined in$odule 1%. &earning the intricacies of research is a long and winding process. To

make matters worse, the most difficult phase of the research process is the

identification of the research problem.

'dentification of the research problem is the $(!T '$P()T*+T step of the

research process. 't for this reason that a whole module has been devoted to this step.

+ot only must you be clear about the research problem, you must also have a passion

for it "' am already struggling trying to understand my research problem and now '

need to have passion". &ets see whether you will be able to e-plain your research

problem clearly as well as be passionate about it, after having completed this module.

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LEARNING OUTCOMES

When you have com!e"e# "h$% mo#u!e you &$!! 'e a'!e "o(

'dentify a research problem

&ist the criteria of a good research problem

/esign a study to test selected hypotheses

0-plain the different types of variables


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Word+et Princeton defines a problem as a state of difficulty that needs to be

resolved.

Wikitionary defines a problem as a uestion to be answered

*ccording to )obert 2erber, +elson $andela $etropolitan 3niversity, "aresearch problem is the situation that causes the researcher to feel

apprehensive, confused and ill at ease". /o you feel the same way about your

research problem4

5ence, a "research problem" is something that bothers you which needs to be resolved

by research. 't is the beginning of the research process and ends with the solution to

the problem. !o the ne-t time, you are asked what is your research problem, would

you be able to state it orally or put it in writing.

Bu" I #on)" have a *e%ea*ch *o'!em+ +ot to worry as there are several %ou*ce% o,

*e%ea*ch *o'!em%

1. 6ou own e-perience or the e-perience of others may be a source of problem

supply.

. !cientific literature7 you may read about certain findings and notice that a

certain field was not covered. This could lead to a research problem.

8. Theories could be another source. !hortcomings in theories could be

researched.

' have a problem, but it is TOO BROA-. What do ' do4

Perhaps the most difficult phase of research is identification of the problem.

'n other words, the inability of students to state precisely and clearly what is it they

intend to investigate. 5ere we will try to help you with this difficult phase. 5opefully,

you have at least a broad area that that you want to study. +ot too broad though Thebroader the problem, the more difficult is it to 9ero in.

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WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROBLEM?

DENT F CAT ON OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM


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)0!0*):5 )0!0*):5

;30!T'(+ P0)'$0+T to test whether the critical thinking skills ofundergraduates can be

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BROA- AREA

NARROW RESEARCH

ROBLEM

!tate Purpose

6ou start with a broad area. @or

6ou narrow down the broad area

into a )esearch Problem that

has a rationale and is of

interest to you is

researchable #measureable

and sample is accessible%

is manageable in si9e #given

your time A resources%

is within your range of

competencies A skills

is worth investigating and


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enhanced. 6ou may ask the following )esearch ;uestions

's there a difference in critical thinking between the e-perimental group and

the control group4

's there a difference between high :2P* and low :2P* subBects4

's there an interaction between treatment and academic ability4

Scena*$o 3. IN-ETH UN-ERSTAN-ING 5UALITATIE AROACH

6ou are concerned about the poor critical thinking skills of undergraduates and you

narrow down the problem into a )esearch Problem that meets the above criteria.

6ou conduct a ;3*&'T*T'=0 '+;3')6 to find out why the critical thinking skills

of undergraduates

is poor.

6ou may ask the following )esearch ;uestions

To what e-tent do university teachers encourage critical thinking in the

classroom4 *re students presented with problems that lead to the development of critical

thinking skills4

To what e-tent does teacher behaviour encourage the enhancement of critical

thinking4

A) STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

@or some students this is the most difficult phase of the research process. ;uite often

the )esearch Problem is vague. 't is either too scanty or too lengthy but not precise.

/espite having written so many paragraphs, the student is unable to state clearly and

convincingly

what is the problem4

why it is important4

what should be done4

Perhaps, the following guidelines on the right may help you with this task.

$6 Wha" $% "he *o'!em7

6ou begin by first stating the problem. 't is some aspect that your are worried about,

think about and want to find a solution for. e.g. 2raduate are poor critical thinkers.

$$6 Why $% $" $mo*"an" "ha" "he *o'!em 'e $nve%"$8a"e#7 $.e 8$ve a *a"$ona!e ,o*

&hy $" $% o, conce*n.

@or 0-ample

0mployers are complaining about the poor critical thinking skills of graduates they

employ

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THE RESEARCH PROBLEM


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;uestions about this problem has not been answered convincingly or are inconclusive

or answers have not been found up to the present D e.g. =ery few studies have

addressed the critical thinking ability of university students as most studies continue

to focus on primary and secondary school students.

$$6 Wha" %hou!# 'e #one7 $.e. "he u*o%e

6our purpose is to solve the problem7 i.e. find answers to uestions put forward.

!tate what should be done clearly and grammatically correct. *void meaningless

words.

There should be no doubt in your mind what are your intentions.

't is good practice to divide you problem into subDproblems which are called research

uestions.

)esearch ;uestions guide the solution of the problem

0-ample "!pecifically, this study aims to answer the following research

uestions

a% 's there a difference in critical thinking male and female students4 b% 's there a relationship between academic performance and critical

thinking4

B6 RESEARCH 5UESTION

The word "research" means finding out or discovery using a systematic method. 6ou

"research" by asking uestions and searching for answers to the uestions. 6ou cannot

"research" if you do not want to know anything, that is, you must have something you

would like to know more about before you can do "research".

6ou begin with ;30!T'(+!. 'f you have none, you will find no answers or will not

know when you have found one. 6our task is to conduct )0!0*):5. * study

without a uestion in mind will +(T be a )0!0*):5 study. 6ou should

$*E0 !3)0 that

a% The )esearch ;uestion is clear, straightforward and easily understood by

others

b% The )esearch ;uestion states the relationship between two or more

variables.

c% The variables mentioned in the )esearch ;uestion should be measurable.

d% The answer to the )esearch ;uestion is not immediately obvious.

e% The )esearch ;uestion indicates the method that is to be adopted, i.e.

the data collection techniues f% The )esearch ;uestion can be answered in the time available to you.

g% The )esearch ;uestion can be answered with the resources available to

you.

TYPES OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS:

2enerally there are three basic types of uestions that research proBects can address

1. -e%c*$"$ve Re%ea*ch 5ue%"$on%

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5ere you describe what is going on or what e-ists. @or e-ample, you may want to find

the proportion of teachers who support the teaching of se- education in secondary

school. 6ou are simply interested in describing something.

!tatistical Tools

D $ean, median and mode

D @reuency tablesD 5istograms, &ine graphs

2. Re!a"$ona! Re%ea*ch 5ue%"$on%

5ere you want to know the relationships between two or more variables. @or e-ample,

you want to know the proportion of males and females who support the teaching of

se- education in secondary school. 'n other words, you are interested in studying the

relationship between gender and preference for teaching of se- education.

!tatistical Tools

D !imple correlation

D &inear regressionD $ultiple regression

3. Cau%a! Re%ea*ch 5ue%"$on%

5ere, you want to know whether one or more variables #e.g., a programme or

treatment variable% causes or affects one or more outcome variables. @or e-ample, you

conduct a workshop to the group of teachers to determine whether their opinion about

teaching se- education to secondary school students has changed.

!tatistical Tools

D tDtest

D *nalysis of =ariance #*+(=*%

D $ultiple *nalysis of =ariance #$*+(=*%

The null hypothesis is a hypothesis #or hunch% about the population. 't represents a

theory that has been put forward because it is believed to be true. The word "null"

means nothing or 9ero. !o, a null hypothesis states that nothing happened. @or

e-ample, there is no difference between males and females in critical thinking skills

or there is no relationship between socioDeconomic status and academic performance.

!uch a hypothesis is denoted with the symbol "5o". 'n other words you are saying,

6ou do not e-pect the groups to be different

6ou do not e-pect the variables to be related

Ho( 91 : 92

()

Ho( 91 ; 92 : 0

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'n other words, you are saying that

The science mean scores for the discovery method

group #H1% is 0;3*& to the mean scores for the

lecture method group #H%.

The science mean scores for the discovery method

group #H1% $'+3! the mean scores for the lecturemethod group #H% is eual to I0)(.

The null hypothesis is often the reverse of what the researcher

actually believes in and it is put forward to allow the data to

contradict it J6ou may find it strange but thats the way it isK

NULL HYPOTHES S


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The *lternative 5ypothesis #51% is the opposite of the +ull 5ypothesis. @or e-ample,

the alternative hypothesis for the study discussed earlier is that there is a difference in

science scores between the discovery method group and the lecture method group

represented by the following notation

The *lternative 5ypothesis #51% is the opposite of the +ull 5ypothesis. @or e-ample,

the alternative hypothesis for the study discussed earlier is that there is a difference in

science scores between the discovery method group and the lecture method group

represented by the following notation

Ha( 91 < 92

5a The *lternative 5ypothesis might be that the science mean scores between

discovery method group and lecture method group are /'@@0)0+T.

Ha( 91 = 925a The *lternative 5ypothesis might be that the science mean scores of the

discovery method group is 5'250) than the mean scores of the lecture method

group.

Ha( 91 > 92

5a The *lternative 5ypothesis might be that the science mean scores of the

discovery method group is &(W0) than the mean scores of the lecture method

group.

CONCLUSION:

Lased on the findings of the e-periment, you found that there was a significant

difference in science scores between the discovery method group and the

lecture method group.

'n fact, the mean score of subBects in the discovery method group was higher

than the mean of subBects in the lecture method group. What do you do4

6ou )0M0:T the null hypothesis because earlier you had said they would be

eual.

6ou reBect the null hypothesis in favour of the *&T0)+*T'=0 56P(T0!'!

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ALTERNAT VE HYPOTHES S


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#i.e. H1 O H%.

* construct is deliberately and consciously invented or adopted for a special

scientific purpose. "'ntelligence" is construct based on observation of presumably

intelligent and less intelligent behaviours or having a value of more or less. :onstructsare used in theoretical schemes and is related in various ways to other constructs. e.g.

school achievement is in part a function of intelligence. 'ntelligence is so defined and

specified that it can be observed and measured. e.g. administering intelligence tests,

interview teachers about their students.

)esearchers somewhat loosely call constructs or properties they study as

variablesQ. eg. gender, social class. * variable is something that varies. * variable is a

symbol to which numerals of values are assigned. @or e-ample, the symbol

"intelligence" is assigned a set of numerical values which may be '; scores ranging

from CR to 1CR. 'n the case of the variable "gender" there are only values and they

are called #$cho"omou% va*$a'!e%, i.e. male #1% and female #R%. (ther e-amples of

twoDvalue variables are graduateDnongraduate, low incomeDhigh income, citi9enD

nonciti9en. Lesides dichotomous variables, some variables are polytomies, eg.

religion D 'slam, :hristianity, Luddhism. 5induism, etc

There are many ways of classifying variables but in educational research, the

two most common methods of classification are as follows

'ndependent and /ependent =ariables

:ontinuous and :ategorical =ariables

a6 In#een#en" an# -een#en" a*$a'!e%

*n independent variable #'=% is the variable that is presumed cause a change

in the dependent variable #/=%. The independent variables is the antecedent while the

dependent variable is the conseuent. !ee @igure 8 which describes a study to

determine which teaching method #independent variable% is effective in enhancing the

academic performance #dependent variable% of students.

The $n#een#en" va*$a'!e #teaching method% can be manipulated

$anipulatedQ means the variable can manoeuvred, and in this case it is

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CONSTRUCTS AND VAR ABLES

TYPES OF VAR ABLES


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divided into discussion method and lecture methodQ. (ther e-amples of

independent variables are gender #maleDfemale%, race #$alay, :hinese,

'ndian%, socioeconomic status #high, middle, low%. (ther names for the

independent variable are treatment, factor and predictor variable.

The #een#en" va*$a'!ein this study is academic performance which cannot

be manipulated by the researcher. *cademic performance is a score and othere-amples of dependent variables '; #score from '; tests%, attitude #score on an

attitude scale%, selfDesteem #score from a selfDesteem test% and so forth. (ther

names for the dependent variable are outcome variable, results variable and

criterion variable.

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INDEPENDENT DEPENDENT VARIABLE (IV) VARIABLE (DV)

Teaching

$ethod

4$8u*e 3

In#een#en" an# -een#en" a*$a'!e

b% Con"$nuou% an# Ca"e8o*$ca! a*$a'!e%

* con"$nuou% va*$a'!e#also called ordinal variable% is capable of taking on an

ordered set of values within a certain range. @or e-ample, an attitude scale towards

smoking may have values ranging from C to R which e-presses differing amounts ofattitude towards smoking. * ca"e8o*$ca! va*$a'!e#also called nominal variables% may

be made up of two or more subsets or categories. 0ach subset or category possess

certain characteristics and individuals are categorised by their possession of those

characteristics that defines a subset. @or e-ample, the variable socioDeconomic class

#!0!% may consist of 8 values such as high !0!, middle !0! and low !0!.

c6 Oe*a"$ona! -e,$n$"$on o, a*$a'!e%

'f you lead a good life, you will not sufferU. This is a specific prediction of

the future, but it cannot be scientifically tested. !uch a prediction is not scientifically

tested because we cannot define it operationally. 5ow do you define good lifeQ and

how do you define sufferQ. *ccording to Lridgman, 1SG, oe*a"$ona! #e,$n$"$on

means that variables used in the study must be defined as it is used in the conte-t of

the study and publicly observable. This is done to facilitate measurement and to

eliminate confusion. @or e-ample, when you state in your study that you are studying

e-cellent principals, you should be able to e-plain what e-cellent means. (nce the

behaviours of an e-cellent principal have been identified the operational definition

will be uniue to your study #see @igure ?%.

5owever, it should be borne in mind that in education not all variables are

directly observable. @or e-ample, we cannot really observe learning, memory,

reasoning, and so forth. Though they cannot be observed they can be measured to see

their traces. With enough indirect evidence, researchers can make a convincing casefor the e-istence of these invisible variables #$itchell and Molley, 1SNN%. @or e-ample,

though we cannot observe learning directly, we can see its effect on performance, i.e.

we can operationally define learning as an increase in performance. Thus, if we see

students improve their performance after practicing a task, we conclude that learning

has occurred. !imilarly, we can provide operational definitions for such intangible

variables such as selfDesteem, racial stereotype, attitudes and so forth.

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/iscussion

&ecture

*cademic

Performance


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Oe*a"$ona! -e,$n$"$on

The person

listens to teachers

looks after the welfare of teachers

acknowledges effort

consults teachers

motivates teachers

4$8u*e ?( E@am!e o, an Oe*a"$ona! -e,$n$"$on o, an E@ce!!en" *$nc$a!

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LEARNING ACTIVITY

1. What is a variable4

. What is the difference between an 'ndependent =ariable and

/ependent =ariable4 2ive specific e-amples.

8. Why do you need to define variables operationally4

?. $ake up operational definition for the following variables

3nderachievement

Parental bonding

*spirations Jof teenagersK

*utocratic &eader Jprincipal or headmasterK

Teacher Lurnout

!ocioeconomic status

&eadership

)eading ability

/elinuency

'nterests

0-cellent

Principal

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