CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.2 Research Design 27
A research design is a comprehensive plan for data collection in an empirical research project (Bhattacherjee, 2012). It is a “blue print” for empirical research aimed at answering specific re- search questions or testing specific hypotheses, and must specify at least three processes, namely the data collection process, the instrument development process, and the sampling process (Bhattacherjee, 2012). Creswell (2001) mentions a research design as the glue that holds the re- search project together and designates the logical manner in which a research project is going to be carried out and how the individuals or other units in such a study are compared and analyzed.
This means that, a research design makes researching possible.
Seema (2013) echoed the above position and went further to describe, a research design as the arrangement of conditions for collecting and analyzing data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedures. The author highlights, a research design as having four key components namely: sampling design; observational design; statistical design, and operational design. According to Kothari (2006), the purpose of a research design is to ensure a comparison that is not subject to alternative interpretations. In other words, a research
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design ensures that research findings are both valid and reliable and the research itself replicable by other researchers with an interest in the area of study.
This study adopted what Johnson (2006), and Johnson & Christensen (2004) described as a mixed method research design. According to Tashakkori & Teddlie (2003), a mixed method study involves the collection or analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data in a single study in which the data are collected concurrently or sequentially, are given a priority, and involve the integration of the data at one or more stages in the process of research. Johnson et al., (2007) fur- ther supported the above position when they saw a mixed methods research as a type of research design in which a researcher or team of researchers combines elements of qualitative and quanti- tative research approaches for the broad purposes of breadth and depth of understanding.
In line with this thinking, this study triangulated qualitative and quantitative data collection, presentation and analysis procedures to come up with a hybrid research design that ideally should yield research findings with ‘hybrid vigour,’ in terms of both validity and reliability. Han- son et al., (2005) supported the use of such a research design in academic research when they said that, because all methods of data collection have limitations, the use of multiple methods can neutralise some of the disadvantages of certain methods. For example, thick descriptions as- sociated with qualitative research designs can provide insights not available in general quantita- tive surveys (Hanson, et-al, 2005).
Strauss and Corbin (1997, p 17) defined qualitative research as “… any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical methods.” It uses natural settings as the source of data as the researcher attempts to describe, interpret and explain social settings as they operate naturally in the social world. It is a system of inquiry which seeks to build a holistic, largely narrative, description to inform the researcher’s understanding of a social, phenomenon, and takes place in natural settings employing a combination of observations, interviews, and document reviews (Silverman, 1993).
On the other hand, a qualitative research is about exploring issues, understanding phenomena, and answering questions by analyzing and making sense of unstructured data. (Bhattacherjee, 2012). This is supported by Creswell (2007) who posits that, focus groups, in-depth interviews,
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content analysis, ethnography, evaluation and semiotics are among many approaches that are used, but qualitative research in its most basic form involves the analysis of unstructured data, including; open ended survey responses, literature review, interviews, audio recordings, videos, pictures, social media and webs.
In this particular study, the mixed method approach in which the quantitative method will be triangulated with the qualitative method was adopted. This combined method is whereby re- search is mixed to have good results from more than one method. Nonetheless, it is a good idea to have combined research methods in attending the research questions. The combined research includes different methods which are more of anspacious and imaginative form of research (Johnson &Onwuegbuzie, 2004). It is felt that the mixed method research design provided a hy- brid research design, in which the weaknesses of one method will be overcome by the ad- vantages of the other. This means a mixing the qualitative and the quantitative research ap- proaches yielded a hybrid research design with hybrid vigor in terms of both validity and relia- bility of research findings.
Plano-Clark et al., (2008) supported the above view when they said that, scholars in the social world have in recent years generally encouraged researchers to combine quantitative and qualita- tive methods within their research studies. Scholars arguing for methods cite that the separate strengths and weaknesses of quantitative and qualitative approaches complement each other, making them suitable for use together (Mangen, 1995 & Rank, 1996). Another reason cited for mixing methods is to enhance the validity of findings by obtaining similar results from each method employed (Greene, 2007& Rank, 1996). Scholars also assert that, mixing methods al- lows researchers to challenge conventional wisdom by uncovering dissonant data and confront- ing discrepancies (Greene, 2007).
According to Johnson and Turner (2003) it is noted that important opinion of combined methods research should be of the triangulation of methods that is the researcher should apply more dif- ferent methods in order to have reliable results.The triangulation methods is whereby the data is collected using many methods of data collection avoiding the weakness of one data collection tool.In the same vein, the use of triangulation will solve the problem of the other research meth-
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ods and avoid its prejudices (Greene, 2007). For the above reasons, the mixed method research approach was found to be suitable for the current study.