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order to increase our understanding of a phenomenon about which we are interested or concerned. People often use a systematic approach when they collect and interpret information to
solve the small problems of daily living. Here, however, we focus on formal research, research in
which we intentionally set out to enhance our understanding of a phenomenon and expect to
communicate what we discover to the larger scientific community.
Although research projects vary in complexity and duration, research typically has eight
distinct characteristics:
1. Research originates with a question or problem.
2. Research requires clear articulation of a goal.
research—collecting information, organizing it in a certain way for presentation to others, referencing statements properly, and so on—these activities still do not add up to a true research
paper. The student has missed the essence of research: the interpretation of data. Nowhere in the
paper does the student say, in effect, “These facts that I have gathered seem to indicate this about
the Dark Lady.” Nowhere does the student interpret and draw conclusions from the facts. This
student is approaching genuine research; however, the mere compilation of facts, presented with
reference citations and arranged in a logical sequence—no matter how polished and appealing
the format—misses genuine research by a hair. A little further, and this student would have
traveled from one world to another: from the world of mere transportation of facts to the world
of interpretation of facts. The difference between the two worlds is the distinction between
transference of information and genuine research, a distinction that is critical for novice
researchers to understand.
Unfortunately, many students think that looking up a few facts and presenting them in a written paper with benefit of references constitutes research. Such activity might more realistically be
called fact transcription, fact organization, or fact summarization.
3. Research is not merely rummaging for information. The house across the street is for sale. You
consider buying it, and so you call your realtor to find out for how much your present home
would sell. “I’ll have to do some research to determine the fair market value of your property,”
the realtor tells you. What the realtor calls doing “some research” means, of course, reviewing
information about recent sales of properties comparable to yours; this information will help the
realtor zero in on a reasonable asking price for your current home. Such an activity involves little more than rummaging through files to discover what the realtor previously did not know.
Rummaging, whether through one’s personal records or at the public or college library, is not
research. It is more accurately called an exercise in self-enlightenment.
4. Research is not a catchword used to get attention. The morning mail arrives. You open an
envelope and pull out its contents. A statement in colorful type catches your eye:
Years of Research Have Produced a New Car Wash!
Give Your Car a Miracle Shine with Soapy Suds!
The phrase “years of research” catches your attention. The product must be good, you reason,
because years of research have been spent on developing it. You order the product, and what do
you get? Dishwashing detergent! No research, merely the clever use of a catchword that, indeed,
fulfilled its purpose: to grab your attention. “Years of research”—what an attention-getting
phrase, yet how misleading!
As we define the term, research is entirely different from any of the activities listed previously. We describe its essential nature and characteristics in the following section.
Chapter 1 What Is Research? 3
3. Research requires a specific plan for proceeding.
4. Research usually divides the principal problem into more manageable subproblems.
5. Research is guided by the specific research problem, question, or hypothesis.
6. Research accepts certain critical assumptions.
7. Research requires the collection and interpretation of data in an attempt to resolve the
problem that initiated the research.
8. Research is, by its nature, cyclical or, more exactly, helical.
Each of these characteristics is discussed in turn so that you can appreciate more fully the nature
of formal research.
1. Research originates with a question or problem. The world is filled with unanswered questions
and unresolved problems. Everywhere we look, we see things that cause us to wonder, to speculate, to ask questions. And by asking questions, we strike the first spark igniting a chain reaction
that leads to the research process. An inquisitive mind is the beginning of research; as one popular tabloid puts it, “Inquiring minds want to know!”
Look around you. Consider the unresolved situations that evoke these questions: What is
such-and-such a situation like? Why does such-and-such a phenomenon occur? What does it all
mean? These are everyday questions. With questions like these, research begins.
In Chapter 3, we will discuss the research problem at greater length. The problem and its
statement are important because they are the point of origin of formal research.
2. Research requires clear articulation of a goal. A clear, unambiguous statement of the problem is critical. This statement is an exercise in intellectual honesty: The ultimate goal of the
research must be set forth in a grammatically complete sentence that specifically and precisely
answers the question, “What problem do you intend to solve?” When you describe your objective in clear, concrete terms, you have a good idea of what you need to accomplish and can direct
your efforts accordingly