Chapter 1: NATURE OF INQUIRY AND RESEARCH

Lesson 1:
IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH IN DAILY LIFE

Research is a systematic investigation for information. It is a process of inquiring. On the other hand, inquiry is
defined as “a seeking for truth, information or knowledge”. The information is sought through questioning.

 Nature of Inquiry
1. It is a learning process that motivates you to obtain knowledge or information about people, things, places or
events.
2. It is exploratory.
3. It is multiple, varied, and open to selection.

 Different Factors involved in Different Kinds of Inquiries:

1. Selection of appropriate questions
2. Formulation of appropriate questions
3. Identification of key issues
4. Search for valid and relevant evidence
5. Interpretation and assessment of evidence
6. Application of evidence to identified issues
7. Presentation of coherent, conclusion, final or tentative
8. Reflection on, and assessment of the learning process.

 Experience and Knowledge

Experience is a well-used source of knowledge. By going through personal experiences, you can find many
answers to questions that you may have. It has been said that experience is the best teacher. Knowledge or wisdom is
passed on from one generation to the next as a result of experience. You may have encountered difficulties as you were
growing up but each experience is something that you learn from – either it has given you taste of success or failure.

However, one may be limited in terms of experiences as a source of knowledge. Events may happen in the same
way but may have different effects on individuals.

For things though that are difficult or impossible to know by personal experiences, you may turn to an authority.
Though it is a quick and easy source of knowledge, it has also some shortcomings- it may go wrong and it may be more
personal opinion than fact.

 What is Research?
 It is the systematic investigation and study of materials and sources to establish facts and new conclusions.
 It is an act of studying something carefully and extensively in order to attain deep knowledge.

 Research holds the following significant data:

 to gather necessary information  to know the truth
 to make changes  to explore our history
 to improve the standard of living  to understand arts
 for a safer life

 Why do Research?
 The writing process will make you confident in your ability to find information and present it effectively in varied
ways.
 You can get to investigate topics that may be of interest to you.
  It can make you study more meaningful and you’ll discover real world application of what you’re studying.
 You can have hands-on, practical experience in your field of study.
 It is a great way to network and meet new people.

 The Role of Research

1. Research leads an expansion of knowledge and discoveries. Research effects have led to breakthrough.
2. Research is a systematic process of collecting and analyzing data or information in order to increase
understanding of a phenomenon.
3. Research is important in providing a solid foundation for the:
a. Discovery and creation of knowledge, theory-building.
b. Testing, confirmation, revision, and refutation of knowledge as theory.
c. Advance a discipline or field.
d. Advancements and improvements in various aspects of life.
e. Promotion and tenure of individuals.

 Research and Society

The results/findings of studies also affect society and the lives of each one of us. Research is very vital to our
everyday decision-making. The research you do and evidence you gather will be useful for future endeavor.

 Research and Other Fields/Areas

Research benefits can be seen and felt in the following fields:
 Economy
 Society
 Environment
 Culture
 Health

Lesson 2:
THE CHARACTERISTICS, PROCESSES, AND ETHICS OF RESEARCH

Meaning and Characteristics of Research

Research is defined as the scientific investigation of phenomena which includes collection, presentation, analysis,
and interpretation of facts that lines an individual’s speculation with reality.

Characteristics of Research 1. It is based on direct experience or observation by

the researcher
2. It is based on valid procedures and principles
(1) Empirical
3. It is a cyclical process because it starts with a
problem and ends with a problem
4. It utilizes proven analytical procedures in
(7) gathering the data, whether historical,
Replicability (2) Logical
descriptive, and experimental and case study/ so
there’s no error in the researcher’s interpretation
RESEARCH 5. It exhibits careful and precise judgment
(6) 6. It is conducted in a methodical manner without
(3) Cyclical
Methodical bias using systematic method and procedures
7. The research design and procedures are
replicated or repeated to enable the researcher
to arrive at valid and conclusive results.
(4)
(5) Critical
Analytical
The Research Process

Define research Review the Formulate

Design research
problem literature hypothesis

Interpret and
Analyze data Collect Data
report

Factors to Consider in Selecting a Research Problem

 Researcher’s area of interest
 Availability of Funds
 Investigator’s ability and training

Ethics in Research

Ethics generally is considered to deal with beliefs about what is right or wrong, proper or improper, good or bad.
According to a dictionary definition (Webster’s 1968), to be ethical is to conform to accepted professional practice.

◦ Ethical Considerations in Conducting Research

 Objectivity and integrity
 Respect of the research subjects’ right to privacy and dignity and protection of subjects from personal harm
 Presentation of research findings
 Misuse of research role
 Acknowledgement of research collaboration and assistance
 Distortions of findings by sponsor
 Openness
 Responsible Mentoring
 Social responsibility
 Competence
 Legality
 Animal Care
 Human Subjects Protection

◦ Unethical Practices in Conducting Research

 Deceiving a respondent about the true purpose of a study
 Asking a respondent questions that cause him or her extreme embarrassment; guilt emotional turmoil by
remaining him or her of an unpleasant experience
 Invading the privacy of a respondent
 Studying the respondents’ or research subjects without their knowledge
 When analyzing the data – revealing only part of the facts, presenting facts out of context, falsifying findings
or offering misleading presentation such as lying with statistics.
Lesson 3:
QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Definition of Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Quantitative research is a type of educational research in which the researcher decides what to study; asks specific,
narrow questions; collects quantifiable data from participants; analyzes these numbers using statistics; and conducts the
inquiry in an unbiased, objective manner.

Qualitative research is a type of educational research in which the researcher relies on the views of participants; asks
broad, general questions; collects data consisting largely words (text) from participants; describes and analyzes these
words for themes; and conducts the inquiry in a subjective, biased manner.

Differences between Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Lesson 4: Types and Examples of Research in Different Areas/Fields

 Based on Application of Research Method

■ Basic or Pure Research - It is by a scientist’s curiosity or interest in a scientific question. The main motivation is
to extend man’s knowledge, not to create or invent things.

■ Applied Research - It is designed to solve practical problems of the modern world rather than to acquire
knowledge for knowledge’s sake; its goal is to improve human knowledge.

 Based on Purpose of the Research

■ Descriptive Research - It refers to the research that provides an accurate portrayal of a class or a particular
individual situation or group. It is also known as statistical research.

■ Correlational Research - It refers to the systematic investigation or statistical study of relationships among two
or more variables, without necessarily determining cause and effect.

■ Exploratory Research - It is a type conducted for a problem that has not been clearly defined. It helps determine
the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects.

■ Explanatory Research - This type of research elaborates or explains not just the reasons behind the relationship
of two factors, but also the ways by which such relationship exists.

■ Action Research - This type of research studies an ongoing practice of a school, organization, community, or
institution for the purpose of obtaining results that will bring improvements in the system.

 Based on Types of Data Needed

■ Qualitative Research - It requires non-numerical data, which means that the research uses words rather than
numbers to express the results, the inquiry, or investigation about people’s thoughts, beliefs, feelings, views and
lifestyles regarding the object of the study.

■ Quantitative Research - It involves measurement of data. Thus, it presents research findings referring to the
number or frequency of something in numerical forms (i.e., using percentages, fractions, numbers).

 Other Types of Research

■ Ethnographic Research - It refers to an investigation of a culture through an in-depth study of the members of
the culture; it involves the systematic collection, description and analysis of data for development of theories of
cultural behavior.

■ Experimental Research - It is an objective, systematic, controlled investigation for the purpose of predicting and
controlling phenomena and examining probability and causality among selected variables.

■ Phenomenological Research - Its aim is to describe an experience as it is actually lived by the person. It is
concerned with the study of experience from the perspective of the individual.

Approaches to Research

■ Scientific or Positive Approach - It allows control of variables. Therefore, the data gathering techniques
appropriate for this approach are structured interviews, questionnaires, and observational checklist.

■ Naturalistic Approach - This are non-numerical data that express truths about the way people perceive or
understand the world. It uses words to express data.
 ■ Triangulation Approach - This approach gives you the opportunity to view every angle of the research from
different perspectives. (Badke 2012; Silverman 2013). It means you are free to gather and analyze data using
multiple methods.

Chapter 2: Qualitative Research and Its Importance in Daily Life

Lesson 1: KINDS OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH, CHARACTERISTICS, USES, STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

 What is Qualitative Research?

It is essentially a descriptive analysis and follows the inductive process of reasoning, that is from the specific situations
to arriving at a generalization of what has caused such behavior.

 Kinds of Qualitative Research Method

1. Participant Observation - Demands immersion in the natural settings of the participant/s.

2. Observation - Entails the systematic noting or recording of events, behaviors and artifacts (objects) in the social
setting chosen for study.

3. In-depth Interviewing - Resembles conversations, but with pre-determined response categories.

4. Focus Group Interviewing - involves 7-10, at times 6-8 people who are unfamiliar with one another and have
been selected they share certain characteristics that are relevant to the research inquiry or problem.

5. Content Analysis - calls for systematic examination of forms of communication to document patterns
objectively.

6. Narratology - can be applied to any spoken or written story. Narrative inquiry requires a great deal of sensitivity
between participants and researcher.

7. Films, Videos and Photographs - These provide visual records of events, especially the films and videos which
capture the perspective of the filmmaker or videographer. 3. Pictures, on the other hand, manifest the intent,
interests and values of the photographer.

 Characteristics and Uses of Qualitative Research

1. The research takes place in a natural settings- a home, an office, an institution, or community where human
behavior and events occur.

2. The focus of qualitative research is on the participants’ perceptions and experiences and the way they make
sense of their lives.

3. The methods are interactive and humanistic, call for active participation of research participants, and on the
part of the research, sensitivity to the needs of the participants.

4. It uses various ways of collecting data: observations, structured or semi structured interviews, documents, and
now, e-mails, blogs, videos, stills and host of others.

5. Qualitative research results being emergent, new discoveries during the data gathering process can lead to a
total revision of research questions, among others.

6. The theory or general pattern of understanding will emerge as it begins with initial codes, develops into broad
themes, coalesces into a ground theory or broad interpretation.

7. It is fundamentally interpretative.
 8. The researcher is the primary instrument in data collection.

9. The researcher may filter the data through a personal lens that is situated in specific socio-political and historical
moments.

 Strengths of Qualitative Research

1. It adopts a naturalistic approach to its subject matter, which means that those involve in the research
understanding things based on what they find meaningful.

2. It promotes a full understanding of human behavior or personality traits in their natural settings.

3. it is instrument for positive societal changes.

4. It engenders respect for people’s individuality as it demands the researcher’s careful and attentive stand
toward people’s world views.

5. It is a way of understanding and interpreting social interactions.

6. it increases the researcher’s interest in the study as it includes the researcher’s experience or background
knowledge in interpreting verbal and visual data.

7. It offers multiple ways of acquiring and examining knowledge about something.

 Weaknesses of Qualitative Research

1. It involves a lot of researcher’s subjectivity in data analysis

2. It is hard to Know the validity or reliability of the data.

3. Its open-ended questions yield “data overload” that requires long-time analysis

4. It is time-consuming.

5. It involves several processes, which results greatly depend on the researcher’s views or interpretation.

Lesson 2: Importance of Qualitative Research Across Different Fields

Qualitative Research in Education

• Green and Bloome (1997) confronted with the question what counts ethnography made a useful distinction
between Ethnographer of education and Ethnographer in education.

• Ethnographic studies of learning and knowledge in education ask the question what counts as knowledge and
learning to teachers and students.

Qualitative Research in Technical Communication

• Focus groups are used to probe deeper research results in order to describe or illustrate current practices in
Technical Communication which can take the forms of e-mail, fax messaging, video and voice conferencing,
intranet and extranet, jargons and graphics.

Qualitative Research in Psychology

• Qualitative ideas and approaches have been part of psychology since its inception in the second half of the
nineteenth century.
 • The early 20th century marked Behaviorism and the second half, the Cognitive Revolution; quantitative methods
employed within a post (positivist), experimental paradigm dominated the discipline (Asworth, 2003; Howit,
2010) as cited in Braun and Clarke, 2013).

Qualitative Research in Advertising

• Morrison, et.al. say that great advertising comes along from an understanding of consumer’s wants and needs.

• The following terms are very important to advertising researchers doing qualitative research: Theory and
Approach.

• Theory refers to an organizing scheme for the data that place them in orderly patterns and give meaning and
insight into the lives of others.

• Any method or approach that allows the researcher to capture the worlds of other can be a qualitative
technique.

Qualitative Research in Social Works

• To describe the range of ways of reconstructing experiences from full reliving of the experiences to its
disowning, Shaw and Holland use the terms ‘knowledge focus’ of awareness’ and ‘alienation’.

• Analysis of interview data has 4 broad categories:

1. Knowledge

2. Awareness of mental process

3. Awareness of identity

4. Alienation

Qualitative Research in Marketing

• They created devices such as matching people, animals, cars, pictorial symbols and soliciting dreams. They
accumulated case studies, personal histories and ethnographies, and conducted group interviews even before
they were called “focus groups”.

• The question asked and answered in their study enabled the authors to make contributions at the level of
substantive grounded theory.

Qualitative Research in International Business

• The establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community is a major milestone in the regional economic integration
agenda in ASEAN, offering opportunities in the form of 2.6 trillion US dollars and over 622 million people.

• Business all over the world use other methods like participant observation, content analysis, focus groups,
narrative interviews and “hidden” methods such as archival research.

Chapter 3: Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem

Lesson 1: DESIGNING A RESEARCH PROJECT RELATED TO DAILY LIFE
 Congruence of Research Questions, Data Collection and Data Analysis
 - Qualitative research experts say that there must be congruence between methods of data analysis and the
research questions, and where the method of data collection turns out data that are appropriate to the
method of analysis.
 Sources of Research Topics
- Pressing Issues on an individual, organizational or societal level, or success stories
- Wide Reading/Critical Film Viewing
- Social Networking
- Replication
- Lectures, Talks, Seminars
- Gray Areas

Lesson 2: WRITING A RESEARCH TITLE

 Research Title
- Also known as research project, it is a product of real world observations, dilemmas, wide reading, selective
viewing (television programs, films, documentaries, video, etc.) meaningful interactions with significant
others, and deep reflection.
- It must clearly reflect the topic of investigation, and it must be original, clear, concise or specific.

 Broad and Specific Topics

 Sample Broad Topics:
 Lack of Self-Confidence
 Smoking Hazards
 Marketable Popular Garment Brand
 Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
 Sample Specific Topics:
 Marketability of a Popular Garment Brand: A Case Study
 HIV: Prevention, Treatment and Care
 Lack of Self-Confidence in Adolescents: Root Causes, Manifestations and Interventions
 Health Hazards of Direct and Indirect Smoking: Prevention and Cure

 Techniques for Narrowing a Topic into a Research Question

1. Examine the literature.
a. Replicate a previous research project exactly or with slight variations.
b. Explore unexpected findings discovered in previous research.
c. Follow suggestions an author gives for future research at the end of an article.
d. Extend an existing explanation or theory to a new topic or setting.
e. Challenge findings or attempt to refute a relationship.
f. Specify the intervening process and consider linking relations.
2. Talk over ideas with others.
a. Ask people who are knowledgeable about the topic for questions about it that they have thought of.
b. Seek out those who hold opinions that differ from yours on the topic and discuss possible research questions
with them.
3. Apply to a specific context.
a. Focus the topic on a specific historical period or time period.
b. Narrow the topic to a specific society or geographic unit.
c. Consider which subgroups or categories of people/units are involved and whether there are differences
among them.
4. Define the aim or desired outcome of the study.
a. Will the research question be for an exploratory, explanatory, or descriptive study?
 b. Will the study involve applied or basic research?

 Other Topics of Interest

 Issues like poverty, informal settling in congested cities, the traffic issue, the transportation problem, human
rights, etc.
 Gender inequality or transgenders, sensitive issues like families or individuals trapped in sibling rivalry, financial
crises
 Online selling or on-line business from varied marketing aspects like what sells online and what does not;
consumer psychology or buyer behavior
 Online Games: Positive and Negative Effects on Gamers
 Behavioral Problems like extreme shyness, being a loner or sociophobia

 Before you make a final decision on your topic, reflect on these questions:
- What area/s are not covered in classroom lessons/discussions do I still want to know/investigate in my
specific track?
- If I do this research project, how useful will it be to me as a senior high school graduate and to the
community where I belong, and even to the larger community, the Philippines, ASEAN, and the world?

Lesson 3: JUSTIFICATIONS/REASONS FOR CONDUCTING QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Simply stated, conducting qualitative research is justified because it can help solve or shed light on problems or
issues encountered day to day by individuals, organizations, communities, industries, business. among others.

• Intent or Purpose of the Study

The study intends to investigate the following:

1) the root causes and manifestations of lack of self-confidence in adolescents and to determine ways of
addressing or solving said problem
2) the impact of social networking in addressing problems, issues and concerns
3) the causes, prevention, treatment and care of Zika virus
4) the dangers to health of direct and indirect smoking, as well as their prevention and cure.
5) the success factors in marketing a selected popular garment brand
6) the causes of HIV, its prevention, treatment and care of patients
7) why some livelihood projects fail (or succeed)
8) how retail business succeeds
9) Why some barangays are successful in their peace and order campaigns or health and sanitation projects
10) The humanitarian conditions of war victims and intervention done by peace-keeping agencies

Finding solutions, even tentative ones, to problems of daily life is one of the best justifications for conducting
qualitative research. Helping make life happy, peaceful and meaningful, productive and progressive sustainable ways is
the best justification.
 Credibility

Validity
Factors that Justify
the Conduct of
Transferability
Qualitative
Research
Dependability

Conformability

1. It refers to the “truth Value” of the qualitative study, its applicability, consistency and neutrality
2. It refers to an in-depth description that shows the complexities of variables and the embedding of interactions in
data derived from the setting.
3. It is the applicability of one set of findings to another context. (The use of triangulation)
4. It refers to the researcher’s attempts to account for changing conditions in the phenomenon chosen for study,
as well as in the design created by increasing refined understanding of the setting.
5. It answers the question: do the data help confirm the general findings and lead to the implications?

Lesson 4: STATING RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The specific research questions let you identify or direct you to exact aspect of the problem that your study has
to focus on.

Research Questions

 Identify or direct you to exact aspect of the problem that your study has to focus on
 Identify the phenomenon to be studied

What is a Good Research Question?

 Relevant
 Manageable in terms of research and in terms of your academic abilities
 Substantial and with original dimensions
 Consistent with the requirement of the assessment
 Clear and simple
 Interesting

Characteristics of Good Research Questions

 The question should be feasible.
 The question should be clear.
 The question is significant.

Typical Research Questions

Neuman (2007) advances the following as typical research questions for qualitative researchers:
1. How did the social situation originate?
2. How was the condition/situation maintained over time?
3. What are the processes by which a condition/situation changes, develops or operates?
How to State the Research Questions

 STEP ONE
 To develop a strong research question from your ideas, you should ask yourself these things:
1.Do I know the field and its literature well?
2. What are the important research questions in my field?
3. What areas need further exploration?
4. Could my study fill a gap? Lead to greater understanding?
5. Has a great deal of research already been conducted in this topic area?
6. Has this study been done before? If so, is there room for improvement?
7. Is the timing right for this question to be answered? Is it a hot topic or is it becoming obsolete?
8. If you are proposing a service program, is the target community interested?
9. Most importantly, will my study have a significant impact on the field?

 STEP TWO
 A strong research idea should pass the “so what” test.

 STEP THREE
 A research focus should be narrow, not broad – based.
 Specify the research problem: the practical issue that leads to a need for your study.

 STEP FOUR
 Fulfill the following criteria:
 Single sentence
 Include the purpose of the study
 Include the central phenomenon
 Use qualitative words
 Note the participants
 State the research site

Techniques for Narrowing Down a Topic into a Research Question

1. Examine the literature.
2. Talk over ideas with others.
3. Relate the topic to a specific context.
4. Define the aim or desired outcome of the study.

Examples of Research Questions

 On Lack of Self-Confidence
a. What are the root causes of lack of self-confidence in adolescents?
b. What kind of behavior do adolescents who lack self-confidence manifest?
c. What can the following groups of people do to boost up the self-confidence of adolescents?
• The parents
• The Siblings
• The Church
• The Teacher
• The Guidance Counselors
• The Peers
 On Smoking Hazards
a. What dangers to one’s health can smoking bring about?
b. How is a non-smoker’s health affected when in the presence of people smoking?
 c. What medical interventions can address the problem of smoking?
d. What psychological interventions can address the problem of smoking?
 On the Market Success of a Popular Garment Brand
a. What are the items in a market plan?
b. What factors contribute to the successful marketability of selected popular garment brand?
c. Why is the buying behavior of consumers an important factor to consider in a market plan?
d. What are the success indicators of the market plan of a selected popular garment brand?
 Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
a. What is human immunodeficiency syndrome?
b. How do humans get this virus?
c. What are the causes of HIV?
d. What are the ways of preventing this virus to affect human health?
e. What caring interventions can be done to ensure the full recovery of an HIV victim?

Concrete Research Questions Congruent with Data Collection Procedures and Data Analysis
 Understanding and Perception
Example: Perceptions on the impact of low grades on a student’s self-esteem
Data Collection Method: Personal blogs or compositions and interviews
Analytic Method: Discourse analysis, conversation analysis among others
 Practices or Account of Practice
Example: the nuptial or wedding practices of selected ethnic groups
Data Collection Method: qualitative surveys, interviews, observations, secondary sources like videos, pictures,
newspapers, magazines
Analytic Method: Ascertaining patterns, themes, conversation analysis and the like.
 Influencing Factors
Example: Factors that influence some women’s desire to be and to stay slim; Factors that influence the modern young
professional’s decisions to live in condominiums rather than stay in their parents’ home
Data Collection Method: for the latter can be interviews, directed diaries, focus group discussions; for the former will be
mainly interviews and focus group interviews also; Secondary sources can be print and broadcast media, social networks
Analytic Method: Conversation analysis, narrative analysis, observations
 Construction
Example: Accounts of parents of children with addiction problems; accounts of single parents or of parents of special
children
Data Collection Method: narrative or story completion tasks, interviews, focus group discussions; secondary sources can
be print media, videos and directed diaries
Analytic Method: Conversation analysis, discourse analysis, video analysis, and analysis of news and future articles
 Language Practice
Example: How people construct, manage and undermine use of language in text messages (SMS), Facebook and the like
Analytic Method: Discourse analysis, interviews, analysis of posts on social networks

The Research Question in the Research Process

Examples of Research Questions from Actual Qualitative Studies
 Research Questions:
1. What reactions do Filipino fathers and mothers experience during and after a natural disaster?
2. How do they cope with the experience of a natural disaster?
3. How do the experiences of Filipino fathers and mothers differ in terms of coping and reaction?
 SCOPE AND DELIMITATION

These are two elements of a research paper that inform the reader what information is included in the
research and explain why the author chose that information.

Scope of the study

 It is a section of a research paper that explains what information or subject is being analyzed.
 Most research is limited in scope in sample size, time and geographic area. The scope of study is usually
followed by an explanation of the limitations of the research.

Delimitation of study

 It is the explanation of the scope of study. This section allows the writer to explain why certain aspects of a
subject were chosen and why others were excluded.
 It refers to the boundaries of the research study, arising from the researcher’s decisions of what to exclude.

Difference Between Limitations and Delimitation

 Limitation of the Study

 Identifies potential weaknesses of the study.
 Is associated with qualitative study as related to validity and reliability.
 Delimitation of the Study
 A place to explain the following:
a. The things that you are not doing (and why you have not chosen not to do them)
b. The literature you will not review (and why not).
c. The population you are not studying (and why not).
d. The methodological procedures you will not use (and why you will not use them).
e. Limit your delimitations to the things that a reader might reasonably expect you to do but that you for
clearly explained reasons, have decided not to do.

How to Indicate the Scope and Delimitation of the Study

 STEP 1
 Start with any of these sample phrases that express the scope of the study:
a. The coverage of this study…
b. The study consists of …
c. The study covers the …
d. The study is focused on…

 STEP 2
a. Explain what information or subject is being studied or analyzed
b. Explain the limitations of the research like the sample size, time frame, geographic area, subjects, facilities
and the issues to which the research is focused.

 STEP 3
 Start with any of these sample phrases that express the delimitation of the study:
a. The study does not cover the….
b. The researcher limited this research to ….
c. This study is limited to ….
  STEP 4
a. Describe the scope of the study.
b. Explain why definite aspects of a subject were chosen and why others were excluded.
c. Mention the research method used as well as the certain theories that applied to the data.
d. Explain why you are delimiting the research to a specific geographic location.
e. Identify the constraints or weaknesses of your research which are not within the control of the researcher.

EXAMPLES OF DELIMITATION OF RESEARCH

This study covers only those families in Barangay San Jose, Pasig City, benefited by the government’s
Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.

This study includes only those English Freshmen classes that use both Blended Learning and standard ways
of Language teaching.

This research investigation covers only Landbank- sponsored livelihood projects in Barangay San Juan, Apalit,
Pampanga.

 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

 Benefits
 Beneficiaries of the Study
 Brief declaration that such study is very important and necessary

How to write Significance of the Study

 STEP ONE

Identify the beneficiary/beneficiaries

 STEP TWO

Describe the benefit/benefits that will be derived from the research or study.

SELECTING REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

 General Guidelines in Citing Related Literature and Studies

1. Materials must be as recent as possible.
2. Materials must be objective and unbiased.
3. Materials must be relevant to the study.
4. Materials must not be too few and not too many.

 What is Literature Review?

 It is an integrated synthesis drawing upon a select list of academic sources (mainly journal articles) with a strong
relation to the topic in question.
 Not just a mere list of every item and resource with any possible relation to your topic, no matter how tenuous.
 Focused on a particular question or area of research.
 Not a widespread, comprehensive list of all materials pertaining to a particular discipline or field of inquiry.
 Not just a summary of available materials without any critical description or component; or annotated
bibliography.
 How to Select and Review the Literature

Step 1 Finding information

 You should know what information to look for and where to look for it.
 The what information to look for must be answered by your topic, research questions and statements of
the problem which are presumed that you already have at this point.
 The obvious places “where to look for these information are the library and the internet.
 Not every information can be found on the internet. There might be some precious information that you
need that are just in printed form in your library or in some libraries elsewhere near your place.
 If you are not so familiar with using the library, please do not hesitate to approach your librarian for
help.

Step 2: Evaluating Content

Authority What are the author’s credentials?

Can you identify their institutional affiliations?
What is the author’s expertise on the subject?
Currency When was the source published? Last 5 years? Is it outdated?
Does it meet the time needs for your topic?
Documentation Does the author cite credible, authoritative sources?
Is there evidence of scholarly research?
Do they properly cite their sources?
Intended audience Who is the intended audience? Scholars? Researchers?
General audience?
Objective/purpose What is the author’s goal in writing it? To entertain? To
inform? To influence? How objective is the source?
Relevancy Is it relevant to your topic?
Does it provide any new information about your topic?

Step 3 Recording Information

 Take down notes and use method that works best for you
a. Outline method
b. Mapping method
c. Charting method
d. Sentence method
 Always be mindful to avoid plagiarism

Step 4 Synthesizing content

Step 5 Writing the Review

Step 6 Citing your sources