Introduction
One of the basic desires of man is to know of things around him. Basically man is developing certain inquiry is his mind and wants to get reply for it. He is asking so many questions such as why, how, when etc. of all things. Moreover in the modern complex world man is faced with many problems. He wants to find immediate solution to these problems. His desire to find the solution to the problems is mainly due to his urge to do something better or more efficiently. Problem solving is a technical process which not only require ingenuity but also a fund of accumulated knowledge and wisdom. This accumulation of knowledge is very essential to solve a problem. According to Charls Pierce the American philosopher there are four ways of gaining knowledge.
1.Method of Tenacity : We hold something true because we believe it to be so for a very long time. Old people's tales fall under this category.
2.Method of Authority : Some persons holding position like teachers and religious leaders make statements and which are accepted by us.
3.Method of Intuition : Certain information found reasonable are accepted by us. Men easily guess that women are soft spoken.
4.Method of Science : Under this method ideas are accepted only after they have been vigorously tested.
Scientific Method is defined by Rummel as the systematic and refined use of specialized tools and procedures to obtain a more adequate solution to a problem that would be possible by less discriminatory means. This scientific method of studying a problem is termed as Research. The word meaning of research is to search back.
Research is considered to be the more formal, systematic and intensive process of carrying on the scientific method of analysis. Intensive study, deep analysis and reflective thinking are the basic ingredients of research. Application of scientific tools and accepted steps and procedures are essential for an ideal research.
Social Research
Social Research studies men and his institutions in an empirical way. The relevance of social research is far greater in developing countries like India which are confronted with complex socio-economic problems like poverty, unemployment, illiteracy and the like.
Importance of Social Research
1.Social Research provides the basic data for social planning.
2.Research has a greater role in providing solution to immediate problems faced by the community.
3.It promotes social interest and better understanding in the society.
4.It enables the researcher to have an intimate knowledge of the society and such a knowledge guides social growth on proper lines.
Definition of Social Research
According to P.V Young social Research may be defined as a scientific undertaking which, by means of logical and systematized techniques seeks to :-
1.Discover new facts or verify and test old facts.
2.Analyze the sequences, inter relationships and causal explanations which were derived within an appropriate theoretical frame of reference, and
3.develop new scientific tools, concepts and theories which would facilitate reliable and valid study of human behavior.
Social Research is a systematic method of exploring, analyzing and conceptualizing social life in order to extent, correct or verify knowledge, whether that knowledge aid in the construction of a theory or in the practice of an art.
Characteristics of Research
1.Research is a systematic and accurate investigation : There is no place for approximations and ambiguities in research.
2.Research is directed towards the solution of a problem : It may attempt to answer a question or to determine the relation between two or more variables.
3.Research emphasizes the development of generalizations, principles or theories that will be helpful in predicting future occurrences.
4.Research is based upon observable experience or empirical evidence.
5.Research demands accurate observations and descriptions.
6.Research involves gathering of both primary and secondary data for a new purpose.
7.Research is characterized by patient and unhurried activity.
8.Research requires expertise. The researcher should know what is already known about the problem and how others investigated it.
9.Research should be carefully recorded and reported.
10.Research sometimes require courage.
Objectives of Research
1.Identify the problem to be solved.
2.Describe an institution or a group or a phenomenon.
3.Explain the relationship between variables ie, causal explanation.
4.Discover information that never be discussed in the ordinary course of life.
5.Discover new information and modify the existing information.
Motivations in doing Research
The possible motives for doing research may be either one or more of the following :
1.Desire to get a higher degree with its consequential benefits.
2.Desire to face the challenge in solving unsolved problems.
3.Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creative work.
4.Desire to be of services to the society.
5.Desire to get respectability.
Types of Research
Social Research has been classified several ways depending on the purpose for which it is undertaken, the extent to which it satisfies the scientific procedure or the methods of data collection or the control factor involved etc. There is no hard and fast rule in the classification. The classification is done more for the sake of promoting better understanding or for the sake of convenience.
On the basis of purpose for which it is conducted, research is mainly classified into four such as Pure Research, Applied Research, Action Research and Evaluation Research.
1. Pure Research
Pure Research or Fundamental (basic) Research is the research that is undertaken for widening the horizon of knowledge, that is just for the purpose of acquiring new knowledge. It is conceived as a search for broad principles without any immediate utilitarian objective. Its essential element is building theories and principles by broad generalization. It is time consuming and involves much costs. A researcher may have to devote his entire life time, out of scientific curiosity, unmindful of immediate rewards.
Eg: Scientific inventions such as steam engine, electricity etc.
2. Applied Research
Applied Research is need based and aims at solving immediate problems or here the researcher is making use of existing knowledge to solve a problem. It is completed in a short span of time and is empirical and men-centered. Its major purpose is to improve the system or practice and the theoretical development is of minor importance.
3. Evaluation Research
This type of research is primarily directed to evaluate the performance of the developmental projects and other economical programmes that have already been implemented. The objective being to realistically assess the impact of any such programme. This is of three types such as Concurrent evaluation, Phasic evaluation and Terminal Evaluation.
a. Concurrent Evaluation :
It is a continuing process of an inspection of the project that has been launched ie. The evaluation goes on side by side with the implementation of the project. It evaluates the performance and gives direction and control as and when possible.
b. Phasic Evaluation
Phasic or Periodic Evaluation takes place at different phases or stages of performance of the project. It enables us to evaluate the performance of the completed phase and make adjustments in the subsequent phases after keeping in view the failures and success of the previous phase.
c.Terminal Evaluation :
It is the evaluation of the project after it is being completed. The main objective is to provide necessary feed back ie. an overall assessment is made to see how the best a project has served the objective for which it was launched.
4. Action Research
The process by which the practitioners attempt to study their problems scientifically in order to guide, correct and evaluate their decisions and actions in called Action Research. In this case the person who faces the problem tries to find out its solution. There is a thin line of difference between applied research and action research, sometimes it may consider one and the same.
On the basis of data collected method research is classified into historical, case study, survey and experimental research.
1.Historical Research or Method:
In this method the research is conducted on the basis of historical data. Historical Research is essential for both basic and applied research in business. Explanations for the present are derived from historical inquiries. Historical Research is concerned with digging up facts. The main sources of historical data are books, documents, newspapers, magazines, diaries, auto-biographies, personal letters, personal agreements, historical paintings etc. The steps involved in this method are selection of the problem, formulation of hypothesis, preparation for collection of data, organization of data, evaluation of data, interpretation and writing the report.
2.Case Study Method
The case study research has been one of the important methods of social research. It is a deep and intensive study of a particular social unit confined to a very small number of cases. It also seeks to determine social process, it reveals the complexity of factors, and indicate their sequences and inter relationships. Social unit may be a person, a family, an institution, a cultural group or even an entire community. It uses of both primary and secondary sources of data. Steps involved in case study are selection of cases, identification of situations, gathering and recording of data, interpretation and reporting of data.
3.Survey Method :
This includes the systematic gathering of data from population by applying personal contact, interviews or other techniques. It is a process by which quantitative facts about a social phenomena are collected to contribute to the solution of immediate problems. Survey technique is used only when the desired information cannot be gathered more easily and less expensively from other sources.
4.Experimental Method :
This approach to research is based on scientific methods in so far as causal relation are studied under controlled conditions. The main aim of this is to identify the variables and the relationship with each other. The variables under this kind of study are termed as independent variable and dependent variable.
Independent Variable and Dependent Variable :
The variable that the researcher wish to explain is the dependent variable. The variable which is expected to explain the changes in the dependent variable is referred to as independent variable. The independent variable is also called Predictor variable, it is the explanatory variable considered to be the presumed cause of change in the value of dependent variable. The dependent variable is the expected outcome of independent variable.
There may be some other kinds of researches such as exploratory research, descriptive research, diagnostic research etc.
Exploratory Research :
When the purpose of research is to gain familiarly with the problem or to achieve new insights into it, in order to formulate a more precise problem the exploratory studies are generally made.
There are 3 approaches to the exploratory study such as :-
1.Survey of literature or literature reviews.
2.Discussion with experts.
3.Case-study or examination of existing records.
Descriptive Research : It is concerned with describing the characteristics of phenomenon and find out the relationship between variables. Descriptive study may employ any or all the methods of data collection such as interviews, questionnaires, observations etc.
Diagnostic Research : It is concerned with finding the real cause of a problem and what can be done to overcome this problem.
Limitations of Social Research :
Social Research deals with social phenomena which is different from physical phenomena. Man has complete control over physical phenomena because it can be put to laboratory test under guided conditions. Because of this fundamental difference there are several difficulties or limitations to social research.
1.Complexity of Social Data: Researches in social sciences are based on human behavior and the behavior of human beings, is influenced by so many factors such as physical, social, psychological, geographical, biological and sociocultural. Because of these factors an observer is generally confused.
2.Problems in interpreting relationship between cause and effect : In case of a social phenomena cause and effect are inter dependent and one stimulates the other. It is very difficult to establish cause-effect relationship in social sciences.
3.Problems of Concepts : Different concepts are used in social research and the same concept may be defined differently in different researches.
4.Dynamic nature of social phenomena : Human society is constantly changing and improving itself by past knowledge. Thus not only the deductions based on past studies, but even the techniques used in past may prove useless for the present and future studies.
5.Problem of maintaining objectivity : The problem of impartiality is in part a problem of objectivity. Any personal bias vitiates the universality criterion of a scientific preposition. To be objective in the conduct of an inquiry one shouldn't let one's belief be influenced by his personal motives, customs and social situations of which he himself is a part.
6.Unpredictability : Predictability is one of the most important characteristics of science. But it is not so in the case of social sciences because of complexity of social data as well as due to the fact that social behavior is sufficiently irregular and unpredictable.
7.Difficulty in the verification of inferences : Verification of the research results obtained is possible in the case of physical sciences but in social sciences it is much more difficult. The events in social sciences are non-repetitive and the social scientists are ill equipped with their tools to verify prediction.
8.Difficulty in the use of experimental method : In the case of social sciences it is not possible to put human beings to laboratory tests. Here the research has to wait for the circumstances to occur in the natural course. They cannot be created artificially.
9.Problem of interdisciplinary approach : Social research in any field are inter related, therefore we cannot draw water tight compartments for each sector of social sciences. The main problem in interdisciplinary research is that every branches of knowledge has its own line of approach and a methodology suited for the purpose. When they are tried to be fitted in a single frame, distortions are bound to take place.
10. Less Finance : Inadequate financing is one of the major problem faced by the social research in modern world.
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