Methodology and practical issues

Planning the collection of data: Methodology

Your methodology will determine the design of your study or the methods you to use.

On a basic level, the research approaches you might choose to include:

• Qualitative (usually associated with an interpretative approach)
• Quantitative (a statistical approach)
• Mixed methods

However, it is often the case that a researcher may choose a combination of approaches.

There are a wide variety of methods from which you can choose to gather your data. These methods might include the study of wider literature and archive material, surveys and questionnaires, focus groups, observational research methods, case studies and experiments. 

As noted, your choice of method/s will be determined by your methodological approach. For example, why do you think that observing children at play will help you answer your question or that a series of unstructured interviews will help you get to the truth of the issue you would like to explore? 

Other issues you may need to consider include your time frame, possible costs of the research process, and the locality of sources. The time you have allocated to your dissertation will inevitably have a bearing upon the design of your study.  

Think about practical issues which could impact upon your research approach

Areas to consider:

• If you need to access respondents, who will you ask and how will you approach them? 

• There will be ethical considerations if you choose to undertake research connected with children and adults so you will need to complete an ethics form. 

• Planning research activities is vital. For example, if you would like to work with a particular group, e.g. fellow students, is there an appropriate time when you could interview them?  

• If (having gained the appropriate permissions) you are focusing on observing children in your educational setting, can you do organise this within your placement or work time? 

• If you plan to focus on a sample of respondents, how will you choose your sample size? Will it be representative of the population you would like to explore? What will be a manageable sample given your aims and your time frame?   

• If you decide that you would like to send out postal questionnaires – how would you fund this?  

• Would it be possible to use electronic surveying methods?  

• Do you have access to the material you need locally? Or would you need to consider travelling to archives or libraries? Do you have the time available to travel? 

The nature of the research process is another important issue to consider. For example, if you are interested in undertaking an oral history project, you would need to consider how you would access your respondents. There would also be ethical issues you would need to consider (legal issues, data protection, permissions needed). 

It is important to emphasise that your research design will vary according to your subject area. The key point when starting out is to consider your area of interest and then think about how it can be developed into a question that you can begin to explore. Your methods will, as noted, evolve out of your question.