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Multimedia Training Kit

Multimedia Training Kit. Basic Research Methods. What is research?. We ask questions all the time Research is a formal way of going about asking questions Uses methodologies Many different kinds (e.g. market research, media research and social research)

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Multimedia Training Kit

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  1. Multimedia Training Kit Basic Research Methods Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  2. What is research? • We ask questions all the time • Research is a formal way of going about asking questions • Uses methodologies • Many different kinds (e.g. market research, media research and social research) • Basic research methods can be learned easily Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  3. Basic research methods • Quantitative research (e.g. survey) • Qualitative research (e.g. face-to-face interviews; focus groups; site visits) • Case studies • Participatory research Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  4. Quantitative research • Involves information or data in the form of numbers • Allows us to measure or to quantify things • Respondents don’t necessarily give numbers as answers - answers are analysed as numbers • Good example of quantitative research is the survey Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  5. Surveys • Think clearly about questions (need to constrain answers as much as possible) • Make sure results will answer your research question • Can use Internet for conducting surveys if need to cover wide geographic reach Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  6. Qualitative research • Helps us flesh out the story and develop a deeper understanding of a topic • Often contrasted to quantitative research • Together they give us the ‘bigger picture’ • Good examples of qualitative research are face-to-face interviews, focus groups and site visits Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  7. Face-to-face interviews • Must prepare questions • Good idea to record your interviews • Interviews take up time, so plan for an hour or less (roughly 10 questions) • Stick to your questions, but be flexible if relevant or interesting issues arise during the interview Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  8. Focus groups • Take time to arrange, so prepare in advance (use an intermediary to help you if you can) • Who will be in your focus group? (e.g. age, gender) • Size of focus group (8-10 is typical) • Consider whether or not to have separate focus groups for different ages or genders (e.g. discussing sex and sexuality) Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  9. Site visits and observation • Site visits involve visiting an organization, community project etc • Consider using a guide • Observation is when you visit a location and observe what is going on, drawing your own conclusions • Both facilitate making your research more relevant and concrete Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  10. Case studies • Method of capturing and presenting concrete details of real or fictional situations in a structured way • Good for comparative analysis Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  11. Participatory research • Allows participation of community being researched in research process (e.g. developing research question; choosing methodology; analysing results) • Good way to ensure research does not simply reinforce prejudices and presumptions of researcher • Good for raising awareness in community and developing appropriate action plans Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  12. Planning your research: Key questions • What do you want to know? • How do you find out what you want to know? • Where can you get the information? • Who do you need to ask? • When does your research need to be done? • Why? (Getting the answer) Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  13. Step 1: What? • What do I want to know? • When developing your research question, keep in mind: Who your research is for; What decisions your research will inform; What kind of information is needed to inform those decisions. • Conduct a local information scan • Take another look at your research question Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  14. Step 2: How? Where? Who? • How do I find out what I want to know? • Where can I get the information I need? • Who do I need to ask? • Choose your methodology • quantitative or numbers information • qualitative in-depth explanatory information • case studies • site visits or observation • participatory research Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  15. Step 3: When? • When do all the different parts of the research need to be done? • List all your research work areas • Map them against a timeline • Develop a work plan Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  16. Step 4: Why? Getting the answer • Collect your data • Keep returning to your research question • Organize your research results to answer the question • Keep in mind who you are doing the research for • Focus on what research results do tell you • Be creative, methodical and meticulous Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

  17. Multimedia Training Kit Basic Research Methods Multimedia Training Kit www.itrainonline.org

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