RESEARCH DESIGN
, Learning Objectives
In this lecture you will:
• be introduced to the three types of
research design approaches that are
commonly used
• observe the types of analysis that can
accompany each design approach
• examine methods of asking questions
• be introduced to the questionnaire
design process
,Research Design Considerations
Your research design needs to be considered as it
will dictate the approach and amount of secondary
based and primary research you undertake, as
well as the analysis. Three design approaches are
available:
• EXPLORATORY
• CAUSAL
• DESCRIPTIVE
, Exploratory Design
Exploratory design is essentially investigatory. It
usually occurs at the preliminary stages of any
research exercise, especially when a problem,
product or service is new. It is used to inform a full
research plan.
The approach taken is informal, creative and
driven step by step in an evaluative way. The
design can employ descriptive statistics, intuition,
guesses and judgement.