RES 301

Basic Elements of
Research: Research Problem, Objective and Hypotheses
Learning After this class, you should be able to
Outcomes understand:
What a Research Variable is….
What a concept is.. What a construct is..
What a research problem statement is.
How to linking problem statement and research
objectives
How to couch research questions and hypotheses
Identifying major constructs, concepts and
variables in research questions and/or
hypotheses.
Understanding independent variables from the
dependent variable in quantitative research.
 What  Major clarity in any research comes with
is a variable identification and definition.
Resear
 The study variables are crucial to
ch
understanding the research objectives and
Variabl
consequently the specific research
e?
questions and hypotheses.
 Researcher must be crystal clear of his/her
variable or main research concepts before
any meaningful step in research.
  A variable is any quantity that varies. Any
What
attribute, phenomenon or event that can
is a
Resear have different values

ch  Variables represent the measurable traits

variabl that can change over the course of a
e? scientific experiment
 A variable in research simply refers to a
person, place, thing, or phenomenon that
you are trying to measure in some way.
 Independent Variable- is the supposed
Types cause of the dependent variable
of It is the variable that is not affected by
Variabl other variables
es Generally, it is the variable that the
researcher manipulates

Other names include, active variable,

exogenous variable, explanatory variable,
manipulated variable, predictor variable,
 Dependent Variable- Is the supposed
Types
effect of the independent variables
of
Variabl It is the outcome variable from
es manipulation of independent variables
Other names include, criterion
variable, endogenous variable,
outcome variable, responding variable
 Example: Economic, institutional and
Types
ethical pressures are good predictors
of
Variabl of responsible environmental
es behaviour.
Independent Variables = economic
pressure, institutional pressure and
ethical pressure
Dependent variable = Responsible
 Control Variable: a factor in an experiment or

Types research which must be held constant. For

of example, in an experiment to determine

Variabl whether light makes plants grow faster, you

es would have to control for soil quality and water.

Also, in determining the effect of corporate

governance on profitability, the business size,

capital structure and market size of company

are constant recipe for profitability with or

without corporate governance

 Confounding Variable: extra variables
Types that have a hidden effect on your
of
experimental results. Sometimes
Variabl
es referred to as moderating factors

Extraneous Variable: are any variables

that you are not intentionally studying in

your experiment or test. It is equally

called nuisance variable or error term

 Moderating Variable: changes the
Types strength of an effect between
of independent and dependent variables.
Variabl
For example, psychotherapy may
es
reduce stress levels for women more
than men, so gender moderates the
effect between psychotherapy and
stress levels.
 Mediating Variables: variables that
Types explain how the relationship between
of dependent and independent variables
Variabl
happens.
es
It is the links between the predictor
and criterion variables and allows the
relationship between them to be
better explained.
Difference
between
Moderating
and
Mediating
Variables

 A moderator influences the level, direction, or

presence of a relationship between variables.

 It shows you for whom, when, or under what

circumstances a relationship will hold

Difference
between
Moderating
and
Mediating
Variables

A mediator is a way in which an independent

variable impacts a dependent variable

It is a part of the causal pathway of an effect, and

it tells you how or why an effect takes place

  A concept is an abstraction based on
What characteristics of perceived reality
is a  To a students, the concept of
concept "education" has all sorts of things he/she
? observes in the world around him/her -
like schools, libraries, life experience,
what parents try to do to us, and so on
  If we change the concept to "formal
What education," the meaning smaller,
is a including only institutions that
concept document what is learned in some way
? and award degrees of some kind.
 Simple, a name we give to observations
and events.
  A construct is a concept.
 The terms construct, concept, &
Concept variable are often used
versus
Construct interchangeably
 Constructs are deliberately and
consciously created.
 Constructs may also have a specific
scientific purpose or systematic use
  A construct is a concept a researcher
consciously and deliberately create
Concept for a specific research purpose or
versus
Construct scientific enquiry.
 Therefore, a construct is an
operational definition of a concept.
It is a constructed variable
  In research, definitions of concepts appear
broad and require further specification to
Operation
al be measurable
Definition  An Operational Definition assigns
meaning to concept or to a variable by
specifying the activities or “operations”
necessary to measure it and evaluate the
measurement.
  Operational Definition describes
Operation how a variable will be measured
al
Definition
 Operational Definition is the
details about how the variable is
being manipulated/ how it operates.
 What is a Research Problem

 A research problem is a specific issue,

difficulty, contradiction, or gap in
knowledge that you will aim to address
in your research.
 You might look for practical problems
aimed at contributing to change, or
theoretical problems aimed at expanding
 What is a Research Problem

 Bear in mind that some research will do

both of these things, but usually the
research problem focuses on one or the
other.
 The type of research problem you
choose depends on your broad topic of
interest and the type of research you
 Why is Research Problem Important

Your topic is interesting and you have lots to say

about it, but this isn’t a strong enough basis for
academic research.
Top academic journals ask “and so what?”
Without a well-defined research problem, you
are likely to end up with an unfocused and
unmanageable project.
You might end up repeating what other people
have already said, trying to say too much, or
 Why is Research Problem Important

 You need a problem in order to do research

that contributes new and relevant insights.

 Whether you’re planning your thesis, starting

a research paper or writing a research

proposal, the research problem is the first

step towards knowing exactly what you’ll do

 How to Identify Research Problem

 As you discuss and read about your topic, look for under-

explored aspects and areas of concern, conflict or

controversy.

 Your goal is to find a gap that your research project can fill.

 Research problems can be classified into practical

research problem and theoretical research problem

 HOW TO IDENTIFY RESEARCH
PROBLEM?
PRACTICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM THEORETICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM
• If you are doing • Theoretical research
practical research, you focuses on expanding
can identify a problem knowledge and
by reading reports, understanding rather than
following up on directly contributing to
change. You can identify
previous research, and
a research problem by
talking to people who reading recent research,
work in the relevant theory and debates on
field or organization. your topic to find a gap
in what is currently
known about it.
 HOW TO IDENTIFY RESEARCH
PROBLEM?
PRACTICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM THEORETICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM
You might look for: You might look for:
 Issues with performance  A phenomenon or
or efficiency in an context that has not been
organisation closely studied
 Processes that could be  A contradiction between
improved in an institution two or more
 Areas of concern among perspectives
practitioners in a field  A situation or
 Difficulties faced by relationship that is not
specific groups of people well understood
in society  A troubling question that
 EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH PROBLEM?

I. Military
PRACTICAL annulment of June THEORETICAL
RESEARCH PROBLEM
I. Despite theRESEARCH
previous PROBLEM
studies’
12, 1993 election in Nigeria
was said to have huge focus on responsible
impact on Nigerian economy environmental behaviour
but little or no literature (REB) no study has
exists on the impact of June
12 election annulment on considered at once, the
national economy. impact of economic,
institutional and ethical
II. Little is known of the factors.
influence of electronic
voting adoption on voters’ II. The years of research on
passion in Nigeria despite impact of CSR on financial
the government huge performance has led to
investment in technology for
electioneering process inconclusive result but
previous studies did not
account for industry
 EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH PROBLEM?
PRACTICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM THEORETICAL RESEARCH PROBLEM
Despite the company’s
Most studies had
investigated the impact of
continued improvement in corporate governance on
motivation and incentives for financial performance
while little is known of
the staff in Information
drivers of corporate
Technology Department, the governance, therefore the
labour turnover in the impact of environmental
factors on corporate
department is unabated.
governance practices has
inevitably snowballed into
new research focus
 o Who does the problem affect?
o Has it been an issue for a long time,
Context
and or is it a newly discovered problem?
backgrou
nd o What research has already been
done?
o Have any solutions been proposed?
o What are the current debates about
the problem, and what do you think
 When you have narrowed down your
Context
problem,
and
backgrou
nd the next step is to formulate a

problem statement

Research objectives, research

questions and hypotheses if required.

  A research objective is a clear and
What is specific goal that a researcher aims
Researc
h to achieve through a research study
Objectiv  It serves as a roadmap for the
e
research, providing direction and
focus
 The research objective will always
follow the nature of your research
 Be Clear and Specific
Tips for Clearly state what you intend
writing
Researc to achieve with your research.
h Use specific language that
Objectiv
e leaves no room for ambiguity
or confusion.
This ensures that your
objectives are well-defined
and focused.
 Use Action Verbs
Tips for Begin each research
writing
Researc objective with an action verb
h that describes a measurable
Objectiv
e action or outcome.

This helps make your

objectives more actionable
and measurable.
 Be Realistic and Feasible
Tips for Set research objectives that
writing
are attainable within the
Researc
h constraints of your study,
Objectiv including available resources,
e
time, and ethical
considerations

Unrealistic objectives may

undermine the validity and
 Consider Relevance and
Tips for Significance
writing
Researc Your research objectives should
h be relevant to your research
Objectiv
topic and contribute to the
e
broader field of study.
Consider the potential impact
and significance of achieving the
objectives.
 Align with Research Questions or
Hypotheses
Tips for
Your research objectives should
writing
Researc directly address the research
h questions or hypotheses you
Objectiv
e have formulated.

Ensure there is a clear

connection between them to
maintain coherence in your
study.
 Your Objectives must be SMART

Specific: Clearly state what you want

Tips for
writing to achieve in a precise and specific
Researc manner. Avoid vague or generalized
h language.
Objectiv Measurable: Ensure that your
e research objectives can be quantified
or observed in a measurable way.
Achievable: Set research objectives
that are realistic and attainable within
the available resources, time, and
scope of your study.
 Your Objectives must be SMART

Tips for Relevant: Ensure that your research

writing objectives are directly relevant to
Researc your research topic and contribute to
h the broader knowledge or
Objectiv understanding of the field.
e
They should align with the purpose
and significance of your study.
Time-bound: Set a specific
timeframe or deadline for achieving
your research objectives.
 To examine the relationship
between social media usage
Exampl
and self-esteem among young
es of
adults to understand the
Researc
potential impact on mental
h well-being
Objectiv
e To investigate the factors
influencing consumer
purchasing decisions in the e-
commerce industry.

To determine how financial

statement can be used to
  A research question is the
redefinition of the problem
What is
Research statement into specific enquiry
Question which the research sought to
answer.
 Research questions reduce the study
problem statement into pockets of
short questions that are research-
focused.
  A good research question is essential to
guide your research paper, project or
What is thesis
Research
 It resides at the core of systematic
Question
investigation and it helps you to clearly
define a path for the research process
 It pinpoints exactly what you want to find
out and gives your work a clear focus and
purpose
 All research questions should be:
Focused on a single problem or issue

What is Researchable using primary and/or

Research secondary sources
Question Feasible to answer within the timeframe and
practical constraints
Specific enough to answer thoroughly
Complex enough to develop the answer over
the space of a paper or thesis
Relevant to your field of study and/or
  A conditional statement that is logically
consistent with a theory and can be
What is an tested.
Hypothesis
?
 A research hypothesis is a specific, clear,
and testable proposition or predictive
statement about the possible outcome of a
scientific research study based on a
particular property of a population.
 It is a tentative answer to your research
question that has not yet been tested.
  For some research projects, you might
have to write several hypotheses that
Characteri address different aspects of your research
stics of
Hypothesis question.
 A hypothesis is not just a guess — it
should be based on existing theories and
knowledge.
 It also has to be testable, which means
you can support or refute it through
scientific research methods
  Forces us to think more deeply and
specifically about the possible outcomes
Importan
ce of of the study
Hypothes  Enables us to make specific predictions
is
based on prior evidence or theoretical
argument

 Helps to clarify whether we are or are

not investigating a relationship
Directional vs Non-Directional
Hypothesis
Directional Non -Directional
• A directional hypothesis is • A non-directional
one in which the hypothesis is when there is
researcher indicates the no specific prediction about
specific direction that he or what direction the outcome
she expects will emerge in of a study will take.
a relationship in the study. – Sometimes it is difficult
– The direction is based to make specific
on what the researcher predictions upon a study
has found from: • A study may state
• Literature that it would point to
• Personal experiences non-specific directions
• Experience from vs. distinct
possibilities
others
  The null hypothesis (H0 ) is a general
Null statement that states that there is no
Versus
Alternative relationship between two phenomenon
Hypothesi
s under consideration or that there is no
association between two groups.
 An alternative hypothesis (H1) is a
statement that describes that there is a
relationship between two selected
variables in a study.
 Ho: There is no relationship between
leadership and followership
Example H1: There is a relationship between
of Ho
and H1 leadership and followership
The H0 is a claim about the non-existent
of leadership-followership relationship
that is contradictory to H1.
We accept H1 when H0 is rejected and
vice versa.
  Both hypothesis and research question
mostly serve same purpose in research
Relationship  Research question is used in qualitative and
between
Research quantitative studies while hypothesis is used
Question and
hypothesis
only in quantitative explanatory,
experimental or causal studies.
 Hypothesis is predictive in nature.
 Research Question is inquisitive in nature.
 Research question may focus on one variable
and more than one variable.
 Hypothesis can only hold when there are at
least two variables or constructs
  For instance, the following research question
cannot snowball into hypothesis
RQ: What is the state of Nigeria economy? (It
lacks two associational variables)
Example
 The following research question can be stated as
hypothesis
RQ: What is the relationship between
national security and state of Nigeria
economy?
Hypothetically,
H0: There is no relationship between national
security and the State of Nigeria Economy
  Both are products of research problem
statement
Relationship
between
Research
 Both put research problem in proper
Question and
hypothesis perspectives to allow for better procedure
for resolving the research problem
 Both help in determining the relevant
research design, research method, nature
of data needed and choice of relevant
statistical analysis or qualitative
analytical procedure.