Design and Methodology - Research Paper Example

RES:531 Topic: Issues of Drugs In Public Schools Prepared By:ChimaOkoro SUBMITTED: August 20th To prove whether or not teachers and in public schools should be tested for drugs use, a research should be undertaken. The research would be undertaken using a qualitative research methodology. According to Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer (2011), a qualitative research methodology is a research method that focuses on neither explaining cause and effect nor drawing conclusions beyond the research setting.

The first step in this research would be the review of relevant literature. This would help to identify the variables that will be used for this particular research topic. After reviewing literature, the research design that will guide the investigation will be identified. In this particular case, the design that will be used for this research would be the analysis of secondary data. This is because for this kind of research design, there are very few research ethics that are involved. The main source of data in this research would be the internet and other library resources would supplement it.

After selecting the research design, the next process would be collection of required data from their sources. Data sources for this particular research will be scholarly books, peer reviewed journals, published research papers, information from nonprofit organizations, and information from government agencies. This information would be obtained either from the library or internet sources. Since the sources of information are many and wide, it is necessary to select a sample. A sample is a portion of the sampling frame used in a research because of impracticability of using every item in the sampling frame (Buglear, 2012).

Therefore, before starting the process of data collection, a sample of sources of information would be identified. In this particular research, the sampling frame consists of all sources of information that could provide data related to this research topic. After collecting the data, the next step to be undertaken would be data processing. According to Babbie (2010), data processing methods available for qualitative research are coding, writing memos, and mapping concepts graphically. These are the methods of data processing that would be used for this research.

After the data processing, the research conclusion will be drawn from the analyzed and interpreted data. The data collected in this particular case would represent the variables identified for this particular research topic. Data collected in this research will be qualitative and non-numerical. This is why it would be processed and analyzed qualitatively. The collected data will contain information from a wide range of information sources that would be identified in the selected sample. This is because the sample would comprise a variety of information sources ranging from published research papers to government information sources.

To select the sample from the sampling frame, a systematic sampling technique would be used. In this type of sampling, the accessible elements of a population are arranged in a list and then a Kth element is selected from that list (Brass & Brass, 2011). If a simple random sampling would be used, some inaccessible sampling units might be included in the sample. However, with systematic sampling technique inaccessible sampling units would be avoided.The selected design for this research would be very useful in answering the research questions.

First, it would enable collection of as much data as possible, which would provide sufficient information for drawing conclusions. Moreover, it would remove the chances of violation of research ethics that might be encountered for this type of research topic. As a result, the facts obtained regarding the research questions would be accurate and well elaborated. Therefore, the conclusions drawn from the research concerning the research question would provide a reliable solution to the research problem.

The type of research design selected for this research would also enable collection of data on several variables. This would enhance comparison of research findings since the variables would be related in one way or the other. ReferencesBabbie, E, R. (2010). The Practice of social research.Lanham, MD: Rowman& Littlefield Publishers.Buglear, J. (2012). Stats meansbusiness. Burlington, MA: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.Brass, C. H., & Brass, C. P. (2011).Understandable Statistics: Concepts and Methods.

Mason, OH: South-WesternCengage Learning.Lapan, S. D., Quartaroli, M. T., & Riemer, F. J. (2011).Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Publishers.