Social Dating of Male and Female - Research Paper Example

Methodology Introduction This chapter demonstrates the methodology used in the research. To begin with, it will explain the research problems and the reason why the specific method was chosen to analysis this research. Secondly, the following descriptions of sampling are also discussed in this chapter, including how to select participants, who the targets that investigator is willing to interview. Thirdly, conducting interviews, and coding data will be interpreted as well. Finally, the chapter also presents the issues of ethics, problems in the process of interviews, and a summary of this section. Research problems Technological advancements have greatly transformed the manner in which people in the twenty first century go about their daily activities. One such aspect is the way social dating is conducted among adults and young adults. The use of computer-mediated communication platforms has particularly been at the fore-front in connecting people and improving interactions. Therefore, technology has played a key role in enhancing the social ties of different people in different parts of the world. Unfortunately, the use of technology in dating (Online dating) has been received with mixed reactions and attitudes from people. Thus, a problem arises when it comes to choosing the appropriate model to use, between online and offline dating. There is a general feeling among some people that online dating does not meet the threshold for social interaction, hence, should not be promoted. On the other hand, some feel that offline dating is too traditional and demands too much commitment. The world is, therefore, torn in between proponents of online dating and its opponents. To provide a deeper and more comprehensive analysis of the controversial issue, this survey seeks to sample the experiences and feelings of adults and young adults concerning both online and offline dating models. As such, the findings will go a long way in clarifying misconceptions about social dating. This will help people make more informed decisions about the type of dating model that best suits them. Quantitative or Qualitative methods Many methods used to conduct a research. Each research method has its own benefits and drawbacks. Generally, the research method can be categorized into two main types; qualitative and quantitative methods. Both of them are different in many aspects, including the use of numbers versus words to analyse information; quantitative researchers are more likely to apply quantitative methods to measure the number of people, in contrast to qualitative research that a researcher always use words to interpret the data, point of view of researcher versus point of view of participants; quantitative researchers seem to define clear answers of participants, while the perspective of interviewees is crucially important to conduct a research, behaviour versus meaning; it is sometimes suggested that a quantitative researcher is more likely to examine peoples behaviour and a qualitative researcher is tended to concern the meaning of actions, artificial setting versus natural setting; quantitative research allow a researcher to conduct studies in a contrived context, whereas, qualitative research is frequently investigated participants in natural environment, generalization versus contextual understanding; a quantitative researcher needs their results to be generalized, while a qualitative researcher seeks an understanding of behaviour, values, beliefs, feeling of participants (Bryman 2012). As discussed above, there are different aspects between quantitative and qualitative methods that a researcher should consider these cases before conducting studies. More importantly, choosing a research method should rely on the aim of research. This present study is to analysis young adults experiences, behaviour and attitudes toward online and offline dating. Therefore, qualitative methods are the most appropriate method for this study. As a result of participants given chances to reveal their experiences, perceptions, notions, and beliefs about the internet dating and the traditional offline dating. Moreover, the investigator will be able to clearly understand opinions and attitudes of respondents. As Babbie (2004) has mentioned that qualitative research is especially appropriate to the study if those attitudes and behaviours best understood within their natural setting, as opposed to the somewhat artificial settings of experiments and surveys (Babbie 2004, p.296). Semi-structured interviews An interview is the most widely used as a research method in qualitative research. There are many different types of interview such as structured interview, standardized interview, focus groups, or group interviewing that some of them are commonly employed in qualitative research. However, the two main types that are typically adopted in qualitative research, were called unstructured interview and the semi-structured interview, or qualitative interview that is encapsulated by many researchers. Qualitative interviews can be seen as the particular forms of a conversation to approach respondents notions, feelings, and values. In addition, the interviews are also associated to economy in terms of time and resources (Berger, 2000; Kvale, 1996). An interview is not only a tool for qualitative research, but also quantitative research. Structured interview is a standard form of the interview that is used in quantitative research. Structured interview differs from unstructured interview. Firstly, qualitative interviewing highlights interviewees own point of views, whereas quantitative interview or structured interview focus on respondents answers, that have already designed by researchers for those questions. Secondly, unstructured interviews are more flexible than structured interviews. Participants and interviewers can adjust any schedule of having conversation. Interviewers can ask uninvolved questions, which have not being prepared for interviewing. Additionally, the qualitative interview is more likely to be an informal conversation (Burgess 1984 cited Bryman, 2012). Finally, a researcher will be able to gain more rich detailed answer by using semi-structured interview. By contrast, structured interviews are often supposed to create limited answers by a researcher. All in all, semi-structure interview is the appropriate tool for this current study. As a consequence, the research needed to investigate young adults experiences, behaviours, opinions, attitudes toward online and conventional offline dating. Sharp (2009) has suggested that semi-structured interview can be seen as a combination between unprepared and instantaneous questions so as to get much more information shared from participants. (Sharp, 2009). Participants The interviewed respondents for this study were randomly selected. Twenty postgraduate students are interviewed for this study. The age ranged from 23 to 30 years. Respondents are divided into two groups; the first group is the students who have used online dating sites; the second group is the participants who never access dating online or always date in offline setting; the last group is the individuals who knew about their friends or relatives that dated online. For the first group, respondents include five men and five women same as the second group because this present study is required a comparison between gender variables in balanced sample. All of participants self-reported as being heterosexuals. Procedure All of participants are recruited from The University of Leicester. The contents of the interview are related to aim of research and the interview questions are designed to answer the research questions. Prior to interview, I will give a very brief introduction about myself and the main purpose to all respondents, even though the Participant Consent Form which has already given to respondents will be informed them who I am. At the beginning of the interview, participants are asked to report their basic demographic information such as names, ages and relationship status. The interview consisted of open-ended questions. The questions that were prepared for interviewees who have accessed online dating sites such as they are asked to describe their experiences with online dating. They are asked to explain what their motivations for using online dating sites, and why they access those sites. They are asked to define how long they have communicated with a potential partners on dating sites. They are also asked to explain how the relationship progressed from online to offline, including questions on if they have ever met their potential partners who met online in offline, how and where they met each other. If they went to meet a potential mate in offline, they are asked about whether they continue their relationships, and how long they interacted with potential partners in offline communication after they already have met in face-to-face. If they broke up with a potential partner, respondents are then asked to describe why they stopped interacting with their potential partners. Finally, they are asked to compare online and offline dating. In the second part, the questions prepared for the students who only be offline daters are quite few questions. For instance, participants are required to describe their relationship, including questions on how and where they met each other, how long they have been in a couple. They are required to state if they ever thought about finding a partner on the dating sites, why they do not use it, and how they think about it. They are finally asked to compare online and traditional offline dating. Data collection and analysis The interviewed are conducted during 1st to 15th July. Twenty participants were interviewed in person at the university cafeteria, because I need to observe participants behaviours during the conversation. The interviews went for 40-50 minutes and the audio recoding conversation is allowed by participants. Read More