What is research? Why is it carried out, what information is needed, and where can it be obtained? All these questions should be answered in order, starting with the definition of this word.
Definitions
What is research? Before analyzing this concept and its components in detail, you should refer to several dictionaries for clarification.
So, from the source "Big Encyclopedic Dictionary" it follows that this process, which includes the collection of new knowledge, is divided into two levels - empirical and theoretical.
Let's look at another source, the dictionary of D. N. Ushakov, to understand what research is. Here the term is presented in different directions. This is an analysis of the crisis in the economy, and the study of analyzes in medicine, as well as a scientific essay where some question or analysis of social development is on the agenda.
Research data
To obtain some information, which is further investigated, you need to have the necessary data. They are first collected, then processed and finally analyzed. All this is carried out in several stages:
- identifying a problem or situation;
- understanding where it came from, how it developed, what it consists of;
- establishing the location of the problem in the knowledge system;
- search for ways, as well as means and opportunities, which will resolve the situation with the help of new knowledge.
To pass all stages, you need an object of study, methodology (includes goals, approach, benchmark and priorities) and resources. Ultimately, you need to get some kind of result, which is expressed in the development of a program or the launch of a project, in the creation of a recommendation or a model.
A striking example would be laboratory research, where scientists study the disease that needs to be fought. Chemists are trying to create a cure, laboratory workers are experimenting on animals, and so on, until an antiviral drug is obtained that can save many lives.
Classification
In any field of science, their studies are carried out, whether it be medicine, psychology, economics or marketing. But for each direction there is a classification of types of research.
They distinguish fundamental, where the main goal is to obtain new knowledge, as well as applied ones, which are needed in order to solve a scientific problem.
You can study empirically, i.e., to conduct an observation, or based on some experience, or on the basis of analysis and theoretical knowledge.
Further, there are such types as quantitative and qualitative. It all depends on what needs to be studied. For example, if you needto study the behavior of people in a given situation, and the result must be calculated, this is a quantitative method. Qualitative is needed when it is important to understand why a person acted this way and not otherwise. Here you can add another category - spot and repeated laboratory tests and others, based on the frequency of the conduct. There is not always enough information about the state of the object, therefore, after a certain period of time, the study of the subject is carried out again.
The next category is the use of different sources of information - secondary and primary. For example, a survey is conducted, where the opinions of different people are found out, that is, these are data from the primary source. Desk research is most often carried out when some information is missing or some of it is outdated.
For example, the object is a group of people who eat the same food every day for some time, and scientists find out how this product affects the body.
Key Features
Having settled on some category of research or its type, the next step is to determine the goal, which is divided into three groups: descriptive, analytical and intelligence.
Most often, the descriptive view is used when you need to study people, as well as to determine the characteristics by which they differ from each other. The reconnaissance method is needed for large-scale research, or rather, as a preliminary stage. The analytical view is the deepest, and, in addition to describing the object or phenomenon, it establishes the reasons that underlie the researchedphenomena.
After all the information received, it is easy to answer what research is and what it is for. But it is worth remembering that a good study of any issue requires a lot of money in order to obtain reliable information, create a program, develop a method, or write a review.
