Practical Research 1

Week 3
The Research Problem and
the Research Title
The Research Problem
In starting with a research project, the researcher must have a clear
problem in mind. Basically, a research problem refers to a statement that
promptly suggests for conducting an investigation. Moreover, a research
problem to be designed must deal with some concerns in a particular field
that may need an improvement or a solution. The researcher must also
observe gaps in existing scholarly literature, theories, and practices in order
to come up with a good and relevant research problem. This designed
problem then will serve as a guide to know what kind of research study will
be most suitable to address the perceived concern.
Sources of Research Problem
There is a need for a socially relevant problem when the researcher
will attempt to conduct a study. Hence, it is said that identifying and
designing a research problem is quite a challenging task.
Familiarity with the potential sources, meanwhile, may help the
researcher to come up with a good research problem. As cited from Sacred
Heart University Library (2020), four (4) varied sources can be considered.
These are as follows:
1. Theory. Existing social philosophies and generalizations which the
researcher is familiar with ,may be of a great help to design a research
problem. The researcher may observe if there is a gap between theory
and practice. Difference between what is said by the elders and what
the youngsters see and observe may be a potential source of a
problem.
2. Practitioners. Consultation with the people who have direct
experiences in a field of interest may provide the researcher an idea of
what relevant problem he/she may investigate. Practitioners such as
teachers, social workers, health care providers, etc. are considered to
be a good source of problem since they are directly experiencing
difficulties and challenges which are needed to be addressed.
3. Personal experience. Daily experiences can provide the researcher
an idea of what problem that needs a solution. Observation on what is
happening in the community may allow him/her to see the common
concerns of people or institutions which may be subjected for
 investigation.
4. Relevant literature. An extensive and thorough review of
literature and studies relevant to the problem interest of the researcher
may enable him/her to come up with a potential study. Through
reviewing other available researches, the researcher may be able to
determine gaps in knowledge and to subject them for replication.
Thus, a good research problem will be ensured.
Considerations in Formulating the Research Problem
As cited from the book of Cristobal and Cristobal (2017), there are
criteria which should be considered by the researcher in order to arrive with
a good research problem. Here they adopted the proposed criteria of
Barrientos-Tan (1997) from the book entitled A Research Guide in Nursing
Education. These are further subdivided into external and internal criteria.

1. External Criteria

a. Novelty. The research problem must carry “newness.” With this, its
practical value would be easily perceived.
b. Availability of subjects. A research problem, when is subjected to
a further investigation, requires data from the target subjects. Hence,
the researcher must ensure that there will be available participants
who are capable of providing data needed for the study.
c. Support of the academic community. The academic community,
which consists of administrators, teachers, staff, students, and parents,
should be considered by the researcher in what particular problem will
be investigated. Each member plays a vital role in the conduct of the
study. Hence, the research problem should be clearly perceived as
beneficial once it is subjected for investigation. In addition, securing
permission among the said members must be done before conducting
the actual data collection procedure.
d. Availability and adequacy of facilities and equipment.
Necessary common devices such as computers and telephones which
will be used in undertaking a study should be considered. Likewise,
other needed materials required by the research problem should be
checked if they are available and sufficient.
e. Ethical considerations. A research problem, when is subjected to a
study, must not pose any unethical demands most especially on the
part of the research participants.

2. Internal Criteria
 a. Qualifications of the researcher. These pertain to the expertise of
the researcher to the problem. It is important to the researcher that
he/she has enough knowledge and training when the research problem
is subjected to further investigation so as to ensure the success of the
undertaking.
b. Motivation and interest of the researcher. The research problem
which is in the interest of the researcher may give him/her satisfaction
and enjoyment. Hence, completion of the research tasks will be
efficiently attained.
c. Time factor. A research problem, when is subjected to a study,
should suggest to be time-efficient. With this, the undertaking will be
possibly accomplished in a given time frame.
d. Costs and returns. It is also important that the researcher should
consider a research problem which suggests to be cost-efficient. When
it is subjected to a study, it must not be a sort of an expensive
undertaking.
e. Hazards and handicaps. This means that a research problem
should not put the researcher in danger. The proposed study should be
safe not only to the participants but moreover to the researcher
himself/herself. Physical and mental health of the researcher must
always be considered.

Research Title
Once the researcher has already had a problem that will be subjected
for a study, he/she may now begin formulating a good research title that will
best represent the problem and the study itself in general. As cited from
Sacred Heart University Library.

Characteristics of a Research Title

As commonly observed, a research title is the first one to be read
before proceeding to the other parts of the research paper. Hence, it is really
important to know for the researcher what makes a research title an effective
one in order to capture the interest of the readers towards the problem to be
investigated. Here are some of the characteristics of a research title that the
researcher should put into considerations:

1. It should be limited only to substantive words with high consideration to

the key variables such as the phenomenon under investigation, the
participants, and the setting of the study.
2. It should use words that can create a positive impression among the
readers. Avoid using abbreviations as well as some word constructions such
as: “method,” “result,” and “investigation.”
3. It should be in the form of a phrase with correct use of capitalization, that
is, the first letter appeared in the title as well as the first letter of each noun
word should be capitalized.
4. It should be concise by adequately implying the participants and the
coverage of the study. In addition, a researcher may also put a subtitle which
is commonly employed in social science research papers. This subtitle may
be done: (1) to state the scope, context, and theory under investigation; and
(2) to provide a substantive and appealing literary title.

Examples of Qualitative Research Title

Similar with all other parts of a research paper, the title must be
carefully formulated. Other existing research titles may serve as a basis
especially for beginning
researchers. Below are the examples of title in qualitative research:
1. The ‘Need to Transcend’: A Phenomenological Study on the Lived
Experiences of Millennial Teachers (Lacdo-O et al., 2018)
2. The Educated Citizen: Cultural and Gender Capital in the
Schooling of Aetas’ Children in the Municipality of Janiuay
(Moralista & Delariarte, 2014)

Rationale of the Study

Research justification is considered as the initial step in writing a
research paper. This step involves the skill on how the researcher will
provide the readers with critical background or contextual information that
introduces the research topic. Moreover, it needs to indicate the reasons why
the proposed research actually matters. In doing so, the researcher must be
able to get the audience's attention right from the introduction.

How to Write the Rationale of the Study

The rationale of the study must contain the following components:

1. Existing Literature
- a background on what researches have already been done about the
given subject.
2. Relevance to Local/Global Context
 - situational interconnectedness of individuals or things in varying
perspectives.
3. Critical Background/Contextual Information
- circumstances forming a background of an event, idea or subject,
that enables the readers to understand the nature of the problem.
4. Research Gap
- problems, issues or questions that have not been addressed or are yet
to be understood.
5. Proof of Urgency
- an urgent need to solve the existing problem.
6. Research Goal/Objective
- the purpose why there is a need for the proposed study to be
conducted.

Here are some questions to be considered in presenting justifications:

➢ Why is this research important?
➢ What real life or everyday problem, issue, or question does the
research
relate to?
➢ Can people relate to the problem in local or global context?
➢ What benefit does the research promise?
➢ Are the units of analysis and observation clearly identified?
➢ What does the researcher hope to find out?
➢ What was wrong or incomplete about prior efforts already
conducted?
➢ Does the research extend understanding of the phenomena being
investigated?
➢ Does it elaborate or fill in the gaps in the present knowledge?
➢ What is the research ultimately trying to achieve?

Now, read and study the following sample of Rationale of the Study.
 The Statement of the Problem
Statement of the Problem
After the researcher has clearly presented the rationale of the problem,
the formulation of the targeted and well-defined problem must follow. This
well-defined problem is commonly pertained to the “Statement of the
Problem.” Stating clearly the problem can make the vagueness of the study
be clarified. Further, this section allows the researcher to present other
essential elements of research undertaking such as the major variables,
objectives, and appropriate methodology.

Writing the Problem Statement in a Qualitative Research

In formulating the problem statement in a research paper, there are
two types of problems which should be considered. These are the general
problem and the specific problems. General problem pertains to the opening
paragraph that gives specific details on other essential elements which are
the purpose, major variables, participants, setting, and time coverage of the
study. The said elements serve as a guide in order to properly formulate the
general problem. Cristobal and Cristobal (2017) from their book

Practical Research 1 for Senior High School presented guidelines in the

writing of the general problem. These are as follows:
1. The general problem should clearly state the main task/s of the
researcher.
2. The general problem should present the major variable/s related to
the phenomenon to be investigated.
3. The general problem should identify the participants of the study.
4. The general problem should state the research setting as well as the
time period of the study.
5. The general problem may indicate the intended output of the study
such as an intervention program, module, policies, etc.

An example of a general problem is presented below.

to determine - main task

 functions, emojis, online communication - major variables
grade 11 students - participants
Lamao National High School - setting
school year 2019-2020 - time period
learning content presentation strategy - intended output

After formulating the general problem of a study, enumeration of its

specific problems should follow. Unlike the general problem which is stated
in a declarative form, the specific problems are stated as questions. These
formulated questions, moreover, should all be anchored on the general
problem. With this, the researcher will be guided on how he/she will seek an
answer to the problem.
In addition, the researcher must also know that a specific question to
be formulated must be a researchable question, that is, it should begin with
words such as “what” and “how.” In this case, the researcher may be able to
solicit responses which can ensure detailed data necessary to the study. Non-
researchable questions, as in, those which are answerable by “yes” or “no”
should be avoided.

Examples of non-researchable and researchable questions are presented

below.

Non-Researchable Questions:
1. Do the participants use social media platforms for their communication
purposes?
2. Are the participants using emojis in their online communication?
3. Can the participants understand the meaning of emojis used in
conversations?
4. Will the emojis be used for a language content learning presentation
strategy?

Researchable Questions:
1. What are the most frequently used emojis by the participants in the
corpus?
2. What are the pragmatic functions of emojis in the corpus?
3. How do multiple emojis affect the meaning of the discourse?
4. What learning content presentation strategy can be proposed based on the
results of the study.
Practical Research 1
 Week 4
Content of Scope and Delimitation
Scope and delimitation is an informative part of your research. It is
informative because it is to where you declare the things you have to carry
out and follow through the course of research. I am sure, you are wondering
why there is a need for us to declare all of these to our readers. Likewise,
you are puzzled what are the elements of your research that are needed to be
included? Well, let us deal with them one by one.

Let us first dissect “scope and delimitation”.

When we talk about the scope of research, it commonly refers to the

depth your research area or parameters. This includes restriction of the target
population, research local, specified duration, design, procedure, and
instrument used.
1. Population –According to Majid (2018), this stands for the entire pool
from which the sample is drawn.
Consider these examples:
a. Schools operating in Bataan (Private and Public)
b. Senior High School Students of a School
c. Grade 10 Students in a School Division
d. Tricycle Drivers operating in a Barangay
e. All Working Students in a grade level
2. Research Locale – It refers to the particular location where the study is
conducted.
Consider these examples:
Lamao National High School Schools Division of Bataan
Dinalupihan Region III – Central Luzon
Pampanga Balanga City
Limay Senior High School University of the Assumption
Barangay St. Francis II Bataan Peninsula State University
3. Specific Duration. This stands for the exclusive time frame when the
research is conducted.
Consider these examples:
May 20 to 22 2020
School Year 2020 to 2021
From 2015 to 2020
From January 2020 to May 20202
4. Research Method – This refers to the systematic plan for conducting
research which includes strategies, process, techniques, and procedures for
collecting and analyzing data (MacDonald and Headlam 2008). Here are the
four (4) most commonly used qualitative designs that you can use.

a. Ethnography – If your research is about a description or

investigation about customs of individual and culture, this design can be
used (Elis and Bochner 1996).
b. Phenomenology – If your research is about the commonality of
lived experience within a group of individuals or description of a
particular phenomenon, this research design can be used (Singh
2018).
c. Case Study – If your research is about an investigation of a
phenomenon within the context of real-life situation, you can use this
design (Kothari 2004) .
d. Grounded Theory – If your research aims toward a development
of a theory in an inductive manner, you can use this design
(VanderStoep and Johnston 2009).
5. Protocols Followed. This refers to the standard procedure, system,
or rules that you follow in gathering data. It can be the permission in
the conduct of the study, communication letter to the respondents, or
agreement on the conduct of interview.
6. Data Gathering Procedure. This refers to the step-by-step
procedures that you employ before and during the data gathering.
7. Instrument. These are measurement devices that you use in your
research. It can be in a form of test, survey, questionnaire, and the
like. However, in qualitative research, you as the researcher is the
instrument, and your interview guide serve as a tool in gathering the
data (Bahrami, Soleimani, Yaghoobzadeh, & Ranjbar, 2016).
8. Data Analysis. These are the systematical processes you employ to
describe or interpret your data. It can be thematic network analysis,
dendogramming, structural analysis, text analysis, and Collaizi
procedure.

On the other hand when we talk about delimitation, it refers to choices

made by researcher that serves as boundary (Simon 2011). This includes
research objectives, questions, variables, theoretical objectives you adopted,
target samples, and justifications that limits the scope of the study.
Commonly, research objectives, and description of variables are mentioned
while research questions are just reflected on the set objectives. Variable are
also explained and declared, as well as to the theoretical objectives of the
study. On the other hand, sampling method, target sample size, and
justifications in choosing the above mentioned scope are provided to clearly
set the parameter of the study. In some researches, instead of scope and
delimitation, they use scope and limitation. The term limitation is about the
external and internal influences that researcher has no control of. They can
be shortcomings, conditions or influences that cannot be avoided due to the
limitation of the study. Thus, these limitations is a declaration of the possible
influences to the result of the study.
Writing Scope and Delimitation
After knowing the elements and content of scope and delimitation as
part of research, you are now ready to write your own scope and
delimitation. Worry not because writing this require you to enlist the things
you will be doing and using throughout your study. Even though there is no
standardized way of writing, this lesson will share the typical way of
composing your scope and delimitation. Thus, this topic will allow you to be
equipped with necessary skill for you to finish this part of your research.
You need to remember that scope and delimitation is the blueprint of
your research. It needs to be synchronized with the research gap you have
established in the introduction and has to be paralleled with the research
objectives and questions you have formulated. Later in your methodology, it
has to be harmonized with the processes you will be declaring. In writing
this, you just need to be precise and logical. Meaning to say, you need to
justify the information you will include on your scope and delimitation.
Writing scope and delimitation does not require you extraordinary
skills in writing. You just need to have a clear picture on how you are going
to do your research. Most probably, if you happened to read other
researches, you would notice they have different ways of formulating it.
Some begin with the methods of research and end with the instrument,
others start with research locale and end with the declaration of the protocols
followed. However, one thing is common among them, their content are the
same. Therefore, this implies that there is no prescribed way of making it.
As long as the necessary elements are declared and briefly discussed, that is
already a
good scope and delimitation. It is because this part of research intends to
inform the readers about the parameter of your research.
Commonly, scope and delimitation is written in three (3) paragraphs.
The first paragraph contains methods, research design, research locale, time
duration, population, sampling and class size. The second paragraph
includes the instrument used, validation and protocols followed in the
conduct of the study. The last paragraph is the declaration of data gathering
and analysis. It is important that you need to provide proper justifications of
the elements you will be using. It is done through the wisdom of the experts
– citation.
Before writing the first paragraph, it is advised that you must perform
brainstorming of what you are going to write. Brainstorming is just simply
writing down what comes to your mind. But this time, let us perform
brainstorming by answering some question. For example you are conducting
a research about the lived experience about verbal bullying of the Persons
with Disabilities (PWD) Grade 11 students in a province, how are you going
to make the scope and delimitation? Now, let us begin with the first
paragraph. Remember that the first paragraph contains methods, research
design, research locale, time duration, population, sampling and class size.

Consider the 1st figure.

The 2nd figure answers the 1st figure

 These are the answers that you need to know before writing your
scope and delimitation. The information would give you a clear picture of
what you are going to write.
If you are going to write the information gathered, the first paragraph
of the scope and delimitation will be like this …

Did you notice how terms give justifications? The underlined sentences
serve as your scope and delimitation. They limit down the scope of the
study.
 On the second paragraph, you need to remember that it contains
instrument used, validation and protocols followed in the conduct of the
study.
 Significance of the Study
Cristobal and Cristobal (2017) states that research is a very noble
undertaking if it makes significant contributions to the community and to the
academic field or discipline where the researcher is affiliated with. This is
basically the reason why the researcher needs to determine the relevance of
their study. It should apparently identify the purpose that the research will
serve and how it will contribute to the society, the country, the government,
the institution or agency concerned, and the research community.
Under this section of the research paper, the researcher must be able
to present the valuable contribution of the study to a particular body of
knowledge or area of specialization. As Cristobal and Cristobal (2017)
noted, it could be in the form of a new knowledge in the field, analysis of
trends over time, validation of other findings using different methodologies,
confirmation of the major findings of other studies, and verification of the
validity of findings in a different population. After identifying the general
significance of the study, the researcher also has to determine the
beneficiaries who will directly gain from the results of the study. They may
be classified as academic or non-academic.
Academic beneficiaries may include educational staff, teachers,
students and researchers, while non-academic beneficiaries may include
stakeholders, policymakers, agencies and organizations. They should be
specifically listed according to the significance of the study’s results to
them.Moreover, the researcher needs to cite the particular benefits that the
beneficiaries will gain from the study. They refer to all advantages to be
obtained by those directly involved especially the researchers and research
users. All of which can be manifested as demonstrable contribution of the
said research to the specialized field or to the community. Such benefits may
be classified as educational, professional and personal as shown in the table
on the following page.