CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

Research design

To investigate and take a closer look at tomato farmers' constraints, I used a qualitative

research design with a phenomenological approach. A phenomenology investigation, according

to Creswell (1998), as cited by Prieto, Naval, and Carey (2017), focuses on how people felt about

a phenomenon and explores what they experienced. Additionally, with a small sample size,

qualitative research can reveal complex problems by delving deeply into the details.

Similar to this, neuman (2017) defined qualitative research as an empirical investigation

into a current phenomenon in its real-world setting where the distinction between phenomenon

and context is blurred and numerous sources of information are used. It entails an in-depth

analysis of the context surrounding problems related to situations like these. In this case, I

decided to carry out a qualitative study to evaluate and explore the effects of new learning

resource restriction on students' performance under the new normal.

Locale of the study

This study focused on the constraints of tomato farmers and conducted at Gambudes,

Arakan, Cotabato. It was convenient for me to conduct the study in the locality since I am

familiar with it and I am known to the research participants in which they gave honest answers to

every question I threw.

Research participants

The research participants in this study were fifteen (15) tomato farmers that have an

experienced of planting more than one thousand (1000) plants of tomato, which were

interviewed through one-on-interview. During the conduct of the study, the research participants

were interviewed personally using a formulated and validated interview guide questionnaire.

Research participants were hid with the use pseudonyms (aliases) in order to protect their

identities.

Role of researcher

I conducted the interviews and served as the study's data collector. As an interviewer. I

gathered more information and obtained more thorough responses from the participants by using

the validated interview guide questions and probe questions. The first step in data analysis,

according to Bailey (2017), is to present the data in textual form, both verbally and visually. This

is because it is an instructive procedure. I ensured that all transcripts were accurate and properly

tagged as I transcribed the information I would be collecting for this study.

Research instrument

The study utilized open-ended interview guide questions as its research instrument. I

conducted one-on-one interview in gathering the data. The researcher developed an interview

guide that was entirely based on the research questions that served as the main method for

gathering important data. In order to "cull data relevant to the study," according to San Jose

(2019), interview manual questions are frequently used in focal point organizations. The

participants were questioned by the researcher and asked to provide answers.

Data collection

I created an interview guide questionnaire based on the research questions because the

study was qualitative in nature. The main goal was to learn everything there was to know about

the participants' perceptions and ideas. In order for the participants to provide a complete

response, open-ended questions were created.

Consent was then be sought from the participants prior to the conduct of the study.

I was guided by the following guidelines in conducting the interview:

Asking permission to conduct study. To request permission from the college dean to

conduct the study through in-person interviews with the chosen participants, I wrote a formal

letter that was duly acknowledged by their thesis adviser. The chosen research participants were

sent a second letter, duly noted by the thesis advisor, requesting their permission and consent to

conduct the study.

Conduct of personal interview. To conduct the interview, a suitable environment was

picked. The interview's goal was clearly stated, and the subject received assurances that the

information they provided would be kept private. Additionally, the format, nature, purpose, and

duration of the interview were explained, as well as the interview's expectations. In order to

allow for some flexibility and freedom in eliciting information from the interviewee, the

interview was conducted in an informal, conversational style using a set of guide questions as a

framework. In order to give the interviewee enough time to think and respond, questions were

asked one at a time. For encoding purposes and to ensure accurate data were recorded in relation

to the interview, the entire interview process—including all of the conversations—was recorded.

Data analysis
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Transcribing, analyzing, coding, and interpreting the data collected through the interview

guide. The frequency of emerging motifs served as the thematic analysis' guiding principle, and

these topics were coded and interpreted as such. Finding out what was looked at, why it was

looked at, and how it was investigated are the objectives of thematizing, according to Corti

(2012). For additional fieldwork, analysis, and reporting, the answers to these questions act as

the basis. Because of this, similar-looking words and sentences will group together. After some

time, these categories will be dropped and their relationships will be reevaluated. The study

essentially entails pulling out significant comments from the audio recordings of the interviews

in order to pinpoint key words and expressions that specifically address the issue at hand.

The process of identifying themes or patterns in qualitative data is known as thematic

analysis, according to Clarke and Braun (2013). The goal of a thematic analysis was to identify

significant or interesting themes in the data and then use those themes to discuss the research or

make a point about a problem. The six steps of thematic analysis are step 1: become familiar

with the data, step 2: create initial codes, step 3: look for themes, step 4: review themes, step 5:

define themes, and step 6: write up. Conversely, an in-depth interview

However, in-depth interviews are helpful when a researcher needs comprehensive details

about a person's beliefs and habits or wants to delve deeper into a new topic. 2016 (Boyce &

Neal).

Trustworthiness

For a qualitative study project, there are a number of design elements that can be used to

enhance the feature or credibility overall (Baxter & Jack, 2012). Additionally, to guarantee that

sufficient detail will be preserved, the researcher will make sure that the study questions are
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written clearly and that they have been approved by a panel of experts. This will allow for the

methodical acquisition, completion, and analysis of the data.

In this study, the researcher will assess credibility by developing and validating research

interview questions. According to Dzakiria (2014), credibility is "the purposeful attempt to

establish confidence in an accurate grasp of the relevance of the evidence or the context in a

plausible manner." Particularly, a pool of experts validates interview questions. I also gave the

participants their transcriptions back to confirm the data that would be gathered.

Transferability is the extent to which the findings can be applied or communicated

outside the parameters of the study (Gomm. Hammersley & Foster, 2012). The audit trail will be

used in this study to determine transferability. In fact, all transcripts and documents will be

preserved. I also make sure that every transcript is correctly coded for information transfer.

The main problem with the study's performance over time is dependability. This will be

addressed in the study by ensuring that the information gathered through interviewing is

reviewed and validated by a group of experts for use as the foundation for the other researchers'

studies. The discussions were also supported by a variety of literature sources that I consulted.

According to Bailey (2013), conformability research reflected the context of the study. In

order to address this, transcripts of the conducted interviews will be given to the participants,

who will then sign the transcripts as verification.

Ethical consideration

Numerous issues were addressed because human participants were used in this study to

identify the limitations. In order to avoid future issues, it was important to protect the

participants' privacy and confidentiality. Confidentiality, consent, and identity protection are
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among the aforementioned issues that were raised. To prevent disagreements among the

participants, the interview questions were written in a concise and understandable manner. In

order to avoid inaccuracies in their responses, participants were given enough time to answer the

questions that were posed to them. A waiver will be granted to the respondents in order to protect

their privacy and the data they have asked to keep private. Their participation will be obtained

after, and they were assured that the data gathered about them would be handled with the strictest

of confidence. This was done to foster trust between the researcher and the respondents.