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em·pir·i·cal [em-pir-i-kuhl] Show IPA adjective 1. derived from or guided by experience or experiment. 2. depending upon experience or observation alone, withoutusing sci entific method or theory, especially as in medicine. 3. provable or verifiable by experience or experiment. (Antonyms for empirical are hypothetical, theoretical, speculative, impractical.) Empirical research is a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience. Empirical evidence (the record of one's direct observations or experiences) can be analyzed quantitatively or qualitatively. Through quantifying the evidence or making sense of it in qualitative form, a researcher can answer empirical questions, which should be clearly defined and answerable with the evidence collected (usually called data). Research design varies by field and by the question being investigated. Many researchers combine qualitative and quantitative forms of analysis to better answer questions which cannot be studied in laboratory settings, particularly in the social sciences and in education. In some fields, quantitative research may begin with a research question (e.g., "Does listening to vocal music during learning a word list have an effect on later memory for these words?") which is tested through experimentation in a lab. Usually, a researcher has a certain theory regarding the topic under investigation. Based on this theory some statements, or hypotheses, will be proposed (e.g., "Listening to vocal music has a negative effect on learning a word list."). From these hypotheses predictions about specific events are derived (e.g., "People who study a word list while listening to vocal music will remember fewer words on a later memory test than people who study a word list in silence."). These predictions can then be tested with a suitable experiment. Depending on the outcomes of the experiment, the theory on which the hypotheses and predictions were based will be supported or not.[1] The term empirical was originally used to refer to certain ancient Greek practitioners of medicine who rejected adherence to the dogmatic doctrines of the day, preferring instead to rely on the observation of phenomena as perceived in experience. Later empiricism referred to a theory of knowledge in philosophy which adheres to the principle that knowledge arises from experience and evidence gathered specifically using the senses. In scientific use the term empirical refers to the gathering of data using only evidence that is observable by the senses or in some cases using calibrated scientific instruments. What early philosophers described as empiricist and empirical research have in common is the dependence on observable data to formulate and test theories and come to conclusions. Empirical cycle Empirical cycle according to A.D. de Groot A.D. de Groot's empirical cycle: Observation: The collecting and organisation of empirical facts; Forming hypothesis. Induction: Formulating hypothesis. Deduction: Deducting consequenses of hypothesis as testable predictions. Testing: Testing the hypothesis with new empirical material. Evaluation: Evaluating the outcome of testing. You might be a student, a healthcare worker, or a policy advisor. You might not even consider yourself a researcher. But if you're analyzing documents, surveys, audio, videos or pictures, then chances are you're involved in qualitative research. What is qualitative research? Qualitative research seeks out the ‘why’, not the ‘how’ of its topic through the analysis of unstructured information – things like interview transcripts, open ended survey responses, emails, notes, feedback forms, photos and videos. It doesn’t just rely on statistics or numbers, which are the domain of quantitative researchers. Qualitative research is used to gain insight into people's attitudes, behaviours, value systems, concerns, motivations, aspirations, culture or lifestyles. It’s used to inform business decisions, policy formation, communication and research. Focus groups, in-depth interviews, content analysis, ethnography, evaluation and semiotics are among the many formal approaches that are used, but qualitative research also involves the analysis of any unstructured material, including customer feedback forms, reports or media clips. Collecting and analyzing this unstructured information can be messy and time consuming using manual methods. When faced with volumes of materials, finding themes and extracting meaning can be a daunting task. What is quantitative research? Quantitative research — including surveys and customer questionnaires — can help small firms to improve their products and services by enabling them to make informed decisions Quantitative research is about asking people for their opinions in a structured way so that you can produce hard facts and statistics to guide you. To get reliable statistical results, it’s important to survey people in fairly large numbers and to make sure they are a representative sample of your target market. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN EDUCATION RESEARCH In simple terms we can think of two approaches to investigations in educational research: qualitative and quantitative. In the former we use words to describe the outcomes and in the latter we use numbers. Quantitative research methods were originally developed in the natural sciences to study natural phenomena. However examples of quantitative methods now well accepted in the social sciences and education include: surveys; laboratory experiments; formal methods such as econometrics: numerical methods such as mathematical modelling. Qualitative research methods were developed in the social sciences to enable researchers to study social and cultural phenomenon. Examples of qualitative methods include: action research aims to contribute both to the practical concerns of people in an immediate problematic situation and to the goals of social science by joint collaboration within a mutually acceptable ethical framework; case study research - a case study is an empirical enquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context; ethnography- the ethnographer immerses her/himself in the life of people s/he studies and seeks to place the phenomena studied in its social and cultural context. Other components of this module cover various qualitative research methods. Structure of Research Papers When setting out on educational research you will be (have been) encouraged by your supervisor to read appropriate publications and this is a good way of identifying the methods of research that seem most used in your research area. A typical structure for a research paper is summarized in the table below: literature survey other people’s work methodology qualitative or quantitative results your work discussion/conclusions your discussion and reference to others Qualitative research a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts.[1] Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behavior. The qualitative method investigates the why and how of decision making, not justwhat, where, when. Hence, smaller but focused samples are more often needed than large samples.