Types of Descriptive Research

The main types of Descriptive Research are-
1. Case Studies:
• Case study is a detailed study about one person or unit over a considerable period of time.
• It Involves researcher to inquire deeper and examine thoroughly
• Involves taking note on how these behaviors change as the individual adapts and reacts to his environment.
• Discover and identify all the important variables which have contributed to the history or development of the subject through case studies.

Limitations Of Descriptive Research

• It is not applicable to problems which cannot satisfy the required criteria mentioned earlier.

• The researcher may make description an end itself. Research must lead to discovery of facts.

• Although social science problems are continuous and have a past and a future, the researcher may loose him in current conditions only.

Definition of Survey Research Method

Survey means “to look or see over or beyond”. In social sciences, it refers to the technique of collection of data through interview, questionnaire, secondary sources in the light of a specific research objective. Mark Abrams defines survey as “a process by which quantitative facts are collected about the social aspects of a community position and activities”. It is probably the best method available to the social scientist interested in collecting original data for purposes of describing a population which is too large to observe directly. Surveys could be very well used for descriptive, explanatory and exploratory researches.

Selection of Research Method

There is no single rule to choose a research method out of very many options. However the broad research goal somehow gives a general indication about the possible research method to be followed for the proposed study. Different research problems have different research goals, which in rum call for different research methods. Choice of research method is guided not merely by the researcher's field of interest or specialization but also by the nature of the problem being studied, the research goals and the level of accuracy wanted. Experience has established the fact that use of one single method in social research is not always enough to respond to the research need rather a combination of methods is more useful to bring desired level of methodological sophistication. There are at least three points that should be borne in mind while choosing an appropriate research

Definition of Research Method

Research method is the functional action. Strategy to carry out the research in ; the light of the theoretical framework and guiding research questions and or the proposed hypotheses.
Research Method, therefore, is a planned and systematic approach of investigation that denotes the detail framework of the unit of analysis, data gathering techniques, sampling focus and interpretation strategy and analysis plan.