STUDY DESIGN AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1 Study Design and Methodology
Research mostly seeks data to explain, describe or explore the phenomenon chosen for the study.
Social and Natural Scientists have different way of doing research based on their area of concern and the nature of phenomenon they are studying. Marshall and Rossman (1989) stated that: For Social Scientists research is a process of trying to gain a better understanding of the complexities of human interactions through systematic means. The researcher gathers information about those interactions, reflects on their meaning, arrives at conclusions, and eventually puts forward an interpretation of those interactions.
Before conducting data generation in practical activities the researchers have to design the research appropriately. Yin defined Research Design as:
''A logical plan for getting from here to there, where here may be de$ned as the initial set of questions to be answered, and there is .vorne set qf conclz~sion (answer) about these questions.
Between here and there may be found a number of major steps, including the collection and analysis of relevant data " (Yin, 2003:2 1)
This logical plan should have to address basic research design questions such as: what issue or research question to study, what type of data and how to generate, how to analyze and reach into conclusions. Therefore, it serves as a road map to reach to the final goal or it serves as a means to an end.
To determine a sound research strategy Yin (1989) proposes three questions:
What is the form of the research question stated: is it exploratory, does it seek to describe the incidence or distribution of some phenomenon or does it try to explain some phenomenon?
Does the research require control over behavior, or does it seek to describe naturdly occurring events?
Is the phenomenon under study contemporary or historical?
The answers to these questions will guide researchers to choose the appropriate research strategy and the choice of one strategy over the other should have to be done carefully.
2.1.1 Rational for Adopting Qualitative Case Study Research Method
The terms Qualitative and Quantitative are used frequently to identify different modes of approaches to research. Mostly, quantitative research present statisticd results represented by numbers. On the other hand, qualitative research presents data as a narration with words or it interprets non-numericd data. According to McMillan and Schumacher (2001), the two approaches differ in their assumption about reality, research purpose, research methods or process, research role and iniportance of context. On the other hand, Strauss and Corbin (1998) defined qualitative research as:
"Any iype of research that produces findings not arrived at by statistical procedures or other means of quantlfication. It can refer research about persons' lives, lived experiences, behaviors, emotions, and feelings as well as about organizational functioning, social movements, cultural phenomena, and interactions between nations. " (Strauss and Corbin, 1998: 1 l)
By taking into consideration what is so far discussed, the research approach chosen for this particular thesis was qualitative research method, because the research topic needs more in-depth study of the cases in its context rather than statistical figures. Moreover, quaiitative research is well suited to understand and examine complex social phenornenon. Hudelson et al, stated, quditative research suit research in which descriptions and explanation (rather than prediction based on causes and effect) are sought, when it is not possible or feasible to manipulate the
potential causes of behavior, and when variables are not easily identified or are too embedded in phenomenon to be extracted for study (Hudelson, 1994; Pope and Mays, 1999).
h o n g qualitative research rnethods Case Study method was selected and used for this thesis.
The rationales for adopting Case Study method were that it provides a good opportunity to obtain a deep insight into an issue in its context, and allows retain the holistic and meaningful characteristics of real life. Moreover, by examining each case as a whole, and by comparing similarities and differences one can learn more about the cases. Ragin (1987) stated that:
"By exarnining dijfferences and similarities in context it is possible to determine how dzjieevent combinations qf conditiom have the same causal significance and how similar causal factors can operate in opposite direction. " (Ragin, 1987: 49)
Contextualized and comparative Case Study was chosen as an appropriate strategy in this particular thesis because these two types of Organizations (CBO and NGO) were different in their Organizational setup and structure but both of them were involved in the same type of services provision. The presence or absence of a certain conditions might have impacts on the services delivered. Therefore, a Case Study approach gives more chance to learn and understand how similarities and differences influence or shape the services delivered by these Organizations.
2.1.2 Selection of Cases
To make the study more concrete and practical among six service provider Organizations (three NGOs and three CBOs) working in Addis Ketema sub-city. Two service providers i.e. CHAD-ET (NGO) and Keble 02 Didier Council (CBO) were selected and covered in the study. The unit of observation was services provided by these organizations, and the levels of analysis were: