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Expert surveys allow us to gain information from specialists in a field that we are less qualified to understand, or to gather large amounts of content, while providing the freedom for the experts to demonstrate their knowledge. For example, if I was tasked with surveying the public’s stance and awareness on environmental issues, I could create a preliminary expert survey for a selected group of environmental authorities. It would ask broad open-ended questions that are designed to examine different sides of the issues. Since standardized approaches tend not to be used, exploratory research is often qualitative in nature. However, in some cases, quantitative data can be gathered and generalized for a larger sample through use of surveys and experiments.
Secondary research methods
The purpose of exploratory research is to gain insights and understanding of a research problem or question where there is limited existing knowledge or understanding. The objective is to explore and generate ideas that can guide further research, rather than to test specific hypotheses or make definitive conclusions. This study utilised exploratory research design and reliant on secondary data gathered from various publications, journals, textbooks, and internet sources that focused on exploratory research design. Exploratory research can be likened to the activities of the traveller or explorer (Adams & Schvaneveldt, 1991 as cited in Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2016). When conducting exploratory research the researcher must be willing to change their direction as a result of new data that appear and new insights that occur to them (Lelissa, 2018). Adams and Schvaneveldt (1991) reinforce this point by arguing that the flexibility inherent in exploratory research does not mean absence of direction to the enquiry.
Exploratory research: Steps to conduct a research
This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. Open-ended surveys allow respondents to provide detailed and unrestricted responses to questions, providing valuable insights into their attitudes, opinions, and perceptions. This type of research can be useful in identifying common themes or patterns, and in generating ideas for further research. The primary objective of exploratory research is to gain insights and gather preliminary information that can help the researcher better define the research problem and develop hypotheses or research questions for further investigation.
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It is often used to narrow down a very broad field of research into one or a few easily researchable examples. The case study research design is also useful for testing whether a specific theory and model actually applies to phenomena in the real world. The essentials of action research design follow a characteristic cycle whereby initially an exploratory stance is adopted, where an understanding of a problem is developed and plans are made for some form of interventionary strategy.
The study would like to emphasise that knowledge of exploratory research design can help a researcher better define and understand research problems and questions in management research. Exploratory research is defined as a research used to investigate a problem which is not clearly defined. It is conducted to have a better understanding of the existing research problem, but will not provide conclusive results.
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The open and natural discussion format of a focus groups allows for a wider variety of perspectives in a shorter period of time.Case analysis involves intensive study of selected examples related to the phenomenon that is the purpose of the study. Researchers can check existing records, observe how the phenomenon works, and conduct interviews. Further, some researchers were observed to be able to collect data using various methods such as primary and secondary sources. The researcher observed that multiple methods for data collection were used in a single study in order to optimize the strengths and lessen the weaknesses of each method in a research process. As a result, using a variety of data collection methods allows researchers to answer questions that cannot be answered using only primary or secondary sources. Following a review of a few articles on the subject written by various researchers who used an exploratory research design in management sciences.
Systematic Review
Researchers are advised to be careful not to confuse exploratory research with explanatory research, which is also preliminary in nature but instead explores why a well-documented problem occurs (Tegan, 2021). For instance, some researchers provide the final and conclusive answers to the research questions in studies where the situations are unclear and have not attracted serious investigations and research in the past. Further, some researchers employ an exploratory research design in studies where specific relationships among variables of a research problem are investigated and the information required is clearly defined. In many instances, inappropriate usage of design in the systematic investigation can infuse bias into the research process. An exploratory research design is required in the preliminary stages of research when the research problem is unclear and the researcher wants to scope out the nature and extent of a specific research problem (Elman, Gerring & Mahoney, 2020). Our review identified a number of qualitative standards and guidelines that have been published.
The exploratory research design focuses on collecting secondary or primary data in an unstructured format and interpreting it using informal procedures (Bernd, 2017). Due to its aims and structure, exploratory research designs incorporate the least amount of scientific method and rigor of the other research designs classified above (Umesh, 2021). When only research questions serve as the foundation of the investigation, the explorative research design is qualitative.
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The preparation of such a design facilitates research to be as efficient as possible yielding maximal information (Tegan, 2021). The results of exploratory research example are usually considered as preliminary or output for further, detailed research. Therefore, the results should be carefully interpreted in view of the risk of misrepresentation of the subject of the study.Exploratory research is generally concerned with finding ideas and information that helps to understand the problem.
Third, it allows for a better understanding on what a research team's objectives should be throughout the duration of a project. Having this information in mind will be beneficial to anyone conducting research from outside sources. Unstructured interviews are the most popular primary data collection method with exploratory studies. Additionally, surveys, focus groups and observation methods can be used to collect primary data for this type of studies. Exploratory research, as the name implies, intends merely to explore the research questions and does not intend to offer final and conclusive solutions to existing problems. This type of research is usually conducted to study a problem that has not been clearly defined yet.
After you have conducted your research, use the findings to create a hypothesis. A focus group most commonly contains 8 to 12 people fitting the description of the target sample group and asks them specific questions on the issues and subjects being researched. Sometimes, focus groups will also host interactive exercises during the session and request feedback on what was given.
For example, ‘a study into the implications of COVID-19 pandemic into the global economy’ is an exploratory research. COVID-19 pandemic is a recent phenomenon and the study can generate an initial knowledge about economic implications of the phenomenon. The research design is usually incorporated into the introduction of your paper. You can obtain an overall sense of what to do by reviewing studies that have utilized the same research design [e.g., using a case study approach]. With this in mind, a common mistake made by researchers is that they begin their investigations before they have thought critically about what information is required to address the research problem. Without attending to these design issues beforehand, the overall research problem will not be adequately addressed and any conclusions drawn will run the risk of being weak and unconvincing.
Using a qualitative framework, cohort studies generally gather data using methods of observation. Exploratory research design can be defined as research conducted to investigate an undefined problem. It is carried out to gain a better understanding of the current problem (Asika, 2004; Olajide & Lawal, 2020; Akhtar, 2016; Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2016, Richard, 2018; Elman, Gerring, & Mahoney, 2020). Explorative research design, as the name implies, seeks to elucidate research questions rather than provide final and conclusive solutions to existing problems (Brown, 2006; Nargundkar, 2008).
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In doing this, the researcher attempts to determine or predict what may occur. Experimental research is often used where there is time priority in a causal relationship (cause precedes effect), there is consistency in a causal relationship (a cause will always lead to the same effect), and the magnitude of the correlation is great. The classic experimental design specifies an experimental group and a control group.
What it does mean is that the focus is initially broad and becomes progressively narrower as the research progresses. Exploratory research design is evolutionary and historical in nature and it rarely involves the employment of large samples or use of structured questionnaires (Asika, 2004). According to Goundar (2019), one of the first considerations when designing a research project is what the researcher hopes to achieve, in broad terms, by conducting the research. Do they want a deep understanding of whatever phenomenon they are studying, or do they want a broad, but perhaps less deep, understanding?
Conducting secondary research on products similar to yours can provide valuable insights that can help you develop a successful solution. By examining the launch and performance of these products, you can generate hypotheses about what may work for your own product. Once you establish which primary research method you will use, tailor those methods to retrieve data that will answer questions about moving forward with your product. But exploratory research can make it easier by helping you focus on a specific topic and creating a clear hypothesis and problem statement. Primary research aims to gather first-hand information about your customers' needs, preferences, and opinions.
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