Research Methodology
This domain tests research design, methods, sampling, measurement and ethics, with attention to gender-sensitive practice. Questions often ask which method suits a research question or which ethical safeguard is required.
Core concepts
- Quantitative and qualitative approaches: surveys and statistics versus interviews, focus groups, ethnography and oral history.
- Sampling: probability and non-probability designs; purposive and snowball sampling for hidden populations.
- Validity and reliability: whether a measure captures the concept and whether it is consistent.
- Triangulation: combining methods, data sources or researchers.
- Gender statistics: sex-disaggregated data, time-use surveys and gender-responsive indicators.
- Ethics: informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, do-no-harm, and referral pathways in violence research.
Worked example
A researcher wants to study domestic violence in a village. Is a household survey with husbands present appropriate? Reasoning: no. Partner presence creates safety risks and response bias. A safer design uses private interviews, trained enumerators, confidentiality protocols and referral information, with attention to mandatory reporting and local law.
Traps that cost marks
- Assuming qualitative methods are not rigorous.
- Ignoring safety and confidentiality in sensitive research.
- Treating sex-disaggregated data as sufficient for gender analysis.