ABSTRACT
This chapter covers major concepts, terminology, and other fundamentals of research, laying the foundation for reading and understanding the ensuing chapters of this book. Features and steps in the general research process are depicted and presented from the perspective of research design. Detailed description and discussions are offered for the first three steps of the research process regarding how to identify and state a research problem, how to conduct literature search and review, and how to transform a research problem to research questions. The remaining four steps in the research process, research method development, data collection and analysis, result presentation and discussion, as well as conclusion drawing, are conceptually illustrated to provide a whole picture of the process. This chapter also presents levels of measurement and sampling – the two essential components that need to be understood and mastered before one undertakes a research project. The suggestion is that, whenever possible, always select the highest level of measurement in data collection and a probability sampling technique for drawing samples. Two main criteria for assessing research quality, validity and reliability, are introduced and elucidated. This chapter ends with an examination of ethical concerns regarding both researchers and participants.
