ABSTRACT
Embarking on social or behavioral research projects without carefully considering all aspects of the task and consulting the prior research of others is like building a house without blueprints, prior experience, or the assistance of others. A careful researcher begins a study by considering all the steps in constructing the “research house.” The steps include reviewing previous research to determine the purpose, deciding who or what will be studied and how they will be selected, determining how to obtain the needed information, stating the expected findings, and considering how the findings might contribute to understanding the phenomenon being studied. The purpose is the “foundation” of the study. It is based directly on prior studies and their logic. In their reports, some researchers explicitly state their purpose, while others imbed their purpose in discussion sections labeled “Introduction,” “Past Research,” or “Literature Review.”
