*Research is a very general term for an activity that involves finding out, in a more or less systematic way, things you did not know. A more academic interpretation is that research involves finding out about things that no-one else knew either. It is about advancing the
frontiers of knowledge.
*Research methods are the techniques you use to do research. They represent the tools of the trade, and provide you with ways to collect, sort and analyse information so that you can come to some conclusions. If you use the right sort of methods for your particular type of research, then you should be able to convince other people that your conclusions have some validity, and that the new knowledge you have created is soundly based.
*It would be really boring to learn about all these tools without being able to try them out – like reading about how to use a plane, chisel, drill etc. and never using them to make something out of a piece of wood. Therefore courses in research methods are commonly linked to assignments that require these methods to be applied – an actual research project that is described in a dissertation or thesis, or a research report. In the workplace, it is often the other way round.
*When there is a perception that more information and understanding is needed to advance the work or process of work, then ways are sought how research can be carried out to meet this need. P7.