Q: What is research design?

Research design is the methodology you will utilize to pursue the objectives of your research. Specifically, it is about the methods you will use to obtain relevant data for your research. The methods, and therefore, the type of research design may be quantitative, qualitative, or mixed. Quantitative design involves obtaining numerical data, such as figures. Qualitative design involves obtaining non-numerical data, such as observations. Mixed-methods design is a combination of quanti and quali.

When starting off any kind of research, after coming up with the research objective(s) and question(s), you need to conceive of the methods you will employ to pursue your objectives. When it comes to writing about the study, the design is discussed in the Methods section.

For more information on research design, you may refer to the following resources:

• How can I choose a suitable research design for my study?
• What kind of research method should I use for my thesis: qualitative or quantitative?
• How to write the Discussion section for a mixed-methods research paper?

For help with designing your study, you may consider our Experimental Design service.

Hope that helps. If you are currently indeed working on a study, all the best for the design and the study as a whole! :-)