Introduction
A research design is a ‘‘blueprint’’ for a research, and it normally deals with at least four problems. The problems are: the question to be studied, making the data relevant to be incorporated in the study, the data that a researcher need to collect and how the data collected may be analyzed. Therefore, the best research design will depend on the research questions and the target of a researcher (Khanzode, 2004).
There are two main types of research questions; descriptive research and explanatory research. A descriptive research, normally explain what is going on. On the contrary, explanatory research focuses on giving an explanation on what is going to be done. Therefore, a research design is more than just a frame work because it ensures that, the evidence obtained enable the researcher to answer the initial question (Zikmund, 2008).
Research Participants/Target Population
Measuring the entire population is quite challenging in social science research because of the population diversity. Therefore it becomes necessary to select a sample from the entire population using the most appropriate sampling technique. The selection of participants to be included in a study is the most important aspect of a research (Kumar, 2005). In this study, the participants will be human resource managers of various selected companies and their employees.
The managers and employees to be selected will be assigned groups for the purpose of the study. Therefore, it is essentially important to be a ware of the procedures to be followed in order to select the most appropriate group of participants.
Normally participants are selected after selecting the most appropriate research design for the study. The participants may be selected using probability sampling. In this case, the participants have equal chances of being selected in the sample and the probability can accurately being determined (Cooper & Schindler, 2011).
Under the probability sampling there are various sampling techniques involved among them include; Simple random sampling, systematic sampling, stratified sampling and multistage sampling. In simple random sampling all the participants have equal probability of being selected (Zikmund, 2008). Therefore in this study simple random sampling is going to be applied because of its simplicity and that; all participants will have equal chances of inclusion.
Instruments
According to Kumar (2005), the instruments for data collection to be used in a study depend on the information to be gathered. Therefore, in this study, several instruments will be incorporated together in order to obtain a sharp focus of the study. Among the tools that are going to be applied include; personal interviews, observation, self administered survey, checklist and rating scale. Personal interviews will be conducted between the human resource managers of the selected firms.
The researcher will interview the human resource managers of the selected firms by asking those questions regarding employees training and retention. The answers will be recorded as the interview proceeds. Additionally, questionnaires will be structured and distributed to the selected firms. Prior to their distribution, a pilot study will be conducted among the class mates in order to test the validity and reliability of the structured questions (Khanzode, 2004).
Observations will also be carried out whereby; the researcher will observe the overall impact of employee’s retention and training on the returns of the firm. In connection to the above, checklist will be used to collect the data. This is because the checklist contain terms which the respondent understand and normally express the respondent views.
Finally rating scales is going to be applied to collect the data. Rating scale is a recording form used for measuring individual’s attitudes, aspirations and both behavioral aspects of individuals and groups (Cooper & Schindler, 2011).
Sampling Procedure/ sample size
The research design to be used in this study will be a case study. This is because, a case study will give the researcher an in depth understanding of whether there is a correlation between the employees’ retention rates and the overall profits of the company. This will further enable the corporate managers and other stakeholders in the selected companies to make informed decision regarding employee’s retention and training.
The target population will consist of 35 best performing listed firms in the New York Security Exchange. A sample of 10 companies will be picked out of 35 selected firms using simple random sampling.
The reasons for using simple random sampling is because, all the participants will have equal chances of inclusion in the study hence, threat of invalidity and reliability will be substantially reduced(Kothari, 2005). Additionally, prior to actual research, an application letter for special permission will be sent to the targeted firms and after permission have been granted actual research will be conducted.
Conclusion
The above discussion has put forth the process of coming up with a research design that will includes the all relevant components of a research. However, coming up with a research design requires time. This is because it involve coming up with a model that determine how the overall research will be conducted and the participants to be involved in the study. The importance of a research design is that, it enables the searcher to come up with valid and relevant outcomes of a study.
References
Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2011). Business research methods. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Khanzode, V. V. (2004). Research methodology: Techniques and trends. New Delhi: APH Pub.
Kothari, C. R. (2005). Research methodology: Methods & techniques. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd.
Kumar, R. (2005). Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. London [u.a.: SAGE.
Zikmund, W. G. (2008). Business research methods. Mason (Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning.