Overview of Descriptive Research

What is Descriptive Research? – Explains descriptive research, its uses and application and offers examples.

The 3 Basic Types of Descriptive Research Methods – Describes the 3 basic types of descriptive research methods – observational, case study, and survey methods.

Descriptive Research: Defining Your Respondents and Drawing Conclusions – Provides an explanation of descriptive research and its uses.

Descriptive Research – Offers a basic summary of descriptive research and provides links for more information on the three main types of descriptive research.

Observational Method

Observation Methods - Provides an overview of 3 types of observational research methods and includes a discussion of data recording.

The 3 Basic Types of Descriptive Research Methods – Describes the 3 basic types of descriptive research methods – observational, case study, and survey methods.

Observation – Defines observational method and discusses common types of observational research methods.

Observational Research – Defines observational research and contains links to resources for data analysis, including software.

Case Study Method

Case Studies – Provides a comprehensive discussion of case studies with multiple links on the right side of the page.

Brief Refresher on the Case Study Method – Covers all aspects of case study research, including appropriate uses, data collection and data analysis.

The Case Study Method – Describes case studies and includes several examples.

The 3 Basic Types of Descriptive Research Methods – Describes the 3 basic types of descriptive research methods – observational, case study, and survey methods.

Case Study Research Design – Discusses the case study method, its benefits, its limitations, and how data is analyzed.

Survey Method

PSR – Introduction to the Survey Process - The following link provides an overview of the survey process.

Survey Fundamentals – This resource offers an overview of the survey process including writing questions, response rates, sampling, and so forth.

Research Methods – The link below briefly describes ways in which data is commonly collected, including several types of surveys.

Introduction to Survey Research – The following set of slides provides information about the purpose and use of surveys in research, as well as an introduction as to how conduct survey research.

The 3 Basic Types of Descriptive Research Methods – Describes the 3 basic types of descriptive research methods – observational, case study, and survey methods.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Descriptive Research

Descriptive Research: Defining Your Respondents and Drawing Conclusions – Provides an explanation of descriptive research and its uses.     

Strengths and Weaknesses of Descriptive Research – Offers a brief overview of the advantages and disadvantages of descriptive research.

Descriptive Research SlideShare – Provides a SlideShare presentation that discusses the advantages and disadvantages of descriptive research.

What is Descriptive Research? – Discusses the appropriate uses of descriptive research, including its benefits and limitations.

Ethics & Descriptive Research

What is Ethics in Research and Why is It Important?  ­Describes basic ethical principles and why they are important to the integrity of the research results.

What is an IRB and its Purpose? - What does IRB stand for? What is the purpose of an IRB and how does a researcher know when they need to use it?

Ethics in Research – The Web Center for Social Research Methods - Some of the key terminology associated with research ethics are described on this site, as well as a brief history of ethical considerations in research.

Ethical Issues in Conducting Research – The following link is PDF that offers a comprehensive discussion of ethical issues in conducting research.