Research in common parlance refers to a search of knowledge. One can also define research as a scientific and systematic search for pertinent information on a specific topic. In fact, research is an art of scientific investigation. The Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English lays down the meaning of research as “a careful investigation or inquiry specifically through search for new facts in any branch of knowledge.”
Redman and Mory define research as “a systematized effort to gain new knowledge.” Some people consider research as a movement, a movement from the known to the unknown. It is actually a voyage of discovery. We all posses the vital instinct of inquisitiveness for, when the unknown confronts us, we wonder and our inquisitiveness makes us probe and attain full and fuller understanding of the unknown. This inquisitiveness is the mother of all knowledge and the method, which man employs for obtaining the knowledge of whatever the unknown, can be termed as research.
Research is an intellectual activity. It is responsible for bringing to light new knowledge. It is also responsible for correcting the present mistakes; remove existing misconception and adding new learning to the existing fund of knowledge. Research is considered as a combination of those activities which are removed from day to day life and is pursued by those persons who are gifted in intellect and sincere in commitment of pursuit of knowledge. But it is not correct to say that the research is restricted to such type of persons. However, it is correct to say that major contribution research comes from highly gifted and committed workers. Thus the research is not at all mysterious and is carried on by hundreds of thousands of average individuals.
Research is also considered as the application of scientific method in solving the problems. It is a systematic, formal and intensive process of carrying on the scientific method of analysis. There are many ways of obtaining knowledge. They are intuition, revelation, authority, logical manipulation of basic assumptions, informed guesses, observation and reasoning by analogy.
The term “Research” consists of two words:
Research = Re + Search
‘Re’ means again and again and ‘Search’ means to find out something. Therefore research means to observe a phenomenon again and again from different dimensions. For example there are different theories of learning from different dimensions.
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