Research method RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

commit to user 57

CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

A. Research method

A research method is the techniques used to collect data for analysis and are informed by research methodology. Adler, et al. 1989:61 contend that “choosing a methodology determines what we can study as well as the range of possible results and conclusions”. In this study, a qualitative research method in the form of phenomenological approach was employed. A phenomenological research design is a qualitative approach in which the researcher identifies the ‘essence of human experiences concerning a phenomenon, as described by participants in a study; the procedure involves studying a small number of subjects through extensive and prolonged engagement to develop patterns and relationships of meaning Moustakas 1994. Research utilizing the phenomenological approach emphasizes only those who experience the phenomena are capable of communicating them to the outside world. In this case, the researcher wants to describe teachers’ attitudes towards use of literature and the factors that affect teachers’ use and non-use of literature in the EFL classroom from their experiential perspectives. Since a research method chosen for a study must be directly connected to the problem statement and goal of research, a qualitative research method was considered appropriate because the study focuses on the exploration and description of a phenomenon and not necessarily to test a hypothesis or prove a theory. Phenomenon is the central concept being examined by a qualitative commit to user 58 researcher. It is a concept being experienced by a subject in a study. Besides, a phenomenological approach was chosen in order to generate rich, descriptive data that will help us understand the phenomenon under study. It was thought that this approach would best explore the attitudes and subjective experience of the participants. The concept of phenomenology is considered as a philosophy, a research method and approach that help researchers to describe and to understand participants’ experiences and attitudes. Johnson and Christensen 2000:315 describe phenomenology as the descrip tion of one or more individuals’ consciousness and experience of a phenomenon, such as the death of a loved one, viewing oneself as a teacher, the act of teaching, the experience of being a minority group member, or the experience of winning a soccer game. The purpose of phenomenological research is to obtain a view into a research participant’s life –worlds and to understand their personal meanings . i. e. what something means to them constructed from their “lived experience.” In phenomenological resear ch, the operative word is to ‘describe’, the researcher’s aim is to describe as accurately as possible the phenomenon, refraining from any pre-determined position, but remaining true to the facts Groenewald, 2004. Creswell 1994 states that in research that is phenomenological in nature, ‘no preconceived notions, expectations or framework to guide the researcher. That is the researcher does not begin with a theory to test or verify rather to delve into the participants’ worlds, to explore their attitudes towards the phenomenon. Phenomenological studies involve: commit to user 59 1. Selection of participants who are living the experience or have lived the experience. 2. Bracketing our preconceived ideas about the phenomena under study. 3. Engage in dialogue in-depth interview with each participant. 4. Explore the participant’s life- world. 5. Assist the participant to be reflective about his or her experiences and what they mean to him or her. 6. Stay in the setting until no new insights are emerging and all issues are understood saturation. Bracketing Epoche is used by qualitative researchers to approach objectivity. As bias is an inevitable part of the study of human beings, the researcher makes efforts to bracket his preconceptions while the study was occurring. Moustakas 1994:41 provides an overview of phenomenology: As attempts to eliminate everything that represents prejudgment, setting aside presuppositions, and reaching to a transcendental state of freshness and openness, a readiness to see in an unfettered way, not threatened by the customs, beliefs and prejudices of normal science, by the habits of the normal world or by knowledge based on unreflected everyday experience Moustakas1994:41

B. Data and Source of Data