It is undeniably true that writing an academic paper is brain-consuming, especially if you have to write a dissertation. Many students cannot even write a simple essay and ask their friends or family to write my essay. Well, we hope they would understand that writing is a crucial skill and it becomes easy by following the proper guide. In the same way, many scholars complain they cannot deal with their dissertation’s secondary research, which is quite difficult. However, with our guidance, you can thrive in this task.
This article offers an explanation of dissertation secondary research and how to do it in 4 crucial steps. Thus, whoever faces difficulty doing secondary research should read the rest of the blog. We assure you that many things will become convenient for you at the end of this article. So let’s get to the point of helping you with your dissertation secondary research.
Dissertation Secondary Research
If you follow proper guidelines, secondary research is far simpler. It is so simple that we can help you perform it in four steps, which you will see below in this blog. Yet, this trait is why people prefer to focus more on secondary research. Well, it is because secondary research evades the tiresome that primary research usually needs. Primary research includes enlisting participants, electing and arranging your methods, and spending days or even months on data collection.
Before everything, if you understand the purpose and definition of secondary research, it can help a lot. So, get yourself a mug of coffee/tea or whatever you prefer (even a glass of water would work), get comfy, and be ready to understand, what exactly “secondary research” means. To understand secondary research, you should first understand primary research. Perhaps you are already aware of primary research, it consists of collecting data by yourself through live approaches. It is a real-time data collection method, where you collect data through specific research projects and under direct control.
On the other hand, secondary research is a third-person data collection method, where you do not collect data through live real-time approaches. For example, you collect data from somebody else previous works by choosing secondary research. Also, as we call primary research a real-time data collection method, we can call secondary research a past-data method. It involves collecting data through past researchers and their works, government records, and various online and offline sources. In simpler words, secondary research aims to reanalyze, translate, or go through past data. Your role in the secondary research is to specify how the past data tells insightful things about your current research.
The 4 Crucial Steps to Do Dissertation Secondary Research
We believe you understand dissertation secondary research clearly at this point from the above section. That is why we can now move forward to showing you the four steps of the secondary research process. Know that it is as easy as doable in just four steps. Thus, keep reading carefully and help yourself collect vital data.
Forming Research Question
There are many types of research available, yet each one of them starts with forming a research question(s). Therefore, secondary research also begins by forming your research question for better outcomes. Besides, undergrad students get specific research questions from their supervisors. Perhaps you also got a research question, if not, form one. Some supervisors expect their students to form a research question themselves.
If you wonder why forming a research question is necessary to perform secondary or any research, do not worry. Forming a research question means specifying the overall research area where your research falls. For example, imagine you are interested in the topic of the mafia in the medical industry or water pollution. First, form a solid research question and then perform your research accordingly. Once you form a research question, you can read through existing papers similar to your idea and find gaps in that literature. This way, you can easily find and fill those gaps, collect data, and impress your supervisors.
Recognizing Previous Secondary Data Sets
As stated in the above section, most research starts by identifying what is known and missing. Thus, after forming a research question, you need to figure out the knowledge that seems to be missing by recognizing previous secondary data sets. It is a daunting process that involves researchers considering the kind of prior collected data available on the topic. However, it helps you discover past data that would be perfect to reuse in your research. This way, you can answer your research question in a better way.
Evaluating Secondary Data Sets
We know that everything has pros and cons, and so does secondary research. There are a few disadvantages of secondary data, which is why evaluating secondary data sets is crucial. If you wonder what those disadvantages are, know that secondary data might not be entirely suitable for your research purposes. Also, it may have a different format than you need to perform your research and does not guarantee reliability and validity. Lastly, there is a chance that original authors might have failed to offer enough info about their research, which is why you are continuing the same topic further.
We believe you understand the disadvantages of secondary research, which clears why evaluating secondary data sets is crucial. If you neglect the disadvantages, it can affect the efficacy of your research.
Preparing and Analyzing Secondary Data
After dealing with the data evaluation process in step 3, the next step is to prepare and analyze secondary data to use in your research. For example, imagine you want to perform quantitative research. You have to prepare your secondary data in a quantitative manner, such as in an excel worksheet or SPSS file. Besides, there is no rocket science behind preparing data, as it is the easiest step.
Conclusion
We believe you understand the four crucial steps to doing dissertation secondary research. Perhaps you will not ask someone else to do your research work like other students ask their friends to write my assignment for me. Besides, remember that secondary research is a simple and excellent way to data collection.
