First of all, introduce your overall research method. What problems are you investigating and what kind of data do you need?

Quantitative methods (such as surveys) are most suitable for measurement, sequencing, classification, pattern determination and generalization.

Qualitative methods (such as interviews) are most suitable for describing, explaining, connecting and deeply understanding specific concepts or phenomena.

Depending on your topic and method, you can start by discussing the principles and assumptions on which your method is based. Is your purpose to solve practical problems or theoretical problems? Why is this the best way to answer your research questions? Is this the standard method in your field? Are there any ethical or philosophical considerations? ......

Step 2: Describe your data collection and/or selection methods.

Outline the tools, procedures and materials you use to collect data, as well as the selection criteria.

Quantitative method

1.

How do you design the question, and what is the form of the question (such as multiple-choice questions, scoring tables)?

How did you find and select participants?

Did you conduct the survey by phone, email, online or in person? How long does it take for participants to answer?

What is the sample size and response rate?

2.？ experiment

How did you design this experiment?

How did you find and select participants?

What tools or techniques did you use in the experiment?

In experimental research, it is particularly important to provide enough details so that other researchers can reach the same result.

3. Available data

Describe how you collected and selected data (such as publications or archives) and included them in the analysis.

Where did you get this information?

How did these data first come into being?

What criteria do you use to select materials (for example, date range)?

qualitative method

interview

Describe the place, time and method of the interview.

How did you find and select participants?

How many people attended?

What form does the interview take (structured, semi-structured and unstructured)?

How long is the interview and how to record it?

2 participant observation

Describe where, when and how you observed it.

What groups or communities do you observe and how do you get in touch with them?

How long did you spend doing your research and where did you do it?

How do you record your data (such as audio-visual recording and taking notes)?

3. Available data

Explain how you chose case study materials (such as text or images) as the focus of your analysis.

What type of material did you analyze?

How do you collect and select them?

Step 3: Describe your analytical method.

Next, you should explain how you process and analyze the data. But don't go into too many details at this stage.

Quantitative method

How do you prepare before analyzing the data (for example, checking missing data, deleting abnormal values, and transforming variables)?

What kind of software do you use to analyze data (such as SPSS or Stata)?

What statistical methods did you use (such as regression analysis)?

qualitative method

Content analysis: classify topics and ideas.

Narrative analysis: Look at the story structure and metaphor and explain its meaning.

Discourse analysis: the study of communication and meaning related to social environment (including language, images and nonverbal interaction).

Step 4: Evaluate and prove that your method choice is correct.

Your methodology should explain why you choose this method, especially if you don't adopt the most standard method. Discuss why other methods are not suitable for your experimental goal and explain the innovation of this method. You can admit the limitations or shortcomings of the selected method, but you have to prove why you still choose this method.

Step 5: Prompt

1. Remember, your purpose is not only to describe your methods, but to show how and why you apply them and prove that your research is strictly carried out.

2. Focus on your goals and research problems. The methodology part should clearly explain why your method is applicable and convince readers that you have chosen the best method to answer the research questions.

3. Cite relevant literature:

Make sure you follow the established practice in this kind of research.

Discuss how you evaluate different methods and decide your method, which shows that you have adopted a novel method to solve a gap in this field.

Step 4 consider the reader's impression

Don't go into unnecessary details. If the method you use is the standard of your program, you don't need to enter too many backgrounds or reasons. However, if the method you use is not common in your field, please describe it in detail.

The whole discussion should be clear and logical, not just a list of technical details and processes.

5. Discuss the difficulties encountered

If you encounter difficulties in collecting or analyzing data, explain how you handled it. Show how you can minimize the impact of unexpected obstacles and prove that you have done the most rigorous research.