Step 5: Choose a Research Design

The research design is the most important choice a researcher makes. The design which is used determines the goals that can be achieved by the research. Answer these questions as you read or hear about a research study:

• What type of research design was used (observational/correlational, experimental, quasi-experimental, single-case)?

• Does the researcher's conclusion about the study match the goals accomplished by the research design? For example, if an observational/correlational was used, are the researcher's conclusions about description and prediction, and not about understanding?

• Is the researcher cautious about making causal inferences?

If an experimental design was used, did the researcher randomly assign participants to conditions and hold conditions constant?