Research: meaning, objectives and significance
Research is a systematic, careful search for new knowledge. It follows set steps to answer a question or solve a problem using evidence, not opinion.
What research means
In everyday speech, research means a careful search for knowledge (re + search: to look again, closely). In science it is a systematic and scientific way of finding answers. Redman and Mory define it as a ‘systematized effort to gain new knowledge’. Ranjit Kumar says a study counts as research only if it is controlled, rigorous, systematic, valid and verifiable, empirical and critical. Put simply: a clear question, a fixed method, real evidence and honest conclusions.
Objectives of research (Kothari)
| Objective | Type of study | Nutrition example |
|---|---|---|
| To become familiar with a problem or gain new insight | Exploratory (formulative) | Talk to hostel students to learn why they skip breakfast |
| To describe a person, group or situation accurately | Descriptive | Record the food habits of 200 college girls |
| To find how often something happens, or what it is linked with | Diagnostic | Find how common anaemia is in adolescent girls and whether it is linked with drinking tea after meals |
| To test a cause-and-effect relationship (hypothesis) | Hypothesis-testing (experimental) | Test whether fortified rice in the mid-day meal raises children's haemoglobin |
Significance of research
- Adds new knowledge and tests popular beliefs against evidence.
- Solves practical problems in health, the food industry, business and society.
- Guides government policy: national surveys such as NFHS shape anaemia and child-nutrition programmes.
- Forms the base of evidence-based dietetics: RDAs, diet therapies and food standards all come from research.
- Helps industry develop and test new products, such as a millet-based snack.
- Trains the mind to think logically and opens careers in teaching, consultancy and research.
The research process
Kothari lists 11 steps; Ranjit Kumar groups them into 8 steps in three phases (deciding, planning, conducting). The order of ideas is the same.
Dietetics is evidence-based. The ICMR-NIN RDAs, food composition tables and diet therapies all come from research. Surveys such as NFHS-5, which found anaemia in about 59% of girls aged 15-19, shape national programmes like Anemia Mukt Bharat.
2 marks: “Define research.” Research is a systematic and scientific search for new knowledge, or for the answer to a specific problem, based on evidence collected by a fixed method.
5 marks: “State the objectives of research.” Give Kothari's four objectives (explore, describe, diagnose, test a hypothesis), name the type of study for each and add one nutrition example.
10 marks: “Define research. Explain its objectives and significance.” Definition and characteristics, the four objectives with examples, six points of significance, and a flow chart of the research process.
Kothari's four objectives in order: Explore, Describe, Diagnose, Test. Think "Every Dietitian Does Tests".