Dr.R.

Raja
Assistant Professor
Government Law College
Tiruchirappalli
 Scientific Thinking
 [Link]
 Purposeful Observation
 Accurate
 Extensive
 Under a variety of Conditions
 Analysis/ Synthesis
 Problem : Picked out
 Similarities : Dissimilarities
 Exception : Special Attention : Selective Interpretation
 Selective Recall
 Range of Experiences
 Scientific Thinking
 [Link]
 Hypothesis
 All Possible
 Fertility of Suggestions
 Verification of Inference by Experiment
 Inference- Tested –Experimentally
 Reasoning
 Method of Agreement
 Method of Differences
 Method of Residues
 Method of Concomitant variation
 Joint Method of Agreement & Differences
 Judgment
 Unprejudiced
 Impersonal
 Suspended if Data inadequate
 Scientific Thinking
Method of Agreement

A,B,C,D=== T,U,V,W
A,E,F,G === T,X.Y,Z
A cause ------------------------------------- T effect
 Scientific Thinking
Method of Differences

A,B,C,D=== T,U,V,W
B,C,D === U,V,W
A cause ------------------------------------- T effect
 Scientific Thinking
Method of Residues

E,F,G === X,Y,Z

E is known to be the cause of Y
F is known to be the cause of X
G cause ------------------------------------- Z effect
 Scientific Thinking
Method of Concomitant Variations

A+B,C,D=== T+U,V,W

A cause ------------------------------------- T effect

 Scientific Thinking
Joint Method of Agreement & Differences

A,B,C,D=== T,U,V,W
A,E,F,G === T,X.Y,Z
B,C,D === U,V,W
A cause ------------------------------------- T effect
 What is Research?
 Is it re-search?
 Research and reference
 Formal and material sources
 French word – “recherché”
 Careful & diligent search
 Controlled inquiry
 To gain knowledge
 To verify knowledge
 What is Research?
 Earl Robert Babbie:
 Systematic inquiry to
 Describe
 Explain
 Predict
 Control the observed phenomenon
 Francis Becon:
 A power of suspending judgment with
 Patient of mediating
 Pleasure of asserting with cautious
 Correcting with readiness
 Arranging thoughts with scrupulous plan
 What is Research?
 Redman & Mory:
 Systematized effort to
 Gain New Knowledge
 Clifford Woody:
 Ideally as a
 Careful
 Unbiased
 Investigation of a problem
 [Link]:
 Movement from the Know to Unknown
 Scientific and systematic search for
 Pertinent information on a specified topic
 What is Research?
 Crowford :
 Research is
 simply a systematic and
 refined technique of thinking,
 employing specialized tools, instruments and procedures
 in order to obtain a more adequate solution of a problem
 [Link]:
 Research is sense of
 The developments, Elaborations and refinements of
Principles
 Together with the collection and use of empirical materials to
aid in these process,
 highest activity of a university and
 One which all its professors should be engaged
 Legal Research
Legal Literacy
Ability to

 Recognize that legal information is needed

 Locate \ find law
 Evaluate
 Use law
 Law and Fact
Theory and Fact
Theory = Speculations ?
 Theory - >Proved => Fact : Philosophical
 Fact -> Witnessed => Theory: Scientific
 Misconceptions
 Science : facts <>Philosophy : Speculations
 Science >>Law (Norm)<< Philosophy
 Law : Recognised Theory + Accepted facts
 Facts  Law
 Initiate laws
 Reformulation of laws
 Rejection of Laws
 Orientation
 Clarify and redefine law

Significance
Generalizing new theories
of Research
 Enlightenment of Knowledge
 Solve – Problems
 Development of new styles and creative work
 Outlet for new ideas and perspectives
 Exploration : Reason for & means of Justice
 Description : Legal Norms , Legal Institutions & Mechanism
 Understanding and Explaining
 Cause and Effect
 Discrimination , Deforestation
 Evaluation : Assessment of Institutions, Policies , Approaches
 Human rights, National Unity
 Legal Reform
 Foresight of Policies
 Mean a source of income
 Helps to attain a high position in the social fabric
 Objectives of Research
 To Discover answer to questions through application of
scientific procedures

 To gain familiarity with a phenomenon, new insights into

it

 To portray accurately the characteristics of a particular

individual, situation, group

 To determine the frequency with which something

occurs/ associated with something else

 To test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between

variable
 Ethics in Research
 Honesty  Responsible Publication

 Objectivity  Social Responsibility

 Integrity  Non-Discrimination

 Carefulness  Competence

 Openness  Legality

 Confidentiality  Human Subjects

Protection
 Criteria of Good Research
 Purpose : clearly defined

 Procedure : described in sufficient details

 Design : carefully planned

 Data: validity & reliability checked

 Findings: Justified by the data

 Report: Frankness, design =>effect on findings

 Need For Legal Research
 Law and Society
 Maintain Equilibrium in the Society
 Create an Orderly Society
 Maximum gain with Minimum Pain
 Law and Justice
 Law is a Vehicle to Reach Justice
 Law is not an Universal Remedy
 Two Kinds of Disputes
 Legal

 Political

 Law According to Justice- Drawbacks

 Outdated Law
 Not Properly Implemented - Law Reforms- Law Commission
 Kinds of Research
 Descriptive vs Analytical
 What happened, what is happening
 Cause and Effect ,Why, How ?
 Applied vs Fundamental
 Action research
 Solution for an immediate problem
 Practical context
 Pure, Basic Research
 Formulation of a theory
 Increased Knowledge
 Qualitative vs Quantitative
 Phenomenon relating to /involving quality /kind
 Motive behind, certain human behaviour , attitudes towards, opinion
about,
 Measurement of quantity
 Mathematical models
 Kinds of Research Cont ….
 QUALITATIVE RESERCH
 How, When, What?
 Experiences, interactions and documents :> analyzed in
their natural context.
 Concepts and hypotheses => developed & refined
 Theory> appropriate method ( Mostly Inductive &
Doctrinal)
 Researcher : important element of Research process
 Method to study people or systems by interacting with and
observing the subjects regularly
 Grounded Theory practice through the quantitative data
 Reflective Practice
 Simultaneous Data Collection and Analysis
 Theoretical Saturation
 Narratology
 Storytelling
 Ethnography
 Kinds of Research Cont …
QUALITATIVE RESERCH
 How far the law and legal institutions are serving the need of the
society?
 Are they suited in the social context in which they operate?
 Determine the forces that shapes, reshapes and mould the law
 To analyze how far the law has been enforced and administered.
 Causes for the factors responsible for the poor performance of the
law.
 To look into the factors which moulds the enforcement machinery
attitudes and behavior while interpreting and enforcing the law?
 Are beneficiaries under the law using it or the law is merely
symbolic.
 Whether the targeted beneficiaries are benefitting out of the law?
 If the law is failing to help people where does the problem lie?
 Impact of law on behavior and attitudes of society, people and
groups.
 Kinds of Research Cont ….
 QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
 Descriptive research
 Based on the measurement of quantity or amount
 Measurable variable
 Numerical data & statistical procedure
 Seeks to validate a theory by conducting an experiment and
analyzing the results numerically
 seeks to arrive at a theory that explains the behaviour
observed
 Mostly Deductive , Empirical
 What percentage of India's population in the religious
context ?
 How much time it takes from the time the case is filed until
the judgment is passed?
 Kinds of Research
 Doctrinal (Traditional)
 ‘Doctrine’ ‘Principle’ ‘Governing Tenet’
 How it was developed and applied?
 Finding a specific Statement of law / Depth analysis by logic
 Analysis of legal issue / case law: Inter-relationship
 Ascertaining legal propositions
 Library method (analysis of historical records & documents)
 Study of Legal Institutions : legal reasoning / rational deduction
 What is LAW in a particular case ?
 Normative character of research
 Internal cognitive approach
 Develop the consensus : Legal community
 Doctrinal (Traditional) Research
 ‘Characteristics
 Analysis of legal concepts and prepositions
 Conventional source of Information
 research in law rather than research about law
 Current state of Law
 Research on Black letters of law
 Connected with Precedent
 Secondary data : Text Books, Journals, Magazine,
articles Opinion of the Subject matter
 Identifying Research Problem- Collecting legal Sources-
Evaluating –Analyzing –Synthesizing-Applying

 Research on ‘Basic Structure Doctrine’

 Merits
Doctrinal (Traditional) Research
 Helpful in the initial stage
 Provides clarity : Evolution and Development & logical explanation
 Cost effective/ less expensive
 Consume less time
 Foundation for further research
 Provide quick solution
 Helps in Professional development
 Easily manageable
 Demerits
 Purely Theoretical, lacks in consideration of social, economical,
cultural and political impact
 Subjective in Nature
 Limited Scope
 Lack of empirical evidence
 Difficult in predicting practical outcome
 Kinds of Research
 NON-DOCTRINAL (Empirical)
 Collecting data
 Field study method
 Socio-legal study
 Law and Society
 Generate empirical data with other discipline => answer to the
QUESTIONS
 Problem, policy, reforms
 Based on Practical Facts /Facts-oriented
 Impacts of law => Individual, Groups, Institutions
 Using Methods : Observations, Survey, Questionnaires ,Interview
 Primary Data : First hand information's
 Non-Doctrinal (Empirical) Research
 ‘Characteristics
 Effect of non-legal events in law making process
 Evaluate the provisions of law and its influence
 Research about law
 Analyse the legal decisions on individual/ society
 Social consequences
 Correlations with other discipline
 Primary Data: data collection
 Identifying Research Problem- Collecting legal Sources-
Evaluating –Collecting Data – classifying Data-
Analyzing –Synthesizing-Applying

 Research on ‘consumer Behaviour’

 Non-Doctrinal
 Merits
(Empirical) Research
 Bases on field research
 Practical efficiency of law
 More credible
 Improves and Simply policy making
 Demerits
 Time consuming
 Expensive
 Need Field experience
 Need of strong background
 Not easily manageable
 POLICY Doctrinal\Exploratory\Formulative

LAW Non-doctrinal\Descriptive\Analytical

IMPLEMENTATION Empirical\Hypothesis Testing

 Methods
 ANALYTICAL
 Philosophical
 Finding out what the present law is ?
 Finding out the statutes ?
 Identification & Possession
 Study of prevailing customs
 Study the case laws
 Commentaries => Own Examination
 Peculiar problem in India
 HISTORICAL
 Anthropological
 Understand the reason behind the law
 Very few laws are original
 Laws are not made on the vacuum : demanding need
 Reveal the changes and modification
 Law justifiable at the time of passing the law
 Reason for rejection of laws
 Methods
 STATISTICAL
 Descriptive
 Survey
 Case Study
 COMPARATIVE
 Content Analysis
 Throw doubts o the usefulness of strongly enriched views
 Suggest a suitable solution
 Aid in assembling principles: Fundamental & Secondary
 Methods
 CRITICAL
 Examine power, inequities=> societal implications : status quo
 Contextualization
 Subjectivity
 Social Change => Transformation
 SCIENTIFIC
 Objectively establishing Basic Process
 Step by Step Procedure
 Reliance on Evidence
 Commitment to Objectivity
 Ethical Neutrality
 Verifiability
 Logical Reasoning Process
 Research Process/Steps
Identification and formulation of research problem

Review of Existing Literature Significance of Research

Aims and Objective
Formulation of Hypothesis
Research Questions
Designing the Research Methodology
Methodology/Methods
Sources
Data Collection

Data Analysis

Interpretation of Findings

Compilation and Presentation of Report

 Scientific Method
 Particular kind of Knowledge about some aspects of the
Universe in which we live
 Wilkinson “Science is an intellectual construction – a
working thought – model of world and its aim is to
describe and conceptualize the impersonal fact of
experience in variable terms, as exactly as possible, as
simply possible and as completely and meaningfully as
possible”
 Advancement of Knowledge and in the creation of
material and cultural conditions for the realization of
human values.
 Scientific Method
 Disciplined and systematic way : Investigation
Essential Steps
 Scientific Method
CHARACTERISTICS
 Reliability
 Actually /not desired
 Rational
 Consistency
 Quantification/ Precise
 Expressible in numerical terms

 Theoretical Orientation
 Body of Prepositions

 Universality
 Predictability
 Scientific Method
CHARACTERISTICS
 Reliability
 Actually /not desired
 Rational
 Consistency
 Quantification/ Precise
 Expressible in numerical terms

 Theoretical Orientation
 Body of Prepositions

 Universality
 Predictability
 Constant vs Variable
 Data Item
Variable
 Vary from one data unit with data unit
 Age, sex, business income and expenses, country of birth, capital
expenditure, class grades, eye colour and vehicle type
 value may vary between data units in a population, and may
change in value over time.
 NUMERIC VARIABLE/QUANTITATIVE VARIABLE
 a measurable quantity as a number
 'how many' or 'how much'
 Continuous :Include values as small as the instrument of
measurement allows
 Height, Time, Age, and Temperature
 Discrete : No Fraction between one value and the next
closest value
 Number of children in a family, All of which measured as whole
units
 Variable
 CATEGORICAL VARIABLES /QUALITATIVE
VARIABLES
 'Quality' or 'Characteristic‘
 'what type' or 'which category‘
 Mutually Exclusive and Exhaustive categories
 Ordinal variable : ranked higher or lower than another,
but do not necessarily establish a numeric difference
between each category
 Academic grades (i.e. A, B, C), Clothing Size (i.e. small,
medium, large, extra large) and Attitudes (i.e. strongly agree,
agree, disagree, strongly disagree)
 Dichotomous variables
 Polychotomous variables
 Nominal variable : Not able to be organized in a logical
sequence
 Sex, Business Type, Eye Colour, Religion and Brand.
 INDEPENDENT VARIABLES
Variable
 variation does not depend on other variables
 Cause or Stimulus
 (MGNREGA): A TOOL FOR EMPLOYMENT GENERATION
 MGNREGA,2005
 Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission
(Gramin), - VB-G RAM G Act, 2025
 Income Rate
 Consumption Limit

 DEPENDENT VARIABLES
 Depend on the changes or variations of the independent variables
 (MGNREGA): A TOOL FOR EMPLOYMENT GENERATION
 Income, Consumption; Inter Household Effect & community
level effect
 Research Problem
 First & Foremost
 ‘Proballem’- Greek
 “anything thrown forward a question proposed for solution”
 “a matter stated for examination”
 [Link] “A situation for which we have no ready
and successful response by instinct or by previously
acquired habit. We must find out what is do”
 Some difficulty which researcher experiences and want to
obtain a solution for the same.
 Research Problem
 Components :
 Individual/group : Difficulty

 Some Objectives to be attained

 Alternative means

 Relative Efficiency of the possible alternatives

 Legal Environment
 Research Problem
 Sources :
 Legal Institutions : Nature & Functions
 Legislative Purpose: Cause & Effect
 Beneficiaries: Who & How
 Scheme of Law: Legal Mechanism
 Implementation : Methods and Tools
 Expert Observation: New / Renew
 Theoretical Derivation & Deviation
 Defective Work
 Technological Changes
 Social Changes
 Research Problem
 Characteristics:
 Relate the state of Nature
 Relate to relationship between variables
 Clear and Unambiguously
 Possible to collect Data
 Not to represent a moral/ethical position
Selection of Problem:
Research Problem
 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM IN A GENERAL WAY
 Wide Reading and Discussion of current issues
 Books, Periodicals, Journals, Magazine, Reports, Dailies
 Subjects are Overdone : avoided
 Child Labour
 Note some issues/matters : connected
 Identify the factors involved
 Controversial : avoided
 Political, Emotional
 UNDERSTANDING THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
 Reduce the chosen subject matter into workable problem
 Identify the variable
 Relate the variables :
 Too vague/Too narrow : avoided
 Bio-Piracy in India
Selection of Problem:
Research Problem
 SURVEYING THE AVAILABLE LITERATURE
 Ensure the Data Availability of Data
 DEVELOPING THE IDEA THROUGH DISCUSSIONS
 Discussion with a group
 Ensure the group
 Ensure the importance
 Baseless Critics : avoided
 Discussion with Supervisor
 Ensure the feasibility and Possibility
 Whether the researcher is well equipped in terms of his/her background to carry out
the research?
 Whether the study falls within the budget he/she can afford?
 Whether the necessary cooperation can be obtained from those who must
participate in research as subjects ?
 Not-reachable Data : avoided
 Legality of Country medical practice in India
 REPHRASING THE RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Convert the problem into research topic
 DESCIPTIVE/ANALITICAL/CRITICAL
 Possible Methodology, Methods and Tools
 Research
 Child Labour : Performing Skills
Problem
 Domestic Violence for Men

 Inclusive approach for Transgender

 Role of Media in Free and Fair Elections

 Trade mark in violations in virtual gaming

advyazh@[Link]