Nature and Importance of Research

 

The purpose of research is to inform action. Thus, your study should seek to contextualize its findings within the larger body of research. Research must always be of high quality in order to produce knowledge that is applicable outside of the research setting. Furthermore, the results of your study may have implications for policy and future project implementation.

            One problem that often plagues progress in global health is the slow translation of research into practice. Often, a disconnect exists between those who conduct research and those who are positioned to implement the research findings. The underlying problem is that “the production of evidence is organized institutionally with highly centralized mechanisms, whereas the application of that science is highly decentralized. This social distance prevails because scientists are more oriented to the international audiences of other scientists for which they publish than to the needs of practitioners, policy makers, or the local public.”

            Research is by definition original work, a searching to answer a question. The popular concept of research can involve, for example, just looking up some statistics in a book . A more formal definition of research would be:

            We know now that modern problems require modern solutions. Research is a catalyst for solving the world’s most pressing issues, the complexity of which evolves over time. The entire wealth of research findings throughout history has led us to this very point in civilisation, which brings us to the next reason why research matters.