La consolidación de las Geometrías no euclidianas y otras estructuras abstractas.

Research design is concerned with the way research is carried out, the type of research, and its purpose (Sekaran 1992; Black 2002), and concern with a set of decisions on the topic to be studied among the given population, with what methods, and for what purpose, using one’s own imagination and knowledge of the varieties of ways to conduct the study (Babbie 2008). All research undertakings have certain traits in common, such as the procedures to follow, and the stating of the hypotheses or questions that are often common to most research (Black 2002), notwithstanding the design. The design employed in this study is partly descriptive and partly exploratory as explained below.

The study is partly descriptive in the sense that, firstly, it is an evaluation and description of the key achievements and successes, and the key failures and weaknesses of the SSE program amongst the study participants. A descriptive research design can be undertaken when there is the need to systematically describe the situation or provide information about the issues under study (Kumar 1996; Cavana et al. 2001; Page and Meyer 2000). This study is in the nature of descriptive ex post facto research, as identified by Kerlinger (1986). This means that it is concerned with relationships involving the study of the independent variables that were pre- existing attributes and elements of the study participants. The researcher’s task here is to evaluate and describe, with the help of the study participants’ inputs, the dependent variables and examine their relationships (dependent variables) with the independent variables (Kerlinger, 1986). Attempts have not been made to manipulate independent variables as in the experimental studies. While Helmstadter would maintain that descriptive approaches are appropriate ‘whenever a group of objects differs within itself, and one desires to know in what ways and to what extent they differ’ (1970, p. 67), Johada, Deutsch & Cook (1951, p. 50) opine that descriptive studies can be studied with or without the help of hypotheses since the main concern is the depiction of the characteristics of the specific situations, individuals and groups; and studying the frequency with which things occur. The views of these scholars apply to the methods and procedures employed to achieve the key aims and objectives of the study.

This study is also exploratory because it sought to explore the opinions of the program managers, and the attitudes of the program beneficiaries in the study regarding the other two specific research objectives outlined in section 1.1.3 of Chapter One. Within the exploratory realm it is to determine the extent to which the SSE program funding deficiency can be rectified along the lines of the GB-ROSCA hybrid microfinance model based on the opinions of the program managers and the reflective attitudes of the program beneficiaries as study participants. Alternatively it is to design a new funding program that incorporates the key characteristics of the GB joint liability credit disbursement system, and the ROSCA individual pooled savings approach, which, if it is incorporated into the mal-funding of the SSE program or its defective loans scheme, rectifies it and makes it more effective in creating more jobs and job opportunities.

On the first research objective the study clearly aims to uncover these issues from the study participants, among other things, which are not yet in the public domain. This is all the more

reason why this study is significant and necessary owing to the lack of adequate statistical information on the achievements and successes, and weaknesses and failures of the SSE program that include:

• the number of SSE training participants in self-employment after training or at least the success rate of the program

• the lines of trades or enterprises engaged in after training by the SSE participants

• the overall number of jobs indirectly generated by the program

• the reason for the failure to become self-employed after the training

• the contribution of the SSE program to the national economy in terms of employment creation and unemployment reduction.

On the second and third objectives, the study explores the opinions of the study participants (SSE program managers and program beneficiaries) in relation to the extent to which the SSE program funding can be modified. Evidently the study is purely of a qualitative nature and design from this angle. A qualitative research design tends to be more appropriate for studies, using questions to explore issues, while a quantitative research design uses a hypothesis (Cavana et al. 2001). An exploratory research design is usually carried out when one wants to uncover information about some issues one does not know much about or when there is a lack of satisfactory research on such issues (Cavana et al. 2001). The use of both designs is deemed the most appropriate methods and approach for the study. To achieve the goals set out in the second and third objectives of the study, normally one will resort to the use of:

• interviews or questionnaires as a method of data gathering to obtain a good grasp of the phenomena of interest to advance knowledge through good theory building (Sekaran 1992)

or

• surveys to better understand the nature of the phenomenon that has not been the subject of many studies (Cavana et al. 2001; Page and Meyer 2000).

As stated earlier, there were no hypotheses to be tested in the study. Instead, the study has been conducted with the help of three specific research objectives outlined above and in section 1.1.3 of Chapter One.