8 October 2005 earth quack in pakistan.

pakistan observe 11th  anniversary of October 8, 2005 deadly earthquake

“Natural disasters can render people numb for the rest of their lives. In some cases, victims of severe trauma experience not just fear, sadness, anger or even guilt, they even become less sensitive to the pain and agony of others,”

Today special prayer ceremony was hold in all over the Pakistan for integrity and prosperity of Pakistan   “Besides, special functions in various parts of AJK to pay glorious tributes to the victims of the killer catastrophe and to raise awareness among the people about adoption of per cautionary measures to avert the losses in case of any natural catastrophe, will be the hall mark of the 11th anniversary of the deadly earthquake which had turned bulk of AJK into rubble this day 11 years ago”, the sources told APP.

The 7.6 magnitude quake killed more than 73,000 people, wounded 128,000 and left around 3.5 million homeless   

Functions and seminars were held all over the State to pay tributes to the Pakistan Armed Forces, people and government of Pakistan, international community and donor agencies for their unprecedented and generous contribution for relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction  activities in the quake stricken areas 



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hBPm95_Hj8

Report Writing

The Most important in research is report Writing. today i share  the steps and technique of report writing. I hope it will help you in report writing    a researcher can easily collect the data but it is difficult for researcher to explain   their   collected data in proper design. by using these steps the researcher convert their raw material buy using   scientific  technique  in tabulated , graphic.  Detail of the report writing steps are given below.

Report format: The general plan of organization for the parts of a written or oral research report. The researchers tailor the format to the project. The format of a research report may need adjustment for two reasons: (1) to obtain the proper level of formality and (2) to decrease the complexity of the report.
We shall look at the most formal type i.e. a report for a large project done within an organization or one
done by a research agency for a client company. This sort of report is usually bound with a permanent
cover and may be hundreds of pages long.
Students who are writing a thesis shall have to follow the format requirements of the university where
they shall be submitting it. Thesis format is little different, and it shall be explained as we proceed.
The Makeup of the Report – the Report Parts

• Prefatory parts

1. Title fly page
2. Title page
3. Letter of transmittal
4. Letter of authorization
5. Table of contents
6. Executive summary

• Main body

1. Introduction
2. Methodology
3. Results
4. Conclusions and recommendations
5. References

• Appended parts

1. Data collection forms (questionnaires, checklist, interview guide, other forms)
2. Detailed calculations
3. General tables
4. Other support material
5. Bibliography, if needed

Let us now look at each one of the parts of the report.

Prefatory Parts

Title Fly Page: Only the title appears on this page. For the most formal reports, a title fly page
precedes the title page. Most of the reports don’t have it. May be it is more like the dustcover of some
books.

Title Page: The title page should include four items: the title of the report, the name(s) of the person(s) for whom the report was prepared, the name(s) of person(s) who prepared it, and the date of release or presentation.

The title should be brief but include three elements: (1) the variables included in the study, (2) the type of relationship among the variables, and (3) the population to which the results may be applied.
Redundancies such as “A report of,” “A discussion of,” and “A study of” add length to title but little
else. Single-word titles are also of little value.

Addresses and titles of recipients and writers may also be included.
(For thesis follow the format as prescribed by the relevant university)

Letter of Transmittal: This element is included in relatively formal and very formal reports. Its
purpose is to release or deliver the report to the recipient. It also serves to establish some rapport
between the reader and the writer. This is one part of the formal report where a personal, or even a
slightly informal, tone should be used. The transmittal letter should not dive into report findings except

in the broadest terms. This letter may be like:

University  Name
December 15, 2006
Mr. K. M. Khalil
Vice President for Marketing
………………………….
………………………….
Subject: Report on Employee Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment
Dear Mr. Khalil,
Here is a report on Employee Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment. The report was prepared
according to your authorization letter of April 15, 2006.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………
We are grateful to you for your cooperation in this important study.
Sincerely,
……………..
……………..

Letter of Authorization: This is a letter to the researcher approving the project, detailing who has
responsibility for the project and indicating what resources are available to support it. The letter not
only shows who sponsored the research but also delineates the original request.

Researcher would not write this letter. In many situations, referring to the letter of authorization in the

letter of transmittal is sufficient. If so, the letter of authorization need not be included in the report. In
case the letter has to be included, exact copy of the original may be reproduced

Table of Contents: A table of contents is essential to any report. It should list the divisions and

subdivisions of the report with page references. The table of contents is based on the final outline of the report, but it should include first-level subdivisions. For short reports it is sufficient to include only the main divisions. If the report includes many figures and tables, lists of these should immediately follow the table of contents. If lots of abbreviations have been used in the report, give a list of abbreviations, alphabetically arranged, after the list of figures/tables.

Executive Summary: It is vital part of the report. Studies have indicated that most managers always
read a report’s summary, whereas only a minority read the rest of the report. Thus the only chance a
writer may have to make an impact be in summary.
An executive summary can serve two purposes. It may be a report in miniature – covering all the
aspects in the body of the report, but in abbreviated form. Or it may be a concise summary of the major findings and conclusions, including recommendations. On the whole the summary briefly tells why the research project was conducted, what aspects of the problem were considered, what the outcome was, and what should be done.
The summary should be written only after the rest of the report is completed. It represents the essence
of the report. Two to three pages are generally sufficient for a properly condensed summary. (For very big reports which run into number of volumes, like the one finds in the feasibility reports of big projects, the summary may be very big.) The summary should be written to be self-sufficient. In fact, it is not uncommon for a summary to be detached from the report and circulated by itself.

The summary contains four elements:

1. The objectives of the report are stated, including the most important background and specific
purposes of the project.
2. The major results are presented. The key results regarding each purpose should be included.
3. The conclusions that are based on the results. There should be logical interpretation of the
results which could lead to the stated conclusions.
4. The recommendations or suggestions for action, which are based on the conclusions. The
recommendations must logically emerge from the results.

In many cases managers prefer not to have recommendations included in the report or summary. The
consultant may have to go by the demand of the client.

Note: In many reports you may see that the executive summary comes first which is followed by the
table of contents. For students writing their thesis, in place of executive summary, they write an abstract of their thesis.
This abstract is usually of one or two paragraphs. Abstract has information on the topic, the research
problem, the basic findings, and any ‘unusual’ research design or data collection features.

Main Body

The main body constitutes the bulk of the report. It includes: Introduction, Methodology, Results,
Conclusions, and Recommendations of the study.
Introduction: The introduction prepares the reader for the report by describing the parts of the project:
background material, the problem statement, and research objectives of the study. In most projects,
introduction can be taken from the research proposal submitted earlier by the consultant. The proposal itself was based on the terms of reference (TOR) supplied by the client.
Background could help in looking at the magnitude of the problem. It may include the results of
exploration from an experience survey, focus group discussion, and secondary data from literature
review. The background includes definitions, qualifications and assumptions. It gives the reader the
information needed to understand the remainder of research report.

Problem statement contains the need for the research project. The problem is usually represented by the research question raised by the client. It explains why the project was worth doing.

Research objectives address the purpose of the project. These objectives may be research questions and associated investigative questions. In correlational or causal studies, the hypothesis statement may be included. At the end of the study the researcher may see the extent to which these objectives have been addressed.

For Thesis: After introduction, for students writing their thesis, it is recommended that they should
have three separate chapters on review of literature, theoretical framework, and hypothesis or research question along with the operationalization of variables. These chapters may be in line with the steps in research that we discussed as part of the research process.

Methodology: Technical procedures for carrying out the study must be explained in a manner
appropriate for the reader. It may be useful to supplement the material in this section with more detailed
explanation in the appendix. This part of the report should address seven topics:

1. Research design: Was the study exploratory, descriptive, or causal? A specific strategy was
used to conduct this study. Why was this particular design suited to the study?

2. Data collection methods: Did the data come from primary sources or secondary sources? How
the primary data were collected – survey, experiment, observation? It is possible that multiple
techniques may have been used – all these have to be explained.

3. Sample design: What was the target population? What sampling frame was used? What type of
sampling was used? What was the selection procedure used?

4. Instrument(s) of data collection: What instrument(s) of data collection was (were) used? Why
a particular instrument was selected? Include a copy of each instrument in the appendix.

5. Fieldwork/data collection: How many and what type of fieldworkers were used? What training
and supervision did they receive? How was the quality control assured?

6. Analysis: How was the analysis carried out? How was the data reduction handled? Tell about
the scoring scheme used. Outline the statistical methods applied for the analysis of the data.

7. Limitations: No report is perfect, so it is important to indicate the report’s limitations. If there
were problems with non-response error or sampling procedures, they should be discussed. The
discussion of limitations should avoid overemphasizing the weaknesses. Its aim should be to
provide a realistic basis for assessing the results.

Results: The presentation of results will occupy the bulk of the report. This section presents in some
logical order those findings of the project that bear on the objectives. The results should be organized as a continuous narrative, designed to be convincing but not oversell the project. Summary tables and
charts should be used to aid the discussion. Tables and charts may serve as points of reference to the
data being discussed and free the prose from an excess of facts and figures. Comprehensive or detailed charts should be reserved for the appendix.

Conclusions and recommendations: The last part of the body of the report presents the conclusions
and recommendations based on results. Findings state facts; conclusions represent inferences drawn
from findings. A writer is sometimes reluctant to make conclusions and leaves the task to the reader.
Avoid this temptation when possible. As the researcher, you are the one best informed on the factors
that critically influence the findings and conclusions. Recommendations emerge out of conclusions. These are actually suggestions for action in an applied research. The researcher may present several alternatives with justification. In academic research, the recommendations are often further study suggestions that broaden or test understanding of the subject area.
The conclusions and recommendations are presented here in more detail than in the executive summary, with whatever justification is needed.

References: All citations used in the study must be given by arranging them alphabetically by the last
name of the author.

For your thesis

For your thesis the following outline of chapters is suggested:
• Introduction
• Review of Literature
• Theoretical Framework
• Hypothesis and Operationalization of Concepts
• Research Design
• Analysis of Data
• Summary, Conclusions, and Recommendations
• References
• Appendixes
Appended Parts

Appendix: The appendix presents the “too …” material. Any material that is too technical or too
detailed to go to the body should appear in appendix. This includes materials of interest only to some
readers, or subsidiary materials not directly related to the objectives. Some examples of appendix
material are data collection forms (instruments), detailed calculations, discussions of highly technical
questions, detailed or comprehensive tables of results, and a bibliography (if appropriate).

Research Design

A research design is a master plan specifying the methods and procedures for collecting and analyzing the data. It is a strategy or blueprint that plans the action for carrying through the research project data. A research design involves a series of rational decision-making choices depending upon the various options available to the researchers. Broadly it is composed of different elements like: the purpose of the study, the unit of analysis, time dimension, mode of observation, sampling design, observation tools, data processing, and data analysis. Let us look at each one of these elements.


1. Purpose of the Study

From the perspective of purpose of the study, a research can be exploratory, descriptive, and
explanatory (the distinctions we have already discussed). As we have already covered a number of
steps in the research process, at this stage it is assumed that we are pretty sure about what we are
looking for whereby we have gone much beyond the stage of an exploratory study (all studies have
elements of exploration in them).
Beyond the exploratory stage now we are entering into the formal stage of delineating the plan for data
collection, data processing, and data analysis. Here our focus is on whether our study is going to be a
descriptive or explanatory. The essential difference between descriptive and explanatory studies lies in
their objectives. If the research is concerned with finding out who, what, where, when, or how much,
then the study is descriptive. If it is concerned with learning why – that is how one variable produces
changes in another – it is causal. Research on crime as such is descriptive when it measures the types of
crimes committed, how often, when, where, and by whom. In a explanatory study, we try to explain
relationships among variables – for instance, why the crime rate is higher in locality A than in locality
B. Every explanatory study in the beginning is likely to be descriptive as well.
Methodological rigor increases as one moves from exploratory study to explanatory study, which may
encompass hypothesis testing involving multiple methods of data collection, sophistications in sampling
designs, formulation of instruments of data collection, data processing, and data analysis. Since the
purpose of the study is likely to determine how rigorous the research design is likely to be, therefore, the
researcher would decide very early on about the purpose of his/her study.
Within the explanatory study, researcher may further decide about the type of investigation i.e. causal
versus correlational. The researcher must decide whether a causal or correlational study is needed to
find an answer to the issue at hand. The former is done when it is necessary to establish a definitive

cause-and-effect relationship. If the researcher just wants a mere identification of important factors

“associated with” the problem, then a correlational study is called for. Whether the study is basically a
correlation or causal will help in deciding about the mode of observation – survey study or an
experimental study.

2. Unit of Analysis

The unit of analysis refers to the level of aggregation of the data collected during the subsequent data

analysis stage. If, for instance, the problem statement focuses on how to raise the motivational levels of employees in general, then we are interested in individual employees in the organization and would have to find out what we can do to raise their motivation. Here the unit of analysis is the individual. We will be looking at the data gathered from each individual and treating each employee’s response as an individual data source. If the researcher is interested in studying two-person interactions, then several two-person groups (also known as dyads) will become the unit of analysis. Analysis of husband-wife interactions in families and supervisor-subordinate relationship at the work place, teacher-student relationship in the educational institution are good examples of dyads as unit of analysis. If the problem statement is related to group effectiveness, the unit of analysis would be at group level.

In other words, even though we may gather relevant data from all individuals comprising, say six groups, we would aggregate the individual data into group data so as to see the differences among six

groups. If we compare different departments in the organization, then data analysis will be done at the

department level – that is, the individuals in the department will be treated as one unit – and

comparisons made treating the department as a unit of analysis. The research question determines the unit of analysis. Keeping the research question in view, it is necessary to decide on the unit of analysis since the data collection methods, sample size, and even the variables included in the framework may sometimes be determined or guided by the level at which the data are aggregated for analysis. Units of analysis in a study are typically also the units of observation. Thus, to study voting intentions,

we would interview (observe) individual voters. Sometimes, however, we “observe” our units of

analysis indirectly. For example, we might ask husbands and wives their individual voting intentions,

for purpose of distinguishing couples who agree and disagree politically. We might want to find out

whether political disagreements tend to cause family disharmony, perhaps. In this case, our unit of

analysis would be families, though the unit of observation would be the individual wives and husbands.

3. Time Dimension

Do we make the observations more or less at one time or over a long period, former called as crosssectional

studies and the latter as longitudinal studies. While planning the strategy for data collection the

time dimension may be an important component.

Cross-Sectional Studies are carried out once and represent a snapshot of one point in time. Data are

collected just once, perhaps over a period of days or weeks or months, in order to answer the research

question.

Longitudinal Studies are repeated over an extended period. The advantage of longitudinal studies is

that it can track changes over time. For example, the researcher might want to study employees’

behavior before and after a change in the top management, so as to know what effects the change

accomplished. Here, because data are gathered at two different points in time, the study is not crosssectional or of the one-shot kind, but is carried longitudinally across a period of time. Such studies, as when data on the dependent variable are gathered at two or more points in time to answer the research question, are called longitudinal. Longitudinal studies can be panel studies and cohort studies which were discussed earlier.

4. Researcher Control of Variables

In terms of researcher’s ability to manipulate variables, we can differentiate between experimental and ex post facto design. In an experiment, the researcher attempts to control and/or manipulate the

variables in the study. It is enough that we can cause variables to be changed or held constant in keeping with our research objectives. Experimental design is appropriate when one wishes to discover whether certain variables produce effects in other variables. Experimentation provides the most powerful support possible for hypothesis of causation. Experimental studies can be contrived and non-contrived. Research can be done in the natural environment where work proceeds normally (i.e. in non contrived setting) or in artificial, contrived setting. Correlational studies are invariably conducted in non contrived settings, whereas most rigorous causal studies are done in contrived lab settings. Correlational studies doe in organizations are called field studies. Studies conducted to establish cause-and-effect relationship using the same natural environment are called field experiments. Here the researcher does not interfere with the natural occurrence of events in as much as independent variable is manipulated. Experiments done to establish cause and effect relationship beyond the possibility of the least doubt require the creation of an artificial, contrived environment in which all the extraneous factor are strictly controlled. Similar subjects are chosen carefully to respond to certain manipulated stimuli. These studies are referred to as lab experiments.

With an ex post factor design, investigators have no control over the variables in the sense of being able to manipulate them. They can only report what has happened or what is happening. It is important that the researchers using this design not influence the variables; to do so introduces bias. The researcher is limited to holding factors constant by judicious selection of subjects according to strict sampling procedures and by statistical manipulation of findings. Survey research is an example of such study.

5. Choice of Research Design: Mode of Observation

There could be number of ways to collect the data depending upon whether the study is quantitative or qualitative, descriptive or explanatory, cross-sectional or longitudinal, and contrived or non-contrived, the researcher decides about the mode of observation. The modes could be like: survey, experiment, communication analysis (content analysis) field observation, case study, focus group discussion.

6. Sampling Design

The basic idea of sampling is that by selecting some of the elements in population, we may draw

conclusions about the entire population. A population element is the subject on which the measurement is being taken. It is the unit of analysis. Sampling has its own advantages and disadvantages. Depending upon the nature of the study the researchers decides about following appropriate type of sampling design.

7. Observation Tools

Observation tool mostly used by social researchers are: questionnaire, interview schedule,

Interview guide, and check list. In the research design, the researcher will specify the tools of data

collection along the logic justifying the appropriateness of the selected tool.

8. Field Data Collection

Depending upon the mode of observation, the researcher will outline the procedure for field operations. The researcher will try to look after the questions like: How the data will be collected? Who will be responsible for the collections of data? What training will be imparted to the field functionaries? How will the quality control of data be maintained?

9. Data Processing and Data Analysis

In the research design the researcher is required to tell how the data shall be processed (manually,

mechanically), and analysis plans explicated. In case the qualitative data are to be quantifies the

procedures should be spelled out. The procedures for the construction of score Indexes, if any, should be explained. The research design should also say something about the analysis plan, the use of statistics, and the inferences to be drawn. Surveys require asking people, who are called respondents, for information, using either verbal or written questions. Questionnaires or interviews are utilized to collect data on the telephone, face-to face, and through other communication media. The more formal term sample survey emphasizes that the purpose of contacting respondents is to obtain a representative sample of the target population. Thus, a survey is defined as a method of gathering primary data based on communication with a representative sample of individuals.

Steps in Conducting a Survey

The survey researcher follows a deductive approach. He or she begins with a theoretical or applied

research problem and ends with empirical measurement and data analysis. Once a researcher decides

that survey is an appropriate method, basic steps in a research project can broadly be divided into six

sub-steps.

1. Develop the hypothesis; decide on type of survey (mail, interview, telephone); write survey

questions (decide on response categories, design lay out). The researcher develops an

instrument – a survey questionnaire or interview schedule – that he or she uses to measure

variables. Respondents read the questions themselves and mark answers on a questionnaire.

An interview schedule is a set of questions read to the respondent by an interviewer, who also

records the responses. To simplify the discussion, we will use only thee term questionnaire.

2. Plan how to record data; pilot test survey instrument. When preparing the questionnaire,

the researcher thinks ahead to how he or she will record and organize data for analysis. The

questionnaire is pilot tested on a small set of respondents similar to those in the final survey.

3. Decide on target population; get sampling frame; decide on sample size; select the sample.

4. Locate respondents; conduct interviews; carefully record data. The researcher locates

sampled respondents in person, by telephone, or by mail. Respondents are given information

and instructions on completing the questionnaire or interview.

5. Enter data into computers; recheck all data; perform statistical analysis on data.

6. Describe methods and findings in research report; present findings to others for critique

and evaluation.