Research paradigm:
The proposed research topic into the impact of cartoons and animated films on children’s image of gender roles will be qualitative since the research aims at collecting data explaining how children relate to the phenomenon under study. This implies that the data collected will provide an explanation for the proposed topic.
Research technique:
The main research technique that is most appropriate for the study is content analysis. This will involve analyzing information from relevant sources in an effort to draw appropriate conclusions relating to the phenomenon under study. In addition, content analysis is suitable since the research will rely on secondary data collected from previous research conducted on similar topics. In this case, content analysis will involve carrying out a number of critical and sequential steps. The first step is the selection of the right content for data analysis. This step will involve searching for relevant literature within reputable and trustworthy libraries. The search will be limited to peer review articles in order to ensure that the information analyzed is reliable. The second step will involve preparation of the selected content for coding. This will include selection of the coding frame and themes to be used in analyzing the data collected. The next step will involve the actual coding of the information contained in the selected sources.
For this research, content analysis of secondary sources will be carried out on different secondary sources in an effort to compare the results obtained. The researcher will group the information drawn from secondary literature into emergent themes. This is critical since it will help in the detection of specific trends within the data collected. This analysis will also seek to summarize all the relevant secondary literature based on various aspect contained in the sources. This is critical in providing an objective and in-depth evaluation and understanding of the conclusions drawn by previous researchers. Based on the coded information the research will describe, make inferences, and provide relevant conclusions with relation to the topic and phenomenon under study.
Instrument:
The main instrument that will find use in this research is the content analysis sheet shown in table 1 below. The table will seek to analyze all the secondary sources in order to determine emergent themes that can be used in drawing relevant conclusions with relation of the phenomenon under study.
Details concerning reliability and validity, design lacunas and ethical issues:
As mentioned earlier, the data drawn will be highly reliable and valid. This is mainly because the secondary research selected for content analysis will be required to be peer reviewed. Furthermore, the researcher will draw the secondary data from reputable journals. The research design will also seek to exploit any research lacunas or gaps for the topic under study. This will be achieved by examining recommendations from previous research on areas of future research.
Some of the ethical issues surrounding the use of secondary data include the need to acknowledge the sources of the information. This is mainly because the data to be analyzed belongs to the original author. Furthermore, in some cases the permission of the original author many need to be sought in order to utilize the data collected.
