Research

Research Process Essay
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Research Process Essay
Introduction
Apparently, HIV/AIDS has been on the rise in the recent past and has indeed become a deadly disease that leads to numerous deaths. On its realization, there was no treatment for the disease thus those who suffered were seen as outcasts and could only live a life of hand to mouth as they anticipated their death. However, with more experiments and research, a treatment was established that could increase the lifespan of the affected victims but still could not adequately treat the infection.
Considering the Research Thesis
HIV/AIDS has no cure but the disease has treatment which mostly consists of ARVs in the modern world has more side effects than benefits indeed. Considering the research thesis, I researched in the New York City by interviewing some of the people suffering from the infection as well as administering questionnaires for the few who were unwilling to reveal more about themselves and their perception on this deadly disease. The research was conducted for two months.
Research Questions
With the problem at hand, the formulation and coming up with relevant and useful questions is very essential. For a matter of fact, dealing with people living with HIV/AIDS is not very easy since most of them are depressed and negative with life and hence the questions should be friendly and more of giving hope than shuttering their feeble hopes. Among the major questions, I considered is the physical differences that the patients had noticed before they used the HIV/AIDS treatment and after using the treatment.

Additionally, I considered asking the side effects of the medication they get on their appetite and even their bodies’ immune system. Advancing to this fact, well researched and relevant questions play a crucial role in any research and therefore determines the kind of response that the researcher should expect from the respondents (Flick, 2015).
Research Methods
Primarily, after identifying the problem and formulating the research questions, the dominant role lies on how exactly one will get the required information from the targeted respondents. Determination of the research methods depends on varying factors including the available resources and the population aimed (Silverman, 2016). For this particular research, I decided to incorporate the administration of mail questionnaires as well as face to face interviews. The main reason I settled on mail questionnaires is the fact that most of the victims affected by the disease are unwilling to disclose more information on how they got affected, the treatment they get from both friends and family members and many more facts revolving around their lives. However, with mail questionnaires, they can write everything because they fill the questions alone without any pressure and intimidation. On the other hand, some victims have accepted their situation and are very willing to talk about it without any fear and even give more information about the infection thus face to face interviews serve well with them.
Data Analysis
The reading and interpretation of the information collected are also essential. Evidently, it will be needless to go through the research process without analyzing the data so that it can be used for policy formulation and even advancement of the weak areas realized during the study (Lewis, 2015). After getting the information from the New York victims, it was apparent that most of those who use the HIV/AIDS treatment indeed experience many side effects that even lead to deterioration of their health status. For instance, the use of ARVs promotes obesity and reduces the body’s immune system thus the victims are exposed to the dangers of getting affected with other diseases such as Malaria and Tuberculosis. It is through the analysis of data that the body of the research lies.
Overcoming Challenges during the Research
Conducting a research is not a mere walk in the park, it is exposed to many challenges including; unwelcoming communities which are not ready to disclose any information about their suffering victims, financial constraints, and the reluctance of some victims to speak out and even some going further by revealing false information to impress the researcher. However, all this can be avoided by considering only those who are positive and thus will rarely disclose information and also make more use of mail questionnaire to prevent interaction which makes most affected respondents fearful.
Conclusion
In summary, the advancement of HIV/AIDS treatment is a significant milestone which has seen a significant reduction in the number of deaths in the society. However, a more advanced and better treatment should be established which as much as it helps in sustaining the victims, it does not bring about other side effects to them. Additionally, research indeed plays a central role in the society because it is the only way that problems can be identified and proper resolutions recommended to eliminate the established issues.
References
Flick, U. (2015). Introducing research methodology: A beginner’s guide to doing a research project. Sage.
Lewis, S. (2015). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Health promotion practice, 16(4), 473-475.
Silverman, D. (Ed.). (2016). Qualitative research. Sage.