Research methodology vs methods
Methods are the techniques you use — surveys, interviews, a t-test. Methodology is the justification for why those techniques are the right ones for your question and your philosophical stance. Methods are what you did; methodology is why it was the right thing to do. Treating them as synonyms is one of the most common — and most penalised — errors in a thesis.
At a glance
| Methods | Methodology | |
|---|---|---|
| Question | What did you do? | Why was it the right thing to do? |
| Scope | Specific techniques & procedures | The whole rationale & paradigm |
| Examples | Interviews, surveys, ANOVA | Positivist design choice, sampling rationale |
| In the thesis | The procedures you list | The argument that frames them |
Methods sit inside methodology
Think of methodology as the container and methods as the contents. A methodology sets out your paradigm, your design, and your reasoning; the methods are the concrete steps that follow from it. That’s why the methodology chapter must argue, not just list — every choice is justified against the question.
Same method, different methodology
Two researchers can both run interviews — one within a positivist frame to test a hypothesis, another within an interpretivist frame to understand lived experience. Same method, different methodology — and their analysis, claims, and even what counts as “valid” differ accordingly. The method alone doesn’t tell you what kind of study it is.
What goes in the methodology chapter
- Paradigm and overall approach (and why).
- Design and why it fits the question.
- Population and sampling strategy.
- Data-collection methods and analysis plan.
- Validity / reliability (or trustworthiness) and ethics.
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Frequently asked questions
What's the difference?
Methods are the techniques you used; methodology is the justification for why they fit your question and paradigm.
Is methodology just a fancy word for methods?
No — methods sit inside methodology. The methodology chapter argues; the methods are the procedures that follow.
What goes in a methodology chapter?
Paradigm, design and rationale, sampling, data-collection methods, analysis plan, validity/trustworthiness, and ethics.
Same methods, different methodology?
Yes — e.g. interviews under a positivist vs interpretivist frame produce different analysis and claims.