Research is a systematic process of investigation undertaken to discover new knowledge, confirm or revise existing understanding, and answer questions that have not yet been adequately resolved. What separates research from casual enquiry is its systematic character: it follows a planned, transparent method, gathers evidence deliberately, and subjects its conclusions to scrutiny. The result is intended to be reliable knowledge that others can examine, build upon and, ideally, reproduce.
Basic and applied research
Research is commonly divided into two broad orientations. Basic research, sometimes called fundamental or pure research, seeks to expand understanding for its own sake, without a specific application in mind. Investigating how a protein folds or why a mathematical relationship holds is basic research. Applied research addresses a particular practical problem: developing a treatment, improving a manufacturing process or evaluating a policy. The two are not rivals but a continuum, and basic findings frequently enable later applied advances.
| Type | Primary aim | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Basic research | Advance fundamental understanding | Studying the mechanism of cell division |
| Applied research | Solve a defined practical problem | Testing a new drug to prevent a disease |
The research lifecycle
Most research, whatever its field, moves through a recognisable sequence of stages often described as the research lifecycle. While disciplines differ in detail, the lifecycle gives a shared vocabulary for the work and for the data and outputs it produces.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Question | Identify a gap and frame a clear, answerable research question or hypothesis |
| Design | Choose methods, plan sampling and analysis, address ethics and feasibility |
| Data | Collect, manage and document data according to the plan |
| Analysis | Interpret the evidence using appropriate methods and statistics |
| Dissemination | Report findings through publications, datasets and other shared outputs |
The lifecycle is iterative rather than strictly linear. Analysis often raises new questions, and dissemination feeds the next cycle of enquiry. Crucially, each stage generates information, about methods, samples, instruments and results, that needs to be described consistently so others can understand and reuse it.
Analysis and the role of statistics
The analysis stage is where evidence becomes findings. In quantitative research this typically draws on statistics, using descriptive summaries to characterise data and inferential methods to generalise responsibly. Careful analysis distinguishes signal from noise, reports uncertainty honestly through measures such as confidence intervals, and resists over-interpreting chance patterns. Weak analysis is a recognised threat to the trustworthiness of the resulting knowledge.
Reproducibility and the scholarly record
Research only contributes durable knowledge if its claims can be checked. Reproducibility, the ability of others to obtain consistent results using the same data and methods, depends on transparent reporting of every lifecycle stage. The scholarly record, the accumulated and citable body of publications, datasets and metadata, is the lasting product of research. CASRAI’s mission is to standardise the terminology used to describe research activities and outputs, which directly supports clearer reporting and reuse. Explore the CASRAI dictionary, the research lifecycle category and the author guidance for related resources.
Frequently asked questions
What makes an activity count as research?
Research is distinguished by being systematic, methodical and aimed at producing generalisable or transferable knowledge. A planned investigation with documented methods and conclusions open to scrutiny qualifies; an unstructured opinion does not.
Is the research lifecycle the same in every field?
The broad stages, question, design, data, analysis and dissemination, are common across disciplines, but the methods within each stage vary widely. A laboratory experiment, a clinical trial and an archival history study share the lifecycle shape while differing in technique.
How does CASRAI relate to research?
CASRAI develops shared, standardised vocabularies for describing the people, activities and outputs of research. Consistent terminology across the lifecycle makes outputs easier to find, compare, reuse and reproduce, strengthening the scholarly record as a whole.
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