How to choose a methodology
A decision path from research question to methodology, plus how to write the justification examiners are looking for.
9 min read · Reviewed 2026 · Written and reviewed by Chris McGarrigle
A methodology chapter is not a description of what you did. It is a justification of why what you did was the right way to answer your question, and an honest account of what it cost you.
Work outwards from the question, and every later choice becomes easier to defend.
The decision path
Take these decisions in order; skipping one makes the next indefensible.
- What kind of claim does my question require?
- What philosophical position makes that claim meaningful?
- Which approach follows — deductive, inductive or abductive?
- Which design delivers it — survey, case study, experiment, ethnography, grounded theory?
- Which methods, sample and timeframe are realistic for me?
- How will I analyse the data, and how will I judge quality?
Justify by comparison
The strongest justification names the alternative you rejected and says why. 'A survey would have measured attitudes at scale but could not have captured how participants account for their decisions, which is what the question asks.' That sentence is worth more than a page of textbook definitions.
Limitations are not weaknesses
Every design trades something away. Naming those trade-offs shows methodological awareness. Hiding them invites the examiner to find them for you in the viva.
Common mistakes
- Reciting definitions of positivism and interpretivism without applying them.
- Describing procedure without justifying it.
- Choosing a design your ethics approval or timescale cannot support.
- Never mentioning the alternatives you rejected.
Try this: The because chain
- Write: 'My question requires… because…'
- Then: 'That means my position is… because…'
- Then: 'So my design is… rather than… because…'
- Read the chain aloud. Any link that does not follow is the one an examiner will attack.
Do it in SuperDiss
Build the justification chain and rehearse the defence.
Open the Methodology LabStudents also ask
- How do I choose a dissertation methodology?
- Work outward from your research question: philosophy, approach, strategy, choices, time horizon and techniques. Each layer must follow from the one before, and every choice needs a 'because' that traces back to the question.
- Which methodology textbooks should I cite?
- Creswell and Creswell for research design, Saunders et al. for the research onion, and Bryman for social research methods are the standard references most UK supervisors expect to see.
- How do I defend my methodology in a viva?
- Be able to name the alternative you rejected and why it would have answered a different question. Examiners test coherence, not fashionable choices.
Related research: design the methodology
Choose philosophy, approach, sampling and ethics you can defend in the viva.
Research philosophy explained: ontology, epistemology and axiology
A clear introduction to research philosophy for dissertations: ontology, epistemology and axiology, and how they shape your methodology choices.
Qualitative vs quantitative research
The real difference between qualitative and quantitative dissertation research, and how to choose based on your question rather than your comfort zone.
How to get ethical approval
What ethics committees actually look for, the documents you need, and the mistakes that cause applications to be returned.
Continue your dissertation journey
- Research philosophy explained: ontology, epistemology and axiology
- Qualitative vs quantitative research
- The research onion explained
- Sampling explained
- How to get ethical approval
Browse every guide in research methodology.
Read next
The research onion explained
The research onion as a decision-making tool rather than a diagram to copy: what each layer asks and how the layers constrain each other.
Sampling explained
Probability and non-probability sampling explained simply, with guidance on sample size and how to justify your choice.
This guide is general educational content. Your institution's regulations, handbook and supervisor's instructions always take precedence. Where a named framework is mentioned, consult the original source text rather than relying on this summary.