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Methods for a study on Hill stations in Maritime and Mainland Southeast Asia.

Robert C.M. Weebers1, Mohammad Raduan Mohammad Ariff2 and Hanizah Idris3.

1. PhD Candidate, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Universiti of Malaya, Malay-

sia. (robertcmweebers@gmail.com) 2. Professor, Department of Southeast Asian Studies/Faculty of Arts and Social Scien-

ces, Universiti of Malaya, Malaysia. (mraduan@um.edu.my) 3. Associate Professor, Department of Southeast Asian Studies/Faculty of Arts and So-

cial Sciences, Universiti of Malaya, Malaysia. (wafa@um.edu.my)

Abstract

The paper will be about how information is gathered, inventorized and categorized so a

comparative study can be done on hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi) and Mainland

(Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia. First a skeletal or structural frame has

to be established: the literature review. Through a process of elimination of literature (what has

been done and what has not been done) the topic of study is established. Specific, identifiable,

data (specifications) on hill stations will be gathered on which the study will be based. Relevant

data from specified documents will be gathered and databases are established in order to analyse

material and so to arrive at a more complete understanding of the topic. The study can be

supported by statistics, facts, narratives, or quotes. The study involves both qualitative and

quantitative analysis. An overview is given if the research objectives have been reached, the

research questions have been answered and a detailed examination has been done of the elements

or structure of the study which would be the foundation for interpretation or discussion. The

results presentation section is a summary of the experimental outcome of the study. Results

should include a concise verbal description of the outcome as well as tables and figures, showing

statistical results and experimental error. In the results and discussion section the results are

interpreted and conclusions are drawn. The discussion compares the results to those of other

studies and gives the general significance of the findings. Study limitations, sources of error, and

plans for future work are usually presented in the discussion.

Keywords: Maritime and Mainland Southeast Asia; Indonesia; Peninsular Malaya; hill stations;

methods

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Introduction

To use certain methods for a study is advisable to be able to gather all information needed

on the topic which is going to be studied. So as to be able to do a study which would

contribute to the body of knowledge. Establishing the topic of the research and analysing

information from different sources are instruments to conduct a study properly. The topic

of the study to be conducted will be hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi) and

Mainland (Peninsular Malaysia (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia: A Comparative

Study. Important in the study will be to establish specifications of the hills stations to

narrow down the study. So it will be clear what the study will be about.

Literature Review

The Literature Review indicates the linkage between previous and current conceptual

and research literature and the study being attempted. It explains what has been done

and what has been said on the topic or problem being investigated. Previous studies

should be looked at: what has been done and what has been said. Current studies should

be looked at: what has been done and what has been said.

Definition: The selection of available documents (both published and unpublished) on the topic,

which contain information, ideas, data and evidence written from a particular standpoint to

fulfil certain aims or express certain views on the nature of the topic and how it is investigated,

and the effective evaluation of these documents in relation to the research proposed. (Hart

1998:13)

A literature review is about reviewing research literature. It introduces and provides

examples of a range of techniques that can be used to analyse ideas, find relationships

between different ideas and understand the nature and use of argument in research.

What you can expect is explanation, discussion and examples on how to use other

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people’s ideas. Those ideas that constitute the body of knowledge of the present study.

(Hart 1998:1)

Moreover the body of knowledge established relationships among the variables

concerned. The present study is the missing link to the body of knowledge. Accordingly

if and when the present research study is consummated, the gap or missing link

disappears since the study has closed the gap. The theoretical framework is now more

complete until another researcher discovers another gap, inconsistency or weakness

which will be the object of another investigation (Sevilla 2007:56)

The missing link to the body of knowledge has to be established with regard to this

study. Literature can be reviewed and records can be consulted in libraries and archives

to establish what kind of literature and archival material there is on the two hill stations

in this study.

In this case on Bukittinggi in Indonesia the National Library (Perpustakaan Nasional

Republik Indonesia, PNRI) and the National Archives of Indonesia (Arsip Nasional

Republik Indonesia, ANRI) in Jakarta. Also literature in the Royal Library and records

at the National Archives in the Hague, the Netherlands can be consulted.

On Cameron Highlands the University Library (Perpustakaan Universiti Malaya) in

Universiti Malaya, the National Library (Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia) and the

National Archives (Arkib Negara Malaysia) in Kuala Lumpur. Also literature at the

British Library and records at the National Archives in London in the United Kingdom

can be consulted.

Topic of Study (Justification)

The second step will be the identification of the topic of study. It is not possible to study

all hill stations, of the regions to be discussed Maritime (Indonesia) and Mainland

Southeast Asia (Peninsular Malaya), in detail. Indonesia has about eight hill stations and

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in Peninsular Malaya there are about six hill stations. For each country one hill station is

chosen. For Indonesia this will be Bukittinggi and for Peninsular Malaya this will be

Cameron Highlands.

Indonesia was a Dutch colony and Peninsular Malaya a British one. The discussion will

be about the development and the alikeness or difference in development of these hill

stations from the time they were established till the present day. The hill stations will be

discussed in detail according to the research objectives. The study can be supported by

statistics, facts, narratives, or quotes.

a. Research Objectives

1. To comprehend and analyse the development of hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi)

and Mainland (Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia

2. To analyse location, size, city ranking, purpose, layout, facilities, architecture and surrounding areas

of hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittingi) and Mainland (Peninsular Malaya (Cameron

Highlands) Southeast Asia

3. To analyse the colonial influence on hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittingi) and Mainland

(Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia

Sources of Data

Data Acquisition is to set certain parameters along which a study is conducted. In this

study that will be certain specifications. The specifications will be used in the hills

stations of Bukittinggi and Cameron Highlands. The specifications will be measured or

assembled through the collection of data. The specifications are: 1. location: (hills and

mountains), 2. size: (km2), 3. city ranking: (criteria of importance), 4. purpose:

(relaxation, health and amusement), 5. layout: (a. circulatory part (roads, streets and

lanes), b. central part (post office, library, town hall, theatre and clubhouse), c. special

part (schools, churches, temples and mosques), d. built up part (bungalows and houses),

e. sports areas (golf course, cricket field, tennis courts, rugby fields and swimming

pool), 6. facilites: (a. general (post office and library), b. administrative (town hall), c.

education (schools), d. religious (churches, temples and mosques), e. entertainment

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(theatre and clubhouse), f. sports areas (golf course, cricketfield, tennis courts, rugby

fields and swimming pool), 7. architecture (dutch, british, classical (greek or roman)

and local (malay, chinese and indian) and 8. surrounding areas (agricultural or

plantations).

Data Collection

Data collection is to gather relevant data from specified documents and compiling

databases in order to analyse the material and arrive at a more complete understanding.

Data refers to the kinds of information researchers have obtained in relation, to the

object of their research. These data could be of several forms, such as demographic

(age, gender ethnicity, and religion), scores from the researcher’s prepared test,

responses to the teachers questions such as interview and questionnaire, performance

logs kept by coaches, essays written by respondents, and grade-point average obtained

from school records. Data are actually fact which researchers require to establish the

findings. Therefore, researchers have to be extra careful when gathering data in order to

reach valid and reliable findings. Mistake in collecting recording, analysing and

interpreting the data may lead to invalid findings thus, distorting the whole research

work. (Shamsuri 2004:60)

Data collection has to be structured. Information can be gathered in different ways

whether by direct observation, interviews, surveys, experiments and testing, or other

methods and now the plan can be implemented. There is a bit more to collecting data,

however. If direct observations are conducted, for example, it has to be defined what is

being observed and arrangements have to be made to make observations at the right

times. Observations have to be recorded in appropriate ways and organized so they are

optimally useful.

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Researchers need information to complete their research work. Information is acquired

from respondents especially in a survey research1, correlational research2, and causal-

comparative research3, information is gathered and to some extent descriptive research4.

In the case of historical research, information is acquired from past records at the

archives, artefacts from the museums, official documents from the government, and

books from libraries. In case of experimental research, information is acquired from

observations and laboratory experimentations. Whatever the sources of this information,

researchers use these information to arrive at certain findings. The collected information

would be analysed systematically and interpreted correctly to reach the findings and the

conclusion. This information is called DATA. (Shamsuri 2004:59)

All information has to be filed and recorded. These include making photocopies of all

recording forms, records, audio or video recordings, and any other collected materials,

to guard against loss, accidental erasure, or other problems. Entering narratives,

numbers, and other information into a computer program, where they can be arranged

and/or worked on in various ways. Performing any mathematical or similar operations

needed to get quantitative information ready for analysis. These might, for instance,

include entering numerical observations into a chart, table, or spreadsheet, or figuring

the mean (average), median (midpoint), and/or mode (most frequently occurring) of a

1 Survey research is one of the most important areas of measurement in applied social research. Survey

research can be specific and limited, or it can have more global, widespread goals. Today, survey research

is used by a variety of different groups. Psychologists and sociologists often use survey research to

analyse behaviour, while it is also used to meet the more pragmatic needs of the media, such as, in

evaluating political candidates, public health officials, professional and advertising and marketing

directors. 2 Correlational research is an important form of educational and psychological research. It is a form of

analysis in which you correlate one variable with another to determine if there is a relationship between

them. 3 A casual comparative study is a form of study that tries to identify and determine the cause and effects

of relationship between two or more groups. It is a common form of design in education researches. 4 Descriptive research is defined as research that determines the cause of something and/or describes the

behaviour of something. A classic example of descriptive research is a case study. A case study is a

research method used to get a full, detailed picture of one subject or a small group of subjects.

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set of numbers. Transcribing (making an exact, word-for-word text version of) the

contents of audio or video recordings. Coding data (translating data, particularly

qualitative data that isn’t expressed in numbers, into a form that allows it to be

processed by a specific software program or subjected to statistical analysis.)

Organizing data in ways that make them easier to work with. How this is done depends

on the research design and the valuation questions. Observations can be grouped by the

dependent variable (indicator of success) they relate to, by individuals or groups of

participants, by time, by activity, etc. Observations can be grouped in several different

ways, so that you can study interactions among different variables.

Recording and organizing data may take different forms, depending on the kind of

information which is collected. The way the data is collected should relate to the

planning how it is analysed and used. Regardless of the method which is going to be

used. Recording should be done concurrent with data collection if possible, or soon

afterwards, so that nothing gets lost and memory does not fade.

In this study data will be collected in a database of hill stations in Maritime and

Mainland Southeast Asia, a database with the purposes of the hill stations of Bukittinggi

and Cameron Highlands, a database with documents from archives, a database of

downloaded files and a bibliographical database.

In this case on Bukittinggi in Indonesia the National Library (Perpustakaan Nasional

Republik Indonesia, PNRI) and the National Archives of Indonesia (Arsip Nasional

Republik Indonesia, ANRI) in Jakarta. Also literature in the Royal Library and records

at the National Archives in the Hague, the Netherlands can be consulted.

On Cameron Highlands the University Library (Perpustakaan Universiti Malaya) in

Universiti Malaya, the National Library (Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia) and the

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National Archives (Arkib Negara Malaysia) in Kuala Lumpur. Also literature at the

British Library and records at the National Archives in London in the United Kingdom

can be consulted.

The data gathering instruments in this regard will include the following: a. Archival

Research in the National Archives (Arsip Nasional Republik Indonesia, ANRI) in

Indonesia (Jakarta), (Arkib Negara Malaysia) in Peninsular Malaya (Kuala Lumpur),

(National Archives) in the Netherlands (the Hague) and (National Archives) in the

United Kingdom (London). b. Field work: site visits, collecting raw data through

surveys and questionnaires and recording specific observations. c. Historical materials:

to study documents containing important information about persons, places or events.

Data Analysis.

When all the data has been collected, the researcher begins to classify the facts,

clarifying trends and relationships and tabulating the information in such a way that it

can be accurately analysed and interpreted. The tasks demand extra care and attention.

As the facts could be in interpreted in several ways the researcher has to evaluate each

of the possibilities with much objectivity. The theory as expressed in the hypothesis, can

now be confirmed, rejected or modified. (Shamsuri 2004:10)

With the exception of highly structured data which are to be analysed in a specified

way, the process of “preparing” data always involves exploration of their characteristics

and structure. This is the stage at which the researcher “tunes into” the meaning and

messages in his or her data and builds up an appreciation of the nuances and structure

and the possibilities for analysis. The appreciation includes recognition of errors and

omissions, as well as the deepening misunderstanding of the comparisons and other

possibilities for analysis that are likely to be productive. Even an experienced

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researcher, every occasion or ‘taking’ a first look at the data’ is one in which there are

novel things to be appreciated and new possibilies for developing his or her

methodologies and ideas. (Sapsford and Jupp 2006:153)

What is under discussion here is that part of the analysis that is largely invisible in the

final report: the tidying up and recategorization which precedes the main data analysis.

You will seldom be able to examine what goes on at this stage in any detail when you

read research reports, but you need a strong awareness of it in order not to be seduced

by the “facts” with which you are presented: many, if not all, of the findings follow this

stage of the research process and are therefore, at least in part, a construction of the

coding and manipulation process. (Sapsford and Jupp 2006:154)

Analysing information involves examining it in ways that reveal the relationships,

patterns, trends, etc. that can be found within it. That may mean subjecting it to

statistical operations that can tell you not only what kinds of relationships seem to exist

among variables, but also to what level you can trust the answers you are getting. It may

mean comparing information to that from other groups (a control or comparison group,

state-wide figures, etc.), to help draw some conclusions from the data. The point, in

terms of evaluation, is to get an accurate assessment in order to better understand the

work done and its effects on the work concerned or in order to better understand the

overall situation.

There are two kinds of data although not all evaluations will necessarily include both.

Quantitative data refer to the information that is collected as, or can be translated into,

numbers, which can then be displayed and analysed mathematically. Qualitative data

are collected as descriptions, anecdotes, opinions, quotes, interpretations, etc., and are

generally either not able to be reduced to numbers, or are considered more valuable or

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informative if left as narratives. As might be expected, quantitative and qualitative

information needs to be analysed differently.

The qualitative aspects will give a broad base to this research through the study of the

historical background and planning of the case studies in Indonesia and Peninsular

Malaya.

Results and Discussion

The results should give an overview if the research objectives have been reached and

the research questions have been answered. It should show that the literature and

archival records provide the answers to the objectives. It should also show which

methods and techniques have been used to reach the objectives. This should all be

illustrated with tables and figures showing statistical results.

Research Objective and Questions

a. Research Objectives:

1. To comprehend and analyse the development of hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi)

and Mainland (Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia.

2. To analyse location, size, city ranking, purpose, layout, facilities, architecture and surrounding areas

of hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi) and Mainland (Peninsular Malaya (Cameron

Highlands) Southeast Asia.

3. To analyse the colonial influence on hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi) and Mainland

Southeast Asia (Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands).

b. Research Questions:

1. Why where hill stations developed?

2. What was the function of hill stations ?

3. Was there a uniformity to hill stations?

4. What is the reason that the specific hill stations of Bukittinggi in Indonesia and Cameron Highlands

in Peninsular Malaya have been chosen?

5. What is the difference in purposes of the hill stations of Bukittinggi and Cameron Highlands?

The final step in the research process is the conclusion. Assuming that all has gone as

planned, the researcher now can draw up a report of the project. The project will relate

conclusions to the existing body of theory. The report may also identify unanswered

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questions, and the researcher may suggest new hypotheses that other researchers or

scholars can explore. At this stage decisions could be made whether the findings and the

conclusions within the report would remain as an unpublished report or a published one,

probably in the form of an article in a scholarly journal or presented at a seminar or

conference. (Shamsuri 2004:10)

The conclusion section is where the results are interpreted and conclusions are drawn.

The conclusion should also compare the results to those of other studies and give the

general significance of the findings. Study limitations, sources of error, and plans for

future work are usually presented in the discussion.

The strength of the present study is on the comparison of hill stations in Maritime

(Indonesia: Bukittinggi) and Mainland Southeast Asia (Peninsular Malaya: Cameron

Highlands). An opportunity would be a contribution to the body of knowledge in a

comparison of hill stations in Maritime (Indonesia (Bukittinggi) and Mainland

(Peninsular Malaya (Cameron Highlands) Southeast Asia.

Conclusion

Organization and planning of a research study is essential to reach an objective and

independent study which is a contribution to the body of knowledge. The study should

be well planned and organized. In the results and discussion section it should be shown

if the research objectives have been reached and if there are still unanswered questions.

It should also show which methods and techniques have been used to reach the

objectives and it can also contain advice for future research.

References

Hart, Ch. (2006). Doing a Literature Review, Releasing the Social Science Research

Imagination. New York, NY: Sage Publications.

Sapsford, R. & Jupp V. (Eds.) 2006). Data Collection and Analysis. London, UK: Sage

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Publications.

Sevilla, C.G. (Ed.). (2007). Research methods. Quezon city, Philippines: Rex Printing

Company Inc.

Shamsuri, S. (2004). Research methods for the Social Sciences made simple. A

“passport” to skilful writing of academic reports, assignments and dissertations. Bangi,

Malaysia: Percekatan Jiwabaru Sdn. Bhd.

Wright, S. (1979). Quantitative methods and Statistics. A Guide to Social Research.

London, UK: Sage Publications

Community Tool Box. (2013). What do we mean by collecting data? Retrieved

17.09.2013 from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/ tablecontents/chapter37/section5.aspx