THE ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

There is a dearth of well designed social science research in the developing world. Amongst the contributing factors, the commonly known reasons are lack of intellectual and financial resources and formal documentation. In order to devise and implement sustainable policies the academic community needs to promote research in all domains. It is imperative in the developing world to generate good quality research in order to raise awareness about social issues and promote service development. This paper reflects the significance of the adaptation of international scales for academic research in countries like Pakistan keeping in view the local and regional consequences which emphasize the need to explore these problems in their indigenous frameworks. It also highlights the importance of adopting the mixed method approach - to combine qualitative with quantitative methods in line with the rich oral traditions of Pakistan. This argument is presented with the support of results from two studies conducted in a Pakistani university on social issues around psychological well being.