Dictionary of Current English (1986:720), research is defined as "systematic investigation . endobj 2. O represents an observation or measurement recorded on an instrument. <> In a discussion about data collection forms, be specific about the types and include arguments concerning the strengths and weaknesses of each type, as discussed in Table 9.2. Without going out to the building before the study begins and looking at it, I would not necessarily think about the codes of geo-warming and location of offices in my study of leadership. Codes that are unusual, and that are, in and of themselves, of conceptual interest to readers. For example, the experiences may cause researchers to leantoward certain themes, to actively look for evidence to support their positions, and to createfavorable or unfavorable conclusions about the sites or participants. The median for the first half of the sample was then used to categorize the second half of the group as feminist or nonfeminist, and the remainder of the participants was randomly assigned to conditions separately from each feminist orientation group to ensure nearly equal cell sizes. I dedicate this book to all of my mentees and former students over the years who have engaged in this fascinating process of research and who have welcomed my suggestions for improving their scholarly works. This involves transcribing interviews, opticallyscanning material, typing up field notes, cataloguing all of the visual material, and sorting andarranging the data into different types depending on the sources of information. A brief proposal might need to be developed and submittedfor review to gatekeepers. 57 0 obj These involve telling the reader about the design being usedin the study and, in this case, the use of qualitative research and its basic intent. The three counseling conditions, nonsexist-humanistic, liberal, and radical feminist, were depicted by 10 min videotape vignettes of a second counseling session between a female counselor and a female client. [Validity and reliability were addressed. Describe the instrument or instruments participants complete in the experiment, typically filledout before the experiment begins and at its end. Creswell, Fetters and Ivankova (2004:7) argue that mixed methods research is more than . A single-subject design or N of 1 design involves observing the behavior of a singleindividual (or a small number of individuals) over time. Social and Behavioral Sciences Research Consortium | Nebraska In addition, multiple strategies for validation arenecessary to demonstrate the accuracy of the information. Both groups are administered both a pretest and a posttest, but the treatment is providedonly to experimental Group A.Group A R_____O_____X_____OGroup B R_____O_____OPosttest-Only Control-Group DesignThis design controls for any confounding effects of a pretest and is a popular experimental design.The participants are randomly assigned to groups, a treatment is given only to the experimentalgroup, and both groups are measured on the posttest.Group A R X O___________ ___________Group B R_______________OSolomon Four-Group Design A special case of a 2 X 2 factorial design, this procedure involves the random assignment ofparticipants to four groups. Creswell (2012:3) states research designs are the specific procedures involved in the research process: data collection, data analysis, and report writing. Survey research provides a quantitative or numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. Step 2. The questioning approach is alsoused in transformative approaches to qualitative research. It could also be a meaning derived from a comparison of the findings with informationgleaned from the literature or theories. This shortcoming means that the sample may not represent the entire population due to specific segments being . <>351 0 R]/P 413 0 R/Pg 412 0 R/S/Link>> 3 0 obj Client statements and the outcome of each interview were held constant, whereas counselor responses differed by approach. ]SOURCE: Enns and Hackett (1990). This is . Step 5. Find the most descriptive wording for your topics and turn them into categories. This may be a single page with adividing line down the middle to separate descriptive notes (portraits of the participants, areconstruction of dialogue, a description of the physical setting, accounts of particular events, oractivities) from reflective notes (the researchers personal thoughts, such as speculation, feelings,problems, ideas, hunches, impressions, and prejudices Bogdan & Biklen, 1992, p. 121). In addition, gainingentry to a research site and the ethical issues that might arise are also elements of the researchersrole. It furtherexpands on the data analysis steps and the methods used for presenting the data, interpreting it,validating it, and indicating the potential outcomes of the study. endobj students of 10 th class of particular school is an example of existent type of population and the population of heads and tails obtained by tossing a coin on infinite number of times is an example of hypothetical population. Charmaz (2006) said that you stop collecting data when the categories(or themes) are saturated: when gathering fresh data no longer sparks new insights or reveals newproperties. endobj I recommend thefollowing research tippresenting them as a series of steps so that a reader can see how one stepleads to another for a complete discussion of the data analysis procedures. It is a descriptive statistic that is not dependent on whether the relationship in thedata represents the true population. Then the researchers review all of the data, make sense of it, and organize it into categories or themes that cut across all of the data sources. In thisrationale, consider the advantages of survey designs, such as the economy of the design and the rapidturnaround in data collection. Indicate whether the survey will be cross-sectionalwith the data collected at one point in timeor whether it will be longitudinalwith data collected over time. If you present the basic characteristics, what ones should you mention? An alternative check for response bias is to contact afew nonrespondents by phone and determine if their responses differ substantially from respondents.This constitutes a respondent-nonrespondent check for response bias. Indicate the major content sections in the instrument, such as the cover letter (Dillman, 2007,provides a useful list of items to include in cover letters), the items (e.g., demographics, attitudinalitems, behavioral items, factual items), and the closing instructions. As shown in Table 8.6,these threats arise because of the characteristics of individuals selected for the sample, theuniqueness of the setting, and the timing of the experiment. <> Dropout rates tend to be highest among freshmen and sophomores, so an attempt was made to reach as many freshmen and sophomores as possible by distribution of the questionnaire through classes. From sample results, the researcher generalizes ordraws inferences to the population. Third edition. <>62 0 R]/P 67 0 R/S/Link>> Daniel. Naturally, their scores will probably extreme scores as entering characteristics for the change during the experiment. To explain it better: Mia. Assign participants to matched pairs on the basis of their scores on the measures described in Step 1. Address whether the resultsmight have occurred because of inadequate experimental procedures, such as threats to internalvalidity, and indicate how the results might be generalized to certain people, settings, and times.Finally, indicate the implications of the results for the population studied or for future research.Example 8.6 An Experimental Method SectionThe following is a selected passage from a quasi-experimental study by Enns and Hackett (1990)that demonstrates many of the components in an experimental design. As with any biological population, the size of a human population is limited by the supply of food, the effect of diseases, and other environmental factors. . British. 380-381). endobj Thus, it is important to clarifythe meaning of these last three reports of the results. Population and Sample 3.2.1. 3.1 Research Design. Still other independent variables can be statistically controlled, suchas demographics (e.g., gender or age). interprets the meaning of the information. 68 0 obj Step 6. Has permission been sought to use it?_____________ What are the steps in the procedure (e.g., random assignment of participants to groups, collection of demographic information, administration of pretest, administration of treatment(s), administration of posttest)?_____________ What are potential threats to internal and external validity for the experimental design and procedure? In this article, we begin with the fundamental building block of any population: the unit of analysis. Tell the reader about the number of participants in each group and the systematic procedures fordetermining the size of each group. A separate section in a proposal may be composed to advance this threat. Define the exact type of threat and what potential issue it presents to your study. Discuss how you plan to address the threat in the design of your experiment. Cite references to books that discuss the issue of threats to validity, such as Cook and Campbell (1979); Shadish, Cook, & Campbell (2001); and Tuckman (1999).The Procedure A proposal developer needs to describe in detail the procedure for conducting the experiment. The researcher sets a rejection level of no effect, such asp = 0.001, and then assesses whether the test statistic falls into this level of rejection. has been cited by the following article: TITLE: Motivational Strategies to Improve Artisan's Productivity in the Construction Industry in Ghana. Expose the experimental group to the experimental treatment and administer no treatment or an alternative treatment to the control group. Indicate the number of people in the sample and the procedures used to compute this number. Thecollection procedures in qualitative research involve four basic types and their strengths andlimitations, as shown in Table 9.2. Gather field notes by conducting an observation as an observer. 60 0 obj Population is the entire pool from which a statistical sample is drawn. The purposive sampling method is about selecting samples from the overall sample size based on the judgment of the survey taker or researcher. It is important to gain access to research or archival sitesby seeking the approval of gatekeepers, individuals at the site who provide access to the site andallow or permit the research to be done. I would suggest that you advance these seven steps in your methods section of yourproposal and give concrete illustrations of potential codes and themes that might emerge in yourstudy. For a mailed survey, identify steps for administering the survey and for following up to ensure ahigh response rate. . endobj Other independent variables maysimply be measured variables in which no manipulation occurs (e.g., attitudes or personalcharacteristics of participants). Here the author underlines that "the types of data one would collect and analyze would differ considerably." . This means thatthe initial plan for research cannot be tightly prescribed, and some or all phases of the processmay change or shift after the researcher enters the field and begins to collect data. This figure suggests a linear, hierarchical approach building from the bottom to the top, but I see itas more interactive in practice; the various stages are interrelated and not always visited in the orderpresented. Beyond this, the computer program can facilitate comparingdifferent codes (e.g., How do males and femalesthe first code of genderdiffer in terms of theirattitudes to smokinga second code?). As with any softwareprogram, qualitative software programs require time and skill to learn and employ effectively,although books for learning the programs are widely available. Discuss steps taken to gain entry to the setting and to secure permissions to study the participantsor situation (Marshall & Rossman, 2011). Indicate the type or types of data to be collected. In the natural setting, the researchers have face-to-face interaction, often over time. Mark Lipsey has authored a major book on the topics of experimental designs and statistical powerof those designs. Instruments Manipulation checks. The first mail-out is a short advance-notice letterto all members of the sample, and the second mail-out is the actual mail survey, distributed about 1week after the advance-notice letter. Go through it, asking yourself, What is this about? Do not think about the substance of the information but its underlying meaning. Provide a rationale for the choice of statistical test and mention theassumptions associated with the statistic. We then examine methods for selecting a sample from the population and the arguments for and against each of the methods. A log kept by the researchers would work equally well for this form of data.Data Analysis and Interpretation A methods discussion in a qualitative proposal needs also to specify the steps in analyzing thevarious forms of qualitative data. When individuals can be randomly assigned to groups, the procedure is called a trueexperiment. In contrast to other designs, thequalitative approach includes comments by the researcher about their role, and the specific type ofqualitative strategy being used. This process, too, is different from quantitative research in which researchers go to greatlengths to preserve all of the data and reconstruct or replace missing data. ]COMPONENTS OF AN EXPERIMENTAL METHOD PLANAn experimental method discussion follows a standard form: (a) participants, (b) materials, (c)procedures, and (d) measures. It can also suggest new questions that need to be askedquestionsraised by the data and analysis that the inquirer had not foreseen earlier in the study. The statistical significance testing reports anassessment as to whether the observed scores reflect a pattern other than chance. Step 1: Report on samplenumber who returned and did not returncan . Theintent of this pilot test is to ensure that materials can be administered without variability to theexperimental group.Experimental Procedures The specific experimental design procedures also need to be identified. And mention theassumptions associated with the fundamental building block of any population the! 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