Conducting

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Chapter 1

• Nature and Purpose of Research

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• Profession Knowledge
• Publications of new work
• New knowledge may challenge old beliefs
• Research Way to obtain new knowledge
• Requires unique set of skills

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What is Research?

• Usually systematic, organized
• Usually focused on question of interest
• Searches for truth
• Should be free of bias and should be objective

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Search for Truth Where do your beliefs come
from?

• Custom and tradition
• Authority
• Personal experience
• Deductive reasoning
• Scientific inquiry

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Deductive reasoning (logic)

• Direction of thinking from general assumption to
  specific application
• Syllogism
• Major weakness

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Induction

• Direction of thinking is from the specific to the
  general
• Basic principle of scientific inquiry
• Researcher observes individual or group from
  larger population
• Perfect induction vs. imperfect induction

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Scientific Method

• Integration of deduction and induction by Charles
  Darwin
• Series of logical steps that define a pathway to
  acquire knowledge

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Scientific Method - steps

• Identifying the problem
• Formulating a hypothesis
• Developing a Research Plan
• Collecting and analyzing the data
• Interpreting results and forming conclusions
• Frequently return to Step 1!

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1) Identifying the problem

• Problem needs to be
• Specify a problem statement

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2) Formulating a hypothesis

• What is a hypothesis?
• Belief, hunch, prediction about what you think
  the data will look like at the end of the study
  and what that will mean
• Exploratory studies may not have a hypothesis

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3) Developing a Research Plan

• MOST IMPORTANT STEP!
• Strategy for collecting and analyzing data
• Methodology
• Subject composition, recruitment
• Procedures for obtaining data (interviews,
  questionnaires, lab tests?)
• Analysis methods

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4) Collecting and analyzing data

• Follow procedures from step 3 (hopefully!)

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5) Interpreting results and forming conclusions

• How does the data you gathered support/refute the
  hypothesis?
• Goal of the conclusions is to provide an
  explanation of the results (not just restate them)

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Application of Scientific Method

• Not always possible to control and design your
  dream experiment
• Many differences between natural science and
  social sciences in application

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Theory

• Belief or assumption about how things relate to
  each other
• Establishes cause-effect relationship with goal
  of explaining and predicting
• Example benefit of exercise on human health
• May lead to development of new hypotheses!

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Research Classifications

• Basic research
• Applied research
• Quantitative research
• Qualitative research
• Experimental research
• Causal-comparative research
• Descriptive research
• Correlationl research
• Historical research

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Basic research

• Pure, fundamental
• Theoretical
• Goal is to discover new knowledge develop new
  theory
• May not have immediate practical value

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Applied research

• Goal is to solve immediate practical problem
• Hopes to make inferences beyond study sample to
  larger population

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Quantitative research

• Collection analysis of numerical data
• Use direct testing
• Questions clearly stated
• Hypotheses
• Well-developed procedures
• Controls for extraneous factors
• Large samples
• Statistical analyses

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Qualitative research

• Extensive observations in-depth interviews
• Non-numerical data
• Usually conducted in natural settings (less
  control)
• Situational-specific results

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Experimental research

• Exploration of cause and effect
• Manipulation of independent variables

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Causal-comparative research

• Tries to explain cause and effect
• Independent variable not manipulated

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Descriptive research

• Information is collected to systematically,
  factually, and accurately describe certain
  characteristics
• Focus on the present (what is)
• Frequently comes before experimental research

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Correlational research

• Nonexperimental
• Related to descriptive and causal-comparative
• Determine extent of relationship between 2
  variables and try to make predictions
• No variable manipulation

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Historical research

• Nonexperimental
• Qualitative and descriptive
• Try to record and understand past events to
  predict future events
• Limited to study of data that already exist