Chapter 6

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Chapter 6 7 Gathering Information Recording
the findings
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Major decisions in the workplace are typically
based on careful research.

• The findings are recorded in a written report.
• The reports readers expect current information
  that can help answer their specific questions.

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What is research?

• Research is a deliberate form of enquiry, a
  process of problem solving, in which certain
  procedures follow a recognizable sequence.

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Preliminary Planning

• Know your purpose and audience
• Write a preliminary plan based on a tentative
  outline a series of questions, a structured
  topical outline, or a cluster diagram
• Identify primary information sources

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Primary and secondary research

• Primary research involves an original, first-hand
  study of your topic or problem
• observations
• interviews, questionnaires
• personal experiments
• fieldwork

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Primary and secondary research

• Secondary research includes
• materials published by other researchers
• journal articles, books, encyclopedias
• reports
• textbooks
• online articles

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Procedural Stages of the Research Process

• Searching for information
• Recording your findings
• Assessing and working with findings
• Documenting your sources
• Writing the report
• see Fig 6.1

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process

• Asking the right questions
• Achieving the right depth
• Evaluating the findings
• Interpreting the findings
• see Fig 6.2

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• I. Asking the right questions
• ? Using tools like tree charts we can explore
  the implications of the major question by
  fragmenting this into smaller, more manageable,
  questions.

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• II. Achieving the right depth
• (a) Surface level items from the popular media
  designed for general consumptions.
• (b) Trade and business sources designed for
  moderately high to highly specialized readers.
• (c) Specialized literature designed for
  practicing professionals.
• see Fig 6.4

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• Note on specialized literature government
  sources.
• The Freedom of Information Act
• ? Ensures the protection of the public's right
  to access public records - except in cases
  violating the right to privacy, national
  security, or certain other instances.
• see p. 100

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• III. Evaluation the findings
• ? Are the data legitimate?
• Does the research answer the question youve
  posed on behalf of your reader?
• Are the data consistent? Reliable? Verifiable?
• Do you need more information?

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• IV. Interpreting the data
• Recentness of the data
• Objectivity of the information source
• Whether the data is substantiated by other
  sources or studies
• Limited perspective of the information source
• Numerical accuracy of the data

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Enquiry Stages of the Research Process contd.

• Avoid faulty generalizations, either hasty
  generalizations, or overstated generalizations.
• Avoid faulty causal reasoning do not distort or
  over-simplify cause-effect relationships.
• Remain open-minded avoid either-or thinking
• Use statistics carefully avoid
• sanitized or meaningless statistics,
• undefined averages and distorted percentages,
• misleading terminology.

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Exploring Secondary Sources

• Although electronic searches for information are
  becoming the norm, a thorough search often
  requires careful examination of hard copy sources
  as well.
• see p. 101

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Hard Copy vs. Electronic Sources

• Hard Copy
• Advantages
• discovered and organized by librarians
• easier to preserve and keep secure
• Disadvantages
• time-consuming and inefficient to search
• difficult to update

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Hard Copy vs. Electronic Sources

• Electronic Sources
• Advantages
• more current, efficient and accessible
• searches an be narrowed or broadened
• can offer material that has no hard copy
  equivalent
• Disadvantages
• not always reliable
• material may disappear

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Guidelines for Internet Research

• Try to focus your search beforehand
• Select appropriate keywords technical, not
  general
• Look for websites that are specific
• Set a time limit for searching
• Use bookmarks for quick access
• Expect material on the net to have a brief life
  span
• Be selective about what you download

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Recording the Findings

• Record primary research findings by using
• A laptop computer
• Photographs
• Drawings
• Tape recordings
• Video recordings
• ? use whichever medium suits your purpose best

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Recording the Findings

• Record secondary research findings by taking
  notes.
• Make bibliography cards/notes fig 7.1
• ? record complete entry in APA format
• Skim work for relevant material
• Decide which information is useful. Be prepared
  to use the item as a quote or paraphrase.

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Quoting the work of others p. 124

• When borrowing exact wording (written or spoken),
  you must place quotation marks around all
  borrowed material.
• NB If your notes fail to identify quoted
  material accurately, you may forget to credit the
  source in your report.
• Plagiarism misrepresenting as ones own the
  words or ideas of someone else.

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Paraphrasing the work of others p.125

• Paraphrasing restating the original idea in
  your own words and giving full credit to the
  source.
• We paraphrase to express an idea in a clear,
  simple, or direct way without changing the
  idea.
• Plagiarism misrepresenting as ones own the
  words or ideas of someone else.

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Recommended reading

• Pages
• 97
• 99 101
• 108 110
• 123 - 125

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QUESTIONS

• What is research?
• What are some of the stages in the research
  process?
• What are primary and secondary sources of
  information? Examples?
• What are the pros and cons of hard copy and
  electronic sources?
• Suggest some guidelines for doing research online.