Caribbean Studies

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Caribbean Studies

• Research Methods

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• Research is the step by step process of gathering
  information
• Reasons for doing research
• To generate new knowledge
• To solve a problem
• To test a theory
• To be able to predict an event or outcome

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Research
Can be divided into
Historical
Description
Experimental
Which require
Quantitative studies
Quantitative Studies
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• Historical research-describes the past
  Descriptive research- describes records,
  analyses and interprets conditions that
  permanently exist.Experimental research-focus
  on variable--- and describes what happens when
  the variables are carefully controlled or
  manipulated.

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Quantitative

• usually takes the form of statistical or
  numerical information.
• It can also be expressed in the form of a rate.
• It is believed that the analysis of statistical
  data can indicate both cause and correlation.
• it is used in the Mainstream or conventional
  ideas of research which are based on the
  scientific method

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Advantages

• Study easily replicable
• Method saves time
• It is cost effective
• It collects standard data
• Validity is enhanced by the use of large samples
• Data is more objective

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Disadvantages

• No indication about the respondents personal
  state
• Unrepresentative samples can lead to inaccurate
  and invalid data
• Generalization may not apply to all people in all
  circumstances

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• There are 4 types of quantitative research
  methods
• Surveys
• Questionnaire
• Structured interviews
• Official statistics

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Social Surveys

• usually large-scale research projects that
  collect standardized data from a large
  cross-section of the population.
• E.g. Government census. 
• There are three (3) types of surveys
• Descriptive - questions are close-ended and allow
  the researcher to make correlations about
  social phenomena.
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• Attitude - asks mainly close-ended questions that
  attempt to find out peoples feelings or
  opinions e.g. a party, political figure or brand
  of food.
• Explanatory - seeks answers that require more
  than a simple yes or no response. They are given
  the opportunity to clarify their feelings in
  greater depth

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Advantages of Surveys

• Valid due to data collected from a large
  cross-section of the population
• Data can be used to make generalizations
• Statistical technique can be used to analyze
  data, thus time-saving
• An unbiased representative sample saves the
  researcher the time of having to find all
  individuals with relevant information.

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Disadvantages of Surveys

• Invalid data if sample not representative

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Questionnaire

• A number of pre-set questions that can contain
  open-ended and close-ended or a combination of
  both type of questions.
• Steps to constructing a questionnaire
• Operationalize key terms and concepts therefore
  breaking up terms into sub-concepts.
• Formulate questions based on each sub-topic.
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Advantages of the Questionnaire

• Easy to administer
• They can reach a large number of people even if
  they are geographically disperse
• It saves time
• It is not costly
• Data can be easily tabulated, measured and
  analyzed

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Disadvantages of the Questionnaire

• What is gained in reliability may be lost in
  terms of validity. e.g.
• The wording may intentionally or not, mislead
  the respondent
• Researcher bias
• Respondents may lie or treat the issues lightly
• Respondents may forget
• Postal questionnaires have a low rate of return
  and may be filled out by someone other than the
  intended respondent.

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Official Statistics

• Secondary source of data.
• The researcher relies upon other people to
  collect data.

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Advantages

• Saves time as it is a readily available source of
  data.
• Conclusions drawn are objective because of lack
  of interaction.
• Generalizations can be made.
• Researcher can understand the nature of social
  change by comparing statistics from different
  times.
• Statistics could be used to gain a deeper
  understanding of human relationships.

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Disadvantages

• Producers may be biased in collecting the data.
• The validity of some official reports (e.g.
  crime) could be inaccurate because trivial crimes
  may not be reported.
• Technological developments make it appear that
  more crimes are taking place, therefore
  comparisons from past to present would be
  inaccurate.
• Due to the fact that it is secondary data, there
  is a low level of reliability

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Qualitative

• collects subjective data such as information
  about peoples emotions, feelings and values.
• The researcher usually interacts directly with
  the respondents (i.e. face-to-face) or by
  actually joining in their everyday activities
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• There are 4 forms of qualitative research
• Unstructured interviews
• Participant observation
• Case studies
• Documents

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Unstructured Interviews

• Face-to-face interaction process in which the
  researcher tries to get as much useful
  information as possible from a respondent or a
  number of respondents
• It can take the form of a one-session interview
  or a number of session
• The respondents trust must be gained and factors
  such as social class, sex or ethnicity can
  influence the level of trust gained

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Advantages

• The validity of the data is enhanced by the
  following
• Researcher can detect lies or inconsistencies by
  observing facial reactions and body language
• Misunderstanding can be clarified
• The researcher can understand the world from the
  point of view of the interviewee
• Researcher can gain information that he never
  thought about asking

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Advantages continued

• It is a more practical research technique for
  explaining specific issues, e.g. rape
• Due to the small sample, it can be useful for
  challenging or refuting already existing ideas

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Disadvantages

• Validity is reduced by the following
• Observer effect
• Deliberate lies on the part of the interviewee
• Time consuming
• Large quantities of information can pose problems
  for analysis
• Some interviewees can have limited knowledge of
  a particular topic
• Not cost effective

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Participant Observation

• Is regarded as a scientific tool because the
  researcher studies people in their natural
  environment by joining their daily activities
• The researcher must remain as objective
  non-judgemental and not overly involved as
  possible
• Researcher can be overt letting the group
  members know that they are being studied - or
  covert choose to keep his identity secret
• Unlike interviews, trust must be gained from the
  start
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Advantages

• Validity is enhanced by the following
• The researcher witnesses the group first hand
• Observer effect is minimized
• Questions can be asked to clarify events and
  actions of the group
• Groups subjective point of view can be
  understood
• Information can be used to formulate theories
  about human behaviour
• It is a practical method for studying deviant or
  secret groups and activities, e.g. gangs,
  homosexuality

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Disadvantages

• Validity may be compromised by the following
• Covert observer may forget information
• Covert observer may provide his own
  interpretation because asking questions may
  reveal his identity
• Overt observation may produce the ob server
  effect
• There is no standardized way to study human
  behaviour
• It is costly
• It is time-consuming

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Documents

• Contains information usually qualitative form
• There are 2 main types of documents historical
  and personal
• Personal documents include letters, diaries,
  biographies and autobiographies
• Historical documents are usually information
  written by people who lived during a particular
  era
• Documents are a secondary source of data

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Advantages

• Saves time and money
• Practical method of studying past events
• Provides insight in areas that otherwise one may
  not have access to
• Information could be used to measure the extent
  of social change

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Disadvantages

• Invalid because of producer bias
• Information may be difficult to read and may
  contain missing pages
• Some documents may be difficult to access
• Information may be limited in scope or outdated

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Conclusion 8
Identify Problem 1
Discussion of Findings 7
Formulate Research Question 2
Research Process
Interpretation of Data 6
Literature Review 3
Data Analysis 5
Data Collection 4
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The Problem Statement

• This is a sentence in which you clearly state
  what you wish to find out.
• E.g.. What is the level of hurricane preparedness
  of a sample of households in Windy village,
  Barbados?

Theme The Environment
Sub Theme Natural Disasters
Problem Statement?
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Hypothesis Statement

• A statement which suggests the possible answer to
  your problem statement. It mentions a variable or
  the relationship between 2 or more variables.
• A variable is a thing/concept that changes.
• E.g.
• 1. Windy Village, St Silas, Barbados is not
  prepared for hurricanes.
• 2. The level of preparedness amongst households
  in Windy Village, St Silas is affected by their
  experiences of hurricanes.

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Stage 1
Narrow down problems or issues
Identifies Problem
Impacts on human development
makes problem manageable
One must be able to study the problem. E.g. drug
use
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Stage 2
Create a hypothesis that can either be accepted
or rejected
Devise once main question or point
Formulating Research Questions
Devise a set of sub-questions or concerns
Focus on what the researcher wants to be informed
about
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Stage 3
Research must be related to problem being
researched
e.g. books, journals, articles, newspapers
Literature Reviews
Read as much as possible on topic
Look at strategies and methods of other
researchers and compare
Find info to definition point
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Stage 4
Choose sample
Questions must be focused on what he/she wants to
know
Data Collection
Choose a strategy relative to study
Method used must bias free
Design instruments that will be reliable and valid
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Stage 5
Organizes the data collected for presentation
Use thin marginal questions, concerns or concepts
as a guide
Data Analysis
This presentation is guided by research question
or hypothesis
There must be at least 5 different ways of
presentations
The most popular formats were pie charts, bar and
live graphs, flow diagrams, maps, photographs etc.
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Stage 6
States what the data implies
Interpretation of Findings
Describes patterns and trends averages, ranges.
Explains the results and include contradictions
Accounts for all the findings presented
Consider the implications
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Stage 7
in relation to the original questions
Discussion of findings
Ensures all research questions are answered
Compares your findings with those presented in
the Literature Review
Identifies similarities and differences in the
pattern and trend of the studies
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Stage 8
Conclusion
Summarize your results and restate their
educational value
States the limitation of research/ Methodology.
Suggest at least three (3) recommendations that
should be practical solutions which can be
easily implemented
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Convenience
Access
Limitations
Resources
Time
Costs
Expertise