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Research Methods (Overview (Research process (1) Define topic, 2)…

- - - - Non-scientific
        
        Method of intuition: accepting info based on gut feeling
        
        Method of authority: consulting internet, books or experts
        
        Rational method: logical reasoning
        
        Empirical method: gathering info through direct observation or personal experience
        
        Method of tenacity: holding on to ideas/beliefs due to it being long accepted as facts or habit/superstition
      - Scientific
        
        Systematic
        
        Open to scrutiny (replication/criticism)
        
        Controlled (value-free)
        
        Empirical (answers observable/manageable questions, confined by time/resources/instruments)
    - - Objection
        
        Factual truth questionable
        
        Universal laws not suitable for human behaviour
        
        Lacks appropriate/objective instrument for measuring human behaviour
        
        Value-orientated theories
      - Support
        
        Systematised information
        
        Categorised: division's own definition/area of investigation/aim/methodology
        
        Properties of social phenomena and causes of social behaviour
        
        Continuous advancement: increasing precision/specialization
        
        Unified language system: communication in different disciplines
        
        Dynamic
        
        Seek answers to questions
        
        Generate/Test hypotheses and develop/modify theories
        
        Develop instruments/methods/techniques to understand/predict/modify human behaviour
        
        Publicize literature/educate people and apply research findings/theories to human use
        
        Empirical and logical-rational: combine theory/observation in seeking/applying knowledge
        
        Skeptical about explanation of social phenomena: theories/findings open to scrutiny
        
        Scientific method: consists of standards/procedures allowing repetition and verification of research results
    - - Protection of individual rights
        
        Welfare/Dignity of participants not compromised
        
        No physical/psychological harm
        
        Informed consent: information/understanding/voluntary participation
        
        Confidentiality/Anonymity
      - Scientific integrity
        
        Public reporting to be truthful/accurate
        
        Fraud/Error and plagiarism
    - - Use research to test theory
      - Research hypotheses sometimes derived from theory
      - Isolates variables to be observed in research
      - Research analysis strengthens with available theory.
      - Structures how findings expressed for purposes of generalization (i.e. explanation of various findings already available)
      - Research frequently results in development/modification of theory
  - - - Positivist
        
        Aim/Goal
        
        Explain social phenomena: identify cause
        
        Make prediction (under what conditions)
        
        Develop/Test theory
      - Interpretive
        
        Aim/Goal
        
        Explore social reality as independent research topic/further research direction: to find out if something exists/occurs
        
        Describe social phenomena: define properties
        
        Understand behaviour/action
      - Critical
        
        Aim/Goal
        
        Change/Influence behaviour
        
        Evaluate effectiveness of programme/status of social issues
    - - Qualitative
        
        Meaning of behaviour (how individuals perceive their world), reject natural science, natural setting, words, inductive, describes development of process/identifies cultural patterns
      - Quantitative
        
        Objective reality (external behaviour), natural science model, control/artificial setting, numeric, deductive, cause-and-effect, universal laws
- - - - Objective
        
        Logical, tentative answer to research problem/question
        
        Testable statements: reinforce/refute/refine
        
        Two or more measurable variables
        
        States direction of relationships to be tested
        
        Basis for measurement choice
        
        Derived from literature review
      - Criteria
        
        Logical: rationale/justification
        
        Testable
        
        Refutable
        
        Positive: statement must show existence of relationship/differences
    - - Purpose
        
        Places current research into scientific perspective, increase knowledge base
        
        Avoids duplication of effort, identify possible gaps
        
        Avoids conceptual/procedural mistakes
      - Selection
        
        Relevance: importance/strength/comprehensibility
        
        Publication: up-to-date, most recognized/influential authors or classical studies in the field
  - - - Level
        
        Nominal
        
        Category/Classification/Membership: named, distinct/mutually exclusive/exhaustive (e.g. gender, ethnicity)
        
        Ordinal
        
        Order: ranking, comparison (e.g. educational qualification, 1st/2nd/3rd)
        
        Interval
        
        Numerical distance between categories: difference (e.g. temperature in Celsius, Cartesian coordinates, date from arbituary epoch such as AD)
        
        Ratio
        
        Absolute zero: magnitude (e.g. mass, duration, length, age)
      - Reliability
        
        Test-retest: compare scores from 2 successive measurements of same individuals and calculate correlation between 2 sets of scores
        
        Degree to which observed result is free from errors of measurement (stability & consistency)
        
        Inter-rater: degree of agreement between 2 observers who simultaneously record measurements
        
        Split half: split items on questionnaire/test into half, compute separate score for each half, then calculate degree of consistency for a group of participants
      - Validity
        
        Degree to which measurement process measures the variable it claims to measure
        
        Measure
        
        Face: crude form which superficially appears to measure
        
        Concurrent: new score to relate to an established measure
        
        Predictive: score to accurately predict behaviour according to theory
        
        Construct: score to behave exactly as the variable
        
        Convergent: strong relationship between scores from 2 different methods
        
        Divergent: no relationship between 2 different constructs when measured by same method
        
        Qualitative
        
        Internal consistency: coherent
        
        Presentation of evidence: sufficient raw data in report for reader to evaluate
        
        Independent audit: independent research checks credibility/logical progression of final report
        
        Triangulation: use more than one method of data collection
        
        Member validation: participants to check/comment on interpretation/analysis
  - - - Probability: known probablity/representation)
        
        Simple random
        
        Systematic: constant interval "k"
        
        Stratified random: by stratum, proportionate (ratio to the population) or disproportionate (over-representation of minor groups)
        
        Cluster: natural groupings (e.g. school/organizations)
      - Non-probability: control/flexible, no randomisation (sampling error cannot be estimated)
        
        Convenience
        
        Quota: similar to stratified, but set numbers to be selected according to specific criteria
        
        Purposive/Judgemental: select typical/extreme/theory-based case
        
        Snowball: recommendation by other people, for hard-to-acess respondents (e.g. homosexual, prostitute, battered wife)
- - - - Internal: strong evidence of cause and effect
        
        Minimise threat: use control group, use intervention (experimental manipulation, randomise subjects
      - External: ability to generalize
    - - Laboratory vs field experiment: controlled/lower external validity vs higher external validity
      - True vs quasi: safeguard high internal validty vs less control (no andom assignment/multiple groups)
  - - - Simple case
      - Survey and cross-sectional
      - Trend and longitudinal
      - Longitudinal comparison
  - - - Data: different sources (e.g. collecting at different times/locations or from different people)
      - Investigator: multiple observers
      - Theory: multiple perspectives for the phenomena
      - Methodological: different data collection methods