GIJ: LEVEL 300 (SEMESTER 1) – CSPR 303 COMMUNICATION ...zydo.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/CSPR-303... · Reference: Research Design, by John W. Creswell 3rd Edition. PART ONE:

GIJ: LEVEL 300 (SEMESTER 1) – CSPR 303 COMMUNICATION RESEARCH DESIGN

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Reference: Research Design, by John W. Creswell 3rd Edition. PART ONE: PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS CHAPTER 1: SELECTION OF A RESEARCH DESIGN/APPROACH Research designs or approaches are the plans and procedures (framework) for conducting research that concerns data collection, measurement and analysis. The selection of a research design involves a number of decision, such as:

a) the paradigm or philosophical worldview the researcher brings to the study; b) the procedures or strategy of inquiry; and c) specific methods of data collection, analysis, and interpretation.

The selection of a research design is also based on the nature of the research problem or issue being addressed, the researchers' personal experiences, and the audiences for the study.

There are three types of research design: Quantitative, Qualitative and Mixed Method. Quantitative research approach/design: it involves testing objective theories by examining the relationship among variables using numbers. It is objective because researchers are independent from the subjects’ participation in the research. Theories are studied deductively from general themes to specific themes. Fig. Deductive logic of reasoning.

Qualitative research approach/design: explore meanings, attitudes, values and beliefs that people ascribe to social problems. It involves a small sample and generally subjective. Data is typically collected in the participant's setting. Data analysis inductively builds from particulars to general themes and the researcher making interpretations of the meaning of the data. Inductive logic.

Mixed methods Approach/Design: is an approach to inquiry that combines both qualitative and quantitative forms. It involves the use of both approaches in tandem so that the overall strength of a study is greater than either qualitative or quantitative research. It connects the quantitative and qualitative data. For example, the results from one method can help identify participants to study or questions to ask for the other method. Alternatively, the qualitative and quantitative data can be merged into one large database or the results used side by side to reinforce each other. A) PHILOSOPHY OR PARADIGM OF RESEARCH (PHILOSOPHICAL WORLDVIEWS) A philosophy is a theory that acts as a guiding principle for behaviour or the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence. A paradigm is a set of assumptions or


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viewpoints serve as a guide to what problems researchers should study and the explanations that are acceptable.

Positivist/Postpositivist/ postpostivism research or empirical science, and: is simply known as the scientific approach to the study of society. It is a deterministic philosophy in which causes probably determine effects. Its reductionist because its intent is to reduce the ideas into small discrete sets of ideas to test the variables. Used for quantitative research and verification of theory.

Social Constructivism/Interpretivism/Phenomenology: argues that the researcher must seek to understand the individual’s experiences of the particular situation under study. The open ended questions become broad and general so that individuals/participants can construct the meaning of a situation that are usually formed through interaction with others. Its used for qualitative research and generation of theory.

Advocacy/Participatory/Transformative approach to research (emancipatory): argues that research inquiry needs to be intertwined with political agenda to directly or indirectly bring reforms or change to people’s lives. They posit that other approaches to research do not respond to the needs of the marginalized or vulnerable groups. It is used in both quantitative and qualitative research.

Pragmatism approach: It is research inquiry, which seeks to better understand and ultimately solve the problem. It focuses on what can be achieved or what works in research. It is primarily used in mixed method research.

B) STRATEGIES OF INQUIRY/ APPROACHES TO INQUIRY/ RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES

Strategies of inquiry are types of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods designs or models that provide specific direction for procedures in a research design. Others have called them approaches to inquiry (Creswell, 2007) or research methodologies (Mertens, 1998).

Quantitative Strategies of inquiry are: Surveys and Experiments. • Survey research provides a numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. It includes cross-sectional and longitudinal studies using questionnaires or structured interviews for data collection, with the intent of generalizing from a sample to a population (Babbie, 1990). • Experimental research seeks to determine if a specific behaviour influences an outcome. This impact is assessed by providing a specific behaviour to one group and withholding it from another and then determining how both groups scored on an outcome. Qualitative strategies of inquiry are: case studies, narrative, phenomenology, ethnography, grounded theory studies • Ethnography is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher studies a group in their natural setting over a prolonged period of time by collecting, primarily, observational and interview data. • Grounded theory is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher derives a general abstract theory of a process, action, or interaction grounded in the views of participants. It involves using multiple stages of data collection. • Case studies are a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher explores in depth a program, event, activity or process of one or more individuals. Cases are bounded by time and activity, and researchers collect detailed information using a variety of data collection procedures over a sustained period of time.


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• Phenomenological research is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher identifies the essence of human experiences about a phenomenon as described by participants. It involves studying a small number of subjects through extensive and prolonged engagement to develop patterns and relationships of meaning. • Narrative research is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher studies the lives of individuals and asks one or more individuals to provide stories about their lives. This information is then often retold or restored by the researcher into a narrative chronology. Mixed method strategies of inquiry: sequential, concurrent, transformative • Sequential mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher seeks to elaborate on or expand on the findings of one method with another method. This may involve beginning with a qualitative interview for exploratory purposes and following up with a quantitative, survey method with a large sample so that the researcher can generalize results to a population. • Concurrent mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher converges or merges quantitative and qualitative data in order to provide a comprehensive analysis of the research problem. Both forms of data are collected at the same time and then the information is integrated in the interpretation of the overall results. • Transformative mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher uses a theoretical framework as a guide within a design that contains both quantitative and qualitative data. This framework guides the topics of interest, methods for collecting data, and outcomes anticipated by the study. Within this guide could be a data collection method that involves a sequential or a concurrent approach.

C) RESEARCH METHODS (data collection, analysis and interpretation)

The third major element in the framework is the specific research methods that involve the forms of data collection, analysis, and interpretation that researchers propose for their studies.

Researchers collect data on an instrument or test (e.g .. a set of questions about attitudes toward self-steem) or gather information on a behavioral checklist (e.g .. observation of a worker engaged in a complex skill). On the other end of the continuum, collecting data might involve visiting a research site and observing the behavior of individuals without predetermined questions or conducting an interview in which the individual is allowed to talk openly about a topic, largely without the use of specific questions. Also, the type of data analyzed may be numeric information gathered on scales of instruments or text information recording and reporting the voice of the participants.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTING A RESEARCH DESIGN

Apart from worldview, strategy, and methods, (the research problem, the personal experiences of the researcher, and the audience(s) for whom the report will be written) are factors that affect the choice of one research approach or design over another.

The Research Problem:

If the problem calls for (a) the identification of factors that influence an outcome, (b) the utility of an intervention, or (c) understanding the best predictors of outcomes, then a quantitative approach is best. Itis also the best approach to use to test a theory or explanation.

If a concept or phenomenon needs to be understood because little research has been done on it, or the researcher does not know the important variables to examine because the topic is new and must be explored, then it merits qualitative research.


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A mixed methods design is useful when either the quantitative or qualitative approach by itself is inadequate to best understand a research problem or the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative research can provide the best understanding.

Personal Experiences:

An individual trained in technical, scientific writing, statistics, and computer statistical programs and familiar with quantitative journals in the library would most likely choose the quantitative design. Follows systematic procedure of inquiry.

On the other hand, individuals who enjoy writing in a literary way or conducting personal interviews or making up-close observations may gravitate to the qualitative approach. Provides flexibility of inquiry.

The mixed methods researcher is an individual familiar with both quantitative and qualitative research, and has the time and resources to collect both qualitative and quantitative data.

Audience:

Finally, researchers write for audiences that will accept their research. These audiences may be journal editors, journal readers, graduate committees, conference attendees, or colleagues in the field. Students should consider the approaches typically supported and used by their advisers. The experiences of these audiences with quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods studies can shape the decision made about this choice

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW Besides selecting a quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods approach, the researcher also needs to review the literature about a topic. Literature review generally can be described as the examination of literary works that have already been written. Hart (2018) also defined it as the analysis, critical evaluation and synthesis of existing knowledge relevant to your research problem. The Research Topic: The topic is the subject matter of a proposed study, such as "faculty teaching," "organizational creativity," or "psychological stress." Describe the topic in a few words or in a short phrase. The topic becomes the central idea to learn about or to explore. A working title can be written like this "My study is about helping college faculty become better researchers." Another strategy for topic development is to pose the topic as a brief question that will be answered by the research. For example, "What treatment is best for depression?" "What does it mean to be Arabic in U.S. society today?" "What brings people to tourist sites in the Midwest?" A topic can be researched if a) researchers have participants willing to serve in the study. b) researcher have resources to collect data over a sustained period of time and to analyze the information, such as available computer programs. c) the study contributes something new to the body of research. d) the research would be of interest to colleagues (journal editors, committee members), the institution (conference planners, funding agencies), the nation (general public or government). e) the research will pay off in enhancing the career goals of the researcher, ie; obtaining a future position or advancing towards a degree.


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The Literature Review: The literature review accomplishes several purposes.

a) It shares the results of other studies that are closely related to the one being undertaken. b) It shows that the researcher is knowledgeable about the area of study and the major issues

related to it. c) To help refine research topic, questions, objectives and hypothesis d) It is a means to learn from others and also stimulate new ideas for the researcher. e) It points out where previous research studies agree and where they disagree. f) It helps to identify blind alleys or gaps and suggest hypothesis for replication. g) It outlines the direction of research on a question and shows the development of

knowledge.

Cooper ( 1984) suggests that literature reviews can be integrative, in which the researchers summarize broad themes in the literature (used for dissertations). It can also be theoretical review in which the researcher focuses on extant theory that relates to the problem under study. This form appears in journal articles in which the author integrates the theory into the introduction. A final form suggested by Cooper is a methodological review, where the researcher focuses on methods and definitions. These reviews may provide both a summary of studies and a critique of the strengths and weaknesses of the methods sections. This last form is not seen frequently today in dissertations and theses.

Sources of materials for literature review

It is advisable to use peer reviewed information from credible sources for your literature review.

Grey literature is research produced by organizations outside traditional academic channels.

A primary source provides direct or firsthand evidence about an event, object, person, or work of art. It also includes historical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts, results of experiments, statistical data, pieces of creative writing, audio and video recordings, speeches, art objects. Interviews, surveys, fieldwork, and Internet communications via email, blogs, listservs, and newsgroups are also primary sources. Primary data is data that is collected by a researcher from first-hand sources, using methods like surveys, interviews, or experiments. It is collected with the research project in mind, directly from primary sources.

Secondary sources describe, discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze, evaluate, summarize, and process primary sources. It includes, newspapers articles, books, movie reviews, or scholarly journals articles that discuss or evaluate someone else's original research. Secondary data is data gathered from studies, surveys, or experiments that have been run by other people or for other research.

Methods/Styles of Literature Review

Narrative literature review critiques and summarizes literature to draws conclusions about the topic and identifies gaps or inconsistencies in a body of knowledge.

Systematic literature review is comprehensive and details the timeframe within which the literature was selected. Systematic literature review can be divided into two categories: meta-analysis and meta-synthesis. Meta-analysis takes findings from several studies on the same subject and analyze these using standardized statistical procedures. Meta-analysis is associated with deductive research approach. Meta-synthesis, integrates, evaluates and interprets findings of multiple qualitative


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research studies using non-statistical techniques. Meta-synthesis is associated with inductive research approach.

Argumentative literature review, examines literature selectively in order to support or refute an argument, assumption, or philosophical problem already established in the literature. Potential for bias is a shortcoming associated with argumentative literature review.

Integrative literature review, reviews, critiques, and synthesizes secondary data about research topic in an integrated way such that new perspectives on the topic are generated.

Theoretical literature review focuses on theory that has accumulated with regard to the issue or topic under study.

What is an Abstract?

An abstract is a brief review of the literature (typically in a short paragraph) that summarizes major elements, to enable a reader to understand the basic features of the article. It includes the following

Mention the problem being addresses State the central purpose or focus of the study Briefly state information about the sample, population or subjects Review key results that relate to the proposed study

The Definition of Terms

Define terms that individuals outside the field of study may not understand and that go beyond common language (Locke. Spirduso. & Silverman, 2007).

Define terms introduced in all sections of the research plan.

Variables A variable is defined as anything that has a quantity or quality that varies. Variables are also defined as characteristics in research that can take on different values. A variable refers to a characteristic or attribute that can take on different values and can be measured or assessed. • Independent variables are those that (probably) cause, influence, or affect outcomes. They are also called treatment, manipulated, antecedent, or predictor variables. • Dependent variables are those that depend on the independent variables; they are the outcomes or results of the influence of the independent variables. Other names for dependent variables are criterion, outcome, and effect variables.

Examples: Which of these two are dependent or independent variables? Physical activity and weight loss = weight loss is dependent and physical activity is independent. Positive feedback and self confidence = Headache and aspirin = Muscle mass and weight-training = Blood pressure and salt intake =


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CHAPTER 3: THE USES OF THEORY Definition of a theory: A theory is an interrelated set of constructs (or variables) formed into propositions, or hypotheses that specify the relationship among variables. CHAPTER 4: WRITING STRATEGIES AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS The Research Process

• Selection of Researchable Topic • Statement of the research problem/Research Problem • Research objectives/Research questions • Stating hypothesis • Theoretical/conceptual framework • Literature Review • Methodology/Research methods • Data collection, analysis and interpretation • Conclusion and Recommendation or Suggestions for further research

What is a proposal? A research proposal is a concise and coherent summary of your proposed research. It sets out the central issues or questions that you intend to address. It guides the overall research process. The proposal is written in present or future tense Format of a quantitative proposal Introduction

Statement of the problem (issue, significance of issue) Purpose of the study and delimitations Theoretical perspective Research questions or hypotheses

Review of the literature Methods

Type of research design Population, sample, and participants Data collection instruments, variables, and materials Data analysis procedures

Anticipated ethical issues in the study. Preliminary studies or pilot tests Appendixes: Instruments, timeline, and proposed budget ETHICAL ISSUES TO ANTICIPATE Researchers need to protect their research participants: develop a trust with them; promote the integrity of research; guard against misconduct and impropriety that might reflect on their organizations or institutions: and cope with new, challenging problems (Isreal & Hay, 2006). Ethical Issues in the Research Problem: During the identification of the research problem, it is important to identify a problem that will benefit individuals being studied, one that will be meaningful for others besides the researcher.


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Ethical Issues in the Purpose and Questions: In developing the purpose statement and questions for a study, proposal developers need to convey the purpose of the study that will be described to the participants. Ethical Issues in Data Collection: Do not put participants at risk, and respect vulnerable populations. Institutional Review Board (IRB) on university campuses assesses the potential for risk, such as physical. Psychological, social, economic, or legal harm to participants in a study. Also, the researcher needs to consider the special needs of vulnerable populations, such as minors (under the age of 19), mentally incompetent participants, victims, persons with neurological impairments, pregnant women or fetuses, prisoners, and individuals with AIDS. Researchers file research proposals containing the procedures and information about the participants with the IRB campus committee so that the board can review the extent to which the research being proposed subjects individuals to risk. In addition to this proposal, the researcher develops an informed consent form for participants to sign before they engage in the research. This form acknowledges that participants' rights will be protected during data collection. Other ethical procedures during data collection involve gaining the agreement of individuals in authority (e.g., gatekeepers) to provide access to study participants at research sites. Researchers need to respect research sites so that they are left undisturbed after a research study. For example, they might time visits so that they intrude little on the flow of activities of participants. Interviewers need to consider how the interview will improve the human situation, or how sensitive interview questions may be for participants to answer. Researchers also need to anticipate the possibility of harmful, intimate information being disclosed during the data collection process. For example, a student may discuss parental abuse or prisoners may talk about an escape. The ethical code for researchers (which may be different for schools and prisons) is to protect the privacy of the participants and to convey this protection to all individuals involved in a study. Ethical Issues in Data Analysis and Interpretation: How will the study protect the anonymity of individuals, roles, and incidents in the project? For example, in survey research, investigators disassociate names from responses during the coding and recording process. In qualitative research, inquirers use aliases or pseudonyms for individuals and places, to protect identities. Data, once analyzed, need to be kept for a reasonable period of time (e.g., 5-10 years). Investigators should then discard the data so that it does not fall into the hands of other researchers who might misappropriate it. The question of who owns the data once it is collected and analyzed also can be an issue that splits research teams and divides individuals against each other. A proposal might mention this issue of ownership and discuss how it will be resolved, such as through the development of a clear understanding between the researcher, the participants, and possibly the faculty advisers.


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In the interpretation of data, researchers need to provide an accurate/objective account of the information. This accuracy may require debriefing between the researcher and participants in quantitative research. Ethical Issues in Writing and Disseminating the Research: Other ethical issues in writing the research will involve the potential of suppressing, falsifying, or inventing findings to meet a researcher's or an audience's needs. In planning a study, it is important to anticipate the repercussions of conducting the research on certain audiences and not to misuse the results to the advantage of one group or another. An important issue in writing a scholarly manuscript is to not exploit the labor of colleagues who substantially contributed to the publication. Gift authorship and ghost authorship. Finally, it is important to release the details of the research with the study design so that readers can determine for themselves the credibility of the study. PART TWO: DESIGNING RESEARCH This chapter discusses the introduction, the purpose statement, research question and hypothesis, quantitative methods, the qualitative methods, and mixed methods procedures. CHAPTER 5: THE INTRODUCTION no notes written for this topic CHAPTER 6: THE PURPOSE STATEMENT no notes written for this topic CHAPTER 7: RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESIS No notes written for this topic CHAPTER 8: QUANTITATIVE METHODS This chapter focuses on survey and experimental designs. These designs reflect postpositivist philosophical assumptions, as discussed in Chapter 1. For example, determinism suggests that examining the relationships between and among variables is central to answering questions and hypotheses through surveys and experiments. The reduction to a parsimonious set of variables, tightly controlled through design or statistical analysis, provides measures or observations for testing a theory. Objective data result from empirical observations and measures. Validity and reliability of scores on instruments lead to meaningful interpretations of data. DEFINING SURVEYS AND EXPERIMENTS A survey design provides a quantitative or numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. From sample results, the researcher generalizes or makes claims about the population. In an experiment, investigators may also identify a sample and generalize to a population; however, the basic intent of an experimental design is to test the impact of a treatment (or an intervention) on an outcome, controlling for all other factors that might influence that outcome. As one form of control, researchers randomly assign individuals to groups. When one group receives a treatment and the other group does not, the experimenter can isolate whether it is the treatment and not the other factors that influence the outcome.


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COMPONENTS OF A SURVEY METHOD PLAN • Identify the purpose of survey research. This purpose is to generalize from a sample to a population so that inferences can be made about some characteristic, attitude, or behavior of this population • Indicate why a survey is the preferred type of data collection procedure for the study. In this rationale, consider the advantages of survey designs, such as the economy of the design and the rapid turnaround in data collection. • Indicate whether the survey will be cross-sectional, with the data collected at one point in time, or whether it will be longitudinal, with data collected over time. • Specify the form of data collection. Fink (2002) identifies four types: self-administered questionnaires; interviews; structured record reviews to collect financial, medical, or school information; and structured observations. The data collection may also involve creating a Web-based or Internet survey and administering it online The Population and Sample • Identify the population in the study. Also state the size of this population, if size can be determined, and the means of identifying individuals in the population. Questions of access arise here, and the researcher might refer to availability of sampling frames-mail or published lists-of potential respondents in the population. • Identify whether the sampling design for this population is single stage or multistage (called clustering). Cluster sampling is ideal when it is impossible or impractical to compile a list of the elements composing the population (Babbie, 2007). A single-stage sampling procedure is one in which the researcher has access to names in the population and can sample the people (or other elements) directly. In a multistage or clustering procedure, the researcher first identifies clusters (groups or organizations), obtains names of individuals within those clusters, and then samples within them. • Identify the selection process for individuals. I recommend selecting a random sample, in which each individual in the population has an equal probability of being selected (a systematic or probabilistic sample). Less desirable is a nonprobability sample (or convenience sample), in which respondents are chosen based on their convenience and availability (Babbie, 1990). With randomization, a representative sample from a population provides the ability to generalize to a population. • Identify whether the study will involve stratification of the population before selecting the sample. Stratification means that specific characteristics of individuals (e.g., both females and males) are represented in the sample and the sample reflects the true proportion in the population of individuals with certain characteristics (Fowler, 2002). When randomly selecting people from a population, these characteristics may or may not be present in the sample in the same proportions as in the population; stratification ensures their representation. Also identify the characteristics used in stratifying the population (e.g., gender, income levels, education). Within each stratum, identify whether the sample contains individuals with the characteristic in the same proportion as the characteristic appears in the entire population (Babbie, 1990; Miller, 1991). • Discuss the procedures for selecting the sample from available lists and indicate the number of people in the sample and the procedures used to compute this number. Instrumentation This is the actual survey instrument to be used. • Name the survey instrument used to collect data. • Validity (whether one can draw meaningful and useful inferences from scores on the instruments). Reliability (are scores stable over time when the instrument is administered a second time?).


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• Mention the type of scales used to measure the items on the instrument, such as continuous scales (e.g., strongly agree to strongly disagree) and categorical scales (e.g.,yes/no, rank from highest to lowest importance). • Discuss plans for pilot testing or field testing the survey and provide a rationale for these plans. This testing is important to establish the content validity of an instrument and to improve questions, format, and scales. Indicate the number of people who will test the instrument and the plans to incorporate their comments into final instrument revisions. Data Analysis and Interpretation • Report information about the number of members of the sample who did and did not return the survey. A table with numbers and percentages describing respondents and non-respondents is a useful tool to present this information. • Discuss the method by which response bias will be determined. Response bias is the effect of nonresponses on survey estimates • Discuss a plan to provide a descriptive analysis of data for all independent and dependent variables in the study. This analysis should indicate the means, standard deviations, and range of scores for these variables. • Identify the statistics and the statistical computer program for testing the major inferential research questions or hypotheses • A final step in the data analysis is to present the results in tables or figures and interpret the results from the statistical test. An interpretation of the results means that the researcher draws conclusions from the results for the research questions, hypotheses, and the larger meaning of the results. COMPONENTS OF AN EXPERIMENTAL METHOD PLAN An experimental method discussion follows these four topics participants, materials, procedures, and measures. Participants The selection, assignment, and number of participants who will take part in the experiment. • Describe the selection process for participants as either random or nonrandom (e.g., conveniently selected). The participants might be selected by random selection or random sampling. With random selection or random sampling, each individual has an equal probability of being selected from the population, ensuring that the sample will be representative of the population (Keppel, 1991). When individuals are not randomly assigned, the procedure is called a quasi-experiment. • When individuals can be randomly assigned to groups, the procedure is called a true experiment. This means that of the pool of participants, Individual 1 goes to Group 1, Individual2 to Group 2, and so forth, so that there is no systematic bias in assigning the individuals. Variables The variables need to be specified in an experiment so that it is clear to readers what groups are receiving the experimental treatment and what outcomes are being measured. • Clearly identify the independent variables in the experiment. One independent variable must be the treatment variable, which one or more groups will receive. Other independent variables may simply be measured variables in which no manipulation occurs. • Identify the dependent variable or variables (i.e, the outcomes) in the experiment. The dependent variable is the response or the criterion variable that is presumed to be caused/influenced by the independent treatment.


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Instrumentation and Materials • Describe the instrument or instruments participants complete in the experiment. Indicate the established validity and reliability of the scores on instruments, the individuals who developed them, and any permissions needed to use them. • Thoroughly discuss the materials used for the experimental treatment. A pilot test of these materials may also be discussed, as well as any training required to administer the materials in a standard way. Experimental Procedures • Identify the type of experimental design to be used in the proposed study. The types available in experiments are pre-experimental designs, true experiments, quasi-experiments, and single-subject designs. With pre-experimental designs, the researcher studies a single group and provides an intervention during the experiment. This design does not have a control group to compare with the experimental group. In quasi-experiments, the investigator uses control and experimental groups but does not randomly assign participants to groups (e.g., they may be intact groups available to the researcher). In a true experiment, the investigator randomly assigns the participants to treatment groups. A single-subject design or N of 1 design involves observing the behavior of a single individual (or a small number of individuals) over time. • Identify what is being compared in the experiment (for example, comparing two or more groups). Threats to Validity Experimental researchers need to identify potential threats to the internal validity of their experiments and design them so that these threats will not likely arise or are minimized. Internal validity threats are experimental procedures, treatments, or experiences of the participants that threaten the researcher's ability to draw correct inferences from the data about the population in an experiment. Some involve participants (i.e., history, maturation, and mortality) while some involve experimental procedures used (ie., testing and instruments). External validity threats arise when experimenters draw incorrect inferences from the sample data to other persons, other settings, and past or future situations. These threats arise because of the characteristics of individuals selected for the sample, the uniqueness of the setting, and the timing of the experiment. Statistical conclusion validity threats, arise when experimenters draw inaccurate inferences from the data because of inadequate statistical power or the violation of statistical assumptions. Threats to construct validity occur when investigators use inadequate definitions and measures of variables. • 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). The Procedure • Discuss a step-by-step approach for the procedure in the experiment. Data Analysis The types of statistical analysis that will be used during the experiment. • Report the descriptive statistics calculated for observations and measures at the pre-test or post-test stage of experimental designs. These statistics are means, standard deviations, and ranges. • Indicate the inferential statistical tests used to examine the hypotheses in the study. Some researchers use t tests or univariate analysis of variance (ANOVA), analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), or multivariate analysis of variance (MAN OVA-multiple dependent measures). Interpreting Results


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The final step in an experiment is to interpret the findings in light of the hypotheses or research questions set forth in the beginning. In this interpretation, address whether the hypotheses or questions were supported or whether they were refuted. CHAPTER 9: QUALITATIVE METHODS Qualitative inquiry employs different philosophical assumptions; strategies of inquiry; and methods of data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Qualitative procedures rely on text and image data, have unique steps in data analysis, and draw on diverse strategies of inquiry. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Here are the characteristics of qualitative research, presented in no specific order of importance: • Natural setting: Qualitative researchers tend to collect data in the field at the site where participants experience the issue or problem under study. This up close information is gathered by actually talking directly to people and seeing them behave and act within their context is a major characteristic of qualitative research. In the natural setting, the researchers have face-to-face interaction over time. • Researcher as key instrument: Qualitative researchers collect data themselves through examining documents, observing behavior, or interviewing participants. They may use a protocol-an instrument for collecting data-but the researchers are the ones who actually gather the information. They do not tend to use or rely on questionnaires or instruments developed by other researchers. • Multiple sources of data: Qualitative researchers typically gather multiple forms of data, such as interviews, observations, and documents, rather than rely on a single data source. Then the researchers review all of the data, make sense of it, and organize it into categories that cut across all of the data sources. • Inductive data analysis: Qualitative researchers build their patterns and categories from the bottom up, by organizing the data into increasingly more abstract units of information. • Participants' meanings: In the entire qualitative research process, the researcher keeps a focus on learning the meaning that the participants hold about the problem or issue, not the meaning that the researchers bring to the research or writers express in the literature. • Emergent design: The research process for qualitative researchers is emergent. This means that the initial plan for research cannot be tightly prescribed, and all phases of the process may change or shift after the researcher enters the field and begins to collect data. For example, the questions may change, the forms of data collection may shift, and the individuals studied and the sites visited may be modified. The key idea behind qualitative research is to learn about the problem or issue from participants and to address the research to obtain that information. • Theoretical lens: Qualitative researchers often use lens to view their studies, such as the concept of culture, central to ethnography, or gendered, racial, or class differences from the theoretical orientations. Sometimes the study may be organized around identifying the social, political, or historical context of the problem under study. • lnterpretive: Qualitative research is a form of interpretive inquiry in which researchers make an interpretation of what they see, hear, and understand. With the readers, the participants, and the researchers all making interpretations, it is apparent how multiple views of the problem can emerge. • Holistic account: Qualitative researchers try to develop a complex picture of the problem or issue under study. This involves reporting multiple perspectives, identifying the many factors involved in a situation, and generally sketching the larger picture that emerges. STRATEGIES OF INQUIRY The 5 approaches to qualitative inquiry such as narrative, phenomenology, ethnography, case study, and grounded theory. (see chapter 1, section B: strategies of inquiry for qualitative study).


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THE RESEARCHER'S ROLE • Include statements about past experiences that provide background data through which the audience can better understand the topic, the setting, or the participants and the researcher's interpretation of the phenomenon. • Comment on connections between the researcher and the participants and on the research sites. • Indicate steps taken to obtain permission from the Institutional Review Board (see Chapter 4: ethical considerations) to protect the rights of human participants. Attach, as an appendix, the approval letter from the IRB and discuss the process involved in securing permission. • Discuss steps taken to gain entry to the setting and to secure permission to study the participants or situation by seeking the approval of gatekeepers. • Comment about sensitive ethical issues that may arise and how the research study will address it. DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES • The idea behind qualitative research is to purposefully select participants or sites (or documents or visual material) that will best help the researcher understand the problem and the research question. Four aspects identified by Miles and Huberman (1994): the setting (where the research will take place), the actors (who will be observed or interviewed), the events (what the actors will be observed or interviewed doing), and the process (the evolving nature of events undertaken by the actors within the setting). • Indicate the type or types of data to be collected. In many qualitative studies, inquirers collect multiple forms of data (observations, interviews, documents and audio visual) and spend a considerable time in the natural setting gathering information.

• Qualitative observations are those in which the researcher takes field notes on the behavior and activities of individuals at the research site. • In qualitative interviews, the researcher conducts face-to-face interviews with participants, interviews participants by telephone, or engages in focus group interviews, • During the process of research, the investigator may collect qualitative documents. These may be public documents (e.g., newspapers, minutes of meetings. official reports) or private documents (e.g., personal journals and diaries, letters, e-mails). • A final category of qualitative data consists of qualitative audio and visual materials. This data may take the form of photographs, art objects, videotapes, or any forms of sound.

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION The process of data analysis involves making sense out of text and image data. • Data analysis involves collecting open-ended data, based on asking general questions and developing an analysis from the information supplied by participants. Step l. Organize and prepare the data for analysis. This involves transcribing interviews, typing notes, or sorting and arranging data into different types. Step 2. Read through all the data. A first step is to obtain a general sense of the information and to reflect on its overall meaning. Step 3. Begin detailed analysis with a coding process. Coding is the process of organizing the material into chunks or segments of text before bringing meaning to information. Qualitative software programs for evaluating and interpreting qualitative data are: MAXqda, Atlas.ti, QSR, N6, NVivo, Hyper RESEARCH. Step 4: Use the coding process to generate a description of the setting or people as well as categories or themes for analysis. Description involves a detailed rendering of information about people, places, or events in a setting. Step 5. Advance how the description and themes will be represented in the qualitative narrative. Step 6. A final step in data analysis involves making an interpretation or meaning of the data. Asking, "What were the lessons learned?" captures the essence of this idea (Lincoln & Guba, 1985).


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RELIABILITY, VALIDITY, AND GENERALIZABILITY Qualitative validity means that the researcher checks for the accuracy of the findings by employing certain procedures, while qualitative reliability indicates that the researcher's approach is consistent across different researchers and different projects (Gibbs, 2007). Validity, is one of the strengths of qualitative research, and it is based on determining whether the findings are accurate from the standpoint of the researcher, the participant, or the readers of an account (Creswell & Miller, 2000). • Triangulate different data sources of information by examining evidence from the sources and using it to build a coherent justification for themes. • Use member checking by taking the final report or specific descriptions or themes back to participants and determining whether these participants feel that they are accurate. • Use rich, thick description to convey the findings. This description may transport readers to the setting and give the discussion an element of shared experiences. • Clarify the bias the researcher brings to the study. How researchers interpretation of the findings is shaped by their background, such as their gender, culture, history, and socioeconomic origin. • Spend prolonged time in the field. In this way, the researcher develops an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon under study. • Use peer debriefing to enhance the accuracy of the account. This process involves locating a person (a peer debriefer) who reviews and asks questions about the qualitative study. • Use an external auditor (someone who is not familiar with the research and can provide object assessment of the research) to review the entire research. CHAPTER 10: MIXED METHODS PROCEDURES no notes written for this topic Reference: Content for the notes below was curated from the California State University website url: http://www.csun.edu/~hbsoc126/soc4/

CHAPTER 1: SCIENCE AND RESEARCH

What is Science?

Science is about the systematic creation of knowledge that provides us with the tools to better understand, predict, and manipulate our social, psychological and physical environment.

Why Study Research Methods?

Each day, we are bombarded by information and forced to make important decisions that may affect our own lives or the lives of millions of others. Through the use of rigorous observation and the application of scientific tools, individuals can become better consumers of information.

What is research methods?

Research (Scientific Research): The term research can simply be defined as diligent and systematic inquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise facts, theories, applications, etc.

Methods (Research Methods): Scientific methodology can be easily understood as the mechanics or operations involved in pursuing scientific investigation or the ideas, rules, techniques, and approaches that the scientific community uses.

What is Epistemology?


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In philosophy, epistemology is the study of knowing, of the basis for knowing and how it is that people come to know what they know.

When it comes to epistemology, there exist several key questions.

1. One is whether you subscribe to the philosophical principles of rationalism or empiricism

a. Rationalism versus Empiricism

i. Rationalism: Is the idea that human beings achieve knowledge because of their capacity to reason.

ii. Empiricism: Empiricism is a philosophical approach based on the idea that the only valid form of knowledge is that which is gathered through the use of the senses (experience and evidence)

2. Another question is whether you accept the assumptions of the scientific method, often called positivism in the social sciences, or favor the competing method, often referred to as interpretivism.

Development of the Social Science

Positivism: As developed by Auguste Comte, positivism is a way of thinking based on the assumption that it is possible to observe social life and establish reliable, valid knowledge about how it functions.

Humanism/Interpretivism: According to humanism, it is up to us to find the truth, not wait for it to be handed to us through revelation, mysticism, tradition, or anything else that is incompatible with the application of logic to the evidence. Humanism asserts that knowledge of right and wrong is based on our best understanding of our individual and joint interests (i.e., humanity). Humanists also add that due to the uniqueness of humanity, different methods must be employed to understand fully the social experience. Humanism sometimes means a commitment to subjectivity- that is, to using our own feelings, values, and beliefs to achieve insight into the nature of the human experience.

Phenomenology: Like positivism, phenomenology is a philosophy of knowledge that emphasizes direct observation of phenomena. Unlike positivists, however, phenomenologists, seek to sense reality and to describe it in words, rather than numbers- words that reflect consciousness and perception.

Alternatives to Social Research

Authority: When you accept something as being true just because someone is in a position of authority says it is true.

Tradition: When you accept something as being true because “it’s the way things have always been.”

Common Sense: When you rely on what everyone knows and what just “makes sense.”

Media Myths: Television shows, movies, newspapers, and magazine articles are important sources of information about social life. Unfortunately, the media tends to perpetuate the myths of culture.

Personal Experience: If something happens to you, if you personally see it or experience it, you accept it as true.


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Overgeneralization: Occurs when you have some evidence that you believe and then assume that it applies to many other situations.

Selective Observation: Occurs when you take special notice of some people or events and generalize from them. A problem occurs as a result of our tendency to seek out evidence that confirms what we already know or believe and ignore the range of cases and contradictory information.

Premature Closure: Occurs when you feel you have all the answers and do not need to listen, seek information, or raise questions any longer.

Halo Effect: It comes in many forms, but basically, it states that we over generalize from what we interpret to be highly positive or prestigious. We often give things or people we respect a halo, or strong reputation.

The Foundations of Science: Inductive and Deductive Reasoning

Inductive reasoning moves from the specific to the general. In other words it moves from: Observation (Specific)→ Theory (Generaliza on).

Deductive reasoning moves from the general to the specific. Unlike induction, it moves from: Theory (Generalization) → Observa on (Specific)

Why Conduct Social Research?

People conduct social research for many reasons:

i. Some want to answer practical questions. ii. Others want to make informal decisions. iii. Still others want to change society. iv. Finally, there is the scientific community who seeks to build basic knowledge about our social world.

About Numbers and Word

a. Quantitative Data (Positivistic, Deductive): Data collected by a scientist that is numerical in nature. Quantitative Research Techniques are: a). Experiments, b). Surveys, c). Content Analysis (falls in both quantitative and qualitative techniques.), d). Existing Statistics

b. Qualitative Data (Interpretive-Phenomenological, Inductive): Data or information collected scientifically in the form of words, pictures, sounds, visual images, or objects. Qualitative Research Techniques are: a). Field Research, b). Historical-Comparative Research, c). Content Analysis.

CHAPTER 2: DIMENSIONS OF RESEARCH

The Purpose of the Study

1. Exploratory research is often the first step in a sequence of studies analyzing a social phenomenon that is largely unknown. Exploratory research most often addresses the “what” question. Exploratory researchers frequently use qualitative techniques to keenly observe and collect data for analysis.


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2. Descriptive research requires a more developed idea about a social phenomenon. Here, researchers engage in clearly describing or detailing a social setting or relationship. Descriptive research focuses on “how” and “who” questions.

3. Explanatory research: When researchers engage in explanation, they are actively attempting to explain and answer the “why” question. Thus, explanation builds on already existing knowledge collected about a social phenomenon as a result of more basic exploratory and descriptive studies.

Idiographic and Nomothetic Explanations

1. Idiographic: “Idio-” in this context means unique, separate, peculiar, or distinct, as in the word “idiosyncrasy.” When we have completed an idiographic explanation, we feel that we fully understand the many causes of what happened in a particular instance. At the same time our scope of explanation is limited to the case at hand. While parts of the idiographic explanation might apply to other situations, our intention is to explain fully one case.

2. Nomothetic: Seeks to explain a class of situations or events rather than a single one. Moreover, it seeks to explain “efficiently,” using only one or just a few explanatory factors. Finally, it settles for partial rather than full explanation of a type of situation.

The Use of Research

1. Basic Research advances fundamental knowledge about the social world. It attempts to address the fundamental questions surrounding a discipline. Occasionally, researchers make significant findings that have great impact on the direction or development of existing schools of thought. Basic research is often criticized as wasteful and useless despite the fact that it is the source of most new scientific ideas and ways of thinking about the world.

2. Applied Research argue that funding should only be spent on scientific projects that aim to solve a specific policy, social or environmental issue. Applied researchers are numerous in type and number.

Types of Applied Research

i. Action Research: Is applied research that treats knowledge as a form of power and attempts to abolish the line between research and social action.

ii. Social Impact Assessment: Its purpose is to measure the likely consequences of a planned change. Areas assessed in impact studies include: Community Service, Social Conditions, Economic Impact, Demographic Consequences, Environment, Health Outcomes, Psychological Well Being.

iii. Evaluation Research: Is a widely used type of applied research that addresses the question, “Did it work?” In other words, evaluation researchers actively engage in assessing the success or failure of a social program, organization, etc. The two types are: Formative Evaluation Research and Summative Evaluation Research.

The Time Dimension in Research

1. Cross-Sectional Research: In this type of study, researchers observe at one point in time. Cross-sectional studies are simpler and less costly than longitudinal studies.

2. Longitudinal Research: Longitudinal researchers examine features of people or other units at more than one point in time. Longitudinal studies can be very costly and complex.

Types of Longitudinal Studies


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i. Time Series: A longitudinal study in which the same type of information is collected on a group of people or other units across multiple time periods.

ii. Panel Study: The researcher observes exactly the same people, group, or organization across several time periods. This type of research is very costly and many times may be impossible due to its potential price tag.

iii. Cohort Analysis: A longitudinal study that studies a category of people who share a similar life experience within a specified time period.

iv. Case Study: A special type of longitudinal study in which a researcher examines in depth many features of a few cases over a long duration of time. Often times the data collected includes very detailed and personal information about a person, organization, etc.

CHAPTER 3: THEORY AND RESEARCH

Elements of Social Theory

a. Paradigms: Defined as general frameworks or viewpoints: literally “points from which to view.”

b. Theories: Systematic sets of interrelated statements intended to explain some aspect of social life. In other words, whereas a paradigm offers a way of looking, a theory aims at explaining what we see.

c. Observation:

d. Fact: A phenomenon that has been observed and a consensus exist on its accuracy.

e. Laws/Principles: Universal generalizations about classes of facts. In other words, a law is an observed regularity.

f. Concepts: The basic building blocks of theory.

g. Axioms/Postulates: Fundamental assertions taken to be true, on which a theory is grounded. From these, scientists often construct propositions.

h. Propositions: Specific conclusions about the relationships among concepts that are derived from the axiomatic groundwork.

i. Variables: A concept that has been operationalized and prepared for use in a hypothesis.

j. Hypotheses: A statement about the relationship between two or more variables.

The Traditional Model of Science

There are three main elements in the traditional model of science: theory, operationalization, and observation.

a. Theory: A theory is a system of abstract statements that explain how and why phenomena in the universe operate. In other words, theory is the vehicle in science for understanding. Theory and observation go together in science, but sometimes theory precedes observation and other times observation comes before theory.

b. Operationalization: Operationalization is simply the specification of the steps, procedures, or operations that we go through to actually identify and measure the variables we intend to observe.


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c. Observation: The final step in the traditional model of science involves actual observation- examining the empirical world and making measurements of what is “seen.” Having developed theoretical expectations and having created a strategy for looking, we next look at the way things are. Sometimes this step involves conducting experiments, interviewing people, or visiting who/what/where we are interested in and watching it. Sometimes the observations are structured around the testing of specific hypotheses; sometimes the inquiry is less structured.

CHAPTER 6: QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

Qualitative and Quantitative Orientations Towards Research

Quantitative Research

i. Quantitative Data: Data collected in the form of numbers. Typically called “hard data.” Almost all quantitative researchers rely on a positivist approach to social science. They are also likely to use a technocratic perspective, apply “reconstructed logic,” and follow a linear research path. They speak a language of “variables and hypotheses.” Quantitative researchers emphasize precisely measuring variables and testing hypotheses that are linked to general causal explanations.

ii. Positivism: The practice in which metaphysical speculation is rejected in favor of ‘positive’ knowledge about the empirical world based on systematic observation and experiment.

iii. Nomothetic: Seeks to explain a class of situations or events rather than a single one. Moreover, it seeks to explain “efficiently,” using only one or just a few explanatory factors. Finally, it settles for partial rather than full explanation of a type of situation.

iv. Technocratic Perspective: The goal of research is to discover and document lawlike generalizations oriented toward increasing efficiency.

v. Reconstructed Logic: Means that the logic of how to do research is highly idealized, formal, and systematic in form.

vi. Linear Research Path: Quantitative research typically follows a fixed sequence of steps.

Qualitative Research

i. Qualitative Data: Data collected in the form of impressions, words, sentences, photos, symbols, and the like. Qualitative researchers often rely on interpretive or critical social science. They are more likely to use a transcendent perspective, apply “logic in practice,” and follow a nonlinear research path. Qualitative researchers speak a language of “cases and contexts.” They emphasize conducting detailed examinations of cases that occur in a natural social setting.

iii. Idiographic: “Idio-” in this context means unique, separate, peculiar, or distinct, as in the word “idiosyncrasy.” When we have completed an idiographic explanation, we feel that we fully understand the many causes of what happened in a particular instance. At the same time our scope of explanation is limited to the case at hand. While parts of the idiographic explanation might apply to other situations, our intention is to explain fully one case.

ii. Transcendent Perspective: Its goal is to remove false beliefs held by those being studied and to treat people as creative, compassionate living beings, not as objects.


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iii. Logic in Practice: The process of carrying out research which has relatively few guidelines and attempts to stay away from strict regimentation. Answers questions regarding methodological procedure according to practicality and reason.

iv. Nonlinear Research Path: Research that does not follow a particular path or straight line. Researchers often go from one step to another as insight is gained.

Objectivity and Integrity

Opportunities for biased, dishonest, or unethical research exists in all research. All social researchers strive towards being fair, honest, truthful, and unbiased in all research activity.

1. Quantitative: Attempt to eliminate the human factor and rely on standardized methodological procedures.

2. Qualitative: Emphasize the human factor and stress intimate, firsthand knowledge of the research setting.

The Language of Variables and Hypotheses

Variable: A variable is a concept that varies.

a. Attributes: a value/characteristic of a variable. The variable sex has only two attributes, female and male for example.

b. Types of Variables: Independent variable: The cause variable, or the one that identifies forces or conditions that act on something else. Dependent variable: The variable that is the effect or is the result or outcome of another variable. Intervening variable: A variable that comes between the independent and dependent variable. Antecedent variable: A variable that comes before the independent variable. Exogenous variable: Any variable that is unaccounted for in the initial analysis of data.

Hypotheses: Is defined as a statement about the relationship between two variables.

Types of Hypothesis

a. Research Hypothesis: A hypothesis that states that a relationship between the independent and dependent variable exists. There are two types: Direct (will either increase or decrease in the same direction) and Inverse (will increase or decrease in opposite directions).

b. Null Hypothesis: A hypothesis that states that there exists no relationship between the independent and dependent variable.

Characteristics of a Hypothesis

i. It has at least two variables. ii. It expresses a casual or cause-effect relationship between the variables. iii. It can be expressed as a prediction or expected future outcome. iv. Logically linked to a research question and/or theory. v. It is falsifiable; that is, it is capable of being empirically tested to be found true or false.

Errors in Reason


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a. Tautology: Form of circular reasoning in which someone makes a statement that is true by definition. Tautology cannot be tested empirically.

b. Teleology: It appears when saying something occurs because it is part of the “natural unfolding” of an all-powerful spirit or Geist.

c. Ecological Fallacy: Arises from a mismatch of units of analysis. It refers to a poor fit between the units for which a researcher has empirical evidence and the unit for which he/she wants to make statements. In other words, it occurs when a researcher gathers data at a higher or aggregated unit of analysis but wants to make a statement about a lower or disaggregated unit.

d. Reductionism: Arises from a mismatch of units of analysis. It refers to a poor fit between the units for which a researcher has empirical evidence and the unit for which he/she wants to make statements. In other words, it occurs when a researcher gathers data at a lower or disaggregated unit of analysis but wants to make a statement about a higher or aggregated unit.

e. Spuriousness: To call a relationship between variables spurious means that it is false, a mirage.

CHAPTER 7: QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE MEASUREMENT

Why Measure?

i. Measurement extends our senses. ii. Makes visible what is normally invisible. iii. Enables us to make comparisons and assumptions.

A Guide to Quantitative Measurement

Continuous and Discrete Variables i. Continuous Variables (e.g., Interval, Ratio): A variable that has a theoretically infinite number of values or attributes that flow along a continuum. ii. Discrete Variables (e.g., Nominal, Ordinal): A variable that has a fixed set of separate values or attributes.

Levels of Measurement

1. Nominal (lowest degree of precision): Indicate only that there is a difference among categories (e.g., sex: male, female; religion: Protestant, Catholic, Jew).

2. Ordinal: Measures indicate a difference, plus the categories can be ordered or ranked (e.g., letter grades: A,B,C,D,F).

3. Interval: Measures everything the first two do, plus it can specify the amount of distance between categories. In all cases, a variable at the interval level must have intervals of equal distance. Arbitrary zeros may also be used.

4. Ratio (highest degree of precision): Measures do everything all the other levels do, plus there is a true zero (in other words, zero means the absence of the thing being measured), which makes it possible to state relations in terms of proportions and ratios (e.g., income: $10, $100)

A Guide to Quantitative Measurement

Reliability: Defined as dependability or consistency. It suggests that the same thing is repeated or re-occurs under the identical or very similar conditions.


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Validity: Refers to how well the conceptual and operational definition mesh with each other. In other words, it addresses the question: Is the researcher actually measuring what is intended.

CHAPTER 8: QUANTITATIVE SAMPLING

Approaches to Sampling: Nonprobability and Probability Sampling Techniques

Nonprobability Sampling (Qualitative): A sampling technique in which each unit in a population does not have a specifiable probability of being selected. In other words, nonprobability sampling does not select their units from the population in a mathematically random way. As a result, nonrandom samples typically produce samples that are not representative of the population. This also means that are ability to generalize from them is very limited.

Types of Nonprobability Sampling Techniques (Qualitative)

a. Haphazard, Accidental, or Convenience Sample: A sampling procedure in which a researcher selects any cases in any manner that is convenient to be included in the sample. Haphazard sampling can produce ineffective, highly unrepresentative samples and is not recommended. When a researcher haphazardly selects cases that are convenient, he or she can easily get a sample that seriously misrepresents the population. Such samples are cheap and quick; however, the systematic errors that easily occur make them worse than no sample at all.

b. Quota Sampling: Is an improvement over haphazard sampling. In quota sampling, a researcher first identifies relevant categories of people (e.g., male, female; under age of 30, over the age of 30), then decides how many to get in each category. Thus, the number of people in various categories of the sample is fixed.

c. Purposive or Judgmental Sample: Purposive sampling is an acceptable kind of sampling for special situations. It uses the judgment of an expert in selecting cases or it selects cases with a specific purpose in mind. Purposive sampling is used most often when a difficult-to-reach population needs to be measured.

d. Snowball Sampling: Snowball sampling (also called network, chain referral, or reputational sampling) is a method for identifying and sampling the cases in a network. It begins with one or a few people or cases and spreads out on the basis of links to the initial cases.

Probability Sampling (Quantitative): A sampling technique in which each unit in a population has a specifiable chance of being selected. The motivation behind using probability sampling is to generate a sample that is representative of the population in which it was drawn. Random sampling does not guarantee that every random sample perfectly represents the population. Instead, it means that most random samples will be close to the population most of the time, and that one can calculate the probability of a particular sample being accurate.

Types of Probability Sampling Techniques (Quantitative)

a. Simple Random: In simple random sampling, a researcher develops an accurate sampling frame, selects elements from the sampling frame according to a mathematically random procedure, and then locates the exact element that was selected for inclusion in the sample.

b. Systematic Sampling: Elements are randomly selected using a sampling interval. The sampling interval (i.e., K th is some number) tells the researcher how to select elements from a sampling frame by skipping elements in the frame before selecting one for the sample. For example, a researcher would have a list of 1,000 elements in her or his population. Let’s assume the sample size is 100. In this case, the researcher would select


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every 10 th case. There are two tricks to this that must be followed: first, the sample frame must have the elements ordered in a random way and second; the starting point (the point at which the first element is selected for inclusion into the sample) must be determined randomly.

c. Stratified Sampling: In stratified random sampling, a researcher first divides the population into subpopulations (strata: defined as a characteristic of the population. For example, female and male) on the basis of supplementary information. After dividing the population into strata, the researcher draws a random sample from each subpopulation. In general, stratified sampling produces samples that are more representative of the population than simple random sampling if the stratum information is accurate.

d. Cluster Sampling: Cluster sampling addresses two problems: Researchers lack a good sampling frame for a geographically dispersed population and the cost to reach a sampled element is very high. Instead of using a single sampling frame, researchers use a sampling design that involves multiple stages and clusters. A cluster is a unit that contains final sampling elements but can be treated temporarily as a sampling element itself. In other words, the researcher randomly samples clusters, and then randomly samples elements from within the selected clusters; this has a big practical advantage. He or she can create a good sampling frame of clusters, even if it is impossible to create one for sampling elements. Once the researcher gets a sample of clusters, creating a sampling frame for elements within each cluster becomes more manageable. A second advantage for geographically dispersed populations is that elements within each cluster are physically closer to one another. This may produce a savings in locating or reaching each element.

Why Random?

1. Random samples are most likely to yield a sample that truly represents the population when compared to nonrandom samples. In other words, it enables researchers to make accurate assumptions or generalizations from the sample to the population under investigation.

2. Random sampling lets a researcher statistically calculate the relationship between the sample and the population- that is, the size of the sampling error.

3. Fewer Resources are Necessary (Time and Cost): If properly conducted, a random sample can produce results that can be used to accurately predict parameters within the population at a fraction of the cost of measuring the entire population. For example, how much time and money would it cost to survey the entire U.S. population? Compare that figure to what it would cost in time and money to survey a sample of 2000 U.S. residents.

4. Accuracy: The results of a well-designed, carefully executed probability sample will produce results that are equally if not more accurate than trying to reach every single person in the whole population.

CHAPTER 9: EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH

Chapter nine notes are available in other sections of this learning journal.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

What is a Survey?


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A survey is a method of collecting information directly from people about their ideas, feelings, health, plans, beliefs, social background, educational level, and financial history. A survey can be a self-administered questionnaire that someone fills out alone or with assistance. Or a survey can be an interview that is done in person or on the telephone. Some surveys are on paper or disk and the respondent can complete them privately at home or in a central location, say, at a health center. The respondent can either return the completed survey on the disk or mail the responses electronically. Surveys can also be interactive, requiring a telephone or cable connection. Interactive surveys guide the respondent through the survey and provide audio and visual cues to help. Interviews may be conducted with or without the aid of a computer. In other words, survey researchers sample many respondents who answer the same questions. They measure many variables, test multiple hypotheses, and infer temporal order from questions about past behavior, experiences, or characteristics.

Principles of Good Survey Questions

1. Avoid Jargon, Slang, and Abbreviations 2. Avoid Ambiguity, Confusion, and Vagueness 3. Avoid Emotional Language and Prestige Bias 4. Avoid Double-Barreled Questions 5. Avoid Leading Questions 6. Avoid Asking Questions That are Beyond the Respondent’s Capability 7. Avoid False Premises

Types of Questions and Response Categories

Open-Ended Questions: An open-ended question (unstructured, free response) asks a question to which respondents can give any response.

a. Advantages i. Permit an unlimited number of answers. ii. Respondents can answer in detail. iii. Unanticipated findings can be discovered. iv. Permit creativity, self-expression. v. Reveal a respondent’s logic, thinking process, and frame of reference.

b. Disadvantages i. Respondents give different degree of detail. ii. Responses may be irrelevant or buried in useless detail. iii. Comparisons and statistical analysis become very difficult. iv. Coding responses is difficult. v. Highly articulate respondents have an advantage. vi. Respondents may lose direction when answering. vii. Responses are written verbatim, which is difficult for interviewers. viii. Greater amount of respondent’s time, thought, and effort. ix. Respondents can be intimidated by the questions. x. Answers require a great deal of space.

Closed-Ended Questions: A closed-ended (structured or fixed) both asks a question and gives the respondent a fixed set of responses to choose from.


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a. Advantages i. Easier and quicker for respondents to answer. ii. Easy to compare different respondents answers. iii. Answers are easy to code and statistically analyze. vi. Fewer irrelevant or confusing answers to questions. viii. Replication is easier.

b. Disadvantages i. Suggest ideas that the respondent would not normally have. ii. Respondents with no prior knowledge or attitude may respond anyway. iii. Respondents may become frustrated because their desired response is not found. iv. It is confusing if too many responses are available. vii. Clerical mistakes on the part of the respondent may occur. viii. Force people to make choices they would not normally have to make.

Types of Surveys

Mail and Self-Administered: Researchers can give questionnaires directly to respondents or mail them to respondents who read instructions and questions, then record their answers.

Telephone: The telephone interview is a popular survey method because about 95 percent of the population can be reached by telephone. An interviewer calls a respondent (usually at home), asks questions, and records their answers.

Face-To-Face Interview: A face-to-face interview is a research technique that requires an interviewer and respondent to be physically present together. During which, the interviewer asks the interviewee a series of questions that are answered only during the interview session.

Mode: The modal value is simply the most common or frequently occurring value. Appropriate to be used with:

a. Nominal b. Ordinal c. Interval d. Ratio

Median: The median is the point at which 50% of the distribution falls above it and below it. The median is also referred to as the score at the 50th percentile. Appropriate to be used with:

a. Ordinal b. Interval c. Ratio

Mean: The mean is also called the arithmetic average, is the most widely used measure of central tendency. Compute the mean by adding up all the scores in a distribution, then divide by the number of scores (N). Appropriate to be used with:

a. Interval b. Ratio

LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT SCALES


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In the 1940s, Stanley Smith Stevens introduced four scales of measurement: nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio. These are still widely used today as a way to describe the characteristics of a variable.

A nominal scale describes a

variable with categories that do

not have a natural order or

ranking. Examples of nominal

variables include: blood type, zip

code, gender, race, eye color,

political party.

An ordinal scale is one where the order matters but not the difference between values. Examples of

ordinal variables include: socio economic status (“low income”,”middle income”,”high income”),

education level (“high school”,”BS”,”MS”,”PhD”), income level (“less than 50K”, “50K-100K”, “over

100K”), satisfaction rating (“extremely dislike”, “dislike”, “neutral”, “like”, “extremely like”).

An interval scale is one where there is order and the difference between two values is meaningful.

Examples of interval variables include: temperature (Farenheit), temperature (Celcius), pH, SAT

score (200-800), credit score (300-850).

A ratio variable, has all the properties of an interval variable, and also has a clear definition of 0.0.

When the variable equals 0.0, there is none of that variable. Examples of ratio variables include:

dose amount, reaction rate, flow rate, concentration, pulse, weight, length, temperature in Kelvin

(0.0 Kelvin really does mean “no heat”), survival time.

Lecturer Mr Eric Agyekum https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-agyekum-10685a83/

GIJ Past Exam Questions

1. A student of Communication Research wishes to conduct a study to investigate conflict

management at the Ministry of Education. His initial question is: How do employees at the

Ministry of Education view conflict management strategies adopted by the Ministry?

He would be distributing questionnaires to 600 employees selected from 2000 employees.

Ten percent of the 600 employees selected cannot read and write English language.

a) What is the essence of the researcher’s initial question?


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b) Which research method do you think is the most appropriate for the study? Provide three

(3) reasons with explanations.

c) Which traditional type(s) of data collection would you recommend for the study? Provide

three (3) reasons with explanations.

2. A novice researcher is required to conduct a survey on the causes and effects of the use of

social media among university students in tem districts in Ghana. He has to carry out

probability sampling and select 1000 university students from the 10 districts to participate

in the research.

a. Explain the known probability sampling methods to enable the novice researcher become

conversant with them.

b. State the sampling method the novice researcher MUST use and describe the steps he has

to take to select the sample.

c. Indicate the name of such a survey and explain its purpose.

3. A researcher has been hired by DKH Co. Ltd. to investigate factors that account for low

employee motivation in the Company. The Company has four hundred (400) employees with

three (3) different staff categories. The researcher is required to collect data that will enable

him to discuss results with reference to the existing staff categories.

a. Discuss with practical examples, four major reasons for considering quantitative research

as the most appropriate design for the research.

b. Suggest an appropriate sampling method for the research and provide two justification

for your suggestion.

c. Describe the steps involved in the suggested sampling method.

4. In a research on students’ absenteeism and academic performance among 2000 Level 200

students at the National Institute of Communication Studies, Thompson established a

relationship between absenteeism and academic performance. Thompson selected a fairly

representative sample. He was not interested in gathering and analyzing data over time.

a. State and explain the two main variables that Thompson was interested in.

b. Identify and describe the type of survey conducted by Thompson, and show its purpose

c. Indicate whether sampling played any role in the survey and provide three reasons with

explanations, for your answer.

d. Identify and describe the sampling technique and method(s) which you think Thompson

used to select fairly representative sample.


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5. Using four (4) points, discuss the view that “a typical questionnaire must contain both –

ended questions closed-ended and open”.

6. Write short notes on any two (2) of the following:

i. Self-administered Questionnaire

ii. Personal Interview Questionnaire

iii. Content Analysis

7. (a) What levels of measurement are used for each of the variables described in the following

excerpt from a published study on minority stress and mental health?

a. Age is age in years

b. Education is last year in school

c. Income is a scale of annual income clusters in varying sized increments ranging from 1

(less than GHC3000 to 19 (more than GHC15,000)

d. Religious affiliation is coded 1 = Yes, 0 = not religious ….

(b) Mr Abanga is the Editor in Chief of a Publishing firm interested in reducing the use of foul

language in the firm’s newspaper publications. As the researcher assigned to the firm

suggest to the Editor the following:

a. A topic/title

b. Research objectives

c. Research Method to be used

d. From the objectives, suggest possible indicators for the concepts in your objectives.

(c) As a communication researcher, you are to investigate the experiences and aspirations of

two (2) popular Public Relations practitioners in Ghana

i. Which research design will you use and why?

ii. Which research method will you adopt and why?

iii. State two (2) data collection tools that are suitable for the research

iv. Provide a 6-point interview guide for the research.

8. Kwame holds a strong conviction that literature review is a waste of time. In your opinion,

does the critical review of literature really matter in Communication Research and why?


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9. (A) Ama intends to conduct a research on “Students’ Abuse of Social Media use at GIJ”. Kofi

indicated that there is no need for selecting a sample.

a. Discuss the relevance of sampling in Communication Research

b. What will constitute the unit of analysis in Ama’s research?

c. Using the stratified sampling method, explain how Ama can select respondents for the

study.

(B) “Conventionally, no scholarly or academic research can take place without initial

literature search”.

i) What is initial literature search?

ii) State three (3) sources of initial literature

iii) How would you plan and conduct initial literature search for a typical project work.

10. Researchers hold the view that quantitative methods of research differs from qualitative

methods of research in several ways. As a student of Communication Research identify with

examples six (6) significant differences between the two methods.

11. a) Research is informal, formal and scientific. Explain this claim with practical examples.

b) In 30 lines, explain the assertion that “qualitative research is what quantitative research is

not”.

12. a) With relevant examples, discuss the statement that “Research seeks to advance

knowledge about a given phenomenon and also solve practical problems of society.”

b) In 10 lines, explain how you will use any two of the probability sampling methods to

ensure that every member of your research population has an equal chance of being

selected.

13. State and explain the steps you will take as a researcher in conducting a survey on factors

that account for lateness among Level 400 students of Justice Road University.

14. You have been asked by the chief and elders of Amikrom to investigate why some of their

cultural practices are losing their value. Explain how you will approach the research. Provide

justification for the design, method and tools you will use as well as the steps and

procedures you will follow.

15. a) Write short notes on any four (4) of the following:


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i. Self-administered questionnaire

ii. Personal interview questionnaire

iii. Semi-structured interview

iv. Unstructured interview

v. Participant observation

16. With your knowledge about quantitative data collection, explain two (2) differences

between structured interview questionnaire and telephone questionnaire. December 2019 Exam Questions

17. a. Explain survey research method or strategy.

b. Discuss the importance of pilot studies in research as a prelude to the main study.

18. Discuss how relevant pilot studies are to academic research as compared to research survey.

19. a. Explain sampling and participants selection procedures.

b. Discuss which appropriate method you will use to select participants for a quantitative

study?

20. Probability sampling is irrelevant to qualitative researchers. Discuss with reference to the

types of qualitative sampling methods.

21. a. Discuss the importance of ethical issues in communication research

b. Identify three stages in the research process and provide the ethical issues you will use at

each stage when conducting a research.

22. The direct experiences of individuals are well understood in qualitative studies. Discuss.

Documents

GIJ: LEVEL 300 (SEMESTER 1) – CSPR 303 COMMUNICATION ...zydo.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/CSPR-303... · Reference: Research Design, by John W. Creswell 3rd Edition. PART ONE: