Transcript Research Methods - Memorial University of Newfoundland

Questions for Research
Memorial University Libraries Research Fair
Bertrum H. MacDonald
School of Information Management
Dalhousie University
2nd November 2005
Some preliminaries
Thanks / Commendations
Objectives of this session

Some stage-setting about research
What research is and what it is not

Research topics & question formulation
Researchable questions can be difficult to
formulate
“The formulation of a problem is often more
essential than its solution” (Einstein & Infield)
Research – What is It?
Research has one end: the ultimate
discovery of truth. Its purpose is to learn
what has never been known before; to ask a
significant question for which no conclusive
answer has been previously been found;
and, by collecting and interpreting relevant
data, to find an answer to that question.
Paul. D. Leedy and Jeanne Ellis Ormrod. Practical Research: Planning and
Design (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall, 2005. p. xxii.
Research Definitions (cont.)
1. n. diligent and systematic inquiry or
investigation into a subject in order to
discover or revise facts, theories,
applications, etc.
2. v. to make an intensive investigation
into; -- to research a matter thoroughly.
Random House Dictionary
Research Definition (cont.)
Is the challenging of self-evident truths. It
seeks systematized positive knowledge. It
wants not only to explain some part of the
whole, but to see the pattern entire, and
determine how the parts hang together. It
glorifies in the lucid beauty of a solution
reached after effort.
Edgar Dale. The spirit of research. Royal Bank of Canada Monthly Letter 46,
no. 12, p. 1
Research in a Professional Field
Librarianship is not a purely theoretical endeavor.
In fact, real libraries provide large, general
research settings. To ignore the truth that LIS
research is testable is to ignore reality….Practice
without research, on the other hand, risks
constant reinvention and avoids economies of
scale that build communal knowledge across
organizations. Without empirical and theoretical
guidance from systematic inquiry, the field cannot
develop benchmarks or best practices.
 R. David Lankes (2005)
Potential Research Topics
Using a “hipster PDA” note one of more
topics that you think are research topics
that you might pursue
Research — What It Is Not
Position taken by Leedy/Ormrod

Not mere information gathering

Not mere transportation of facts from one
location to another

Not merely rummaging for information

Not a catchword to get attention
What Research Is
It is how a person finds out something new and
original,…To do this a researcher needs to think
logically, follow rules, and repeat steps over and over. A
researcher combines theory or ideas with facts in a
systematic way and uses his or her imagination and
creativity. He or she quickly learns to organize and plan
carefully and to select the appropriate technique to
address a question. [Especially when dealing with
human subjects], a researcher also must be sensitive in
ethical and moral ways. In addition, a researcher must
communicate to others clearly.
W.L. Neuman. Social Research Methods Qualitative and Quantitative
Approaches (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000, p. 2.
What Research Is
Social science research is a collection of
methods people use systematically to
produce knowledge. It is an exciting
process of discovery, but it requires
persistence, personal integrity, tolerance
for ambiguity, interaction with others, and
pride in doing quality work.
W.L. Neuman. Social Research Methods Qualitative and Quantitative
Approaches (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000 p. 2.
What Research Is (Leedy/Ormrod)

Research originates with a question or problem

Research requires a clear articulation of a goal

Research follows a specific plan of procedure

Research usually divides the principle problem
into more manageable subproblems
What Research Is (Leedy/Ormrod)

Research is guided by the specific research
problem, question, or hypothesis

Research accepts certain critical assumptions

Research requires the collection and
interpretation of data in an attempt to resolve the
problem that initiated the research

Research is, by its very nature, cyclical
Setting the Context of Research
Context of any research design is set in
two fundamental ways:


By assumptions about how knowledge is
developed and what is useful knowledge
By how methods are joined to a topic through
the statement of a study question
Ways of Knowing (Charles Peirce)

Appeal to authority

Method of tenacity

Logic or rationalism

Intuition

Scientific method
Practice of Being “Scientific”?

Spirit of skepticism

Systematic Investigation

Reflexiveness
Why Be “Scientific”?
Common Errors of Thinking
Preference to see order rather than disorder
Tendency to pay attention selectively to information
 “endowment effect” / tendency to overvalue
 “inaccuracies that are part and parcel of secondhand
information”
 exaggerated impressions of support for our own
ideas
Thomas Gilovich. How We Know What Isn’t So: The Fallibility of Human
Reason in Everyday Life. New York: Free Press, 1991.
Limitations of “Scientific” Observation

You cannot observe something without
changing it

You cannot observe something without
misperceiving it
Finished Files are the Results of
Years of Scientific Study Combined
with the Experience of Many Years
Limitations of Scientific Observation
(cont.)

You cannot interpret (attribute meaning to)
an observation without misrepresenting it

You cannot communicate an interpretation of
an observation without an additional
misrepresentation
B.A. Chadwick, H.M. Bahr, & Stan L. Albrecht. Social Science
Research Methods. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1984. p. 1014
Categories of Research

Practical

Bibliographical

Scientific

Scholarly
(Lynch, 1984)
Categories of Research

Basic / “Pure”

Applied



Action research
Social impact assessment
Evaluation research
Basic Research

Intrinsically satisfying &
judgments by other
researchers

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Problems & subjects
selected with freedom


Judged by norms of rigor
& high standards sought

Primary concern is with
logic & rigor of research
design
Driving goal is to
contribute to theoretical
knowledge
Success — publication in
scholarly journal &
impact on research
community
Applied Research




Part of a job & judged
by sponsors
Problems “narrowly
constrained”
Rigor and standards
depend on uses of
research
Primary concern is with
ability to generalize


Driving goal is to have
practical payoffs
Success — when
results are used by
sponsors in decision
making
Adapted from H. Freeman & P.H.
Rossi. (1984). Furthering the applied
side of sociology. American
Sociological Review 49:572-573.
Ways to Select Topics

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
Personal experience
Curiosity based on something in the media
or literature
State of knowledge in the field


Solving a problem

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Networking, sharing ideas/information with colleagues
What causes “x”?
Social premiums – “hot” topics (RFPs &
association lists) – topics that will get attention
Personal values / interest
Everyday life
Problem Formulation Process
Identifying a Research Area

“felt need”
Sources of inspiration




Gap
Controversy
Practice
Personal experience
Objective vs. Subjective Interest
Skills in Problem Formulation

Curiosity

Openness to new ideas & ways of thinking

Analytical ability

Tendency to seek out information & to
want to understand things

Skills in using resources efficiently

Desire to solve problems
Characteristics of a Problem Suitable
for Basic Research (Powell & Connaway)

The problem should represent conceptual
thinking, inquiry & insight. “So what?!”

Variables that relate to the problem should
represent some sort of meaningful relationship

Practical considerations
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Researcher’s interest? (but not “too” emotionally involved)
Prior claims?
Will the research have some impact?
Is the research “manageable?” – Think Small!
Examples of Poor Research Questions
Not empirically testable, “nonscientific” questions

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Should universities have libraries?
Is reading a good thing?
General topics, not researchable questions

gender and aging
Set of variables, not questions

deferred maintenance and community pride
Too vague, ambiguous

What can be done to prevent crime on university campuses?
Need to be still more specific

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How does family income affect university students?
What problems do young people who grow up in low income
settings experience that others do not?
Examples of Good Research
Questions
Exploratory questions

Has the introduction of digital reference services at
university X changed the use of library resources?
Descriptive questions

Do students raised in low income households more
likely have difficulties adjusting to university studies
than students who come from middle income
households?
Explanatory Questions

Do students who have received instruction in how to
use database X achieve higher grades in course Y?
Stating the Research Problems (Leedy & Ormrod)

State the problem clearly & completely
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Think through the feasibility of the project
that the problem implies

Say precisely what you mean

Edit your work
Techniques for narrowing a topic
into a research question
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Examine the literature

Talk over the ideas with others
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Apply to a specific context

Define the aim or desired outcome of
the study
Problem Formulation (Leedy & Ormrod)
Taken as a whole the following elements
comprise the setting of the problem:
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Stating the research questions and/or
hypotheses
Delimiting the research
Defining the terms
Stating the assumptions (what am I taking
for granted?)
From Questions to Design
Precise statement of the question (problem)
will lead directly to research design
All parts of the research process (sampling, data
collection, data analysis, kind of conclusions drawn)
must be consonant with the question
Every word counts; careful definition of
concepts is important