Transcript Research Methods ITWS: Web Science Spring 2013 WHAT IS RESEARCH? “Research is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what.

Research Methods
ITWS: Web Science
Spring 2013
WHAT IS RESEARCH?
“Research is to see what everybody else has seen,
and to think what nobody else has thought.”
- Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1937, Nobel Prize for Medicine)
“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and
prying with a purpose.”
- Zora Neale
Hurston (American novelist)
"The great question that has never been answered, and
which I have not yet been able to answer, despite my thirty
years of research into the feminine soul, is 'What does a
woman want?'"
- Sigmund Freud (Neurologist, Psychoanalyst)
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Performing a methodical study in order to
prove a hypothesis or answer a specific
question.
Research must be systematic and follow a
series of steps and a rigid standard protocol
What complicates research?
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Interpretation
Bias
Generalizations
Absolute "truth" and "fact"
Validity and realibiliy
Human behavior
Quantitative vs. Qualitative
Quantitative
"There's no such thing as qualitative data. Everything is either 1 or 0."
- Fred Kerlinger, Author of
Foundations in Behavioral Research
The aim is to classify features, count them, and construct statistical models
in an attempt to explain what is observed.
Objective - seeks precise measurement & analysis of target concepts, e.g.,
uses surveys, questionnaires etc.
Researcher knows clearly in advance what he/she is looking for.
All aspects of the study are carefully designed before data is collected.
Researcher tends to remain objectively separated from the subject matter.
Note: Qualitative v. Quantitative (2007):
http://www.wilderdom.com/research/QualitativeVersusQuantitativeResearch.html
Qualitative
"All research ultimately has a qualitative grounding."
- Donald Campbell, American Social Scientist, developed theory of
human creativity
The aim is a complete, detailed description.
Subjective - individuals' interpretations of events are important
Researcher may not know exactly what he/she is for at the beginning
The design emerges as the study unfolds
Researcher tends to become subjectively immersed in the subject matter
Note: Qualitative v. Quantitative (2007):
http://www.wilderdom.com/research/QualitativeVersusQuantitativeResearch.html
Common Features of Qualitative Research
Naturalistic
Interpretive
Inductive
Flexible
Inquisitive
Reflexive
WHY CHOOSE
QUALITATIVE METHODS?
Methods for collecting data
• Documents (aka: "artifacts")
• Focus groups
• Interviews
• Observations
• Action Research
Focus Groups
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Group interviews are commonly used when:
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Limited resources (e.g. money, time, manpower)
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The research question requires a collective discussion in
order to understand the circumstances, behaviors, etc.
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Greater insights may be developed of the group dynamic
The aim of the focus group is to "make use of
participants' feelings, perceptions, and opinions"
Interviews
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Unstructured:
o "depth" or "in-depth" interviews" with little to no
structure
o Researcher may frame questions based on participant's
response
Semi-structured:
o "focused interviews" featuring open-ended questions
based on a topic
o Researcher may prompt interviewee for more
information
Structured:
o Questions are structured and posed so that a limited
range of responses may be given
Observations
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Take place in a natural setting and requires
extensive, detailed notes by the observer
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This can be written, video, photographs/artifacts etc.
Ethnography
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"Portrait of a people" - descriptive studies of a culture
and people
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Requires extensive fieldwork by the researcher
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May include additional methods such as interviewing &
participative observation
Action Research
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It's not just about asking the question; but doing
it as well
o aka: Participatory Action Research
It is a framework that is:
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Collaborative
Requires a practical intervention
 Researcher is actively involved in the intervention
Methods for analyzing data
Conversation Analysis (CA)
Content Analysis
Discourse Analysis
Frame Analysis
HOW DO WE CONDUCT
RESEARCH ON THE WEB?
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The process is still the
same. . .
Different questions
Additional tools for
collection & analysis
Larger scale
Social Network Analysis
Twitter Orographies (2011)
It represents the semantic space of
topics that emerge, the relative relevance of each topic, and the relations between the different topics
that arise from the discussion.
http://www.facebookstories.com/stories/1574/interactive-mapping-the-world-sfriendships#color=continent&story=1&country=US
Source: The Oxford Internet Institute - http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/vis/?id=500ee6f8
Ethics & Data Protection
Ethical research protects individuals, communities,
environments and researchers.
Informed Consent
Confidentiality
Avoid harm, do good
In-class exercise:
1) Read either:
a) "Buying unlicensed slimming drugs from the Web:
a virtual ethnography" (2012) from Web Science 2012
Conference proceedings
OR
b) "Beware the Big Errors of ‘Big Data’" - Wired.com.
02/08/13
2) If (a) then, discuss in a group additional methods/tools
to strengthen this study. If (b), come up w/ two or
three points supporting or negating this opinion.