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100 questions (and answers) about research methods /
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| Format: | Printed Book |
| Published: |
Thousand Oaks, Calif. :
SAGE,
c2012.
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| Subjects: |
Table of Contents:
- Understanding the research process and getting started
- Why is research necessary and what are some of its benefits?
- Generally, what is the process through which a research topic is identified and do I have to be an experienced researcher to select a topic of interest to me?
- What is the "scientific method" and how can I apply that to my own research?
- There are different types of research models that one might use : can you give me a general overview and how they might compare?
- What's the best research model for my purposes?
- What's the difference between basic and applied research?
- What is qualitative research and what are some examples?
- What are hypotheses and how do they fit into the scientific method?
- What do good research hypotheses do?
- Besides looking at the reputation of a journal where a study is published as one criterion for a good study, are there other things that I can look to?
- I hear so much about different studies' from the newspaper, from professional bulletins and even from my boss : what am I supposed to believe and how can I judge if the results of a study are useful?
- What are some of the best ways to find information online and where are some of the best places?
- What role might social media play in both my efforts as a researcher as well as a consumer?
- Reviewing and writing about your research question
- What is a review of the literature and why is it important?
- How does a review of the literature have an impact on my research question and the hypothesis i propose?
- How do I know when my literature review is finished? : couldn't it go on forever?
- What are the three main types of sources of information and what part does each play in creating a literature review
- What steps should I take in writing my review of literature?
- What are some of the best electronic resources available and how do I learn to use them?
- Introductory ideas about ethics
- What are some of the more general and important principles of ethical research?
- What is informed consent and what does it consist of?
- What special attention should I give to the ethical concerns when children or special populations are involved and what should the parents or legal guardian know?
- What are some examples of the most serious ethical lapses?
- What is an institutional review board or IRB and how does it work?
- What are the important elements of an IRB application?
- Research methods : knowing the language, knowing the ideas
- Why do all these questions and answers on research methods have any relevance for me?
- I have so many ideas I want to study. how can I decide on which is best?
- What is the scientific method and how does it work?
- What is a null hypothesis and why is it important?
- What is a research hypothesis and what are the different types?
- What's similar, and what's different, about a null and research hypothesis?
- How can I create a good research hypothesis?
- What's the "gold standard" of research methods?
- Can you help me understand which method best fits which type of question being asked?
- What are the different types of variables and what are they used for?
- What is an independent variable and how is it used in the research process?
- What is a dependent variable and what does the researcher need to be careful about when selecting and using dependent variables?
- What is the relationship between independent and dependent variables?
- In an experiment, how does the notion of a control and experimental group fit into the scientific method?
- Sampling ideas and issues
- What's the difference between a sample and a population and why are samples important?
- What is the purpose of sampling and what might go wrong during the process?
- What is sampling error and why is it important?
- What are some of the different types of sampling?
- What is random sampling and why is it so useful?
- How does stratified random sampling work and when should I use it?
- How can I be sure that the sample of participants, who are part of a study, accurately represent a larger group of people for whom those results would be important?
- I've heard quite a bit about the importance of sample size : what's that all about?
- How big a sample is big enough?
- How important is big?
- Describing data using descriptive techniques
- What are descriptive statistics and how are they are used?
- What are measures of central tendency and how are they computed?
- How do I decide whether to use the mean, mode or median as a measure of central tendency?
- What are the most often used measures of variability and how are they computed?
- How do i use the mean and the standard deviation to describe a set of data?
- What is a normal curve and what are its characteristics?
- If a distribution of scores is not normal (or not bell shaped) how can the ideas that inference is based on be applied?
- What does it mean when a distribution is skewed?
- I'm looking for a visual way to describe data : what are some of my choices?
- What is a standard score and why is it important?
- What are some of the more common standard scores and how are they used?
- All about testing and measuring
- There's a particular outcome that i want to measure but I have no idea where I can find out whether there are existing measures or not : where do I look to find suggestions as to what dependent variable I should use?
- What are the different levels of measurement and how are they used?
- What is reliability?
- What are some of the different types of reliability and when are they used?
- How are reliability coefficients interpreted?
- What are some of the different types of validity and when are they used?
- What is criterion validity and how do the two types of criterion validity, concurrent and predictive, differ?
- What is the difference between a norm-referenced and a criterion-referenced test?
- What is construct validity and why is the especially appropriate for establishing the validity of psychological tests?
- How are different types of validity established?
- How do reliability and validity work together?
- How can I find out if a test is reliable and valid?
- What are some of the different types of tests and how are they used?
- When it comes to measuring attitude, what is the difference between a likert and a thurstone scale?
- What is item analysis and how is it use.