Research skills for students

129 Pages·2016·9.572 MB·English

by  coll.

T H E T R A N 5 F E R A B l E A N Ｐ(cid:953)ｅａｒｎｉｎｇ＠ SKlllS SERIES
Research skills for students
Research methods Brian Allison
Planning a sample survey Alun Owen
Questionnaire design Arthur Rothwell
Research interviews Tim O'Sullivan,
Carol Saunders, Jenny Rice
ｩｒｯｵｴｩ (cid:21544) ･
(cid:21809)ｾ Taylor &. Frands Group
LONDON AND NEWYORK
The Transferable and Learning Skills Series
Series editors:
Anne Hilton, Manager, Student Learning Development Centre, Library,
De Montfort University
Sue Robinson, Editor, Student Learning Development Centre, Library,
De Montfort University
Job hunting after university or college, Jan Perrett
Research skills, Brian Allison, Tim O'Sullivan, Alun Owen, Arthur Rothwell,
Jenny Rice, Carol Saunders
Successful group work, Simon Rogerson, Tim O'Sullivan, Jenny Rice,
Carol Saunders
First published in 1996
Reprinted in 1998, 2001
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informabusiness
Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or
criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act,
1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form
or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case
of฀reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms and licences issued by the
Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those
terms should be sent to the publishers at the undermentioned address:
Published 2016 by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 USA
© De Montfort University, 1996. All rights reserved.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-0-7494-1875-5
ISBN 978-1-315-04178-0 (eISBN)
Design and typesetting by Paul Linnell, De Montfort University
Contents
Part A: Research methods 1
1 The nature of research 2
Personal research 2; Professional research 3; Research questions 3;
Limitations of research 5
2 The methods of research 6
Forms of research 6; Research methodolog:ies 8; Ovetview of research
ｭ･ｴｨｯ､ｯｬｯｾｩ･ｳ＠ 21; Review 23; Brief ｾｬｯｳｳ｡ｲｹ＠ of research terms 23
Part B: Planning a sample survey 27
Ｓ (cid:12289) ｖｨ･ｲ･ should you start? 28
A typical approach 28; A better approach 29
4 Sample survey ｪ｡ｲｾｯｮ＠ 0
Some basic ｪ｡ｲｾｯｮ＠ 30; ｔ｡ｲｾ･ｴ＠ population and study population 31; ｓ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠
ｴ(cid:24178) ｡ｭ･ and ｳ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠ unit 33; ｓｵｭｭ｡ｲ(cid:947)ＳＴ＠
5 Sample ､･ｳｩｾｮｳ＠ 34
About this section 34; Simple random ｳ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠ 3.5; Systematic ｳ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠ 37;
Stratifìed sampling Ｓ (cid:26085)［ Quota sampling 41; Cluster ｳ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠ 42;
Judgemental sampling and convenience ｳ｡ｭｰｬｩｮｾ＠ 43; Summary 43
6 Selecting ｡ (cid:38451) ｭｰｬ･ ､･ｳｩｾｮ＠ 44
Measuring the accuracy of your survey results Ｈｭ (cid:21483) ｾｩｮｳ of ･(cid:960)ｯｲＩ＠ 44;
ｃｨｯｯｳｩｮｾ＠ a sample ､･ｳｩｾｮ＠ for your survey 44; ｃｯｭ｢ｩｮｩｮｾ＠ several ､･ｳｩｾｮｳ＠ 46
7 Data collection methods 47
Some commonly used methods 47; Choosing the right data collection
method for your choice of sample ､･ｳｩｾｮ＠ 49; Non-response 49
8 Pilot surveys .51
(cid:39134)(cid:39134) Ｇｨ｡ｴ is a pilot survey? 51; How can a pilot survey help? .51; How should a
pilot survey be conducted? .51
9 ｃ｡ｬ｣ｵｬ｡ｴｩｮｾ＠ the sample size 53
10 ｃｬｯｳｩｮｾ＠ remarks on undertaking your survey 54
11 ｂｩ｢ｬｩｯｾｲ｡ｰｨｹ＠ 5.5
ａｰｰ･ｮ､ｩ(cid:953)ｭ＠ ｾ＠
Survey plans 59
Surveyexamples 65
-·t- tl
Part C: Questionnaire design 69
Introduction 61l
12 Planning and lo!,ristics of questionnaire design 70
,
Quantitative or qmùitative? 70; Legù requirements: the Data Protection
Aet 71; Confìdentiality and anonymity 71; Sample size 71; Volunteer
respondents 73; Identif)'ing subject ｡ (cid:21066) ｳ 73; Deterrnining appropriate
,
length 73; Typical time scùe 74; Main components of questionnaires 75
13 Layout 7,5
Introductory remarks 76; Sequence and grouping of items 76; N ｵｭ｢･ｲｩｮ (cid:26085)
(cid:12290) ｦ items 77; Coding for computer input Ｗ (cid:25112) ｃｬｯｳｩｮｧ remarks 110
14 Forrns of item 1;2
,
Open and dosed questions 1l2; Dichotomous items 1;2; Scùed items 1;3;
Mid-point or no mid-point? 1;4; Ranking to show ｰｲ･ｦ･ｲ･ｮ｣･ (cid:20873) Ｕ
15 Content of items 1;6
Avoi(ling response set 1l6; Components of attitudes 1;1;; Common ｴ(cid:27743)(cid:12305) ･ｳ of
faulty ｩｴ･ｭｳ (cid:20873)ｕ
16 The covering letter \)1
17 ｐｩ ｌＺ(cid:19994) ＱＱＱ (cid:23467)(cid:12289) ､ｩｳｴｲｩ｢ｵｴｩｯｮ and return \)4
Piloting ｴｨ･ (cid:33258) ｲｳｴ version \),5; Distribution and return \),5; A ｰｲ･ (cid:21483) ･ｷｯｦ
analysis \)6
11; Condllsion \)1;
1\) Bibliography 98
Part D: Research interviews 100
Introdllction 100
20 The research interview - some key issues 102
Interviews as research ｭ･ｴｨｯ､ｾ＠ 101; Types of research interview 104;
The research interview - strengths and weaknesses 108
21 ＱＢ Ｐ (cid:21475) ｮ｡ｬ sllrvey ｩｮｴ･ｮ (cid:21520) ･ｷｳ 110
Constructing the schedllle 110; Stages in the sllrvey process 114
22 Less fonn,ù interviews 117
The ,úms of the less formal interview 117; Stages in the less form,ù
interview 11\)
23 Postscript 122
Recording interviews 122; Group interviews 122; SlImmary and
overview 123
24 Bibliography 124
IV
Part A: Research methods
Aims
This part is designed for novices to research or for researchers with limited
experience. Its aim is to ｰｲｯ (cid:26413) ､･ you with an overview of the kinds of matters which
can be (cid:33276)･ ｸ｡ｭ (cid:21475)ｭｩｮ･､ (cid:30001)ｴｨｲｯ (cid:8734) ｵｧＮ (cid:38449) ｨ research and an ｩｮ(cid:24062)ｬｴ (cid:24597) ｲｯ､ (cid:30001) ｵ(cid:23665) ｣ｴｩｯ (cid:8734) ｮ (cid:24402)ｴ ｯ the different kinds of
research methods which are employed
Objectives
By the time you get to the end of this part you should be able to answer the following
questions.
ﾷ(cid:30710) ｲｨ｡ｴ is research?
• What constitutes a research question?
• What research methods and strategies are available?
Working through ｐ｡ (cid:27492) ａ
This part consists of two chapters:
1 Chapter 1 is designed to help you understand the nature of research and
some of the issues which underpin the formulation of topics for research.
2 Chapter 2 is designed to infonn you about the various research methods and
strategies which are available. A review is included to enable you assess your
familiarity with matters concerning research.
At the end of Chapter 2 (pages 24-26) you will fìnd a ｢ (cid:21521) ｦ glossary ofr esearch tenns,
which explains some of the specifìc research terminology you will encounter in the
unit. You will fìnd it helpful to workwith a dictionary beside you so that you can defìne
any words which are new to you.
Activities are included in this unit for you to carry out. These are designed to help you
master the ideas which are being put forward and fìnd information about research
activities relevant to yourinterests. Theywill also help you to become informedabout
the range and nature of research which has been carried out in your college or
university, particularly in your 0W11 ｳｵ｢ｪ･｣ｴ (cid:19988) ･ｬ､ (cid:65292) as well as elsewhere. A number of
these activities require you to use the library and other activities require you to talk
to fellow students and university staff.
It is necessary for you to have access to a major academic library in order to work
through this part. This is because one of the most important ways oflearning about
research is to read reports of research projects which have been completed and these
are to be ｦｯｵ (cid:26102) ｭ｡ｩｮ (cid:29255) ｩｮ ｬｩ｢ｲ｡ (cid:30001) ｳＮ A ｭ (cid:26007) ｯｲ reference source for summaries of
RESEARCH SKILLS
research in all subjects held by most libraries is the ASLIB Index to theses, which is
published annually and lists research projects completed for the award of research
degrees (MPhil and PhD) in the United Kingdom
It is assumed that you are skilled in using the library and fully conversant with the
location of texts and journals relevant to your subject. If you have any diffìculties in
locating materials you should contact your locallibrary
(cid:39134) ｖｨ･ｮ･ｶ･ｲ possible, you should complete each activity before proceeding to the next
section. However, it is appreciated that you may work on the unit elsewhere than in
the library or even the university and, to help you make the most of the time when
you are on university premises, SOl1le activities have been grouped so that they l1lay
be undertaken at the same time. This has been indicated on the activities. However,
when activities have been grouped in this way, it is not advisable for you to proceed
to a new section until all the activities in a group have been completed.
You should be.systematic in keeping a fìle of your responses to the ｡｣ｴｩ (cid:21497) ｴｩ･ｳ as the
discipline of maintaining full and adequate records is exemplary of research activity.
You will also need your responses to SOl1le ofthe earlier activities in orderto complete
later activities
2
1 The nature of research
Personal research
Research is a word which seems to be used more and more these days and, of course,
it is used to mean manydifferent kinds ofthings. Generally, itis usedsimplyto mean
(cid:24065) ｮ､ｩｮｧｯ (cid:26102)(cid:65292) something. Before buying, for example, a car, it would be sensible to fìnd
out which is the‘best buy' forthe moneythatyou can afford. This might entail reading
the motoring joumals or Which ｭ｡ｧＺ (cid:38459) ｩｮ･ (cid:65292) going round the car dealers looking at
what is on offer and at what prices as well as checking out what kinds ofbonuses or
incentives the dealers have to offer, which might include the length of warranty
offered and the kind of credit that is available. If you did such a survey thoroughly,
you would have all the infonnation it was possible to get in order to be in a position
to decide what car to buy. However, the research you have carried out would never
be able to tell you precisely which car to buy - all it can do is to put you in a position
where you can make an informed judgement, which really means that you can decide
by taking into account all the available evidence. M uch of the daily decision making
we do is based on this kind of'fìnding Ｐ (cid:26102)(cid:65292) research, whether it is about deciding what
to cook as a meal when we have guests, what movie to see or which bank to put our
money into. The research questions here are What car to buy?, What food to ｣ｯｯｫ (cid:25143)(cid:65292)
ｗｨ｡ｴｲｮｯ (cid:969) ･＠ to see? and What bank to use? In each case, we would have to decide
what information is needed. how it can be collected. what factors are relevant and
how the infonnation can be used.
These examples all relate to personal research questions and, for the most part, it is
unlikely that we would have to tell other people about them. Furthermore, because
they are personal questions, it would not matter too much to other people if we make
mistakes, collect inappropriate or ｕ ｉｬｉ(cid:22336) ｩ｡｢ｬ･ infonnation or if we make poor judge-
ments on the basis of the evidence we have collected.
(cid:22240) ａ｣ (cid:21483) ＱＮＱ
Identify three decisions you have made in the last two weeks which required
getting some prior information. Write out the ‘research questions' you asked
yourself and then, in each case, list the factors you took into account, the
information you thought was necessary, how you went about collecting it and
how you weighed up the evidence in reaching the decision.
Professional research
Although research at a personallevel is important to oUr everyday lives, this part is
concemed with research at a professionallevel. ａｬ ｴｨｯ (cid:40483) Ｎｨ professional research has
3
RESEARCH SKILLS
much in ｣ｯｭｭｯｮ (cid:39134)(cid:26102) ｴｨ the personal kind, it is carried out in a broader and more public
context and so is expected to conform to standards which are understood and
recognised by others in the professional field. In general, such research is character-
ised by being rigorous and systematic, is pursued through the use of appropriate
research methods and invariably culminates in a report of some kind, which also
needs to confonn to accepted standards. These characteristics are embodied in the
following definition
ｒ･ｳ･ｾ (cid:30010) ｨ is (cid:12290) (cid:951) ｳｴ･ｭ｡ｴｩ｣ ･ｮｱ (cid:969)Ｇ Ｑｊ＠ which is reported in a form ｷＯ (cid:23665) ｨ allows the
research methods and the outcomes to be accessible to others.
This definition contains elements which will be explained in this part
Research questions
Research is a particular fonn of ･ｮｱｵｩｲ(cid:947)｢ｵｴ (cid:65292)＠ of course, any enquÎl)' has to be an
enquiry into something. It is not possible to do research without having a problem
which needs to be solved or a question which needs to be answered.
Research is concemed with ｳ･･ｫｩｮ (cid:24051) ｳｯｬｵｴｭｳ to problems or answer:s to
questions
The problem or question constitutes the research topic. ｉ､･ｮｴｩｦＩＧ (cid:21520) ｮｧ a topic which is
worthy of enquiry and then fonnulating a meaningful research question or questions
which can be answered are probably the most ､ｩｦｬ (cid:33258) ｣ｵｬｴ parts ofthe research activity
It is worth spending a great deal of time fonnulating the research questions as it is
a very real investment of time and effort. Being clear about what research questions
are being asked is absolutely essential as, unless you are clear, a great deal of time and
energy can be wasted collecting information which cannot be used. ｃ｡ｮ (cid:25238) ｮｧｯｵｴｴｨ･
research is invariably a relatively straightforward matter once the question is clearly
defined. It is axiomatic that‘an answer is only as good as the ｱｵ･ｳｴｩｯｮ (cid:20108) ｡ｮ､ a poorly
constructed or vague question can only result in a poor or useless answer
Questions usually ｢･ｧｩｮ (cid:39134)(cid:21501) ｴｨ interrogatives such as What is. . . ?', 'To what extent. . . ?'
ｯｲＧｄｯ･ｳｴｨ･ (cid:25143)(cid:65292) However, although questions may sound similar, they are often Vel)'
different in the extent to which they can be answered. Some questions can be classed
as (cid:38451)(cid:24029) ｮｧｻ ｵｬ (cid:65292) while others can be classed as ｮ (cid:24029) ｮ･｡ｮｩｮｻＡ［ｻｵｬＮ ｑｵ･ (cid:22788) ｩｯｮｳ are
meaningful if they can be answered by enquiry and non -meaningful if they cannot be
answered by enquiry.
A ｲｮ･｣ (cid:20208)(cid:30340) ｬ research question is one which ｩｳ (cid:21481) ･ｳｳ･､ in such a way that it
indicates what it is that you will accept as an answer. At the simplest level, such a
question might be
‘How high is the Eif{el Tower?'
4
A: RESEARCH METHODS
Height is a measurable variable and, therefore, the question implies that the answer
would be a quantifìcation or measure, which could be ìn feet or metres or, for that
matter, in any unit of measurement provided it is specifìed, such as ‘cricket bat
lengths'. A more complex question might be:
'To what ･ｸｴ･ｮｴ (cid:20223) ｴｨ･ frequency of ｬｩｨｲ｡ (cid:951) ＧＱ＠ visits hy third-year engineering
(cid:24062) Ｎｧｲ･･ students ｲ･ｬｴ (cid:23665) ､ to ｴｨ･ｩｲｰ･ (cid:20215) ｭｵｭ ｇ･ in ｴｨ･ (cid:21346) ｮ｡ｬ ･ｸ｡ (cid:21483) ｮ｡ｴｩｯｮｳ
ｃｬ･｡ｲ (cid:22937)(cid:65292) ｡ｮｕｬ (cid:30001) ･ｲ of factors would need to be taken into account in a question like
this but essentiaIIy the expected answer would be a statistical factor to ｳｵｰｰｯ (cid:27492)
whether or not using the library could be considered to have any effect on examina-
tion performance.
The kinds of information to be expected in an answer to an historical research
question such as:
What social and economic ｦ｡｣ｴｯｲｳ (cid:969)(cid:969)ｴ (cid:21152) ｩｮｴｲｯ､ｵ｣ｴｩｯｮ Ｈ(cid:25193) ｴｨ･ ＱＸＷＰｅ､ (cid:38451)(cid:22323) ｭ
Act?'
are implied by the question itself. For example, social factors such as population
growth, the increase in industrialisation and urbanisation and the rise in social unrest
would need to be taken into account, as would economic factors such as levels of
taxation, increase in govemmental responsibility for the costs of education and the
increase in urban ｰｯｶ･ (cid:27492) ｹＮ
(cid:22269) ａ｣ｴｩｶｩｴ (cid:957)ＱＮＲ
a Write out three meaningful questions, one which involves a measure
such as temperature, one which involves a relationship ｢･ (cid:25170)(cid:65292)ｹ ･･ｮ two
factors and one which involves possible causes of an event.
b Ask two of your feIIow students to read the questions and teII you
what kinds of answers they would expect. Did what they say agree
with what you intended?
Non-meaningful questions in research terms are those which are not answerable as
a result of enquiry alone. These incIude metaphysical questions such as:
'Is there Ｑ(cid:21505) ･ (cid:21857) ･ｲ､･｡ｴｨ＿Ｇ
or judgemental questions such as:
ｗＨｾｓ＠ DNA ore important ､ｩｳ｣ｯｶ･ (cid:21487) ｴｨ｡ｮ penicillin?'
(llTl
5