Research Methodology Approaches

The bestseller that pioneered the comparison of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research design continues in its Fourth Edition to help students and researchers prepare their plan or proposal for a scholarly journal article, dissertation or thesis.

With a new chapter on the literature review, this accessible step-by-step guide to using the five major approaches to research design is now in a thoroughly revised second edition. The prior edition's user-friendly features are augmented by a new companion website with worksheets keyed to each chapter. For each approach, the text presents a template for a research proposal and explains how to conceptualize and fill in every section. Interdisciplinary research examples draw on current events and social justice issues. Unique coverage includes hot topics--replication studies, data sharing, and preregistration; tailoring proposals to different audiences; and more. Terminology commonly used in each approach is identified and key moments of ethical decision making are flagged. The book includes a general introduction to social research, an in-depth discussion of ethics, and a chapter on how to begin a research study. New to This Edition *New or expanded discussions of theory and literature in quantitative research, replication studies, preregistration of research, the critical paradigm in qualitative research, mixed methods research, approaching different kinds of organizations in community-based participatory research, and more. *Chapter on the literature review, including the ethics of citational practices. *Companion website with worksheets to aid in learning and practicing each chapter's key concepts. *Updated examples, references, and recommended readings throughout. Pedagogical Features *Multiple "Review Stops" in each chapter--quick quizzes with answer keys. *End-of-chapter writing exercises, research activities, and suggested resources. *Bolded key terms and an end-of-book glossary. *Boxed tips from experts in the respective approaches. *Pointers to downloadable worksheets throughout the chapters. *Author-created PowerPoints and chapter tests with answer keys available to instructors using the book in a course.

Bridging environmental and Indigenous studies and drawing on critical geography, spatial theory, new materialist theory, and decolonizing theory, this dynamic volume examines the sometimes overlooked significance of place in social science research. There are often important divergences and even competing logics at work in these areas of research, some which may indeed be incommensurable. This volume explores how researchers around the globe are coming to terms - both theoretically and practically - with place in the context of settler colonialism, globalization, and environmental degradation. Tuck and McKenzie outline a trajectory of critical place inquiry that not only furthers empirical knowledge, but ethically imagines new possibilities for collaboration and action. Critical place inquiry can involve a range of research methodologies; this volume argues that what matters is how the chosen methodology engages conceptually with place in order to mobilize methods that enable data collection and analyses that address place explicitly and politically. Unlike other approaches that attempt to superficially tag on Indigenous concerns, decolonizing conceptualizations of land and place and Indigenous methods are central, not peripheral, to practices of critical place inquiry.

'This work will be of immense value to those who are undertaking a significant post-graduate research study in Education. The array of impressive contributors writes in an accessible and clear manner, and brings the attention of the reader to both technical and conceptual terms. This book certainly will be an addition to my own reference library' - Susan Groundwater-Smith, Faculty of Education and Social Work, University of Sydney This straightforward and jargon-free book will provide students with the theoretical understandings, practical knowledge and skills they need to carry out independent research. The international contributors identify key research methodologies, data collection tools and analysis methods, and focus on the direct comparisons between them. Each chapter sets out the strengths and weaknesses of a key research method by: identifying specific research designs presenting a series of relevant data collection tools highlighting which analytical methods which can be used. The chapters cover the full range of methods and methodologies, including internet research, mixed methods research and the various modes of ethnographic research. Additional online materials are also available including links to useful journal articles enabling further reading and exploration of each chapter. This is a key book for M-level students and other postgraduates within Education and Educational Research Methods courses. James Arthur is Head of School and Professor of Education and Civic Engagement at the University of Birmingham, UK. Michael J. Waring is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Sport, Exercise and Human Sciences at Loughborough University, UK. Robert Coe is Professor in the School of Education and Director of the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM), Durham University, UK. Larry V. Hedges (PhD) is Board of Trustees Professor of Statistics and Social Policy, at the Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, US.

This book is for anyone who wishes to improve university teaching and learning through systematic inquiry. It provides advice, but also a constructive critique of research methods and, in turn, the authors also make a contribution to the theories of research methodology. Topics covered include ontology, epistemology and engagement with academic literature, as well as research design approaches and methods of data collection. There is a keen focus on quality in both the analysis and evaluation of research and new models are proposed to help the new researcher. The authors conclude by examining the challenges in getting work published and close with some words on quality of thought and action. The ideas in the book come from the authors’ extensive experience in teaching research methods courses in higher education, health and the corporate sector, as well as several empirical research projects that have helped provide a methodology for higher education. It will be of particular interest to postgraduate students, academic developers and experienced academics from a wide variety of disciplines.

This book is about the practices and experiences of doing contemporary research in the social sciences and in related professions. Written in personal and easy-to-read English, it is for people beginning to do research or wanting to change the ways they research and write. Jeanette Rhedding-Jones explains different ways of doing research, as these link to critical issues researchers decide take up, and to what drives research inquiries. With personal examples and a conversational style, she deals with both the difficult matters of doing theorised research and the politics of getting published. The chapters are about research and self, professions, disciplines, theory, inquiry, methodology, ethics, gender, ethnic diversity and post-modernity. The last two chapters are about research writing and publishing. This book will be a key text for research methodology courses in the social sciences and the professions. As a companion text to more traditionally written books, 'What is Research?' opens doors for readers needing new directions.

The field of community psychology has focused on individuals' and groups' behavior in interaction with their social contexts, with an emphasis on prevention, early intervention, wellness promotion, and competency development. Over the past few decades, however, community-based applications of the newest research methodologies have not kept pace with the development of theory and methodology with regard to multilevel data collection and analysis. The Handbook of Methodological Approaches to Community-Based Research is intended to aid the community-oriented researcher in learning about and applying cutting-edge quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods approaches. The Handbook presents a number of innovative methodologies relevant to community-based research, illustrating their applicability to specific social problems and projects. These methodological approaches explore individuals and groups in interaction with their communities and provide examples of how to implement and evaluate interventions conducted at the community level. The chapters discuss how particular methodologies can be used to help gather and analyze data dealing with community-based issues. Furthermore, they illustrate the benefits that occur when community theorists, interventionists, and methodologists work together to better understand complicated person-environment systems and the change processes within communities.

Qualitative Research Design: An Interactive Approach, Second Edition provides researchers and students with a user-friendly, step-by-step guide to planning qualitative research. A bestseller in its First Edition, this invaluable book presents an innovative approach to the components of design and how they interact with each other. The text presents a clear strategy for creating coherent and workable relationships among these design components and highlights key design issues. Based on a course the author taught for seven years at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the work is written in an informal, jargon-free style and incorporates many examples and hands-on exercises.