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Research Methods > 4. The Nature of Quantitative Research > Flashcards

4. The Nature of Quantitative Research Flashcards

1
Q

Quantitative research entails what two philosophical assumptions?

A
  • Epistemologically positivist
  • Ontologically objectivist
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2
Q

what kind of relationship does quantitative research have between theory and research?

A

a deductive relationship: theory then observation (top to bottom)

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3
Q

quantitative research has a preference for positivism (natural science approach to research) and what conception of social reality?

A

objectivist

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4
Q

What is the main major concern for quantitative research?

A

measurement validity (whether an indicator devised to gauge a concept really does so)

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5
Q

what are the twelve steps of quantitative research?

A
  1. theory
  2. hypothesis
  3. research design
  4. devise measures of concepts
  5. select research site(s)
  6. ethics review
  7. select research participants
  8. administer research instruments/collect data
  9. process data
  10. analyze data
  11. findings/conclusions
  12. write up findings/conclusions
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6
Q

Operationalization

A

the process of converting concepts into indicators or into specific questions in a questionnaire or an interview

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7
Q

Concepts

A

The ideas or mental representations of things (ex. academic achievement, leadership, crime, research ethics, gatekeepers)

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8
Q

concepts may be either independent (the variable that is manipulated) or…

A

…dependent variables (the variable that is being measured)

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9
Q

review of independent variables/dependent variables. definition and an example.

A

Independent variables are manipulated to see if they have an impact on dependent variables

Dependent is the outcome (like headache pain)
Independent is the manipulated variable (like taking Tylenol or not)

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10
Q

why do we measure concepts? (3)

A
  • finding delineation of small or fine differences between variables
  • gauge those differences with consistency
  • correlation
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11
Q

what are the two types of definition of concepts and how do you define it?

A
  1. nominal: dictionary definition
  2. operational: describes how the concept is to be measured (ex. political party may be measured by asking people xyz questions)
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12
Q

Indicators

A

tell us (indicate) that there may be a link and indicate how strong that link may be

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13
Q

usually, how many indicators are adequate for each concept?

A

one, but it is advantageous to use more than one indicator of a concept (often done in survey)

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14
Q

what gets these results?

  • reduces the likelihood of misclassifying some people
  • ensures definition of the concept is understood correctly
  • gets a wider range of issues related to concept and allows the researcher to make finer distinctions
  • allows for factor analysis
  • helps weed out response sets
A

using multiple indicators (more than one variable) to measure a concept

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15
Q

what are basic principles to observe when as a researcher, you derive codes (labels or titles given to the themes or categories) (4)

A
  • assign numbers to the codes
  • categories must not overlap
  • categories must be exhaustive
  • there must be clear rules for how codes are applied
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16
Q

What is reliability concerned with?

A

Would we get the same results if done again? the consistency of measures

17
Q

what are the three different meanings of reliability?

A
  1. stability over time
  2. internal reliability (would we get the same results?)
  3. inter-observer consistency (will multiple tests get the same results?)
18
Q

Whether the results of a measure fluctuate as time progresses, assuming that what is being measured is not changing

can be measured using the test-retest method

It is extremely difficult to quantify this over time because of the number of factors that may come into play over the passage of time

A

stability over time (factor of reliability)

19
Q

Whether multiple measure that are administered in one sitting are consistent

can be measured using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient (0-1) or the split-half method

A

internal reliability/internal consistency

20
Q

what’s considered a generally accepted minimum of internal reliability (cronbach’s alpha coefficient)

A

0.8 on a scale of 0-1

21
Q

All observers should classify behaviour or attitudes in the same way.
ex. if two observers are recording the amount of aggression children display on a particular playground, their estimates should agree

A

Inter-observer Consistency

22
Q

concerned with whether one is measuring what one wants to measure

A

Measurement validity

23
Q

what are four types of validity?

A
  1. Face validity
  2. Concurrent validity
  3. Construct validity
  4. Convergent validity
24
Q

Established if, at first glance, the measure appears to be valid

A

Face validity

25
Q

Established if the measure correlates with some criterion thought to be relevant to the concept

A

Concurrent validity

26
Q

Established if the concepts relate to each other in a way that is consistent with the researcher’s theory. Confirmed by seeing that the results match what would be predicted given the theory

A

Construct validity

27
Q

Established if a measure of a concept correlates with a second measure of the concept that uses a different measurement technique

A

Convergent Validity

28
Q

A measure that is not reliable will not be…

A

…valid (An inconsistency in the way the data was gathered makes the data more or less unusable)

29
Q

A measure may be invalid but still be…

A

…reliable. (invalid because it didn’t “fit” with the project, but may be useful for a different kind of study)

30
Q
  • measurement
  • establishing causality (internal validity)
  • generalization of findings to those not studied
  • representative sample
  • probability sampling
  • replication
A

the main goals of quantitative research

31
Q

What is a critique of quantitative research from a qualitative standpoint?

A

Quantitative researchers fail to distinguish people and social institutions from “the world of nature” (we cannot test humans the same way we test natural sciences)

32
Q

second critique of quantitative research

A

The measurement process produces an artificial and false sense of precision and accuracy (For example, problems can arise if people interpret the same survey item differently)

33
Q

third critique of quantitative research

A

Reliance on instruments and procedure produces a disjuncture between research and everyday life

34
Q

fourth critique of quantitative research

A

The analysis of relationships between variables ignores people’s everyday experiences and how they are defined and interpreted

35
Q

fifth critique of quantitative research

A

Explanations for findings may not address the perceptions of the people to whom the findings purportedly pertain

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