Introduction Flashcards
what is the object of research
to extend human knowledge of the physical, biological and social world beyond hat we already knwo
the scientific method: research cycle
observations, questions, search literature, hypothesis, experiment, collect data, conclusion, share results, develop interventions, ask new question
main idea of addressing research is
uncertainty
where do research Qs come from
clinical practice
published literature
intuition
testing hypothesises
an idea or explanation for something that is based on known facts but has not yet been proven
- a testable and tentative answer to a research question
hard to
prove hypothesises
hard to prove hypotheses so we use
null hypotheses
a null hypothesis
a default position that there is o relationship between measured phenomena, or no associations among groups
alternative hypothesis
the rival hypothesis that there something going on
reductionism
when research focuses on a tiny aspect of a hypothesised causal system
- approach will vary according to specific questions e.g. social sciences= more complex
what will increase the value and quality of research (5)
1) predefined protocol
2) ethical scrutiny
3) funding scrutiny
4) institutional scrutiny
5) peer review scrutiny
value of research depends on
design quality and study conduct
most papers are
never sited
why may papers not be cited often
de to low impact- may not be due to low quality
most papers are sited less than
10 times
naturalistic means
qualitative
positivistic means
quantitative
conceptual qualitative (naturalistic)
- focused on understanding reality from peoples own perspective and experiences.
Assumes reality is dynamic and negotiated
methodological qualitative
- data collected through ons and interview
- data aniseed by themes emerging from data
- data are reported in participants own words
- small purposeful samples in their natural habitat
Conceptual quantitative (positivistic)
-focused on understanding facts about reality
and causal relationship
- assumes a fixed and measurable reality
methodological quantitative
- data are collected by measuring things
- data are analysed statistically
- findings are reported using quantitive data
- large samples- preferably randomised to intervention
what is Occams Razor
” the number of entities used to explain phenomena should not be increased unnecessarily”
who said this: “ the number of entities used to explain phenomena should not be increased unnecessarily”
William of Ockham
1300
Occams Razor and the KISS principle
states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complicated= therefore simplicity should be key goal in designs if unnecessary complexity should be avoided
who’s idea was falsifiability
Karl Popper
falsifiability and the problem of induction e.g.
all swans we have seen are white and therefore all swans are white (inductive logic)
Inductive logic
doesn’t include certainty in the way deductive logic does
-some one who goes from specific instances to general conclusions e.g. all swans are white
therefore inductive logic uses
specific instances to create general principles
deductive logic uses
general principles to make conclusions about specific instances
‘absence of evidence
is not evidence of absence’
correlation
does not mean causation
- although events may closely correlate doesn’t mean causation
