Methodology - Trimester 1 Flashcards
Theory
A Hypothesis which is tested
Hypothesis
is merely an idea
is a prediction of the relationship of two variables
(independent and dependent)
- null hypothesis:
there will be not relationship btw. the variables
- alternative hypothesis:
there may be an important relationship btw. the variables
A good research topic
Capability:
- interested?
- achievable (time, money)
- current topic?
- enough data, new knowledge?
Appropriateness:
- meet examination standards?
- link to theory and to the idea that has been given to you?
- new insights?
clear defined research question
one aim and one objective
symmetry of potential outcomes (all of your results will have similar value whatever you find out)
Ways of thinking to find a research idea
rational and creative thinking
rational thinking
- examining own strengths and interests
- looking at past project titles
- searching literature
- scanning media
creative thinking
- notebook of ideas
- brainstorming
- relevance trees
- exploring relevance to business using literature
Refining ideas
- Delphi Technique
- preliminary study/initial inquiry
Delphi technique
A group of people who are interested or involved in the research idea generate and choose a more specific research idea after telling them the initial one. They should comment each idea and put further refinements to the idea.
Preliminary study/ initial inquiry
process of refining the research idea in order to create a research question and afterwards your project. Involves searching and evaluating further literature and other sources (visiting a company etc.)
Purpose of the research question:
descriptive research question
What, when, why, how, who where
To portray an accurate profile of people/situations/events
Purpose of the research question:
exploratory research question
how, what
To ask questions and assess phenomena in a new light.
Purpose of the research question:
explanatory research question
why
Goldilocks Test
to see if the rq is too big (demanding too many resources) or too small (insufficient substance) too hot (sensitivities) or just right.
Generate new insights in the idea.
General focus research question
form a general idea and go into something specific
after research topic
research aim and research objective
research aim
short statement of the purpose of your project
a good theory
is about the connections between phenomena, a story about why events, structures and thoughts occur.
A good theory explains and predicts.
deductive approach in the research project
when it is theoretically driven (when you test a theoretical position)
inductive approach
when the research topic is data driven (when you aim to explore a topic and develop theoretical explanations after collecting and analyzing the data)
Types of theories
Grand theories
(province (Fachgebiet) of natural scientists (Darwin)
Middle-range theories
(not able to change the way we think about the world, but are significant)
Substantive theories
(restricted to a particular time, research setting, group or population or problem)
research proposal
is to clarify your thoughts and create a structured outline of your research project
feasible
within your capabilities
The structure of your project
Title
- it should summarize your research question
Background
- introduction to the reader to the issue of your research and why it is worth it.
- showcase of your knowledge of relevant literature
- showing link btw. proposal and previous literature
Method
- longest section of proposal
- Research design: explains where you will cary out the research (quantitative, qualitative or multiple methods) + time frame
- The data collection: how data is collected and which type (secondary or survey) and the various analysis techniques during the research
Timescale
- divide research into different stages and explain how much time each one will take
Resources:
- finance, data access and equipment
References:
- literature sources to which you have referred to
literature review
- making reasoned judgments about the value of piece of work
- organizing ideas and findings of the value of a piece of work into a review
ways of using literature in your projects
- Preliminary search: helps you to generate and refine your research ideas and compose a research proposal
- Critical literature review: provides the context and theoretical framework for the research
- Placing research outcomes within a wider body of knowledge: part of your discussion chapter
Critically reviewing articles and books
- is about linking and contrasting the main ideas
How to adopt a critical perspective in your reading
- previewing: looking through the text to find its purpose
- annotating: conducting a dialogue with yourself, the author, and the ideas. (What does this mean)
- summarizing
- comparing and contrasting
Five critical questions:
- Why am I reading this?
- What is the author trying to do in writing this?
- What is the author saying that is relevant to what I want to find out?
- How convincing is the author?
- What can I make of the reading?
critical reading means
being able to evaluate what you read and relating to other information
Content of a critical review
needs to evaluate the research that has already been conducted in the area of your research project showing the key points and trends. By doing so you will provide the necessary background information for your research question and objectives.
- key academic theories within your area of research
- demonstration that knowledge is current
- clear reference to allow those who are reading your project report to find the original literature you cite
four aspects of a critical approach
- critique of rhetoric: evaluating a problem with effective use of language
- critique of tradition: using other sources
- critique of authority: question the dominant view in your source and compare it to other sources
- critique of objectivity: including in your review that the literature found is probably not always value-free
Literature sources available
- grey or primary literature: produced by all levels (government, academics, business and industry). Not controlled by commercial publishers.
- secondary literature: formally published items such as books and journals
Constructing a relevance tree
A relevance tree is an analytic technique that subdivides a broad topic into increasingly smaller subtopics thereby showing ‘all’ possible paths to the objective, and provides a forecast of associated costs, durations and probabilities for each element.
- research question or objective at top of tree
- identify >2 subject areas of importance
- subdivide each subject area into sub-areas
- identify the areas that you need to search immediately and those that you need to concentrate on
evaluating the literature
- assessing relevance (to rq?)
- assessing value (quality of research which has been conducted (theory robustness, methodological rigor, quality of reasons, contain biases (Vorurteil))
- assessing sufficiency
recording the literature
- bibliographic details which include all the relevant items you used for the project
systematic review
process for reviewing to locate the existing literature, evaluate the contribution and analyze the items found and allowing conclusions by reporting the evidence.
Not suitable for all research projects.
Plagiarism
means presenting work or ideas from others as if they were your own.
Research philosophy
relates to beliefs and assumptions about the development of knowledge. This is exactly what you do when entering the research: developing knowledge in a particular field.
two major research philosophies
Pluralism: in favor of diversity in philosophy, enriching businesses and management
Unificationists: see business and management as fragmented, thus it is no true scientific discipiline. They advocate (befürworten) unification of management research under one strong research philosophy, paradigm and methodology.
Paradigm
distinct set of concepts
Ontology
Ontology is the philosophical study of being. More broadly, it studies concepts that directly relate to being, in particular becoming, existence, reality, as well as the basic categories of being and their relations.
Epistemology
Epistemology is the study of the nature of knowledge, justification, and the rationality of belief.
Relates to concerns about valid, acceptable and legitimate knowledge and how we communicate the knowledge to others.
Axiology
is the philosophical study of value.
Refers to the importance of values and ethics in the research process and how we deal with our own values and the values of participants.
Objectivism concerning Ontology, Epistemology and Axiology
Objectivism is concerned with assumptions of natural sciences.
- in ontology: supports the position of realism, so in the social world only one true reality exists which is true.
- in epistemology: objectivists are searching for the truth about the social world by adopting assumptions of the natural scientist and through observable phenomena
- in axiology: research is value-free because they could bias their findings
Subjectivism concerning Ontology, Epistemology and Axiology
Subjectivism relates to assumptions about arts and humanities, so the social reality is made up of perceptions and consequent actions.
- in ontology: it includes nominalism (the order and structure we study is because we as researchers made it). Reality is socially constructed by social interaction in which social actors create partially shared realities (social constructionism). In the end there are multiple realities with chaos.
- in epistemology: knowledge is more about opinions and narratives
- in axiology: research is value-bond so values should be integrated in the research and be reflexive
Paradigm in research
Paradigms (set of concepts) are used to interpret social phenomena. Particular understandings are gained and it is attempted to make explanations.
Four sociological perspectives (?)
radical change (what is possible and what are the alternatives) vs. regulation (societies and human behaviour need to be regulated) and subjectivist vs. objectivist
Within the four sociological perspectives there are four paradigms
Functionalist paradigm
Interpretive paradigm
Radical structuralist paradigm
Radical humanist paradigm
Functionalist paradigm
- used in business management
- ontological position
- concerned with a rational explanation of why an organizational problem is happening
Interpretive paradigm
- related to the way humans try to make sense of the world around them
- when one is adopting this paradigm one is concerned with understanding the fundamental meanings attached to organizational life and understanding irrationalities
Radical Structural Paradigm
- concern is to approach research with aim to accomplish fundamental change. This is based on an analysis of organizational phenomena, looking for patterns of conflict. It involves working with structural patterns such as hierarchies.
Radical Humanist Paradigm
- critical and subjectivist perspective of organizational life. Your research would be concerned with evoking change
major philosophies
positivism critical realsim interpretivism postmodernism pragmatism
Positivism
- research is done like a natural scientist
- builds on observable and measurable facts
- deductive approach of quantitative data
Critical realism
- however our senses can deceive us
- reality is external and consists of objects and structures
- the truth is an objective account which is free from bias
Interpretivism
- subjective perspective
- reality is complex and is socially and culturally constructed through language and culture
- builds on multiple meanings and interpretations
Interpretivism stems from intellectual heritages which are
Stems from different intellectual heritages:
- Phenomenology considers the way in which we as humans make sense of the world around us
- Hermeneutics is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts.
- Symbolic interactionism is a sociological theory. It is a frame of reference to better understand how individuals interact with one another to create symbolic worlds, and in return, how these worlds shape individual behaviors.