Presentation 2 Flashcards
Difference between research and practice
Although scientific research is different in many respects from human service practice, important parallels exist between the two.
In fact, researchers and practitioners use many of the same strategies in approaching their problems. After reviewing the steps in conducting research, we will point out parallels that can be found in practice.
Steps in conducting research
The research process can be divided into six identifiable stages: problem formulation, research design development, data collection, data analysis, drawing conclusions, and public dissemination of the results.
Problem formulation
The first step in conducting social and psychological research is to decide on the problem that will be researched.
When first encountering the issue of problem formulation, students commonly question its importance. There are so many problems around that it would appear to be a simple matter to select one on which to conduct research.
However, such a casual view of scientific problem formulation is erroneous. For example, some problems about which we might desire answers are not scientific questions at all, and no amount of research will answer them.
Other problems, though possibly interesting and intriguing, might prove impractical from a methodological, ethical, or financial standpoint.
Another element of problem formulation is to shape a concern into a specific researchable question. Such global concerns as “the state of the modern family” are far too broad to be considered research problems. They need to be narrowed down to specific problems for which empirical data can be gathered, such as “What is the divorce rate”?
Research Design Development
Having successfully established a researchable problem, we next must develop a research design, a detailed plan outlining how observations will be made. The plan is followed by the researcher as the project is carried out. Research designs always address certain key issues, such as who will be studied, how these people will be selected, and what information will be gathered from or about them.
In fact, the research design spells out in considerable detail what will occur in the following stages of the research process.
Data Collection
A part of any research design is a description of what kinds of data will be collected and how this will be done. The data collected at this stage constitute the basic information from which conclusions will be drawn, so great care must be exercised. Two aspects of data collection, pre-tests and pilot studies, illustrate just how careful scientists are about this. The pre-test, as the name implies, is a preliminary application of the data-gathering technique for the purpose of determining its adequacy. It would certainly be risky and unwise to jump prematurely into data gathering without first knowing that all the data collection procedures are sound. For example, if our study were a needs assessment of homemakers, to determine how many would make use of occupational training services, we would choose a small group of homemakers and collect the same data from them that we plan to collect in the final project.
Additional pre tests
Additional pre-tests are always desirable after any modifications in the data-gathering technique in order to assess whether the modifications handled the problems encountered in the previous pre-test. In some cases, it may even be necessary to do a pilot study, which is a small-scale “trial run” of all the procedures planned for use in the main study.
In addition to administering the data-gathering instrument, a pilot study might also include such things as a test of the procedures for selecting the sample and an application of the statistical procedures to be used in the data analysis stage.
It is this kind of care in data collection that improves the validity of the data collected and increases (bolsters) our confidence in the conclusions drawn
Data Analysis
As with data collection, data analysis is spelled out in the research design. It can be the most challenging and interesting aspect of a research project. It is challenging because data in raw form can be quite unrevealing. Data analysis is what unlocks the information hidden in the raw data and transforms it into something useful and meaningful. During data analysis, one learns whether one’s ideas are confirmed or refuted by empirical reality. During the course of data analysis, researchers often make use of statistical tools that can range from simple percentages to very complex statistical tests that require much training to understand and master. These statistics aid in communicating the findings of research to others. Once the special language and interpretations of statistics have been learned, one can be more effective at communicating research findings in a clear, concise manner than when using conventional English.
Drawing Conclusions
The next step in conducting social and psychological research is to draw some conclusions from the data analysis. The form this takes depends in part on the goals of the research project. A descriptive study, for example, would simply present what was found, possibly in a summarized form to make it more easily understood.
Predictive and explanatory research on the other hand, usually have hypotheses, or statements of what the researchers expect to find, stated before the data are collected. In this case, a major element of drawing conclusions is to assess how much support there is for the hypotheses. The support that data provide for hypotheses can range from strong, to weak, to none and researchers have an obligation to those who might use their research to represent accurately the strength of their findings.
Finally, in evaluation research, drawing conclusions usually involve making a judgment about the adequacy and effectiveness of programs and changes that might improve conditions.
Continuation of drawing conclusions
Often, research discovers some things that do not relate directly to any specific hypothesis or things that are completely unanticipated. When drawing conclusions, the researchers should make note of the implications of any such findings that are of sufficient importance to warrant mention. When complete, the conclusions should clearly indicate what has been learnt by conducting the research and the impact of this new knowledge.
- Public Dissemination of Results:
Research findings are of little value if they remain the private property of the researchers who produce them. A crucial stage of social and psychological research is the public dissemination of the findings by publishing them in a book or professional journal or presenting them to a professional organization. This disseminates the newly created knowledge to those who can put that knowledge to use or who can build on it in future research. In fact, public dissemination of knowledge is a major mechanism for scientific advancement
Steps in Practice Intervention- Problem Assessment
- Problem Assessment In much the same way that social researchers must decide on the problem that will be researched, practitioners must specify the precise problem with which they are concerned, which factors might contribute to the problem, and which aspects of the problem will be given priority. In problem formulation, researchers make judgments concerning the feasibility of researching a particular phenomenon.
Likewise, in problem assessment, practitioners must decide which behavioural systems are involved in a problem—individual, group, or societal—and whether effective intervention is possible
Steps in Practice Intervention-Formulation of an intervention strategy
- FORMULATION OF AN INTERVENTION STRATEGY
Just as researchers develop a research design, practitioners develop a strategy for intervention that will be effective in alleviating the problem specified in the assessment stage.
Whereas researchers choose among a variety of research methods, practitioners choose among numerous intervention strategies, such as crisis interventin, behaviour modification, or vocational training.
Just as researchers may use more than one research technique over the course of a research project, so practitioners often use more than one intervention strategy in attacking a problem.
Steps in Practice Intervention- Implementation
Following the development of the research design, researchers proceed to put it into practice. In similar fashion practitioners implement the intervention strategies outlined in the preceding stage. Researchers’ activities are normally limited to data collection, they do not attempt to change the people they are studying.
Practitioners on the other hand may collect data as a part of the implementation stage, but they are primarily concerned with the effectiveness of the intervention strategy in creating some change in clients or in the systems that affect them.
Steps in Practice Intervention- Evaluation
Once researchers have collected their data, they analyse it to determine what their study has found. Similarly, evidence-based practice evaluates the effectiveness of the intervention strategy implementing during the preceding stage. Were the goals of the plan achieved? What were the cost of the strategy? Were any undesirable side effects brought about by the intervention? Which aspect of the intervention process seems to be most important in producing the change that resulted?
The evidence-based model emphasizes employing single system designs and other systematic assessment strategies in contrast the more casual observation associated with traditional practice. The results of these systematic assessments can help shape future research studies and may serve as evidence in their own right for guiding practice decisions.
Steps in Practice Intervention- Closure
Termination of intervention is an important part of the helping process. The extent to which the intervention has been effective must be determined, as well as the degree to which the goals of the intervention cannot be and possibly never will be achieved. Researchers may make suggestions for future research might be helpful in further clarifying the relationships found in the study. Likewise, practitioners might suggest other sources of help that the client could use to cope with problems left unresolved by the intervention.
In other words, for both researchers and practitioners, the conclusion is a time for revie what has been accomplished and look forward to directions and alternatives for the future.
