Social And Intellectual Rationales Research Purpose Significance Of Study

Question 1

What is institutional research?

Answer 1

Conducted by organizations to improve quality and performance

Question 2

What is Academic research?

Answer 2

Conducted by scholars to contribute to the literature via:

-new information

Or

-revised or refined information

Question 3

What type of research is this courze concerned with?

Answer 3

Academic research

Question 4

What are the 7 design considerations?

Answer 4

1. What idea or issue to investigate?(topic selection)
2. Who cares?(Social rationale aka social significance of the topic)
3. What inadequacies in the literature?(intellectual rationale aka the research problem)
4. How will this study address inadequacies identified?(the reasearch purpose)
5. So what? (Application of the findings aka significance to the study)
6. What’s feasible?(delimitation and limitations of the study
7. From what stance?(theoretical perspectives and nit frameworks)

Question 5

What is a rational?

Answer 5

Rational: an adjective as in “this is a rational argument”

Question 6

What is a rationale?

Answer 6

A noun as in “you have not provided a convincing rationale for your position”

Question 7

Before field work begins….

Answer 7

2 arguments/rationales must be mounted, one intellectual, the other social

Question 8

What are IMRaD reports?

Answer 8

I: introduction(background )

M: methods

R: results (findings)

and

D: discussion

Question 9

What is a social rationale?

Answer 9

An argument, based largely on emperical data, that the selected research topic matters to others in society. WHO CARES

Not just catharsis

Question 10

What are the functions of the social rationale ?

Answer 10

Show prevelance

Show significance /severity(e.g. benefit, harm )

• significance alone maybe enough
  - in Grenada, one road fatality or one reported case of the corona virus is too many

Question 11

What are the criteria to as a social rationale?

Answer 11

Criteria A:what types evidence is needed?
Factual statements re:

1. Prevelance, and
2. Consequences of the issue

Criteria B: how much evidence is needed?
Depends on:

1. The type of subject (poetry vs cancer; Ebola vs dengue)
2. Target audience
3. Public awarenesss of the subject( COVID-19 vs lupus; AIDS vs sleep apnea)

Question 12

What is an intellectual rationale?

Answer 12

This is the research problem and not a social issue.

This is an argument stating that what is currently known on the topic is inadequate and/or inconclusive

Question 13

What is the standard/goal of an intellectual rationale?

Answer 13

To demonstrate that we don’t know enough about the topic or issue under investigation

Question 14

Give contrasting examples between social and intellectual rationales

Answer 14

Social rationale- hundreds die from ebola, AIDS leaves thousands of parent-less families in India

Intellectual rationale- no known cure for Ebola , cultural practices supporting risky sexual behavior in India not sufficiently understood

Question 15

What are 2 criteria for assessing an intellectual rationale?

Answer 15

1. What types of info are needed

An argument built on. 3 types of information:

• what scholars have agreed on regarding a topic
• what scholars are debating
• what scholars say or imply needs further investigation
  2. How. Much evidence is needed?

Question 16

How do you know if an intellectual rationale provides enough info?

Answer 16

Argument is adequate if it:

• it gives readers a good grasp of the issues
• it examines different perspectives on the issues
• it is cogent and succinct

Question 17

What is a research purpose?

Answer 17

The information that the investigation hopes to contribute to the literature

The investigators way of addressing the identified research problem

Research purposes describe the behavior of the investigator

Question 18

What is the goal of the research purpose?

Answer 18

• To provide a statement or cohesive set of statements that indicate the knowledge contribution the study HOPES to make the literature
• Its not the actual findings/results. It’s what it is HOPED for

Question 19

What are the criteria to assess research purpose statements?(criteria A)

Answer 19

Criteria A:Types of evidence needed:

• substantive interests: what the investigator plans to study
• epistemically interests: the structures or forms of the information the investigator plans to generate
• research context:whom, where, when and in what situation

Question 20

What are the 3 forms of epistemic interests ?

Answer 20

Description (quantitative or qualitative)

-describe study behavior in a week(qualitative)

Predictions: (quantitative only )

How likely is X?
-persons who do not shop at Walmart, shop at Walgreens.

Explanations :(quantitative or qualitative) what causes X or what accounts for current manifestations (forms and intensities) or X?

Question 21

When are descriptions in relation to predictions and explanations?

Answer 21

Descriptions not more important, ut are logically prior

Question 22

How to assess if research purpose has enough evidence?

Answer 22

Has enough evidence if:

• It address some aspect of the identified research problem
• Its key terms are unambiguous
• It provides enough information, (about substantive and epistemic interests and research context) to guide selection of research procedures

Question 23

Contrast research topic and research purpose

Answer 23

Research topic: selected at the onset of the investigation, is needed to guide the literature review, therefore it is identified BEFORE beginning the literature review

It is redefined during the literature review

-broad in scope, typically doesn’t indicate a research approach/method.

Research purpose: selected at the end of the literature review process

• derived from the intellectual rationale
• Expresses the contribution the study hopes to make to the Literature
• specific and detailed enough to guide selection of research procedures

Question 24

Give an example of both a research topic and research purpose

Answer 24

Topic: COVID-19

Purpose: What are the 5 most prevelant symptoms of COVID-19 in children under 5, in Wuhan province, China?

Question 25

What is the significance of the study?

Answer 25

Probable uses to which the findings might be put. Addresses the question: who besides the investigator, might use the findings and in what ways?

Question 26

What is the goal of the significance of the study?

Answer 26

To describe probable applications of the findings of the study

Question 27

Differentiate the research purpose and the significance of the study

Answer 27

• with research purpose the focus is on the behavior of the investigator: what knowledge does the investigator hope to provide
• with SoS, the focus in on the behavior of others: who might use the findings and in what ways

Question 28

What type of evidence in needed for significance of study?

Answer 28

Statements of significance come in the form of:

• confirmation of previous studies
• refutation of previous studies
• fresh insights
• recommendations for future research and/or practice

Question 29

How much evidence is enough for Significance of study?

Answer 29

A study is significant when or more of the following is true:

• Confirmations and refutations are supported by findings
• fresh insights flow from the findings and offer new lines of inquiry

Recommendations are:

• based partly or entirely on the findings in the study(supported)
• a plan of action- involving implementer with the requisite expertise, interests, power and resources is evident (feasible)
• Consequential : what is being recommended, if accomplished is likely to make a significant difference to research and/or practice related to the topic of issue under study