Summary of Articles

Question 1

Describe the Research Wheel from Rudestam & R.R Newton (1992)

Answer 1

-Research is not linear but rather a recursive cycle
-The most common entry point is some form of ‘empirical observation= the researcher selects a topic
-inductive process serves to relate the specifc topic to a broader context (guided by the values, assumptions and goals of the researcher that need to be explained.
-a developed proposition (expressed as statement of
an established relationship) that exist within a conceptual or theoretical framework
-researcher must clarify the relationship between proposition and the broader context =conceptual framework.
-researcher uses deductive reasoning to move from the larger context to generate a specific research
question, accompanied by specifc hypotheses
-collect data that will serve to answer the research question= another task of empirical observation (initiates
another round)
-generalizations are made on the basis of the particular data
-tied to a conceptual framework
-elucidation of further research questions and
implications for additional study

Question 2

Name two kinds of skills/knowledge that are necessary for the Research Process (Rudestam&Newton)

Answer 2

1. Knowledge by description: learning in a passive mode (ea. reading a book) good for mastering abstract information
2. Knowledge by acquaintance: learning by doing

Question 3

When is a topic appropriate as a dissertation subject? (Rudestam & Newton)

Answer 3

1. Needs to sustain your interest over a long period of time
2. Avoid a topic that is overly ambitious and overly challenging
3. Avoid topics that may be liked too closely with emotional issues of your own life
4. Avoid topics in which you have a personal ax to grind
5. Select a topic that has the potential for you to make an original contribution to the feld and allow you to demonstrate your independent mastery of subject and method

Question 4

Researchable questions almost invariably involve relationship between two or more variables, phenomena, concepts, or ideas.

Variables impart meaning to the research because they offer suggestions as to what accounts for variability. The precise function of the third, or ‘connecting’ variable, will depend upon the logic of the conceptual model underlying the study.

What is the difference between Moderator and Mediator variables? (Rudestam & Newton)

Answer 4

• Moderator variable= pinpoints the conditions under which an independent variable exerts its efects on a dependent variable
• Mediating variable= tries to describe how rather than when efects will occur by accounting for the relationship between the independent variable (the predictor) and the dependent variable (the criterion)

Question 5

Three things on how to convince your dissertation committee of your proposal (Rudestam & Newton)

Answer 5

1. Is the question clear and researchable and will the answer to the question extend knowledge in your feld of study?
2. Have you located your question within a context of previous study that demonstrates that you have mastered and taken into consideration the
   relevant background literature?
3. Is the proposed method suitable for exploring your question?

Question 6

What is a research design? (Bryman, 2012)

Answer 6

A research design provides a framework for the collection and analysis of data. A choice of research design refects decisions about the priority being given to a range of dimensions of the research process

Question 7

A researcher chooses a research design, based on the attached importance to diverse dimensions.

On what four dimensions does your chosen research design depend? (Bryman, 2012)

Answer 7

A choice of research design refects decisions about the priority being given to a range of dimensions of the research process

The extent to which importance is attached to these dimensions, influence the choice of research design:

• Expressing causal connections between variables
• Generalizing to larger groups of individuals than those actually forming part of the investigation
• Understanding behaviour and the meaning of that behaviour in its specifc social context
• Having a temporal appreciation of social phenomena and their interconnections

Question 8

What is a Research Method (Bryman 2012)

Answer 8

A technique for collecting data

Question 9

What is a variable? (Bryman 2012)

Answer 9

Variable= an attribute on which cases vary. If an attribute does not vary, it is a constant (rarely of interests to social researchers). There is a distinction between independent variables and dependent variables.

Question 10

Naturalism has different meanings, some contradictory. Name those three meanings. (Bryman 2012)

Answer 10

• Viewing all objects of study, whether natural or social ones, as belonging to the same realm and a consequent commitment to the principles of natural scientifc method.

no diference between the objects of the
natural science and those of the social sciences (there should not be a difference in the ways in which they study phenomena)

• Being true to the nature of the phenomenon being investigated. Fusion of elements of an interpretivist epistemology and a constructionist ontology

people attribute meaning to behaviour and are
authors of their social world rather than passive objects

• A style of research that seeks to minimize the instrusion of artifcial methods of data collection.

social world should be as undisturbed as possible when it is being studied

Question 11

What are the three criteria of social research? (Bryman 2012)

Answer 11

1.Reliability:
Whether the results of a study are repeatable: are the measures that are devised for concepts consistent.
It is particularly at issue in connection with quantitative research

2.Replication:
It must be replicable. A researcher needs to spell out his or her procedures in great detail. in social research not common, because it is not original, so it won’t earn a
dissertation or a job

3.Validity:
Concerned with the integrity of the conclusions that are generated from a piece of research.