Research Methods Seminar Gosia Kwiatkowska

Designing New Media Choosing your research method

Quantitative or Qualitative Method or both?

Quantitative Methods – Designed to ensure objectivity, reliability and ability to generalise – Test predetermined hypothesis – explanations – Who, how much, how many? – Closed questions – Short answers – Averages, percentages, ranges, means, frequencies – Can generate accurate and precise data – Can test statistical relationship between variable – Can prove whether or not a particular problem exists – Can identify specific characteristics of a population

Quantitative Methods Strengths – Robust – Objective – Verifiable Weaknesses – Out of context – human behaviour, real world settings are not considered – Any variables left out of data collection are not used in analysis

Qualitative Method? – User perspectives – Questions: how and why? – Captures perceptions, judgements, meanings, processes and reasons – Open ended questions, checklist of topics – Hypothesis and follow up questions are generated during data collection and analysis – Subjective – not easy to objectively verify – Interviews allow to probe – Provides deeper insight – Broader understanding and explanations, views

Qualitative Method? Strengths – Participatory – Rich, detailed data – Considers users perspectives and the context for their behaviours Weaknesses – Hard work – Time consuming – Smaller sample of users – Not easily verifiable – Not easy to group your responses/categorised

Quantitative or Qualitative or Both? Quantitative methods can highlight an issues that could then be studies in depth using qualitative methods. Qualitative methods might be used at the beginning of a study to help the researcher to decide what closed questions could be used in the bigger quantitative survey or questionnaire.

By the end of today you will have fully developed model or map to move forward with your thesis Define your question Identify your ID and DV Identify your research methodology Develop your map Learning outcomes

Tools Surveys: type of questions? Interviews: interview questions? Focus groups: purpose and objectives, discussion notes, who, why, where? What did you find out? Which quotes, comments will you use to support your findings? Observations: observation checklist Case studies: use triangulation

Designing your questionnaires Questions types – List – Category – Ranking – Scale – Quantity – Grid – Verbal

Checklist for designing and conducting interviews, focus groups, surveys Decide what you need to know. State why you need to know this information. What is the best way of obtaining this information. Outline your questions. Check wording of each question. Decide on the tool for data collection and the question type. Refine the questions and order them. Consider how questions will be analysed.

Checklist for designing and conducting interviews, focus groups, surveys cnt Write instruction that might be included in your surveys. Consider layout and appearance. Decide on your sample, are they representative. Prepare a schedule. Pilot. Revise, if necessary. Do your best to avoid bias. Select who to interview. Ensure official channels have been cleared. Information sheets, consents etc Introduce yourself and explain the purpose of the research

Checklist for designing and conducting interviews, focus groups, surveys cnt Say how long will the interview/survey last. Check accuracy of your notes with respondents during interviews. Decide whether to record the interview. If you using surveys specify when you need them back. Try out your methods of analysis. (Bell, 1999)

Scenarios typical task, goal, conditions at the beginning of the task, activities in which the persona will engage, the outcomes of these activities.

Biometrics Description of Facial Action Coding System emotion.com/dataface/facs/description.jsphttp://face-and- emotion.com/dataface/facs/description.jsp ekman/ ekman/ EEG – Electroencephalography - A neuroscientific tool: a way of measuring electrical conductivity on the scalp. Respondents wear a cap with sensors which take readings from sites associated with cognitive functions like emotional intensity, frustration and long term memory encoding. GSR – Galvanic Skin Response - A biometric tool that measures tiny fluctuations in your body temperature and perspiration

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Activity: A recipe for my research My question: My IV and DV: My methodology: My map:

References Bell, J. (1999) Doing your research project: A guide for first-time researchers in education and social science. (3 rd Ed) Open University Press, Buckingham, Philadelphia Garrett, J. (2010) The elements of user experience: user-centred design for the web and beyond. New Riders Press, Barkley, CA Goto, K. & Cotler, E. (2002). Web ReDesign. Workflow that Works. Indianapolis: New Riders. Heim, S. (2008) The Resonant Interface HCI Foundations for Interaction Design, Pearson Addison-Wesley, New York Norman, D. (2004). Emotional Design. New York: Basic Books. Preece, J., Rogers, Y. & Sharp, H. (2002). Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Saffer, D. (2010)Designing for interaction. (2 nd ed) New Riders Press, Berkley, CA Shneiderman, B. and Plaisant, C. (2005). Designing the User Interface: Strategies for Effective Human-Computer Interaction (Fourth Edition) Pearson Addison Wesley, Boston, MA. Torres, R.J. (2002). Practitioner's Handbook for User Interface Design in Development. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Van Duyne, D., Landay, J. & Hong, J (2003). The Design of Sites. New York. Addison- Wesley