1. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
The Nature of Research
Presentation 1
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

2. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Ways of Knowing
Three Broad Categories:
Experience
Reasoning
Research
Non-Scientific
Scientific
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

3. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Experience
Personal
Older person
Colleague
An authority (experts; traditional)
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

4. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Reasoning
Deductive (Syllogism: - Major premise. Minor premise, conclusion.)
Inductive (Examination of several individual cases, try to find a generalization.)
Inductive-deductive (Observations, hypotheses, deductively examine the hypotheses)
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

5. Common Errors in Non-scientific Inquiry
Inaccurate observation - making mistakes about what is observed and what is reported
Overgeneralization – taking a few events as evidence of the general pattern
Selective observation – using too narrow a focus on specific individuals or events
Illogical reason – no relation established between evidence and conclusion
Premature closure – thinking you have all the answers, you stop asking questions or making observations
Halo effect – giving people who have stronger reputations the benefit over those with a weaker reputation
Personal experience – making conclusions based on our experience
Ecological fallacy- erroneously drawing conclusions about an individual based on observations of a group
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

6. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research
What is Research
Wiersma (1995):
Research is empirical (Based on evidence)
Research should be systematic
Research should be valid
Research should be reliable
Research can take a variety of forms.
[Wiersma, W. (1995). Research methods in education: An introduction (6th ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Simon and Schuster]
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

7. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research is empirical (Based on evidence)
Empiricism is the concept that all knowledge in derived from sense experience.
The result of this experience must take some kind of informational form so that knowledge can be generated. Information can take many forms: e.g. test scores, field notes, responses to questionnaires
The researcher examines the data: organizing them; generating hypotheses, testing hypotheses etc.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

8. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research should be systematic
Research is a process, and to be useful it ought to be systematic.
Associated with the SCIENTIFIC METHOD.
Identify a problem
Review the literature.
Collect data
Analyzing data
Draw conclusions.
“Educational research is systematic and within a broad framework follows the steps of the scientific method. However, across different types of studies there is extensive flexibility in how the steps are implemented” (Wiersma , 1995, p. 4)
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

9. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research should be valid
It should be based on fact or evidence, i.e. “capable of being justified”.
Two concepts of validity are involved:
Internal validity – the extent to which results can be interpreted accurately and with confidence.
External validity – the extent to which the research results are generalizable to other populations and / or conditions.
VALIDITY of research deals with the accuracy with which results can be interpreted (INTERNAL) and the generalizability of the results (EXTERNAL). Both are a matter of degree.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

10. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research should be reliable
Reliability is concerned with the consistency of results and the replicability of the research.
Internal reliability – how reliable are the data collected? Are the results consistent? (Observer agreement)
External reliability – can independent researchers replicate the study? If so, will the results be consistent?
NOTE: RELIABILITY is a necessary condition for VALIDITY.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

11. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Research can take a variety of forms.
There are different classification systems.
For example, research can be classified according to:
Purpose
Methodology
Philosophy
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12. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
PURPOSE:
Basic research – goal is to add to the body of knowledge in the discipline; conducted mainly for theory development and refinement.
Applied research – goal is to investigate practical application of theory; test usefulness of theory.
Action research – goal is to find sustainable solutions to problems. Usually applies concepts such as collaboration and commitment to bring about change for the better.
Evaluation research –goal is to assess the merit and worth of a particular practice in a given context.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

13. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Methodology :
Quantitative research relies on numerical data to describe phenomena.
Data usually collected by measuring scales, very structured questionnaires, checklists, and is quantified.
Results are generally used to explain, predict, or control phenomena.
Analysis is usually statistical.
Quantitative research tends to involve few variable and large samples.
Associated with deductive reasoning.
Qualitative research relies primarily on narrative data to describe phenomena.
Open interviews, document examination, participant observation (field notes)
Results used to describe.
Tends to be inductive
May generate theory, or may be atheoretical
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

14. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
Philosophy:
Positivist approach is based on the notion that social reality is objective in nature.
Knowledge is objective and exist independent of the knower.
There is absolute TRUTH ‘out there’ and it is just a matter of accessing it.
Anti-positivist approach is based on the notion that social reality is context specific.
Knowledge is subjective and shaped by the knower.
There is no objective TRUTH, only truth as it relates to the knower.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

15. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
The philosophical stance that you adopt to guide your research is referred to as your PARADIGM.
A paradigm is a set of propositions that explain how the world is perceived. It provides guidance about what is important, what is legitimate and what is reasonable.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

16. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
In considering philosophical perspectives, you must examine basic belief:
ONTOLOGICAL ISSUES: The nature of reality (objective vs. subjective)
EPISTEMOLOGICAL ISSUES: The nature of knowledge (truth) and how we come to ‘know’.
METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES: what are legitimate ways of investigating reality
Each philosophical paradigm has its own views on these issues.
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

17. The Influence of Philosophy on Research
Ontology
Epistemology
Methodology
Design
Instrument(s)
= influences
Data Analysis
Adapted From: Sarantakos, 2005, p. 29
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)

18. Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)
The End 
Leacock, Warrican and Rose (2009)