1. Research for the Heath Professional

2. Overview Initial stages Choosing a Research Method Qualitative Research Designs Quantitative Research Designs Stumbling Blocks

3. Initial Stages Identify a topic Identify a research question Hypothesis Stumbling blocks

4. Identify a topic ◦ One that is interesting to you ◦ Keep it simple ◦ Do a pilot study to iron out the kinks ◦ Keep writing to clarify thoughts.

5. Identify a Research Question Does it add to the greater body of knowledge? Does anyone else care? Identify available resources Identify subjects

6. Hypothesis What is your hunch of a possible outcome from the research. It may or may not be supported, you must speculate why.

7. Stumbling Blocks You may need help in the form of a research partner Discuss your ideas with others for clarification and to check if the question peaks interest

8. Choosing a Research Method Qualitative Research Quantitative Research Comparison Stumbling Blocks

9. Researcher types Positivist ◦ Search for the universal “truth.” ◦ Usually Quantitative data Relativist ◦ There is no one “truth,” everyon experiences the world differently. ◦ Usually Qualitative data

10. Qualitative Research Try to generate and understand descriptive theory. Naturalistic setting ◦ Understand subject within the context of the subject’s own world. Groundedness ◦ The data is collected at the site, not through secondary sources

11. Qualitative Research (contd) Phenomenological perspective ◦ Identifying and locating the meanings people place on events, processes, and structures of their lives. (perceptions, assumptions, judgments and suppositions) become clear and can be placed into proper context.

12. Qualitative Research Strategies Ethnography—studeies that attempt to describe a culture or aspects of culture. Ethnography of communication—focuses on understanding the culture by studying all forms of communication within a culture. Ethnometholdology—how individuals create and understand their daily lives.

13. Qualitative Research Stratagies Phenomenology—study culture from the informants’ own point of view Nonreactive Research—the investigator takes the role of an observer, making an effort to be unobtrusive. Participant Observation—the investigator does take part in the participants’ world to obtain more data.

14. Qualitative Research Strategies Interview— not only interview; investigative journalism, biography, oral history Archival—literacy criticism, historical research, content analysis, and philosophical relsarch; artifacts used as research.

15. Quantitative Research Answer a question with evidence in which the data can be organized in a certain way True Experimental Quasi-Experimental Nonexpermimental

16. 3 Aspects of Quantitative Design Manipulation—doing something to the subjects in the study Control—the experimenters ability to eliminate interfering and irrelevant influences Randomization—ensuring that a a group represents the population and that experimental and control group are similar.

17. Variables Independent Variables—the variable being manipulated by the experimenter. ◦ Candy given or not given to subjects Dependent Variables—the results that can be measured after the independent variable is manipulated. ◦ Test scores of those who did not receive candy and test scores raised by those who did.

18. True Experimental Designs There must be control, independent variables, subjects must be manipulated, subjects must be randomly selected. ◦ The class is randomly assigned into Group X and Group Y. ◦ Group Y and X are given a pre-test ◦ Group Y is given a candy bar ◦ Group X and Y are given a post-test ◦ The test scores are averaged to determine if the candy bar had effect.

19. True Experimental Design O = Observation, R = Random selection, X = manipulation Group Y:R OX O Group X:R OO

20. Quasi-experimental design Similar to True experimental, but either lacking either control or randomization. Researchers use subjects as their own control; there is no second group without treatment. OX 1 O O X 2 O O X 3 O

21. Non Experimental Design No manipulation of independent variable, no control and no randomization. A variable cannot be manipulated (age, weight, height, or A variable that cannot be changed because it has already happened (head injury, child abuse). Researcher wants to measure and compare two variables to check for relationship.

22. Stumbling Blocks Be careful about claiming cause-and- effects relationship without proof. Choosing the wrong design. Not really having random selection. Drowning in data because the question wasn’t specific enough. Ending the data analysis too early