GUIDE FOR RESEACH METHODS

OBJECTIVES:
To familiarize students with the basic principles of scientific culture To establish theoretical frameworks for analytical skills To equip students with search and information processing skills in order to draw conclusions and design solution To prepare students to work independently on research project
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GUIDE FOR RESEACH METHODS

CONTENT:
To introduce the basics of qualitative and quantitative scientific methods To introduce how to identify problems, build hypotheses and analyze data To write and carry out a scientific research project To understand the results of the research.
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INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

WHAT IS RESEARCH?

Research is a systematic process of collecting and analyzing data in order to help answer a question, examine an idea or phenomenon or propose new techniques.
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INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

RESEARCH IS. - Answering a question

What are the most efficient new processes for developing clean energy?

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INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

RESEARCH IS. - Examining an idea or phenomenon

The rise of reality television. How did this strend start, and why is it so appealing? Heightened concentration of Obesity in populations living below povety line.
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INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

E-learning: How technology has revolutionized primary and secondary education for students in developing countries. Medical procedures: Exploring long term side effects of Lasik eye surgery.
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RESEARCH IS. - Proposing new techniques

INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

RESEARCH IS.NOT Wikipedia

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THE RESEARCH PROCESS

1. Understand the problem

7. Present and/or publish your work

2. Identify questions and form a hypothesis

6. Draw conclusions

PROCESS

3. Choose a research design or method

5. Analyze findings

4. If applicable, submit forms

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What does the research/creative process look like?

1. Identify a topic that interests you
7. Share your results through presentations or publications

2. Gather background information

6. Analyze your findings

DURING THE PROCESS

3. Find a faculty mentor that shares your interests

5. Conduct your research or creative project

4. Determine the purpose of your study and choose 5research menthods

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FRAMING YOUR RESEARCH

The introduction to your study is composed of three main components

Purpose statement Research question Hypothesis

RESEARCH PROPOSAL
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r STEP 1: IDENTIFYING YOUR RESEARCH

Question to ask yourself: 1.Is your topic worth researching? - Is there a gap of knowledge? -Are there discrepancies with previous studies? - To what end does it serve? 2. Is your topic feasible to research? 3. Should your topic be researched?
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THE PURPOSE STATEMENT

The purpose statement is a general description of what your research is about The purpose statement sets the objectives, the intent and the major idea of a proposal or study The purpose statement indicates why you want to do the study and what you intent to accomplish
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THE RESEARCH PROBLEM/QUESTION

The research problem is a question that the data will attempt to answer (The question narrows down the purpose with specific points) There is question one central question followed by 5 7 sub-question.
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HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT

A hypothesis statement is a focused statement which predicts an answer to your research question A hypothesis is based on the findings of previous research as well as your previous experience with the subject.

A hypothesis is supposed to guide your research by establishing a starting point.

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WHAT SHOULD A HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT DO?

A hypothesis should. - Describe patterns - Predict relationships - Propose answers to questions

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WHAT SHOULD A HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT DO?

A hypothesis should.Describe patterns EX: Lets say your research question is: What factors lead to strong stock market performance? One hypothesis might be: Stock markets tend to perform better when interest rates are low than they do when interest rates are high.
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WHAT SHOULD A HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT DO?

A hypothesis should. Predict relationships EX: Lets say your research question is: What sort of people excel at basketball? One hypothesis might be: Tall people tend to be better basketball players than short people are.
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WHAT SHOULD A HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT DO?

A hypothesis should. Propose answers to questions Ex: Lets say your research question is: Why did Viet Nam join the World Trade Organization? One hypothesis might be: Viet Nam joined the World Trade Organization because it wanted to attract more foreign investment
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USING VARIABLES TO CREATE A HYPOTHESIS

A variable is something that varies within a sample

Examples: - On a mens soccer team, positions, numbers, and player height are all variable.
- In a classroom, GPAs, names, and nationalities are all variables.

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USING VARIABLES TO CREATE A HYPOTHESIS

- Most hypothesis will propose a relationship between two variables. For example: Tall people tend to better basketball players than short people - This hypothesis includes two variables: + Height - Therefore, ou + Basketball ability basketball abilit
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USING VARIABLES TO CREATE A HYPOTHESIS

- Therefore, our hypothesis is that ones

basketball ability depends on their height

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HOMEWORK: Research and synthesize your own abstract

Abstract Content: An abstract is an outline/brief summary of your paper and you whole project.

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HOMEWORK: Research and synthesize your own abstract

- It should have an intro, body and conclusion - It highlight major point of the content, and answers why this work is important, what was your purpose, how you went about your project, what you learned, and what you concluded. - It is a well developed paragraph and should be exact in wording. - It must be understandable to a wide audience - Do not include any charts, tables, figures, or spreadsheets in the abstract body
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WHAT IS A LITERATURE REVIEW? - A literature review should summarize the existing research on your subject. - It should make connection between existing theories and arguments. - It should bring your readers up to speed with existing research. - It should set the stage for you to explain the need for additional research.
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