Kategoriak: All - planning - topics - questions - objectives

arabera Hao Yu 16 years ago

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Chapter3 Planning and desgining research projects

When embarking on a research project, the initial stages involve careful planning and designing. One must begin by selecting a topic, which could stem from social concerns, policy matters, or personal interests.

Chapter3 Planning and desgining research projects

Chapter3 Planning and desgining research projects

Research ethics

Plagiarism and honesty in reporting of results

There are codes of ethics that regulate the people's activties to protect the human beings or animals who might be researched. If someone involve the activities, they will be pulished such as litigation or indemnity.

Example: The Academy of Management publishes its Cod of Ethical Conduct annually in the December issue of the Academy of Management Journal.

General research ethics
Falsification of results

The research shouldn't be falsified.

Appropriate acknowledgement
Plagiarism
Literature review

Ensure the research through the literature which is entire

Competence

Whatever interviewers or organisation that will do the interview, they should have the skills or competence to promise that they would not hurt the respondents

Informed consent
Guideline of a good survey

An example: Be anonymous

Short interview

No danger and no privacy

happen in the management

Suggested guideline in suvery: To show the interviewers' names

Briefed questions so that interviewees can answer easily

Some self-description of the purpose of the project in the paper

Interviewers should introduce themselves first

The interviewers should give the respondents the phone number

Prepare some short handout for the respondents

Grey areas

Example: Racism or gender bias

Examples in the physical and mental risks

Example; Some research should be informed to be objected to be put in the front of the pubilc.

Students should be informed that which organisation will be the beneficiary of the research.

Researchers' responsibility

Only the researchers can recognize the usage of the information that the respondents provide. They must promise that they couldn't abuse the information in some illegal situations which means they must obey some guidelines and monitor what might happen to the information.

Free choice

Solution: It depends on the researchers' background.

Some research used in anti-social behaviour
Governments' census
Captive group

Example: Apprentices, members of organisations, prisoners and some patients in hospitals

Moral pressure on the university students
Harm
Confidentiality or privacy

Issue: Although some surveys are not involved in the related reponsders' information because of the three parties among the surveys and the anonymous interviews, some people still can get the the reponsders' information inevitably.

Solution: Using the false names or numbers which is involved in individuals, organisations, events, places and communities to aviod the leak of information.

Research proposals

Ten elements of proposal:What, how , when, who, how many and how many, extra.

The most important principle is to address the brief.

Responsive proposal
Planners and managers
Students
Consultants

Potential Consultants: through the advertisement, they will be asked some questions to indicate an expression of interest in the project which is a brief statement of the consultants' ability, experience and staff.

Briefs

Limited,but brief can indicate proposals

Agenda

Management agenda.

Client organisations

The client's meaning and intentions

Dicussion: the relationship between the client organisations and their requirements.

If the clients ask many requirements, what kind of problems will rise?

Submission of a written proposal or tender

Submit a detail tender

track record

quality of proposal

basis of price

Self-generated proposal

Projects: Undergraduate, PHD thesis or a funded project

Cases study: Using some reasonable detail or elements on the literarure or research

Students seeking approval
Academics seeking funding


provide a rationale choice

describe the research

The research process

8. Reporting findings

Reporting the research and writing the research as sonn as possible

7. Conducting the research

Good research; good preparation

Bad research; inexperienced researchers, too rapid preparation, no convinced

6. Developing a research strategy
Budget and timetable

Because of the budget and timetable, the research is limited to reach.

Example: Student research, consultancy research, some other projects.

Data analysis methods

In some case study, the analysis of data, thoughts and skills are very complex and needed to be undertaken.

When the researchers collect the qualitative data, thoughts must be given as how the results of the interviews will be analysed.

Information-gathering methods

After the research collect the methods, they will plan the data collection process. They also need to consider whether the process is out into the field and the planning of the fieldwork

Example: The pilot study planning process is not only the wording of questionaire, but also discover the duration of the process, because the duration may affect the budget or the scale of data gathering

Questionnaire-based surveys

Qualitative methods

Experimental and observation methods

Utilisation of existing information

5. Listing information needs and operationalising

A list of the information needs should be important to rise.

The concept of operationalising concepts is to decide how a concept or variable is to measured.

Notice: Identified or assessed would be more appropriate than measured.

4.Deciding research questions
Research question vs hypotheses

Statistical analysis

null hypothesis probably false

null hypothesis probably true

Experimental research

a null hypothesis

No relationship between two variables

No difference between two group

Hypotheses

Hypotheses are stated in the form that predict a difference between two groups in relation to some variable, or that there is a relationship between two variables.

For example: There is a difference between the organisational commitment of male employees and female employess.

There is a relationship between job satisfaction and salary level.

Directional hypotheses

Example: Female employees have a higher level of organisational commitment than male employees.

There is a postive relationship between job satisfaction and salary level.

Directional hypotheses are two kinds: a higher level of commitment and a postive relationship.

Differences in a particular direction

Confident about the direction of a relationship

Non-directional hypotheses

They do not need to predict the direction of the difference or relationship.

Research question

Hypothesis to be tested

For example: What is the relationship between advertising expenditure and revenue?

A hypothesis dealing with the same topic might be expressed as:

There is a postive relationship between advertising expenditure and revenue.

Research questions vs objectives

The objectives of the research

organisational commitment influences the level of staff turnover

job satisfaction affects organisational commitment

the relative influences

Primary and subsidiary questions

Primary

Subsidiary questions

Job characteristics

Personal characteristics

Answerability

Practical terms

the resources available to the researcher

Theoretical

Research questions/manageable subprojects

Big issue

scale and scope

What kind of the problems could provide a basis for more detailed or extensive research?

From concept map to research questions

research questions

answerability of the question

the scale and scope of the implied research program

relationship between concepts//variables

organisational commitment influence staff turnover

Job satisfaction affect organisational commitment

influences

3.Devising a conceptual framework
Theoretical framework: T=a+bE

T is the concept staff turenover

E is the concept size of organisation

a and b are parameters.

Whether the research is

Evaluative

Explanatory

Descriptive

Conceptual framework

Operationalisation of the concepts

assessed, if qualitative in nature

measured , if quantitative in nature

Exploration of relationships between concepts

use concept map

Definition of concepts

Identification of concepts

going backwards and forwards between the elements

iterative

starting point

Concepts

The building blocks

Concept, definition, operationalisation

How to understand the concept, definition and operationlisation

2.Review the literature
Summary and conclusion
Ongoing

The research is ongoing and unpredicable by the actived communcation such as annual reportsm newspaper or websites.

Risk

Some research might be replicated based on the history

Comparsion between Los Angels and Sydney

Conclusion: Even the same topic or the same research, different enviroment may cause the different research.

Roles

The entire basis of the research, a source of ideas on topics for research, a source of information research done by others, a source of methodological or theoretical ideas, a source of comparison between your research and that of others, a source of information that is an intergral or supportive part of the research

1.Selecting the topic
Popular issues

Motivation

Some social issue may stimulate the social research

Social concern

deprived or neglected groups

the health needs of outworkers

the environment

Policy or management

The difference: Confidential and not examined wider implication by organisation

Public and more general implication by academics

academics

organisations

The literature

Example

Example: a tested theory, a theory related to manufacture not service organisations, a theory created by entire men, not women,

Personal interest

The responsiblilty and position of the researchers

disadeantage

unable to view the situation

The researcher unable to view the situation as objectively as prior interest or knowledge

biased

adventage

the high level of motivation

the high level of motivation which can be brought to the research

the possibility

the possibility of access to individuals and further information

the knowledge

the knowledge of the phenomenon that the researcher already has