1. GENERATING AND SHAPING IDEAS: THE CHALLENGE OF THE ONE SEMESTER PROJECT.
Introduction and Chapter Overview.
Research:
The Tension between the Old and the New. Topics Selected by Students. Time Pressure and Timelines. Sources of Ideas: Your Personal Sphere and Your College Environment Print Media Television Previous Courses Other Department Resources Regional Association Meetings. Ideas in the Library: The Organization of the Library Reference Materials Library Browsing. Electronic Resources: The Library Home Page Databases and indexes in the Social Sciences Locating Journals Electronically Other Electronic Sources in the Library Worth Knowing Interlibrary Loan Systems Online Dictionaries and Encyclopedias Subject and Research Guides GIS: Geographical Information Systems. Next Steps: What to Do with Your Articles and Books (Don’t be satisfied with reading an abstract!): The Literature Review Conflicts and Gaps Seminal Studies and Becoming an Expert The Method Section Limitations and Future Directions Critique, Critique, Critique Organizing Your Articles and Books Reasonable Questions and the Problem of Mediating Variables: Narrowing the Gap. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding.
2. RESEARCH DESIGN AND STATISTICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
Introduction and Chapter Overview. Hypotheses:
Slight Changes with Big Implications: Study 1: Correlational Design Study 2: Quasi-experimental Design Study 3: Experimental Design. Cause and Effect and Types of Research Designs. Passive Designs: Correlational Research Observational Methods, Non-obtrusive Measurement, and Archival Research Qualitative Research Designs Between-groups Design: Quasi-experimental Design and Quasi-independent Variables. Experimental Design. Research Designs: Issues of Sample Size, Power, and Effect Size: Sample Size Power and Effect Size. Research Design: Some Practical Issues: Factors to Consider. Kinds of Research Questions and Associated Statistics: Sampling Distributions Chi-squares and t-Tests One-way Analysis of Variance Analyses of Variance and Multivariate Analyses of Variance Correlations: Statistics Involving Relationships, Not Group Differences Factor Analysis. How to Analyze Open-ended Questions: Cautionary Tales: Qualitative Research and Statistics: Kappa as a Measure of Agreement. General Concerns about Research Designs: Internal Validity: The behavior of the experimenter Blind and Double-blind Research Designs Pre-existing Beliefs or Attitudes of the Participant Cover Stories Manipulation Checks Variation in your Procedure Sampling Issues Function of the Equipment Biases and Omissions in the Materials or Measures Events in the Wider World Internal Validity and Control of Variables General Concerns about Research Designs: External Validity. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding. Summary Table of Research Design and Statistical Approaches.
3. SOURCES OF MEASURES.
Introduction and Chapter Overview.
What Measures or Instruments Do. Locating Measures or Equipment: The Literature Statistical Qualities of the Measure Length and Difficulty of Items Instructions for Scoring Names of Measures Measures of Social Desirability. Availability: How to Obtain the Measure: The Article Itself Department Authors and Professors Books of and about Measures. The Drawbacks to Using Pre-existing Measures: Assessing New Territory Developing Your Own Scale and Measuring Its Internal Consistency Advice for Writing Instruments Yourself Creating Your Own Scale: Item Format Fees Qualifications for Use. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding. Appendix of Commonly Used Measures.
4. OBTAINING YOUR SUBJECTS: NEVER APPEAR ON STAGE WITH ANIMALS OR CHILDREN.
Introduction and Chapter Overview.
Once You have Your Idea, Then What? Subject Pools: How Subject Pools Function The Timing of Your Request. Advertising/Pitching Your Research and Setting and Appropriate Tone. Sensitive Topics. Keeping Track and Planning Ahead. The Ins and Outs of Data Collection: Where you Collect Data Scheduling/Time of Day/Days of Week Attrition. Payment and the Ethics of Payment: Double Dipping Ethical Concerns. Other Ways to Obtain College Students: Campus Newsletters or Daily Postings Campus Groups Mail Surveys Internet Surveys and Software. Real People: Research in the Field: Connections Making a Contribution “Cold Call” Bureaucracy Vulnerable Populations/Service Learning Ethical Issues in Multiple Relationships Children The Convenience Sample or Using Your Friends as Research Subjects? Dustin’s Dozen: Tips for Collecting Data in the Field. Final Words. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding.
5. ETHICS AND THE IRB REVIEW PROCESS: I’M FROM THE IRB AND I’M HERE TO HELP YOU.
Introduction and Chapter Overview. A Personal Reflection.
What is the IRB and Why Does It Exist? History of IRBs. What is Research? What are Human Subjects? IRB Nuts and Bolts: IRB Membership The Levels of IRB Review Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) IRB Actions. Effective Communication in the Research Process. Components of the IRB Proposal: What Each Proposal Should Address Informed Consent. Other Sensitive Issues. Vulnerable Populations and their Implications for Research: The Child’s Assent (Agreement). The Question of Deception and Its Alternatives: Deception: Contribution of the American Psychological Association. Debriefing/Explanation of Research. Alternatives to Participation for Students in a Subject Pool. Does Social and Behavioral Research Need IRB Review? Advice for Preparing Your IRB Proposal. The IRB as an educational Experience: Training Modules. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding. Sample Informed Consent Document. Sample Debriefing/Explanation of Research Form.
6. MANAGING YOUR DATA: A PENNY SAVED?
Introduction and Chapter Overview. Data Entry:
What to Label Labeling in a Statistical Package Deciding on a Coding Scheme Specificity is Flexibility A Word about Keeping Data Backed Up How to Enter Scales: Scale Total vs. Individual Items Dealing with Missing Data Reliability Analysis. After Data Entry: Data Entry Mistakes Adding New Data to the Original Data File Reverse Scored Items. Preliminary Analyses: Significance Levels and p Values A Few Comments about SPSS Where to Begin Your Data Analyses Going Fishing “Cleaning Up Your Act” Content Analyses. Writing about Results: What is Important? Parallel Order Top-down Structure Thorough Reporting. Writing Up Analyses: Explanations First!: Straightforward. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding.
7. THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL: REPORT WRITING AND PRESENTATIONS.
Introduction and Chapter Overview. The Title.
The Abstract. The Introduction: The First Sentence(s) in the Paper. The Method Section: Participants Apparatus/Materials Procedure Statement of Research Design. The Results Section: Analyses of Group Differences Measures of Relationships Non-parametric Statistics A Word about Reading Significance Levels. Reader-Friendly Results. The Discussion: Non-significant Findings Statistical vs. Practical Significance. References: Citations and References Must Match Secondary Sources. Appendixes. Tables and Figures. The APA Manual Behemoth: List of Common Questions Other Useful Sections of the APA Manual. Some Things are Worth Memorizing. Some Stylistic Conventions. Common Grammatical Pitfalls. Your Manuscript Checklist. Presentations at Local and Regional Conferences: Creating a Conference Poster The Large Poster Oral Presentations Other Opportunities for Presentation. Summary. Apply Your Knowledge Questions. Web Resources to Enhance Your Understanding. Table of Common Statistical Measures: What and How to Report. Example of a Large Poster (in Miniature).
APPENDIX: COMMON STATISTICAL MEASURES. Glossary. References.
