Practical Research

• Qualitative research design

  The overall strategy that you choose to integrate the different components of the study in a coherent and logical way, thereby, ensuring you will effectively address the research problem
• Choosing carefully an appropriate qualitative research design aligned with the problem inquiry or research questions is a crucial step in conducting a research
• Qualitative research designs

  • Case studies
  • Grounded theory
  • Ethnography
  • Phenomenology
• Grounded theory

  A research method that will enable you to develop a theory which offers an explanation about the main concern of the population of your substantive area and how that concern is resolved or processed
• Grounded theory research design

  1. Concept formation

  2. Concept development- reduction; selective sampling of literature; selective sampling of subjects; emergence of core concepts

  3. Concept modification and integration
• Ethnography

  A type of qualitative research that is interactive and requires relatively extensive time in a site to systematically observe, interview and record processes
• Ethnographic research design

  1. Identify culture, variables for study, and review literature

  2. Data collection- gain entrance to culture; immerse self in culture; acquire informants; gather data through direct observation and interaction with subjects

  3. Observational data

  4. Gather documentaries through audiotapes or videotaped media

  5. Describe characteristics of culture

  
• Phenomenology

  Used to identify phenomena and focus on subjective experiences and understanding the structure of those lived experiences
• Phenomenological research design

  1. Seek persons who understand study and are willing to express inner feelings and experiences

  2. Describe experiences of phenomenon

  3. Write experiences of phenomenon

  4. Direct observation

  5. Classify and rank data

  6. Examine experiences beyond human awareness
• Phenomenology is a fusion of two words—phenomenon which refers to an occurrence or experience, and logical refers to a path toward understanding

  
  

  • Lives of Barrio Teachers in far-flung communities
  • College graduates who opt to do community outreach with the poor sectors of society
• Examples of phenomenological studies

  • Lives of Barrio Teachers in far-flung communities
  • College graduates who opt to do community outreach with the poor sectors of society
• Phenomenological study

  A study that focused on understanding the underlying meaning of the experience of the research participant from his/her own viewpoint and perspective
• Phenomenological study

  • Examines uniqueness of individual's lived situations
  • Each person has own reality; reality is subjective
  • No clearly defined steps to avoid limiting creativity of researcher; sampling and data collection
  • Seek persons who understand study and are willing to express inner feelings and experiences
  • Describe experiences of phenomenon
  • Write experiences of phenomenon
  • Direct observation
  • Data collected lead to identifying common themes in people's perceptions of their experiences
• Phenomenological study

  1. Classify and rank data

  2. Sense of wholeness

  3. Examine experiences beyond human awareness
• Phenomenological study examples

  • Lives of Barrio Teachers in far-flung communities
  • College graduates who opt to do community outreach with the poor sectors of society, instead of practicing their professions immediately after graduation
• Phenomenological research format

  1. Writing the research questions that explore the meaning of the experience

  2. Conducting the interview

  3. Analyzing the data to find the clusters of meanings

  4. Writing a report that makes the readers understand more clearly the essential structure of the experience
• Case study

  An in-depth analysis of people, events, and relationships, bounded by some unifying factor
• Case study

  • Originated in 1829 by Frederic Le Play
  • Rooted in several disciplines, including science, education, medicine, and law
  • Used when the researcher wants to focus on how and why, the behavior is to be observed, not manipulated, to further understand a given phenomenon, and if the boundaries between the context and phenomena are not clear
  • Multiple methods can be used to gather data, including interviews, observation, and historical documentation
• Case study examples

  • Principal leadership in middle schools
  • Curricular implementation in a school district
• Qualitative research design
• Common qualitative research designs

  • Case study
  • Ethnography
  • Phenomenology
  • Grounded Theory
• Practical Research 1 Quarter 4 Week 2
• Topic: Sampling Procedures
• Sampling

  The act or process of selecting pre-determined items (e.g. individuals, organization etc.) from a large population for measurement or analysis
• Sample

  A subset (selected elements) of a population that is used to represent the entire population
• The sample should be representative of the population to ensure that we can generalize the findings from the research sample to the population
• Qualitative sampling

  • The primary goal is to get a representative sample, or a small collection of units or cases from a much larger collection or population, such that the researcher can study the smaller group and produce accurate generalizations about a larger group
  • Qualitative researchers focus on how the sample or small collection of cases, units, or activities illuminates key features of social life
  • The purpose of sampling is to collect cases, events, or actions that clarify and deepen understanding

  
• Sampling procedures/methodologies/techniques

  • Probability sampling
  • Non-probability sampling
• Non-probability sampling

  A sampling technique in which the researcher selects samples based on the subjective judgment of the researcher rather than random selection

  
• When to use non-probability sampling

  • To indicate if a particular trait or characteristic exists in a population
  • When conducting qualitative research, pilot studies, or exploratory research
  • When the researcher has limited time or budget constraints
  • When the researcher needs to observe whether a particular issue needs in-depth analysis
  • When the researcher does not intend to generate results that will generalize the entire population
• Types of non-probability sampling

  • Convenience sampling
  • Purposive/Judgemental sampling
  • Quota sampling
  • Snowball sampling
• Probability sampling

  A sampling technique wherein the researcher uses a method based on probability theory to select samples from a larger population
• For a participant to be considered as a probability sample, he/she must be selected using a random selection
• Sampling of probability assumes that each member of a population has a known and equal chance of being chosen
• Types of probability sampling

  • Simple random sampling
  • Stratified random sampling
  • Cluster random sampling
  • Systematic sampling
• Simple random sampling

  • An inherently random way of choosing items
  • The sample contains those representatives whose numbers are selected
• Stratified random sampling

  • Involves the division of subjects into groups which are mutually exclusive and then the use of basic random sampling to pick group members
• Cluster random sampling

  • A way to randomly select participants from a list that is too large for simple random sampling
  • The researcher randomly selects areas (i.e. cities or counties) and selects randomly from within those boundaries
• Systematic sampling

  • Choosing every "nth" participant from a complete list
• Advantages of probability sampling

  • Cluster sampling: convenience and ease of use
  • Simple random sampling: creates samples that are highly representative of the population
  • Stratified random sampling: creates strata or layers that are highly representative of strata or layers in the population
  • Systematic sampling: creates samples that are highly representative of the population, without the need for a random number generator