Research Methods Lecture 2013sgsgsdgsdfesfd

8/13/2019 Research Methods Lecture 2013sgsgsdgsdfesfd

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RESEARCH METHODS

LECTURE 2

2013 MGJL


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A key concept relevant to a discussion of research

methodology is that of validity.

When an individual asks, "Is this study valid?",

they are questioning the validity of at least one

aspect of the study.

VALIDITY


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There are four types of validity that can be

discussed in relation to research and

statistics.

Thus, when discussing the validity of a

study, one must be specific as to which type

of validity is under discussion.

A study may be valid in relation to one type

of validity but invalid in relation to anothertype of validity.


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1. Statistical Conclusion Validity:

Unfortunately, without a background in basic statistics, this type

of validity is difficult to understand.

According to Cook and Campbell (1979), "statistical conclusion

validity refers to inferences about whether it is reasonable to

presume co variation given a specified alpha level and theobtained variances (p. 41)."

Essentially, the question that is being asked is - "Are the variables

under study related?" or "Is variable A correlated (does it co-

vary) with Variable B?".


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If a study has good statistical conclusion validity, we should be

relatively certain that the answer to these questions is "yes".

Examples of issues or problems that would threaten statistical

conclusion validity would be random heterogeneityof the

research subjects (the subjects represent a diverse group - this

increases statistical error) and small sample size (more difficult

to find meaningful relationships with a small number of

subjects).

1. Statistical Conclusion Validity:


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Once it has been determined that the two variables (A & B) are

related, the next issue to be determined is one of causality.Does A cause B? If a study is lacking internal validity, one can not

make cause and effect statements based on the research; the

study would be descriptive but not causal.

There are many potential threats to internal validity. For

example, if a study has a pretest, an experimental treatment,

and a follow-up posttest, history is a threat to internal validity. If

a difference is found between the pretest and posttest, it might

be due to the experimental treatment but it might also be dueto any other event that subjects experienced between the two

times of testing (for example, a historical event, a change in

weather, etc.)

2. Internal Validity:


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One is examining the issue of construct validity when one is asking the

questions "Am I really measuring the construct that I want to study?" or "Ismy study confounded (Am I confusing constructs)?". For example, if I want to

know a particular drug (Variable A) will be effective for treating depression

(Variable B) , I will need at least one measure of depression. If that measure

does not truly reflect depression levels but rather anxiety levels

(Confounding Variable X), than my study will be lacking construct validity.

Thus, good construct validity means the we will be relatively

sure that Construct A is related to Construct B and that this is

possibly a causal relationship. Examples of other threats to

construct validity include subjects apprehension about beingevaluated, hypothesis guessing on the part of subjects, and

bias introduced in a study by expectancies on the part of the

experimenter

3. Construct Validity:


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External validity addresses the issue of being able to generalize the

results of your study to other times, places, and persons. For

example, if you conduct a study looking at heart disease in men, can

these results be generalized to women? Therefore, one needs to ask

the following questions to determine if a threat to the external

validity exists: "Would I find these same results with a differencesample?", "Would I get these same results if I conducted my study in

a different setting?", and "Would I get these same results if I had

conducted this study in the past or if I redo this study in the future?"

If I can not answer "yes" to each of these questions, then theexternal validity of my study is threatened.

4. External Validity:


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As stated above, a sample consists of a subset of the population. Any

member of the defined population can be included in a sample. A

theoretical list (an actual list may not exist) of individuals or elements

who make up a population is called a sampling frame. There are five

major sampling procedures.

1. The first sampling procedure is convenience. Volunteers, members

of a class, individuals in the hospital with the specific diagnosis beingstudied are examples of often used convenience samples. This is by

far the most often used sample procedure. It is also by far the most

biased sampling procedure as it is not random (not everyone in the

population has an equal chance of being selected to participate inthe study). Thus, individuals who volunteer to participate in an

exercise study may be different that individuals who do not

volunteer.

Types of Sampling Procedures


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2. Another form of sampling is the simple random sample. In this

method, all subject or elements have an equal probability of beingselected. There are two major ways of conducting a random sample.

The first is to consult a random number table, and the second is to have

the computer select a random sample.

3. A systematic sampleis conducted by randomly selecting a first case

on a list of the population and then proceeding every Nth case until

your sample is selected. This is particularly useful if your list of the

population is long. For example, if your list was the phone book, it wouldbe easiest to start at perhaps the 17th person, and then select every

50th person from that point on.

Types of Sampling Procedures


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While the parameters of these research approaches vary,

there are some common characteristics among them:

* Source: the Initiative for Architectural ResearchAIA, ACSA and ARCC

1. Architectural research efforts are those that haveclearly identifiable goals at the outset of the research,

where the project is directed to respond to a question

2. In pursuing that question, one follows a credible,

systematic method or mode of inquiry, relevant and

acceptable to the research paradigm under which one is

operating

3. This process results in significant results (and in a

thorough, documented manner which reflects a solution or

enhances understanding/knowledge within the researchdomain)

It should be noted that design can be a form of research

inquiry if it incorporated the three characteristics listed

above.


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The following components need to appear in

your thesis:

1. Title page

2. Abstract/summary

3. Table of contents4. Acknowledgements

5. Main text

6. Bibliography or references7. Appendices


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Title pageYou should include:

title of your thesis in full

your names and degrees

statement of presentation in the form:"This thesis is presented for the degree of

Doctor of Philosophy/Master of [insert

name of degree] of The University of

Western Australia"

schooldiscipline (where applicable)

year of submission.

If you are enrolled in a degree which has

examinable components other than a

thesis, you should state: "This thesis is

presented in partial fulfilment of the

requirements for the [insert name of

degree]".

THE STUDY OF A DISASTER RESILIENT

HOME

JUAN T. DELA CRUZ

2010654321

This thesis is presented inpartial fulfilment of the requirements

for the degree of

Bachelor of Science in Architecture of

The Mapua Institute of Technology

Muralla, Intramuros, Manila

2014


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THE STUDY OF A DISASTER RESILIENT HOME

JUAN T. DELA CRUZ

2010654321

This thesis is presented inpartial fulfilment of the requirements

for the degree of

Bachelor of Science in Architecture of

The Mapua Institute of Technology

Muralla, Intramuros, Manila

2014

Confirm actual format with your thesis adviser


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List of Figures

List page numbers of all figures.

The list should include a short title for each figure but not the whole

caption.

List of Figures Page No.

Figure 1: Vicinity Map ............................ 3

Figure 2: Location Plan .......................... 8

List of Tables

List page numbers of all tables.

The list should include a short title for each table but not the wholecaption.

List of Table

Table 1: Result of Survey .................... 4

Table 2: List of Areas of Study ............ 10


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1 What else belongs in the introductory section(s) of your paper? A statement of the


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1.What else belongs in the introductory section(s) of your paper? A statement of the

goal of the paper: why the study was undertaken, or why the paper was written. Do not

repeat the abstract.

2.Sufficient background information to allow the reader to understand the context and

significance of the question you are trying to address.

3.Proper acknowledgement of the previous work on which you are building. Sufficientreferences such that a reader could, by going to the library, achieve a sophisticated

understanding of the context and significance of the question.

4.The introduction should be focused on the thesis question(s). All cited work should

be directly relevent to the goals of the thesis. This is not a place to summarizeeverything you have ever read on a subject.

5.Explain the scope of your work, what will and will not be included.

6.A verbal "road map" or verbal "table of contents" guiding the reader to what lies

ahead.7.Is it obvious where introductory material ("old stuff") ends and your contribution

("new stuff") begins?

Remember that this is not a review paper. We are looking for original work and

interpretation/analysis by you. Break up the introduction section into logical segments

by using subheads.

O O OG


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Methods1.What belongs in the "methods" section of a scientific

paper?Information to allow the reader to assess the believability of your

results.

2.Information needed by another researcher to replicate yourexperiment.

3.Description of your materials, procedure, theory.

4.Calculations, technique, procedure, equipment, and calibration plots.

5.Limitations, assumptions, and range of validity.

6.Desciption of your analystical methods, including reference to any

specialized statistical software.

METHODOLOGY

METHODOLOGY


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The methods section should answering the following questions and caveats:

1. Could one accurately replicate the study (for example, all of the optional and

adjustable parameters on any sensors or instruments that were used to acquire

the data)?

2. Could another researcher accurately find and reoccupy the sampling stations or

track lines?

3. Is there enough information provided about any instruments used so that a

functionally equivalent instrument could be used to repeat the experiment?

4. If the data are in the public domain, could another researcher lay his or her

hands on the identical data set?

5. Could one replicate any laboratory analyses that were used?

6. Could one replicate any statistical analyses?

7. Could another researcher approximately replicate the key algorithms of any

computer software?

8. Citations in this section should be limited to data sources and references of

where to find more complete descriptions of procedures.

Do not include descriptions of results.

METHODOLOGY

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS


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Results

The results are actual statements of observations, includingstatistics, tables and graphs.

Indicate information on range of variation.

Mention negative results as well as positive. Do not interpret

results - save that for the discussion.

Lay out the case as for a jury. Present sufficient details so that others can draw their own

inferences and construct their own explanations.

Use S.I. units (m, s, kg, W, etc.) throughout the thesis.

Break up your results into logical segments by using subheadings

Key results should be stated in clear sentences at the beginning of paragraphs. It is farbetter to say "X had significant positive relationship with Y (linear regression p


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RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Note: Results vs. Discussion Sections

Quarantine your observations from your interpretations. The

writer must make it crystal clear to the reader which statementsare observation and which are interpretation. In most

circumstances, this is best accomplished by physically separating

statements about new observations from statements about the

meaning or significance of those observations. Alternatively, thisgoal can be accomplished by careful use of phrases such as "I

infer ..." vast bodies of geological literature became obsolete with

the advent of plate tectonics; the papers that survived are those

in which observations were presented in stand-alone fashion,

unmuddied by whatever ideas the author might have had about

the processes that caused the observed phenomena.


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Discussion

Start with a few sentences that summarize the most important results. The discussion

section should be a brief essay in itself, answering the following questions and

caveats: What are the major patterns in the observations? (Refer to spatial andtemporal variations.)

What are the relationships, trends and generalizations among the results?

What are the exceptions to these patterns or generalizations?

What are the likely causes (mechanisms) underlying these patterns resulting

predictions?

Is there agreement or disagreement with previous work?

Interpret results in terms of background laid out in the introduction - what is the

relationship of the present results to the original question?

What is the implication of the present results for other unanswered questions in earth

sciences, ecology, environmental policy, etc....?

Multiple hypotheses: There are usually several possible explanations for results. Becareful to consider all of these rather than simply pushing your favorite one. If you can

eliminate all but one, that is great, but often that is not possible with the data in hand.

In that case you should give even treatment to the remaining possibilities, and try to

indicate ways in which future work may lead to their discrimination.


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CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION


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CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

Conclusions

What is the strongest and most important statement that you can make from

your observations?If you met the reader at a meeting six months from now, what do you want

them to remember about your paper?

Refer back to problem posed, and describe the conclusions that you reached

from carrying out this investigation, summarize new observations, new

interpretations, and new insights that have resulted from the present work.

Include the broader implications of your results.Do not repeat word for word the abstract, introduction or discussion.

Recommendations

Include when appropriate (most of the time)

Remedial action to solve the problem.

Further research to fill in gaps in our understanding.

Directions for future investigations on this or related topics.

Title Page


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Title Page

Acknowledgement

Table of Contents

List of Figures

List of TablesAbstract

I. Introduction

A. Background of Study

B. Statement of the Problem

C. ObjectiveD. Review of Related Literature

II. Methodology

A. Hypotheses

B. Scope and Limitations

C. Conceptual FrameworkD. Results & Discussion

III. Conclusion & Recommendation

Appendices

References


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http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students

/thesis/style

http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~martins/sen_

sem/thesis_org.html
http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis/stylehttp://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis/stylehttp://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~martins/sen_sem/thesis_org.htmlhttp://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~martins/sen_sem/thesis_org.htmlhttp://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~martins/sen_sem/thesis_org.htmlhttp://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~martins/sen_sem/thesis_org.htmlhttp://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis/stylehttp://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis/style

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Research Methods Lecture 2013sgsgsdgsdfesfd