Summary
Contents
Subject index
Stressing the link between research and theory-building, this concise book shows students how new knowledge is discovered through the process of research. The author presents a model that ties together research processes across the various traditions and shows how different types of research interrelate. The book is sophisticated in its presentation, but provides explanation of higher-level concepts in an accessible and engaging manner. Throughout the book, the author treats research methodologies as universal and logically appropriate ways of answering a wide range of interesting questions, rather than just a set of tools to be applied. The book is an excellent guide for students who will be consumers of research and who need to understand how theory and research interrelate.
Preparing to Test Hypotheses
Preparing to Test Hypotheses
Overview
This chapter identifies the steps that a researcher takes in preparing to test quantitative-type theories through empirical analysis. It discusses how models and hypotheses are deduced from theories and how data are created through processes of operationalization and experimentation.
In discussing operationalization, the discussion introduces a typology of different variables used in quantitative research. Furthermore, discussion looks at the terms validity, reliability, and precision, and shows how such terms are used somewhat differently when discussing research design versus variable measurement.
The chapter concludes with an extended discussion of the benefits of experimental data collection over simple nonexperimentally collected observational data. It examines the steps in a “classic experimentation” and describes how they overcome specific methodological issues involving omitted variables, causal simultaneity, and ...
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