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Advanced Research Methods (MAN-MPL034) Summary of all lectures
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Summary lectures Advanced Research MethodsTable of Contents
Tutorial 1: Mind mapping research interests, problem statement, aim and questions.........................2
Research philosophies and approaches in social science......................................................................5
Tutorial 2: student presentations + discussion assignment research philosophy paradigms in research
design and methodologies...................................................................................................................12
Module 1: Varieties of Case Study Research........................................................................................17
Module 2: Focus group research.........................................................................................................24
Tutorial 3: Discussing group exercise 4 review of prior master’s thesis with a focus on CM, methods,
analysis................................................................................................................................................33
1
,Tutorial 1: Mind mapping research interests, problem
statement, aim and questions
The aim of your research should logically follow from the research problem statement. The SMART
objectives or research questions should break your research proposal into major stages and state
the expected output (which then also guide you in planning your work for the thesis)
Criteria for objectives and questions:
Make sure they are clear
In principle you can do a theoretical research, however in the field of spatial planning, don’t do
this! So difficult to make this successful.
Using the concept of SMART
Specific (what precisely do you hope to achieve from undertaking the research?
Measurable (how do you measure whether or not you have achieved your goals?
Achievable --> targets are able to be reached.
Realistic --> time dimension try to design a plan that is reachable until the end of
June, formulate them in a way that you can achieve these targets. Are you able to
finish your research in time?
Consistency --> the objectives and the research questions are connected.
Relevant: precise; purposeful; congruous with theory and methodology (depending on the
choice you will go for specific methodology).
Why are research questions crucial?
Because they will:
Guide your literature
Guide your decisions about the kind of research design to employ
Guide your decisions about what data to collect and from whom
Guide your analysis of your data
Guide your writing up of your data
Stop you from going off in unnecessary conditions
Provide your readers with a clear sense of what your research is about
Types of research questions:
Predicting an outcome (does y happen under circumstances a and b?)
Explaining causes and consequences of a phenomenon (is y affected by x or is y a consequence
of x?)
Evaluating a phenomenon (does y exhibit the benefits that it is claimed to have?)
Describing a phenomenon (what is y like or what forms does y assume?) --> tiny housing.
Developing good practices (how can we improve y?) --> if a municipality wants to practice if
something can be improved.
Comparison (do a and b differ in respect of x?) --> you have a certain phenomenon and
compare that with other countries.
Why: understanding or explanation. --> don’t ask why and then come up with a descriptive question.
How: change-focused
What: exploration, description, prediction, design solution.
These words are putting you on a certain footage.
Central question and sub-questions:
- Overarching / central question
o Precise focus of your original, independent research findings, contribute to
knowledge
2
, - Sub questions
o Specify the central question into several areas of inquiry
o Small and manageable number
o Guide the operational stages of your inquiry, the steps as you build the answer
o Consider how you will answer the sub-questions (link the research methods and
data collection, but transcending data, usually using different sources)
o Sub-questions inform the core questions asked during the data collection. E.g. in
interviews.
IP --> understand what the institutional arrangements are on certain issues.
Theory in your master thesis:
- It provides the backcloth and rationale for the research that is being conducted
- It provides a framework within which social phenomena can be understood and the research
findings can be interpreted
- Depending on your research questions
- Informed by your ontological and epistemological position
- Drawing on existing knowledge in the field and definition of the problem to be researched
- Influences your research design / methodological approach / empirical research
- Provides the structure for your findings and conclusions
Use of theories in your thesis
Classically defined, a theory is an abstract generalization that systematically explains the relationship
among phenomena
- The basic components of a theory are concepts
3
, - A theory consists of a set of statements, each of which expresses a relationship among the
concepts
Criteria for use of theories
- Analytical or explanatory power?
- Of use for achieving objectives?
- Linked to relevant literature?
- Helpful to operationalize concepts used?
A framework provides an explicit explanation why the problem under study exists by showing how
the variables are related to each other.
The theoretical framework is not something that is found readily available in the literature
Theoretical framework may be constructed from a range of different theories. It guides your
research, determing what things you will measure, and what relationships you will look for
Conceptual framework uses and explains key concepts and the relationships between them to
provide a framework for the research – often expressed in diagrammatic form
Analytical framework operationalizes concepts and/or theory into a model for the analysis of data. –
sometimes expressed in a list of variables/criteria.
4
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