Academic Project Summary
Book: Research Methods; The Essential Knowledge Base
Table of Content
Part 1 Foundations | Chapter 1 The Research Enterprise ............................................................................. 2
Part 1 Foundations | Chapter 2 Ethics.......................................................................................................... 10
Part 1 Foundations | Chapter 3 Qualitative Approaches to Research ......................................................... 13
Part 2 Sampling | Chapter 4 Sampling ......................................................................................................... 16
Part 3 Measurement | Chapter 5 Introduction to Measurement.................................................................. 21
Part 3 Measurement | Chapter 6 Scales, Tests, and Indexes ........................................................................ 28
Part 3 Measurement | Chapter 7 Survey Research ...................................................................................... 33
Part 4 Design | Chapter 8 Introduction to Design ........................................................................................ 37
Part 4 Design | Chapter 9 Experimental Design ........................................................................................... 43
Part 4 Design | Chapter 10 Quasi-Experimental Design .............................................................................. 51
Part 5 Analysis and Reporting | Chapter 11 Introduction to Data Analysis ................................................ 52
Part 5 Analysis and Reporting | Chapter 12 Inferential Analysis ................................................................ 58
VALIDITY OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................. 59
PRACTICE EXAM – MOEILIJKE DINGEN............................................................................................. 60
Foute antwoorden ...................................................................................................................................... 62
Quizzes Canvas ............................................................................................................................................. 66
Academic Project Summary 2022/2023 1
,Part 1 Foundations | Chapter 1 The Research Enterprise
1.1 The research enterprise
Research = type of systematic investigation that is empirical in nature and designed to contribute to Met opmerkingen [A1]: The nature of (business and
public knowledge. management) research; Research
ØPurposeful
Ø Systematic Investigation: In our everyday life we think about the world around us; We consider
ØSystematic
options and make choices. Much of this thinking is done dynamically, changing, and adapting ØEmpirical
to the circumstances as they unfold. Research is different ØPublic
o It is a conscious effort to concentrate our thinking, to do it in a rational, careful ØCumulative
manner. ØCritical of itself
Ø Empirical Endeavour: Collecting data based upon systematic observation to use in Decision EQ: When we say that research is an empirical endeavor,
making à Based on observations and measurements of reality. we mean that it involves
Ø Public Effort: Researches typically conduct research so that it can contribute to a boarder case
of knowledge than just their own. Ø Data collection
when we conduct research, we collect data from the
In this volume, we focus on a particular subclass of research known as social research; focused on environment/organization. and with this data we can
societies, the things we do, how we interact, how we live, how we feel, and how we see ourselves. support the theory/knowledge that we have regarding
what goes on in those organizations
Research enterprise: macro-level effort to accumulate knowledge across multiple empirical systematic
empirical: based on, concerned with, or verifiable by
public research projects. observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.
"they provided considerable empirical evidence to support
When we move research from discovery to practice (and to the effects of that practice in our lives) we their argument"
can say that we are translating research into practice.
Business and management research
Ø Translational research: The systematic effort to move research from initial discovery to
ØTransdisciplinary : Research is defined as research
practice and ultimately to impacts on our lives. efforts conducted by investigators from different
disciplines working jointly to create new conceptual,
We can think of research enterprise as encompassing a research-practice-continuum within which theoretical, methodological, and translational innovations
translation occurs that integrate and move beyond discipline-specific
approaches to address a common problem.
Ø Research-enterprise-continuum: The process of moving from an initial research idea or ØDouble hurdle (theoretical and practical impact)
discovery to practice, and the potential for the idea to influence our lives or world. ØScience practice gap / translational research
Ø Basic research: Research that is designed to generate discoveries and to understand how ØEvidence Based Management
discoveries work.
To sum it all up
Ø Applied research: Projects where the discovery is tested under increasingly controlled
-Researchers systematically question or doubt things to
conditions with humans. If a discovery survives this applied research testing, there is usually a improve some outcome
process of seeing how well it can be implemented in and disseminated to a broad range of -Learning about research methods is akin to learning a
contexts that extend beyond the original controlled studies. new language
Ø Implementation and dissemination research: Research that assesses how well an innovation -Research produces or tests theory – (a set of)
expectations about the nature of reality
or discovery can be distributed in and carried out in a broad range of contexts that extend -Research is purposeful, systematic, empirical, public,
beyond the original controlled studies. cumulative & critical on itself
Ø Impact research: Research that assesses the broader effects of a discovery or innovation on -Business and management research are transdisciplinary
society.
Ø Policy research: Research that is designed to investigate existing policies or develop and test Met opmerkingen [A2]: EQ: The systematic effort to move
new ones. research from initial discovery to practice and ultimately to
impacts on our lives is the definition of…
à Translational research
Academic Project Summary 2022/2023 2
,The research enterprise has evolved a system for synthesizing the large numbers of research studies Met opmerkingen [A3]: to form (a material or abstract
in different topical areas. In the next several decades we expect that this system will increasingly entity) by combining parts or elements
become the normative way that research about new discoveries moves from the basic-applied stage
to implementation a dissemination in broader contexts.
Ø Research synthesis: A systematic study of multiple prior research projects that address the
same research question or topic and that summarizes the results in a manner that can be used
by practitioners.
o Meta-analysis: Uses statistical methods to combine the results of similar studies
quantitively in order to allow general conclusions to be made.
o Systematic review: Focuses on a specific question or issue and uses pre-planned
methods to identify, select, assess, and summarize the findings of multiple studies. It
often includes a panel of experts who discuss the research literature and reach
conclusions about how well a discovery works to address a problem or issue.
Ø Guideline: the result of a systematic process that leads to a specific set of research-based
recommendations for practice that usually includes some estimates of how strong the
evidence us for each recommendation.
Evidence Based Practice (EBP)
The interpositioning of a synthesis and guideline process in the middle of the research-practice
continuum has transformed virtually every area of applied social research practice in our society. The
term that is most associated with this change is EBP
Ø EBP: a movement designed to encourage or require practitioners to employ practices that are
based on research evidence as reflected in research synthesis or practice guidelines.
o Represents a major attempt of the research enterprise to achieve a better integration
of research and practice.
1.2 Conceptualizing research
How do researchers come up with the idea for a research project?
Ø Practical problem in the field
Ø Literature in your specific field; building on prior research
o Request for proposals
Ø Think up their research topic on their own
1.3 Language of research
Four terms that came into our minds when we were thinking about research language
Ø Theoretical: Social research is theoretical; meaning that much of it is concerned with
developing, exploring, or testing the theories or ideas that social researchers have about how
the world operates.
Ø Empirical: Based on direct observations and measurements of reality – on what you perceive
on the world around you
Academic Project Summary 2022/2023 3
, o Theoretical & empirical are connected; comparison of theories about how the world
operates with observations of its operation.
Ø Probalistic: describes much contemporary social research; based on probability.
Ø Causal: Pertaining to a cause-effect relationship, hypothesis or relationship. Something is
causal it is leads to an outcome or makes an outcome happen
Ø Causal relationship: A cause-effect relationship. E.g. when you evaluate whether your
treatment or program causes an outcome to occur, you are examining a causal relationship
Research projects usually can be classified into three basic forms; Types of studies
Ø Descriptive studies: Designed primarily to document what is going on or what exists. E.g.
Public Opinion polls that seek to describe a certain event.
Ø Relational studies: Looks at the relationship between 2 or more variables. E.g. A public opinion
poll that compares the proportion of males and females who say they would vote for a
democratic or republic candidate; Variables are gender and voting preference.
Ø Causal studies: Designed to determine whether 1 or more variable causes or affects one or
more outcome variables. Public opinion poll to try to determine whether a recent political
advertising campaign changes voter preference.
Time is an important element of any research design; Cross-sectional vs. Longitudinal
Ø Cross-sectional studies: A study that takes place at a single point in time. In effect you are
taking a slice or cross-section of whatever it is you are observing or measuring.
Ø Longitudinal studies: A study that takes place over multiple point in time. When you measure
at different time points, we often say that you are measuring multiple waves of measurement.
o Repeated measures: Two or more waves of measurement over time
o Time series: Many waves of measurement over time
A relationship refers to the correspondence between two variables. When we talk about types of
relationships, you can focus on two aspects: The nature of the relationship and the pattern.
Nature of the relationship
Ø Correlational relationship: two things perform in a synchronized manner. The level on one
variable is related to the level on the other. E.g. The correlation between inflation and
unemployment. When inflation is low, so is the level of unemployment (usually). The two
variables are correlated; but knowing that tow variables are correlated does not tell whether
one causes the other.
Ø Causal relationship: a synchronized relationship between two variables that we can state that
one causes the other to occur. E.g. When you eat a lot, you gain weight.
o Third variable or missing variable problem: An unobserved variable that account for
a correlation between two variables.
Patterns of relationships
A. No relationship
B. Positive relationship: A relationship between variables in which high values for one variable
are associated with high values on the other variable, and low values are associated with low
values on the other variable.
C. Negative relationship: A relationship between variables in which high values for one variable
are associated with low values on another variable
D. Curvelinear relationship: Shows a relationship. That changes over the range of both variables
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