Literature and Language: Research Methods

Essay Instructions:

Research methods Cite the sources you consulted in responding to the questions:1. Survey research: The city of Warren has over 1,000 full-time police officers and 300 support staff employees. In the past year, there has been an excess number of department employees (police and staff) taking sick leave. The city wants a study done to determine why there has been so much sick time taken. Rumors suggest it has something to do with morale and declining support of the chief. Assume research approval has been given. The city is specifically interested on how you address the following: 1. Will this be an inductive or deductive approach? What is the difference and which will you choose and why? 2. What type of comparative or prior research would you look at in preparing your study ( examples)? 3. What type of research design or questionnaire will you use? In other words, how will you design the study and how will you develop, validate, and administer the questionnaire (consider Likert scaling measures)? 4. Due to costs, you can only do a sampling study. How will you get a random sampling of 500 police subjects and 100 staff for study ( explain your method for doing a random sampling of each)? 5. How will you assure the validity and reliability of the study? Explain the difference between the two and explain the importance of each ( suggest an example of each as well). 6. How will you examine or analyze your findings (how will you present the data), and how will you determine if the results are statistical significant or not? 2. Experimental research: A researcher wants to determine which method is most effective in reducing weight gain in middle age persons. There are three methods used. One method is to exercise at a gym three evenings a week with a trainer. The second method is a daily drug (pill) administered without exercise and the third is a personal exercise routine without a drug or the use of a trainer. Some argue that trainers are the best, others the pill and others the personal routine, which is referred to as the normal or usual practice of weight loss. Assume you have a pool of 600 volunteers of various weights, age ranges and health issues, etc. to choose for the study. Due to cost you can only select 220 total participants. Develop a study using a classical research design to evaluate the three methods. Include the following in your response. 1. Is this a qualitative or quantitative study ( explain the difference)? 2. How will you address randomization of the participants? In other words, while perfect randomization of subjects may be difficult to achieve, how will you select the participants for the three groups to reduce bias ( e,g, consider health issues, etc.).The participants in the study do not have to be equal numbers in groups. 3. Will you use a classical research design, a non-classical, or pre-experimental design ( explain the difference between them)? 4. Identify the control and experimental groups and pre and post test procedures used in your study (time period of study, etc.)? 5. Differentiate between validity and reliability and how will each be addressed. You may want to explain each and give an example if potential validity and validity problems in your study. 6. What is statistical significance, and how will you determine which group is the most effective? What type of confidence levels or Alpha P values would you try to accomplish to show there is significance to the study?

Essay Sample Content Preview:

Research Methods
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RESEARCH METHODS
The city of Warren wants a research to be conducted about the possible cause of excessive application of sick leave by the police and the support staff. A thorough research is needed urgently to address the cause of numerous cases of the sick leave that has been in the past year. The research is supposed to deliver and cater for the city`s expectations (McBurney & White, 2010). The city is mainly is hoping to receive an appropriate study that would determine the reason for taking so much time in sick leave, as well the possible solutions that the study may bring. Find herein the best approach for effective findings and the type and method of research used.
The best kind of research fit for this case is qualitative research. This is because the qualitative research is a kind, which is usually related with the paradigm of social constructivist that put emphasis on the nature of reality that is socially constructed. In addition, the qualitative research concerns keeping records, analyzing as well as trying to expose the deeper meaning and meaning of the behavior of humans and experience (Kothari, 2005). These human behavior may include; contradictory beliefs, emotions and behaviors. The research will help in gaining a complex and rich understanding of the experiences of the police and support staffs, working in Warren city.
The difference of the qualitative research is the fact of not acquiring information that can be universalized to other groups. It is very specific and accurate in its findings, evading the means of generalization of other various groups. The use of this research in figuring out a potential or existing problem in a field is the best option because it is through the findings that a solution is accessed. The research is the most approachable means of finding answers because it will be able to bring out a comprehensible report of the entire problem. In addition, the research may dig deeper into other potential problems that were likely to arise, which help to take the necessary measures and handle the issue accordingly before cropping up. Research is an inductive approach as it brings out factual results from the field, suppressing all the doubts of inaccuracy (Rugg & Petre, 2007).
The approach that is taken on by the qualitative researchers is inductive, meaning that a researcher ought to build up a theory or search for an outline of meaning on the data basis collected. This may engage a transfer from the precise to the universal and can at times be referred to as bottom-up approach. Similarly, qualitative research does not depend on the hypothesis that was pre-determined in conducting its own research.
Quota sampling can be an applicable method in this case because the researcher only picks the necessary number of subjects to represent the rest. The quota method is mainly used when the researchers are aware of the proportions of the total population that they need to study on. In this case, the required number of people is five hundred police subjects and one hundred staff members. When using this method, it is important to identify the number of opinions that the researcher requires on behalf of the overall population. That way, the research would be less demanding as well as less costly. The unnecessary number of the interviewees only led to time wastage and high costs, thus the importance of picking out the required number of people. There is access to a larger number or the entire group in this method but since the results and response are common, sampling is advisable and quota approach to be specific.
The usable research design in this study is the literature review. The researcher conducts questionnaires and other means to comment on the truth of the issue. The validity in research is attained by reaching a degree that would measure the purpose of the study. The three basic ways of approaching the validity of measures and tests, which includes, construct validity, criterion-related validity, and content validity. In order to attain the validity in this research, collection of all facts and conducting the research thoroughly is important. There is need to revisit the study repeatedly so that to eliminate any bias. On this note, reliability of information or research is proved when the item or source of the research is revisited sever...

Updated on January 26, 2024

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