Methods Minute Newsletter, February 2023
Research Design
The research process typically involves 4 phases: planning and designing the study, collecting data, analyzing and interpreting the data, and disseminating results. These phases make the research journey seem like a straightforward linear narrative, but as every researcher knows, they are more complicated than meets the eye. When we explore these phases, we will often dig into messy and thought-provoking questions. What merits investigation, and who decides? What sources or participants can offer the best insights? How do we design and conduct ethical research in risky or online settings? What methodologies and methods align with the purpose of the study? Where can we communicate findings and recommendations to make an impact?
In the first part of the year, you will find expert guidance, library, and open-access resources on critical issues associated with research design, including problem definition, design options for different methodologies and methods, and ethics. We’d also like to hear from you on what you would like to see addressed in April to June when we look into ways of collecting and generating data. Take the survey now.
Introduction to research design by Dr Janet Salmons, Research Methods Community Manager, Methodspace
Build good practice in reporting thematic analysis
with Virginia Braun & Victoria Clarke.
Award-winning authors Braun & Clarke discuss how the scientific model of research reporting constrains the reporting of qualitative research, and outline key considerations for reporting qualitative research well, including elements like the language we use to describe our research, and how we structure our reports.
Register interest in the next Methodspace webinar in March
The webinar will explore computational skills and social science with SAGE author Matti Nelimarkka. More details will be released very soon but if you’re interested please fill out the form below and we’ll send you all the details when they are released.
Upcoming Webinars
Related Books
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Research Design: Why Thinking About Design Matters
By Julianne Cheek & Elise Øby
Cheek and Øby show that designing research is an iterative and reflexive process in which there is constant thinking through, and re-visiting of, decisions about that design as it develops.
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Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches
By John & David Cresswell
The Sixth Edition of this bestselling title approaches provides clear and concise instruction for designing research projects or developing research proposals
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Thematic Analysis: A Practical Guide
By Virginia Braun & Victoria Clarke
Winner of the 2022 British Psychological Society Book Award - Textbook Category, the book addresses the common questions surrounding TA and developments in the field, offering a highly accessible and practical discussion of doing TA situated within a clear understanding of the broader terrain of qualitative research. Research design section, pp 25-32.
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Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
By Jonathan Smith, Paul Flowers & Michael Larkin.
This text provides a detailed guide to conducting IPA research, presenting the theoretical underpinnings of the approach, a comprehensive overview of the stages of an IPA research project, and examples of high-quality IPA studies.
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Building Experiments in PsychoPy
By Jonathan Peirce, Rebecca Hirst & Michael MacAskill
Written by the creator of PsychoPy, this book walks you through the steps of building experiments in PsychoPy, from using images to discovering lesser-known features, and from analysing data to debugging your experiment.
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Statistics for Psychology: A Beginner's Guide
By Roger Watt & Elizabeth Collins
Based on the authors' BPS commended programme, this book is an interactive, highly visual, and accessible guide to the statistical practices of psychology students. Its software-agnostic approach keeps the focus on the core principles, rather than getting bogged down in complicated formulae and jargon.
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How to Do Your Research Project: A Guide for Students
Gary Thomas
The fourth edition of this text provides easy to follow advice to navigate every step of a research project. Written in Gary’s signature straightforward style, this book is an essential companion for anyone undertaking a research project in the applied social sciences.
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Designing Online Experiments for the Social Sciences
By Giuseppe Veltri
This book guides you through designing and implementing an online experiment in a clear and straightforward manner. It covers foundational principles of good experimental design before setting out best practice for how to design and conduct web experiments, taking into account the challenges of working online with digital tools.
Explore Research Design via the Project Planner on SAGE Research Methods
To learn more about the varied ways to collect, elicit, or generate data with creative and visual methods, consult these sources.