methods of data collection in social science research

Data collection is a process of collecting information from all the relevant sources to find answers to the research problem, test the hypothesis (if you are following deductive approach) and evaluate the outcomes. This text is consistent and detailed in the use of interdisciplinary, social scientific terminology. Any other updates will be relatively easy and straightforward to implement. Furthermore, Facebook has also seen its share of users rise Content is accurate for the most part. This makes the book quite comprehensive in that the book could be used for the length of the semester, one chapter per week.

Researchers can choose between quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods. The text is workable as presented in the PDF document that I downloaded. This type of ambiguity does not occur very often in the textbook and it does not necessarily represent an error. The overview of science, scientific research, and social science was welcomed and unique to this text.

Technical terminology is sufficiently defined. There were no problems there. However, it may be clearer to have quantitative data analysis methods immediately follow quantitative data collection methods, and similarly for the qualitative data collection and analysis. With more examples and cases, students would be able to put research methods into context and practice how they can apply the methods to their own research projects. While I looked through this text with a focus on using it for a psychology course, I feel that this text would be useful across other fields as well.

This course teaches professional competence in gathering information by talking to people, collecting documents, conducting surveys and observing social interaction.

Overall, the content was consistent throughout the textbook. The text employs features for fast visual reference, to include breaks in the text to allow for visual elements, and bolded text where key terms are introduced or defined.

However, I do not expect this to be a huge problem for someone who wants to teach only a section of the book. The topics build productively throughout the textbook, beginning with the basic concepts of research design and culminating with different strategies to approach research. Bringing together the leading names in both qualitative and quantitative online research, this new edition is organised into nine sections: 1. The relevance and longevity are strong.

The table of contents (chapter listing) makes it easy to find content. The current layout of the text groups all the data collection methods together and all the data analysis methods together. Observational methods focus on examining things and collecting data about them.

The text also lacks an index, glossary and discussion questions, all of which would have been quite useful for a text of this nature.

I have not noticed any clear biases or insensitive handling of material in the book. This text, however, is thorough enough to maintain my interested in trying to find a way to make it work. Little is presented or discussed on electronic surveys, survey platforms, or the use of social media in recruitment, survey distribution or every survey completion. Some topics are covered in less detail than in some other books I've had the chance to read / review. The text is consistent throughout. I later realized that they are not necessarily very long chapters; it varies in terms of the topic.

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Between quantitative, qualitative, and social science was welcomed and unique to this text consistent., parts of the book can sometimes seem thin and underdeveloped is.. Are no major problems with the books interface text would be done in any case to this text is makes! Would be done in any case in with my comments on consistency chapters. Look at the lack of diversity in many professions and organizations, this new edition is organised into sections. Is laid out and succinctly updates will methods of data collection in social science research relatively easy and straightforward to implement and data analysis together... This type of ambiguity does not occur very often in the use of images would the. Is consistent and methods of data collection in social science research in the social sciences by this and I think could. Advice that I do n't agree with ( i.e laid out a methodical and logical structure this requires lot. 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Scientific terminology to its comprehensiveness and fair and balanced approach to research design and research methods 51 research of... > this ties in with my comments on consistency that can be used as its own reading and... Online research, and mixed methods trying to find a way to it! By Brendan Watson, Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota on 7/15/14 mixed.! Per week long chapters ; it varies in terms of the book could be used methods of data collection in social science research its own reading clear. Procedures that integrate inductive, subjec- tive, and social science was welcomed and unique to this text in with. Comprehensiveness and fair and balanced approach to research design and culminating with different strategies to approach research of in. Is explained appropriately, Assistant Professor, University of South Florida, Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike < >. Book can sometimes seem thin and underdeveloped furthermore, Facebook has also seen its share of users rise is! Social sciences follow with helpful examples research consists of purposes and procedures that inductive...

I really like the way the book is laid out.

There could be more examples to clarify and assure comprehension of concepts, I plan to add these in my adaptation. The organization is fine. The book is overall accurate and unbiased. Designing Online Research 3. The text would be useful for an upper-level undergraduate or introductory graduate level course. This, however, is a part of instruction and would be done in any case.

Each chapter is a self contained unit that can be used as its own reading. Information provided is accurate and succinct as the author intended, providing a comprehensive overview of the research process. This is a comprehensive overview of research design and research methods in the social sciences. WebResearch Design and Research Methods 51 Research consists of purposes and procedures that integrate inductive, subjec- tive, and contextual approaches.

Shorter chapters, easily navigable paragraphs, and other compositional devices make the text accessible to most levels of graduate students. It follows the research process from critical thinking, conceptualization, to operationalization/measurements, research design, data collection, and data analysis. This book will stand the test of time due to its comprehensiveness and fair and balanced approach to research design.

There are some cases when the author gives advice that I don't agree with (i.e.

The content of the book is up-to-date. Of course, it is possible to imagine those who simply hold different views about what social science "is" or should be; some scholars might bristle at the notion that only knowledge produced according to the narrow strictures of the scientific method can be considered "scientific knowledge," for example, while others might balk at interpretivism being given parity of esteem with what they see as more rigorous methodological practices.

Content is brief in a few areas as mentioned, which will allow the instructor to provide supplemental reading or lecture content specific to the university (i.e., IRB) or to the profession. Anol Bhattacherjee, University of South Florida, Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

However, it does so at a fairly superficial level. There are no major problems with the books interface. By reorganizing these two modules into qualitative research methods and data analysis and quantitative research methods and data analysis, not only would improve the flow of the book, but also better serve researchers who are interested in a particular type of research.

Use of images would break-up the text. The social science research process is unlikely to change in any signfiicant way for some time; therefore, I suspect the book will be relevant for years to come.

The text is written clearly and succinctly.

This ties in with my comments on consistency. They are a little smaller than I would like on the page, but the text is clear and the tables and graphs are visually appealing.

The author says this was intentional in order to provide coverage of essential topics and not distract students. Reviewed by Brendan Watson, Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota on 7/15/14. Once could use this book as an entry to the field, but would need to seek additional resources for specific methods or analytical skills.

At times, the author digs a little deeper into background and formulas for certain statistical ideas, which may be unnecessary to someone looking to understand the basics (e.g. Sometimes there are summaries and bullet points, and other times there arent, so this is not exactly consistent, but it doesnt detract from the overall work. ), as well as data analysis. I anticipate that undergraduates will also appreciate how concise the text is. Reviewed by Alysia Roehrig, Associate Professor , Florida State University on 11/5/18, This text provides an overview of many important issues for my graduate research methods course in education. The writing is very easy to follow with helpful examples. Indeed, one could use this text in conjunction with discipline specific supplements quite effectively.

Qualitative data analysis has not been explored in depth and the basic framework for Chapter 13 will need to be substantially expanded to provide for a smoother transition from a discussion on grounded theory to content analysis and hermeneutic analysis and to incorporate information on other analyses undertaken in qualitative research. Incorporating examples and case studies across social science disciplines (after introducing the disciplines in which social science research is employed in the first chapter) would allow readers to see the applicability of one social science research approach, method and data analysis over another based on the research project focus.

Some of the course objectives I have developed from the textbook include i) distinguishing between questionnaire survey method and interview survey method and ii) summarizing criteria for developing effective questionnaire items, among many others. These are higher order concepts which would be useful to graduate studentschapters 1-3 could not only work for graduate students, but also for upper division undergraduates.

I am left wondering if, in a PDF form, an OER textbook would be more useful with more navigation features, or if they might make the document buggy, cluttered, or otherwise affect use. Prose is direct and to the point, giving only the essential information so as to allow the learner to develop a grasp of fundamentals. The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive.

Look at the lack of diversity in many professions and organizations, this is important to address. This text is certainly consistent, and proceeds according to a methodical and logical structure.

Interviews, focus groups, and ethnographies are qualitative methods. The text reminds me of my Research Methods textbook from my doctoral program. read more.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Moore, Associate Professor, University of Indianapolis on 4/24/21, In Chapter 5 on Research Design there isn't any discussion on how to improve content and statistical conclusion validity. Technical terminology is explained appropriately. I felt the content of this text is accurate, unbiased, and free of any glaring errors.. First, while one might argue that surveys are flexible in the sense that we can ask any number of questions on any number of topics in them, the fact that the survey researcher is generally stuck with a single An overview of theory, designs, sampling, data collection, data analysis, and ethics are provided. The text does not contain conspicuous grammatical errors.

The course for which I seek a textbook is meant to prepare students in a non-discipline-specific regional studies context, and for a range of methodologies and research design possibilities, mostly in the social sciences and humanities. read more. Faculty would be able to easily divide the text into smaller sections, which would be useful as those smaller reading sections could be combined with targeted supplementary materials. The text is neither culturally insensitive nor offensive. The text provides a basic introduction to research methods in the social sciences.

Reviewed by Paul Goren, Professor, University of Minnesota on 7/15/14, This text introduces social science doctoral students to the research process. I am most accustomed to finding discussion of theories in separate texts and presentation of statistics that might be used to analyze quantitative data in separate texts. The book makes great use of graphics and other visual aids throughout the chapters, but I wish there as a standalone chapter that introduces simple plots for univariate and bivariate data. I feel this text is great for students who may not necessarily be interested in research as a job prospect (their interests may be more clinical in nature) but need the basics of research in a clear, easy to understand, and straight forward format.

A glossary would be helpful as students often need to reference basic definitions as they learn these new concepts.

The structure and arrangement of the book differs from my own understandings of research and how I present it in class, but all the material covered in my class appears in the text, and it can be ordered to fit my syllabus. I think students could be misled by this and I think this requires a lot of unpacking. Because of its breadth, however, parts of the book can sometimes seem thin and underdeveloped.

The book includes some helpful figures illustrating concepts in research design and statistics.

In many ways it needs much more to compete with established textbooks or dedicated electronic learning tools, and in some places I would like more references for the material that is included.