Educational Research

Chapter 2Selecting and Defining a Research Topic

Gay, Mills, and Airasian

Topics Discussed in this Chapter

Identifying a Research Topic Reviewing the Literature Developing and Stating

Hypotheses

Identifying a Topic A research topic focuses the study

to a defined, manageable size It provides structure for the steps in

the scientific method It is discussed in many ways

Research question Research problem Purpose of the research

Identifying a Topic Four main sources of topics

Theory – an organized body of concepts, generalizations and principles that can be subjected to investigation

Provides conceptually rich topics Provides confirmation of some aspects of theory

Personal experience Replication Library immersion

Obj. 1.1

Identifying a Topic Narrowing and focusing topics

Three problems with broad topics Enlarges the scope of the review of the

literature beyond reason Complicates the organization of the

review of the literature itself Creates studies that are too general, too

difficult to carry out, and too difficult to interpret

Obj. 1.3

Identifying a Topic

Suggestions for narrowing topics Talk to experts in the field

Professors in your college or department Researchers you know

Read secondary sources that provide overviews of your topic

Handbooks Encyclopedias Reviews

Obj. 1.2. & 1.4

Identifying a Topic

Quantitative and qualitative studies – differences in when a topic is narrowed Quantitative studies tend to narrow

the topic initially Qualitative studies tend to narrow the

topic throughout the research process itself

Obj. 1.4

Identifying a Topic Researchable and non-researchable

topics Researchable topics…

can be investigated through the collection and analysis of data.

have theoretical or practical significance. have been conducted ethically. contribute to the educational processes can be adequately researched given the

expertise, resources, and time constraints of the researcher.

Obj. 1.5

Identifying a Topic

Non-researchable topics… address philosophical or ethical issues.

Cannot be resolved through the collection and analysis of data

address “should” questions. Ultimately these are matters of opinion

Obj. 1.6

Identifying a Topic

The formal statement of a quantitative research topic… identifies the variables of interest. describes the specific relationship

between the variables. identifies the nature of the

participants.Obj. 1.7 & 1.8

Identifying a Topic The formal statement of a qualitative

research topic… emerges over the course of the study. begins as an initial statement that tends

to be stated as a general issue or concern.

becomes focused as more is learned about the context, participants, and phenomena of interest.

is typically stated late in a written study.Obj. 1.8

The Literature Review

The review of the literature involves the systematic identification, location, and analysis of documents containing information related to the research problem

Obj. 2.1

The Literature Review Functions of a literature review

Determine what has been done already Provide insight necessary to develop a

logical framework into which the topic fits Provides the rationale for the hypotheses

being investigated and the justification of the significance of the study

Identifies potentially useful methodological strategies

Facilitates the interpretation of the results

Obj. 2.2

The Literature Review General recommendations for the

scope of the review Bigger does not mean better Heavily researched topics provide

enough references to focus only on the major studies

Lesser researched topics require reviewing any study related in some meaningful way even if this means searching related fields

Obj. 2.3

The Literature Review

Four stages when conducting a review Identifying key words to guide the

search Identifying sources Abstracting the information found in

the references Analyzing, organizing and reporting the

literatureObj. 2.4

The Literature Review

Identifying key words Importance of experimenting with

several key words and combinations of them

Using “legal” key words for particular data bases

ERIC Thesaurus Accessed through the ERIC homepage

Obj. 2.4 & 2.8

The Literature Review

Identifying sources Characteristics of sources

Primary and secondary Empirical and opinion

Importance of using secondary sources such as handbooks, encyclopedias, and reviews early in the review process

Obj. 2.6

The Literature Review Identifying sources

Broadening and narrowing keyword searches

Three important Boolean operators AND narrows a search OR broadens a search NOT narrows a search

Narrowing and focusing by date of publication, specific authors, titles, etc.

Obj. 2.5

The Literature Review Identifying sources

Searching for books Electronic databases of university libraries Keyword searches

Searching for journals or papers ERIC Indices usually accessed more easily through the

library at your university using EBSCO or other such search tools

Education Index Psychological Abstracts Dissertation Abstracts Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature

Obj. 2.7 & 2.10

The Literature Review

Identifying sources Searching the web

Search engines Google, Excite, HotBot

Subject directories Yahoo!, Web Crawler, Lycos

Meta search engines Dogpile, Mamma, Vroosh

The Literature Review Identifying sources

Educational sites ERIC, Ingenta, New Jour, Education Week,

National Center for Education Statistics, US Dept. of Education, Developing Educational Standards, Education Resource Organization Directory

Evaluating web sites Quality, honesty, bias, and authenticity Thinking Critically about WWW Resources,

Critically Analyzing Information Sources

Obj. 2.11 & 2.12

The Literature Review Abstracting the references

Locating, reviewing, summarizing, and classifying references

Seven steps Read the article abstract Skim the entire article Record complete bibliographic information Classify and code the article Summarize the article Identify thoughts about the article you believe

important Indicate direct quotes properly

Obj. 4.1

The Literature Review Recommended strategies when

abstracting Begin with the most recent references and

move toward the most dated Record all bibliographic information

Author, date of publication, title, journal name or book title or website name, volume and issue, pages, library call number or URL

Identify direct quotes and record page numbers

Identify main ideas

Literature Review Analyzing, organizing and reporting

Technical nature of reporting Documentation Formal language Adherence to prescribed styles (e.g., APA)

Outline the review Group by topics Analyze for similarities and differences within

subheadings Discuss the least relevant studies first, followed by

the most relevant studies Summarize the review and discuss the implications

related to the research problem

Literature Review Differences between quantitative

and qualitative reviews Quantitative reviews are typically

conducted in the initial stages of the study

Qualitative reviews are ongoing throughout the entire study reflecting the need to understand data as it is collected, analyzed, and interpreted

Obj. 3.1

Developing Hypotheses

Two views of hypotheses Inductive – a generalization made

from a number of observations Typical of qualitative studies

Deductive – derived from theory and aimed at providing evidence to support, expand, or contradict aspects of that theory

Typical of quantitative studiesObj. 5.1 & 5.4

Developing Hypotheses Defining a hypothesis

A researcher’s tentative prediction of the results of the research

Formulated on the basis of knowledge of the underlying theory or implications from the literature review

Testing a hypothesis leads to support of the hypothesis or lack thereof

Obj. 5.1

Developing Hypotheses A good quantitative hypothesis…

is based on sound reasoning. provides a reasonable explanation for

the predicted outcome. clearly and concisely states the

expected relationships between variables.

is testable.Obj. 5.2

Developing Hypotheses Types of quantitative hypotheses

Research hypotheses state the expected relationship between two variables

Non-directional – a statement that no relationship or difference exists between the variables

Directional – a statement of the expected direction of the relationship or difference between variables

Null – a statistical statement that no statistically significant relationship or difference exists between variables

Obj. 5.5 & 5.6

Developing Hypotheses

Obj. 5.5 & 5.6

Non-Directional Directional Null

There is no relationship between math attitudes and math achievement

There is a strong positive relationship between math

attitudes and math achievement

H0: = 0

There is no difference in the achievement of

students using technology or not

using it

Students using technology will have higher levels of

achievement than students who are not using it

H0: 1 - 2 = 0

Developing Hypotheses

Hypotheses in qualitative studies Given the nature of qualitative

research, formal a priori hypotheses are not stated

Generative role of qualitative research Testing role of quantitative research

Focus is on generating new hypotheses as a result of the study (i.e., inductive hypotheses)

Obj. 5.10

Stating Hypotheses

Formats for quantitative experimental studies P who get X do better on Y than P who do not get

X P represents the participant X represents the treatment Y represents the outcome

Testing hypotheses Statistical analysis of data Importance of the results regardless of the

outcome Results support or fail to support hypotheses, but

they never prove or disprove hypotheses Obj. 5.7 & 5.9