Research Methods
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Definition
Research: Systematic investigation of a subject in order to find something new
Skills and Abilities
The most important ones:
- Curiosity, creativity
- Diligence
- Passion, focus, interest, enthusiasm
- Critical thinking
- Strong analytic problem solving skills
- Academic integrity
- Good communication skills
What Kind of New Knowledge?
(Based on Nicholas Walliman: Research Methods: the Basics. Routledge, 2011)
- Categorization - form a typology of works, personalities, objects, etc.
- Description - observe and write up what you consider typical, specific, or accidental
- Explanation - answer the question: why?
- Evaluation - make judgements and compare to a norm, scale, typology, etc.
- Comparison - list the similarities and differences in order to better understand one or both of the compared things
- Correlation - do two phenomena influence each other? How? Are there links between two things? Or, are they independent?
- Prediction - on the basis of past correlations, tell how probable a future event, action, outcome, etc. could be.
- Control/validatation - in technology or sciences implementing the new correlation, correspondance, cause and effect, etc. In humanities: state the probability of similar correspondance, correlation, etc. in cases you have not investigated.
Critical Reading
It is very important to fully understand and critically analyse the texts of primary and secondary literature.
- Make judgements about the text.
- Reflect about the content of the text and the way it is written. Make an effort to understand not only what is written, but also how the text portrays the subject.
- Try to understand how the author of the text thinks about the subject matter and compare it with the way you, the reader would think about it.
- Is the text an objective description of the subject? Or, does the text reflect biases, irony, creative imagination, hypotheses, etc.?
- If the text is an interpretation (biased, ironical, etc.), what is the standpoint of the interpretation?
- What is the author's purpose with the interpretation?
- What kind of choice did the author make when s/he described the subject? In what kind of frame did the author place the subject?
Handbooks and Guides on Research Methods
MLA Handbook, 9th ed., 2021 by
Print book only at YRL and Powell Libraries, UCLA.
The ninth edition works as both a textbook and a reference guide. Focusing on source evaluation, it features a wealth of visual examples and updated advice on punctuation and grammar, footnotes and endnotes, annotated bibliographies, and paper formatting including: Expanded, in-depth guidance on creating works-cited-list entries using the MLA template of core elements that explains what each core element is, where to find it in various sources, and how to style it. A new, easy-to-follow explanation of in-text citations. A new chapter containing recommendations for using inclusive language. A new appendix with hundreds of sample works-cited-list entries by publication format, including books, databases, websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more. Updated guidelines on avoiding plagiarism.
Call Number: REF LB 3259 M52 2021ISBN: 9781603293518
Preparing Research Articles by Also available online.
The Undergraduate Research Handbook by ISBN: 9780230520974
