Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
10:762:395:03
RESEARCH METHODS
Spring 2012 COURSE SYLLABUS
Instructor:
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Office Hours:
Debbie Borie-Holtz, PhD
CSB Room 545, 33 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick
848-932-2968; 856.906.6554 (cell)
borieholtz@aol.com; dbholtz@rutgers.edu
Tuesday & Thursday by appointment - Thursdays 4pm to 5:45pm
(Check Sakai Sign-up Tool for additional weekly hours)
TA:
Office:
E-mail:
Office Hours:
Lauren McKim, Master of City & Regional Planning Candidate '12
Civic Square Building, 33 Livingston Avenue, Room 477
lmckim@rutgers.edu
Tuesdays 4:30 – 6:00pm
Lecture:
Tuesday, 12:35pm – 3:35, Hickman Hall 115
Lab Sessions: Thursday, 12:35pm – 1:55pm, Loree PC Lab 023
Course Description and Teaching Style
This course is designed to introduce students to research methods for public health, planning, and public
policy majors. Basically, the course is an introduction to the fundamentals of social science research.
The main goal is for you to learn to design and interpret research so you can solve problems and make
informed decisions. During this semester, you will learn how to ask questions, how to probe for
answers, and how to evaluate the answers we get as a result of research. The emphasis of the class is on
gaining the ability to think logically and critically about social science research. We will cover both
quantitative and qualitative methodologies, but more time will be spent on the former. I do not assume
any previous work in methodology and there are no prerequisites for this class. The goal of this class is
NOT to make you into expert statisticians or quantitative researchers, but into educated consumers and
critics of the research of others. Equally important, this class should give you a firm foundation upon
which to stand as you complete your capstone class for your major.
The class meetings are comprised of one weekly class lecture period and one weekly in-lab session;
however, a mixture of lecture and lab work may be incorporated into each session. The format for the
class lecture period will be mostly lecture and some facilitated discussion. I am a firm believer of active
learning; thus, I will attempt to use discussion in place of traditional lectures whenever possible and
encourage questions and expect class participation. Readings should be completed prior to the lecture. I
ask that you be physically and mentally present at every class session. The lab session will provide you
with another opportunity to ask additional questions and gain some hands-on practice with the concepts
we learn in lecture. Thus, the lab will be structured around cases, discussions, and homework
preparation.
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Our teaching assistant for this semester will be Lauren McKim. Lauren will hold weekly office hours at
Bloustein. Lauren will also be responsible for grading the lab assignments and midterm so if you have a
question regarding grading, please forward an email to her directly as your initial course of action. Feel
free to contact either of us with questions, but I ask that you only direct your queries to one of us. We
will be sure to share our feedback with each other.
Course Objectives
The goal of this course is to provide students with
1) An understanding of the logic of scientific inquiry and how to measure concepts
2) An ability to develop a research hypothesis and a complementary research design
3) An awareness of different types of data collection and analyses – both qualitative and
quantitative
4) An introduction to analyzing quantitative data to test your own ideas about relationships between
concepts
Required Text
Schutt, Russell. 2009. Investigating the Social World: The Process and Practice of Research. 6th
Edition. Available at the main Rutgers bookstore, in downtown New Brunswick and NJ Books on
Easton Avenue.
Supplemental readings will be distributed in class or posted to the class website on Sakai.
Grading
The totality of your grade is 100 percent. The components and weights are:
25 percent on midterm exam
-- This will be a take-home exam in lieu of a lecture class.
40 percent on your lab assignments (10 points each)
-- Assignment 1 - Define an indice
-- Assignment 2 - Survey design and question wording critique
-- Assignment 3 - Hypotheses & analysis plan
-- Assignment 4 – Interpret and analyze a cross tab
10 percent on quizzes
-- Quizzes will be equally weighted; expect 4-5 quizzes
-- Quizzes are generally scheduled to ensure readings are completed timely.
25 percent on the final exam
-- This will be a research analysis paper.
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Letter grades will be assigned as follows:
A = 90 - 100; Excellent or Superior
B+ = 86 - 89; Very Good
B = 80 - 85; Good
C+ = 76 - 79; Solid Overall, but some flaws
C = 70 - 75; Average
D = 60 - 69; Significant problems in the work in terms of understanding, effort or writing
F = 59 or below; Failing
Expectations
Collegial and respectful conduct is expected in class. Class members should consider themselves
colleagues who will collaborate to help each other develop a solid understanding of materials and
concepts. To facilitate this process and your learning, we will adhere to some basic rules:
Attendance at all classes is expected. If you expect to miss a class, please use the University absence
reporting website (https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra /) to indicate the date and reason for your absence.
An email is automatically sent to me. A link appears on our Sakai home page.
My policy for missed classes is you will be granted two absences during the course of the semester IF
you report them via the University website. This policy applies to both lectures and labs.
Absences that exceed two will result in a cumulative grade deduction of 1 point per class, unless an
emergency warrants an exception. Exceptions will be determined by me in accordance with department
policy at the time of the request.
Class will start and end on time. Although I understand emergencies occur, timely arrivals and
departures should be the norm. Regular and frequent lateness will be treated as an absence.
Please turn off your cell phones and other electronic devices during class. You may only use a laptop if
you are taking notes for this class.
All assignments must be completed on time. Assignments are due in hard copy AND as an electronic
submission on Sakai as designated. The Sakai version will be used to time-stamp your submission. All
assignments should be typed in 12-point font and submitted in hard copy. Late work will be penalized.
One letter grade per week will be deducted from the final grade for lateness. Assignments will not be
accepted any later than two class periods after the due date; missed assignments will receive a “0”.
Quizzes may be made up before the next class attendance ONLY if you make prior arrangements and
you have not exceeded the two unexcused absences.
Late submissions for the take-home midterm and the final paper are not permitted. Both of these
assessments are given over a multiple-day period so there is an expectation that students are working on
the exams prior to the final submission day. If an unanticipated emergency occurs and a student is
unable to complete the exam, you will be asked to submit all work completed on your exam (from the
date of distribution through the date of the emergency) to determine if an exception is warranted.
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Cheating, plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Please see the
University’s Policy on Academic Integrity for Undergraduate and Graduate Students located on the web
at http://ctaar.rutgers.edu/integrity/policy.html.
If any questions or concerns arise, please come see me during office hours or please make an
appointment. If you desire a more immediate response, please send me an email or text. I can also
schedule time to meet you virtually via Adobe Connect if you are unable to attend my campus office
hours. If you plan to come to my on-campus office hours, please try to let me know in advance so that I
can try to coordinate any student requests that I have received for the week. You can reserve office time
through Sakai. Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent him or her from fully
demonstrating his or her abilities should contact me as soon as possible so we can discuss
accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and to facilitate your educational opportunities.
Exam and Assignment Schedule
Assignment
Assignment 1
Take-home Midterm
Assignment 2
Assignment 3
Assignment 4
Final Paper Exam
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Distribution Date
January 26th
March 8th
March 29th
April 3rd
April 3rd
April 3rd
Due Date
February 9th
March 20th
April 5th
April 12th
April 19th
April 27th at Noon
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Lecture and Reading Schedule
Week
Lecture
Dates:
Tuesday
1
1/17
Lecture Topic
Introductions and
course overview
Lab
Dates:
Thursdays
1/19
Lab Exercises


2
1/24
Introduction to
Qualitative &
Quantitative
Research;
1/26



3
1/31
Conceptualization
and measurement
2/2

4
2/7
Research design and
causation
2/9


5
2/14
Experiments
2/16


6
2/21
Non-Probability
Sampling &
Qualitative Methods:
Part 1 (Interviews)
2/23


Qualitative Methods:
Part 2 (Focus Groups
& Other Methods)
3/1
7
2/28
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

"Finding
Information”
Slides
Define a Good
Problem Statement
Research Ethics
Module
"Define an
Indices” Slides
Distribute
Assgn.1 (Due 2.9)
Tweet: From
concept to
measurement
Quiz 1: Ch 1, 2, 3
Critique a
Research Design
Assgn.1 Due
Case Study: A
Rush to Judgment
Quiz 2: Ch 4, 6
Prepping for a
Depth Interview
Quiz 3: Ch 7
Recruit a Focus
Group
Readings
Due
(complete
prior to
lecture)
Distribute
syllabus;
review course
layout;
Chapters 1 &
2
Chapters 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 5:
156-7; 169177
Chapter 9:
313-321;
338-344;
Sakai Rdgs.
Chapter 9:
321-338;
345-353;
Chapter 10
(p. 371-384
only); Sakai
Rdgs.
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3/6
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Probability Sampling
3/8


M & M Sampling
Exercise
Quiz 4: NonProbability
Sampling (Ch.5
partial) &
Qualitative
Methods (Ch. 9 &
partial 10)
Chapter 5,
remaining
pages
Spring Break!!!
9
3/20
10
3/27
Take-Home Exam
No Class
Survey Research:
Designing Surveys
3/22

3/29


11
4/3
12
4/10
13
4/17
14
4/24
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Survey Research:
Designing &
Fielding Surveys;
Begin Univariate
Analysis
Distribute Final
Assignments
SPSS Workshop;
Review Assignments
&Work on Analysis
Plans
Assgn.2 Due
Interpreting &
Analyzing Cross
Tabs; SPSS Drills
Evaluative Research
& Wrap-up Lecture;
Individual Meetings
4/5


Review Policy
Surveys in the
Media
Practice Question
Wording Problems
Distribute Assgn.
2: Critique a
Questionnaire;
Due 4.5
Univariate &
Bivariate Analysis
& Introduction to
SPSS
Review Final
Assignments
4/12


Practice SPSS
Assgn.3 Due
4/19

Assgn.4 Due
4/26

SPSS Final Paper
Workshop
Chapter 14;
Assign Final
Paper
(Including
Assgn.3 & 4)
Appendix F;
Jing videos
Final Exam
Paper Due:
4/27 at Noon