ACADEMIC RESEARCH EXAM Question 1.1 In what ways is inquiry as a scientific process different from ordinary human inquiry? Scientific human inquiry Ordinary human inquiry Conscious Semi-conscious Avoid errors, careful documentation Inaccurate, prone to misconceptions System of replication + measurement devices for reliability Over generalized at limited samples, selective observations Based on logic, empirical support Superstitions, influenced from common beliefs Identify trends and patterns Question 1.2 Why might it be difficult to define the boundaries of a ‘discipline’? ● ● ● ● Origin of disciplines: Scientists studied different disciplines and applied theories, knowledge and methods that characterized one into others ->difficulty to tell them apart Each discipline is not completely parceled (multiple specializations within each) Influence of society in defining knowledge in specific fields Current multidisciplinary lense Question 2.1 Why is it important to recognize when we are operating within a particular paradigm (in our everyday lives, or in empirical research)? -> A paradigm is a point of view on a certain topic, and cannot be true or false. Paradigms change over time (danger of being outdated) ● ● ● One paradigm = narrow scope of view Several paradigms = enrich findings, more elaborate hypothesis Distancing oneself from a paradigm-> see new perspectives Why might reflecting on this be exceptionally important in interdisciplinary research teams? ● ● ● Each discipline has one characteristic paradigm-> accustoms experts to it Multiple paradigms: avoids losing sight of the bigger picture More valuable outcomes Question 2.2 Why is data protection a central aspect of research ethics in Europe? ● ● Commitment to preserving human rights is essential EU charter of fundamental rights: Privacy and data protection are basic principles and protect the research subjects‘ welfare How does it influence the ‘informed consent’ procedures? ● ● ● Sets rules and regulations - confidential information through codification or anonymity, secure data storage, etc. Certifies voluntary participation Requires the disclosures of certain information to the research subject (entails risks or discomfort, purpose of research,… Question 3.1 What is a cohort study? ● ● Conducted with a subpopulation over a long period of time. Cohort example: age group Information can be compiled from different individuals, even though they are from the same cohort Now consider you are to conduct a cohort study on a topic of your choice. What kind of nomothetic versus idiographic explanations can you draw out from your study? Nomothetic Idiographic -> more probalistic, wider conclusions -> looks for an in depth understanding of the motifs behind an event in a limited number of cases -> direct correlation is hard to establish Question 3.2 Consider a concept of your choice (e.g. poverty, sweet consumption, gender - or any other concept). Use this concept to describe the difference between conceptualization and operationalization in your own words Conceptualization - clarify definition of the variable/ abstract concepts under study Operationalization - procedures used to measure the variable/abstract concept - different depths of measurement (different degrees of precision Question 4.1 Illustrate the difference between validity and reliability. In your answer explain, 1) how you could measure this concept with an emphasis on reliability and 2) how you could empirically study this concept in a valid way. Validity Reliability - look into detail - test-retest method - More subjective - being able to recreate data - Participant’s perception Question 4.2 What are the benefits of in-depth interviews as a method of data collection? ● Full understanding of people’s reasoning Explain the word ‘reflexivity’ ● Question 5.1 Explain in your own words what ‘rapport’ means. ● ● establishing an honest and trusting bond between the interviewer and interviewee Goal: give the interviewee a feeling of safety-> important as subject needs to be comfortable enough to cover any type of subject How could you establish rapport with the people you are interviewing? ● ● Ensuring no judgment is made Carefully listening to the subject, let them do most of the talking Question 5.2 What is a codebook? ● ● ● A code: categorizing different passages with summaries on their content (can differ in length) List of all codes Presents attributes Why do we use a codebook in the analysis of qualitative data? ● Easier to locate information, revisit earlier passages to gain new insights ● Establish correlation between variables, distinguish and compare information ● Gives a general impression of pattern and frequency of codes ● In team: consistency of codes for all members of the team Question 6.1 Korstjens and Moser (2018) discuss that to evaluate the quality of qualitative research, the criteria of trustworthiness is more suitable (and more specifically: credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability). What is credibility? What strategies can be used to ensure credibility? Question 7.1 Review the four scaling procedures and the semantic differential technique described in chapter 6 of the Babbie reading. Pick one of these approaches and explain how it could be used to measure a variable from your research project. Use an example survey question in your explanation. Reflect briefly on how using a 'scale' is different from using an 'index' Question 7.2 What makes a sample representative? Which is more important to ensure sample representativeness: the size of the sample (i.e. the number of participants) or the way the sample is selected (i.e. sampling method)? Question 8.1 What do mean, median, and mode all have in common? Describe the characteristics of one data set for which a 'mean' calculation would be a good representation of a ‘typical’ value of a variable, and another for which a 'median' calculation would be a good representation of a ‘typical’ value of a variable. Question 8.2 What are the similarities and differences between interdisciplinary, multidisciplinarity, and transdisciplinarity Based on past discussions of the differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches (review Table 2.2 from slides 4.1 / 6.1, Babbie chapter 9 (‘Strengths and weakness of survey research’) pp 281 293, Chapter 10 (‘Strengths and weaknesses of qualitative field research’)), describe the ways in which qualitative and quantitative research approaches can be seen as different disciplines. Based on this table, describe in your own words (and in 50 - 80 words) two characteristics of each that you think typify the qualitative versus quantitative approaches.
