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Research Methods & Analysis Resources
Computational Social Science by R. Michael Alvarez (Editor)
Quantitative research in social science research is changing rapidly. Researchers have vast and complex arrays of data with which to work: we have incredible tools to sift through the data and recognize patterns in that data; there are now many sophisticated models that we can use to make sense of those patterns; and we have extremely powerful computational systems that help us accomplish these tasks quickly. This book focuses on some of the extraordinary work being conducted in computational social science - in academia, government, and the private sector - while highlighting current trends, challenges, and new directions. Thus, Computational Social Science showcases the innovative methodological tools being developed and applied by leading researchers in this new field. The book shows how academics and the private sector are using many of these tools to solve problems in social science and public policy.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781107107885
Publication Date: 2016
A Guide to Business Statistics by David M. McEvoy
An accessible text that explains fundamental concepts in business statistics that are often obscured by formulae and mathematical notation A Guide to Business Statistics offers a practical approach to statistics that covers the fundamental concepts in business and economics. The book maintains the level of rigor of a more conventional textbook in business statistics but uses a more streamlined and intuitive approach. In short, A Guide to Business Statistics provides clarity to the typical statistics textbook cluttered with notation and formulae. The author--an expert in the field--offers concise and straightforward explanations to the core principles and techniques in business statistics. The concepts are introduced through examples, and the text is designed to be accessible to readers with a variety of backgrounds. To enhance learning, most of the mathematical formulae and notation appears in technical appendices at the end of each chapter. This important resource: Offers a comprehensive guide to understanding business statistics targeting business and economics students and professionals Introduces the concepts and techniques through concise and intuitive examples Focuses on understanding by moving distracting formulae and mathematical notation to appendices Offers intuition, insights, humor, and practical advice for students of business statistics Features coverage of sampling techniques, descriptive statistics, probability, sampling distributions, confidence intervals, hypothesis tests, and regression Written for undergraduate business students, business and economics majors, teachers, and practitioners, A Guide to Business Statistics offers an accessible guide to the key concepts and fundamental principles in statistics.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781119138358
Publication Date: 2018
Innovations in Social Work Research by Louise Hardwick (Editor); Roger Smith (Editor); Aidan Worsley (Editor); et al...
A valuable reference to help practising researchers not only to understand but also to apply innovative approaches to social work research. Featuring extended case studies of actual research projects, the book provides an overview of a number of central features and qualities of social work research. It incorporates both distinctive methodological features, such as approaches to participatory inquiry, and provides accounts of researcher strategies to address particular challenges, such as carrying out studies with hard to reach populations. This book combines important methodological insights with pragmatic guidance on commonly experienced problems and how these challenges can be overcome. This is a key resource for social work and social care students, social work practitioners and academics engaged in research.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781849055857
Publication Date: 2016
Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods by Steven J. Taylor; Robert Bogdan; Marjorie DeVault
An informative real-world guide to studying the "why" of human behavior Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods is a practical, comprehensive guide to the collection and presentation of qualitative data. Unique in the market, this book describes the entire research process -- from design through writing -- illustrated by examples of real, complete qualitative work that clearly demonstrates how methods are used in actual practice. This updated fourth edition includes all new case studies, with additional coverage of mixed methods, non-sociological settings, funding, and a sample interview guide. The studies profiled are accompanied by observation field notes, and the text includes additional readings for both students and instructors. More than just theory, this guide is designed to give you a real-world practitioner's view of how qualitative research is handled every step of the way. Many different disciplines rely on qualitative research as a method of inquiry, to gain an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the governing forces behind it. Qualitative research asks "why" and "how," and the data is frequently complex and difficult to measure. This book shows you how to effectively handle qualitative work, regardless of where it's being applied. Understand the strengths and limitations of qualitative data Learn how experts work around common methodological issues Compare actual field notes to the qualitative studies they generated Examine the full range of qualitative methods throughout the research process Whether you're studying sociology, psychology, marketing, or any number of other fields, especially in the social and behavioral sciences, human behavior is the central concern of your work. So what drives human behavior? That's what qualitative research helps to explain. Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods gives you the foundation you need to begin seeking answers.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781118767290
Publication Date: 2016
Learning Analytics in Education by David Michael Niemi
This book provides a comprehensive introduction by an extraordinary range of experts to the recent and rapidly developing field of learning analytics. Some of the finest current thinkers about ways to interpret and benefit from the increasing amount of evidence from learners' experiences have taken time to explain their methods, describe examples, and point out new underpinnings for the field. Together, they show how this new field has the potential to dramatically increase learner success through deeper understanding of the academic, social-emotional, motivational, identity and meta-cognitive context each learner uniquely brings. Learning analytics is much more than "analyzing learning data"--it is about deeply understanding what learning activities work well, for whom, and when. Learning Analytics in Education provides an essential framework, as well as guidance and examples, for a wide range of professionals interested in the future of learning. If you are already involved in learning analytics, or otherwise trying to use an increasing density of evidence to understand learners' progress, these leading thinkers in the field may give you new insights. If you are engaged in teaching at any level, or training future teachers/faculty for this new, increasingly technology-enhanced learning world, and want some sense of the potential opportunities (and pitfalls) of what technology can bring to your teaching and students, these forward-thinking leaders can spark your imagination. If you are involved in research around uses of technology, improving learning measurements, better ways to use evidence to improve learning, or in more deeply understanding human learning itself, you will find additional ideas and insights from some of the best thinkers in the field here. If you are involved in making administrative or policy decisions about learning, you will find new ideas (and dilemmas) coming your way from inevitable changes in how we design and deliver instruction, how we measure the outcomes, and how we provide feedback to students, teachers, developers, administrators, and policy-makers. For all these players, the trick will be to get the most out of all the new developments to efficiently and effectively improve learning performance, without getting distracted by "shiny" technologies that are disconnected from how human learning and development actually work.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781641133692
Publication Date: 2018
Measurement in Nursing and Health Research, Fifth Edition by Carolyn Waltz (Editor); Ora Lea Strickland (Editor); Elizabeth Lenz (Editor)
Praise for the Previous Edition: "This is a valuable resource for readers seeking basic to advanced information on measurement. It should be on the bookshelf of all researchers, and a requirement for graduate nursing students." Score: 100, 5 stars -- Doody's Medical Reviews "...this book is a wonderful shelf reference for nurse researcher mentors and investigators who may need to explore content or use content to design, test, select, and evaluate instruments and methods used in measuring nurse concepts and outcomes." --Clinical Nurse Specialist "Presents clearly the methodological principles for research planning in nursing with examples that facilitate the understanding of them. Excellent." 5.0 out of 5 stars --Nursing Research This highly popular resource--written in an easy-to-read style and format-- delivers everything nurses and other health researchers need to know about designing, testing, selecting, and evaluating instruments and methods for measurement in nursing. The Fifth Edition features the most current content, strategies, and procedures available with direct applicability to nurses and health researchers engaging in interprofessional research, collaboration, education, and evidence-based practice. Five new chapters focus on challenges to using big data, evaluation and measurement in interprofessional practice and education, metrics and benchmarking in health professions education and practice, and measurement issues in translational science. The book gives particular attention to measurement issues resulting from changes in nursing, health research, and the increased emphasis on and undertaking of interprofessional research and evaluation. Presenting the material in step-by-step format, the book is designed for readers with little or no experience in measurement, statistics, or interprofessional issues. It focuses on increasing the reader's ability to use measures that are operationalized within the context of theories and conceptual frameworks, derived from sound measurement principles and practices and adequately tested for reliability and validity. Additionally, the text provides a pragmatic account of the processes involved in all aspects of measurement. Studies conducted by nurses and researchers in varied settings illustrate the measurement processes. New to the Fifth Edition: Thoroughly updated and revisedDelivers new and emerging strategiesReflects recent changes to nursing, health research, and emphasis on interprofessional researchIncludes five completely new chapters addressing challenges to using big data, evaluation and measurement in interprofessional practice and education, metrics and benchmarking in health professions education and practice, and measurement issues in translational science Key Features: Easy-to-read content and formatAssumes no prior knowledge of measurement, statistics, or interprofessional issuesProvides studies conducted by nurses and researchers in varied settingsOffers a pragmatic account of the processes involved inn all aspects of measurement
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9780826170613
Publication Date: 2016
Modernizing Crime Statistics by Janet L. Lauritsen (Editor); Daniel L. Cork (Editor); Panel on Modernizing the Nation's Crime Statistics; Committee on National Statistics; Committee on Law and Justice; Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
To derive statistics about crime " to estimate its levels and trends, assess its costs to and impacts on society, and inform law enforcement approaches to prevent it " a conceptual framework for defining and thinking about crime is virtually a prerequisite. Developing and maintaining such a framework is no easy task, because the mechanics of crime are ever evolving and shifting: tied to shifts and development in technology, society, and legislation. Interest in understanding crime surged in the 1920s, which proved to be a pivotal decade for the collection of nationwide crime statistics. Now established as a permanent agency, the Census Bureau commissioned the drafting of a manual for preparing crime statistics "intended for use by the police, corrections departments, and courts alike. The new manual sought to solve a perennial problem by suggesting a standard taxonomy of crime. Shortly after the Census Bureau issued its manual, the International Association of Chiefs of Police in convention adopted a resolution to create a Committee on Uniform Crime Records "to begin the process of describing what a national system of data on crimes known to the police might look like. The key distinction between the rigorous classification proposed in this report and the oeclassifications that have come before in U.S. crime statistics is that it is intended to partition the entirety of behaviors that could be considered criminal offenses into mutually exclusive categories. Modernizing Crime Statistics: Report 1: Defining and Classifying Crime assesses and makes recommendations for the development of a modern set of crime measures in the United States and the best means for obtaining them. This first report develops a new classification of crime by weighing various perspectives on how crime should be defined and organized with the needs and demands of the full array of crime data users and stakeholders.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9780309441094
Publication Date: 2016
Modern Psychometrics with R by Patrick Mair
This textbook describes the broadening methodology spectrum of psychological measurement in order to meet the statistical needs of a modern psychologist. The way statistics is used, and maybe even perceived, in psychology has drastically changed over the last few years; computationally as well as methodologically. R has taken the field of psychology by storm, to the point that it can now safely be considered the lingua franca for statistical data analysis in psychology. The goal of this book is to give the reader a starting point when analyzing data using a particular method, including advanced versions, and to hopefully motivate him or her to delve deeper into additional literature on the method. Beginning with one of the oldest psychometric model formulations, the true score model, Mair devotes the early chapters to exploring confirmatory factor analysis, modern test theory, and a sequence of multivariate exploratory method. Subsequent chapters present special techniques useful for modern psychological applications including correlation networks, sophisticated parametric clustering techniques, longitudinal measurements on a single participant, and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. In addition to using real-life data sets to demonstrate each method, the book also reports each method in three parts-- first describing when and why to apply it, then how to compute the method in R, and finally how to present, visualize, and interpret the results. Requiring a basic knowledge of statistical methods and R software, but written in a casual tone, this text is ideal for graduate students in psychology. Relevant courses include methods of scaling, latent variable modeling, psychometrics for graduate students in Psychology, and multivariate methods in the social sciences.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9783319931753
Publication Date: 2018
Research Methods for Social Justice and Equity in Education by Kamden K. Strunk (Editor); Leslie Ann Locke (Editor)
This textbook presents an integrative approach to thinking about research methods for social justice. In today's education landscape, there is a growing interest in scholar-activism and ways of doing research that advances educational equity. This text provides a foundational overview of important theoretical and philosophical issues specific to this kind of work in Section I. In Section II, readers engage with various ways of thinking about, collecting, and analyzing data, including qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Finally, in Section III, through case studies and research narratives, readers will learn about real scholars and their work. This book takes a wide-ranging approach to ways that various modalities and practices of research can contribute to an equity mission.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9783030058999
Publication Date: 2019
Research Methods in Indigenous Contexts by Arnold Groh
This forward-looking resource offers readers a modern contextual framework for conducting social science research with indigenous peoples. Foundational chapters summarize current UN-based standards for indigenous rights and autonomy, with their implications for research practice. Coverage goes on to detail minimally-invasive data-gathering methods, survey current training and competency issues, and consider the scientist's role in research, particularly as a product of his/her own cultural background. From these guidelines and findings, students and professionals have a robust base for carrying out indigenous research that is valid and reliable as well as respectful and ethical. Among the topics covered: · Cultural theories and cultural dominance. · The legal framework of research in indigenous contexts. · The role of language within indigenous peoples' cultural rights. · Methodology: how to optimally collect data in the field. · Researchers' influence and philosophy of science. · Learning how to prepare research in indigenous contexts. Research Methods in Indigenous Contexts is an important reference benefitting a wide audience, including students and researchers in the social sciences, humanities, and psychology; decision-makers of NGOs and GOs that act with regard to humanitarian aid, for tourism projects, or any other contingency with indigenous contexts; and policymakers interested in the aspects of human activity upon which indigenous cultural concerns are based.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9783319892061
Publication Date: 2019
Statistics and Research Methods in Psychology with Excel by J. P. Verma
This book, specifically developed for students of psychology, covers a wide range of topics in statistics and research designs taught in psychology, in particular, and other disciplines like management, sociology, education, home science, and nutrition, in general, in most universities. It explains how to use Excel to analyze research data by elaborating statistical concepts. Each chapter contains sections like "Check you Computing skill" and "Check your Statistical Concepts" to enable students to assess their knowledge in a graded manner. The book addresses one of the major challenges in psychology research, viz., how to measure subjective phenomenon like attitude, desire, and preferences of an individual. Separate emphasis has been given to the measurement techniques which are essential tools to assess these subjective parameters in numerical form, required for statistical analysis to draw meaningful conclusions. The book is equally helpful to students of humanities, life sciences and other applied areas. Consisting of 14 chapters, the book covers all relevant topics of statistics and research designs which are important for students to plan and complete their research work.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9789811334283
Publication Date: 2019
The Theory of Statistics in Psychology by Craig W. Gruber (Editor)
This edition of Annals of Theoretical Psychology focuses on the utilization of statistics and the empirical nature of them as applied to psychology in action. Beginning with statements from the American Statistical Association on the applicability of statistics, the volume moves to a discussion of empiricism in psychology, and the reliance on statistics. The book then branches out to discuss applied aspects of statistics in Emergency management, policing, and technology. In these areas, a tie-in to the relevance of the person in the statistical measures is a prominent aspect for discussion. Finally, the book looks at applicability and use of statistics as descriptors of larger, societal samples as opposed to use for describing individual behavior. This edition is designed to continue the exploration of theoretical psychology as it applies to behavior and the individual, as the last edition, Leader Development Deconstructed, did with examining leaders and leadership. "Leaders influence others. Their tools include competence, candor and character. In those first two areas I've found statisticians possess a strong foundation for leadership (critical thinking, problem solving, strategic perspective, and risk management) but often lack a comfortable, collaborative temperament which inhibits their maximum effect. In this issue of Annals, Dr. Craig Gruber (a Navy Reserve Intelligence Officer to boot!) combines all three elements of influence which proves why he is regarded as a thought leader in this field. His inclusion in this edition of outstanding works from many subject matter experts' offers an inclusive and comprehensive approach to understanding the power, impact, and decision advantage of statistics and leadership when effectively paired. Enjoy!" - Rear Admiral Paul Becker, USN (retired), President of The Becker T3 Group, and former Director of Intelligence for the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9783030480455
Publication Date: 2020