CH#1. Getting Ideas for Research (1).pptx

CH#1: GETTING IDEAS FOR RESEARCH MSCM 541 - SUPPLY CHAIN CAPSTONE PROJECT Dr. Hasan Balfaqih SOURCES OF RESEARCH IDEAS 1. Experience. 2. Unsystematic observation. Observation of everyday behavior. Observation of animal behavior. Paying attention to research presented in your classes. 3. Systematic o...

CH#1: GETTING IDEAS FOR RESEARCH MSCM 541 - SUPPLY CHAIN CAPSTONE PROJECT Dr. Hasan Balfaqih SOURCES OF RESEARCH IDEAS 1. Experience. 2. Unsystematic observation. Observation of everyday behavior. Observation of animal behavior. Paying attention to research presented in your classes. 3. Systematic observation. Careful observation of real-world behavior. Published research reports and research projects on the Internet. One’s own previous or ongoing research. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih SOURCES OF RESEARCH IDEAS 4. Theory. Helps one predict behavior that may occur under conditions previously not observed. Two or more theories can account for the same initial observations. Research can determine which competing prediction is most valid. 5. Applied issues. Research ideas can derive from the need to solve practical problems. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih DEVELOPING GOOD RESEARCH QUESTIONS Research ideas must be framed as questions that can be answered with scientific method. i. Ask empirical questions. Empirical questions is based on observation or experience Empirical questions can be answered with objective observation. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih DEVELOPING GOOD RESEARCH QUESTIONS ii. Ask important questions. Questions must justify the expense and time involved in doing the research. Important questions: Focus on variables known to affect behavior. Support only one of several competing models or theoretical views. Provide answers that lead to practical application. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih DEVELOPING GOOD RESEARCH QUESTIONS Unimportant questions: Already have firmly established answers. Are linked to variables that have small effects and have no theoretical interest. Focus on variables that may not be causally related. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih REASONS FOR REVIEWING LITERATURE Helps avoid needless duplication of effort. Helps generate ideas about research design, such as what variables to include, what materials to use, and what procedures to follow. Keeps one up to date on empirical or theoretical issues. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih SOURCES OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Primary versus secondary sources. A primary source includes a full report of a research study. A secondary source summarizes information from a primary source. These should be used sparingly (with caution), because they might be: Incomplete. Biased. Inaccurate. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih SOURCES OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Books May be general textbooks or more specialized professional texts. Most useful in early stages of literature search. Books that provide summaries should be treated as secondary sources. Should be used with caution because they may not undergo rigorous review and information may not be up Dr. Hasan Balfaqih to date. SOURCES OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Scholarly journals Provide current research and theoretical views. One should prefer referred over nonrefereed sources. Papers submitted to a refereed journal undergo review by two or more reviewers. Papers submitted to a nonrefereed journal do not undergo review. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Quality of a journal can be evaluated by the Journal Citations Report. SOURCES OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Conference and professional meetings Provide the most up-to-date information. Researchers from many areas present research findings at conventions and meetings. Research may be presented in a paper session (oral session) or a poster session. Papers presented at an oral session have a time limit, and methodological details may not Dr. Hasan Balfaqih be reported. SOURCES OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Advantages of attending a paper or a poster session: Information is from the frontiers of research. Provides an opportunity to meet other researchers in the field and exchange ideas. A drawback is that conferences can be expensive to attend. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih A NOTE OF CAUTION WHEN USING AN ELECTRONIC DATABASE A search is only as good as the keywords you enter. You may be tempted to cut and paste portions of full-text and use them in your course papers. This is entirely inappropriate and may result in a low or failing grade in the course. What you present in your writing must be written in your own words with appropriate citations and references to Dr.works Hasan Balfaqih you use. BASIC STRATEGY FOR CONDUCTING A THOROUGH SEARCH 1. Find a relevant research article. 2. Use the reference section from the article to find other articles. 3. Repeat the first two steps for each article identified until you can no longer find relevant articles. 4. Identify more recently published sources that cited the sources you have already identified. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih 5. Repeat the entire process as you find more recent articles. PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF AN ARTICLE What are the author’s credentials and institutional affiliation? Has the author’s work been cited by others? Is the publication current or dated? Is the work published by a publisher of professional books or journals? Is the work peer reviewed? Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Is the source a scholarly journal? EVALUATING A RESEARCH ARTICLE: EVALUATING THE INTRODUCTION Has relevant research been adequately reviewed? Are assertions (statement) supported with the appropriate citations? Are the purposes of the study clearly stated? Are the hypotheses clearly stated, and do they Dr. Hasan Balfaqih flow logically from the discussion in the EVALUATING A RESEARCH ARTICLE: THE METHOD SECTION Was the nature of the subject sample specified? Does the design of the study allow an adequate test of the hypotheses? Are there any methodological flaws that might affect the validity of the results? Mapping out the design of the study will help evaluate this. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih EVALUATING A RESEARCH ARTICLE: EVALUATING THE RESULTS SECTION Note which effects were statistically significant. Did the statistically significant effects support or refute the hypotheses? Are the differences reported large or small? Inspect means to determine this. Were the appropriate statistics used? Do the tables, figures, and text match? Dr. Hasan Balfaqih EVALUATING A RESEARCH ARTICLE: EVALUATING THE DISCUSSION SECTION Do the conclusions presented match the results reported? If the author speculates (guesses) about implications of results, does he or she stray too far from the results reported? How well do the results mesh with existing theory and previous research? Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Does the author point the way to directions for future FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF RESEARCH INFORMATION 1. Consistency with previous knowledge. Research results are expected to build on the existing structure of knowledge. Results that do not fit within current thinking are suspect. Anomalous (irregular) findings are treated with suspicion and may not getBalfaqih published Dr. Hasan in mainstream journals. FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF RESEARCH INFORMATION 2. Significance of the contribution. Do findings advance knowledge in science? Currently, many journals will not publish single experiments. Insist on reporting a series of experiments. This requirement may delay publication of important results until all studies are completed. 3. Editorial policy. A journal editor may take steps to ensure that a variety of research topics appear in a journal. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Policy may be affected by editor’s bias toward a particular theory. FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF RESEARCH INFORMATION 4. Peer review. Peer-review: Articles submitted for publication are reviewed by experts in the field. Three functions of peer review. 1. Provide advice to editor of publication decision. 2. Provide feedback to authors. 3. Authors learn to do better science and writing. Most authors believe feedback received is useful and provides a firm basis for editorial decisions. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Peer review is not perfect and there are ethical problems with it (Resnick et al., 2008). FIGURE 4-4: PROBLEMS WITH PEER REVIEW REPORTED BY AUTHORS (RESNICK ET AL., 2008) Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Source: Resnik et al. (2008). Access the text alternative for slide images. FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Problems with peer review process. Reviewers may see themselves as “gatekeepers” and can be overly harsh. Reviewers may be direct competitors of the authors and may be biased. Agreement with reviewer’s view enhances chances of publication. Low rates of inter-reviewer agreement. Factors such as nationality, reviewer gender, and author gender may create bias in the review process. Authors Dr. Hasan Balfaqih from prestigious universities receive more favorable reviews than those from lesser universities. FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF RESEARCH INFORMATION Improving the peer review process. Reviewers should receive training. Increasing accountability for reviewers. Relieve the burden on reviewers by reducing the number of manuscripts they review. Editors could reject more poor papers before sending them out for review. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih Solicit fewer reviews per paper. THE ROLE OF VALUES IN SCIENCE 6 Combatting values and ideological homogeneity in science. Become aware of one’s own ideological biases. Think about an issue from a perspective different from your own. Promote ideological diversity in universities. Duarte et al. (2015) suggest three areas in which ideological bias can be addressed. Dr. Hasan Balfaqih THE END