Research Methods & Ethics in Science PDF

12/07/2024 Research Methods & Ethics in Science DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND SAFETY ENGINEERING LECTURER: Kenneth Asamoah Bo...

12/07/2024 Research Methods & Ethics in Science DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND SAFETY ENGINEERING LECTURER: Kenneth Asamoah Boateng, PhD 1 1 Objectives This course will equip students with skills in conducting scientific research with regard to data collection, analysis, interpretation and report writing. 2 1  12/07/2024 Mode of Delivery Lectures (face-to-face and online using Virtual Learning Environment), tutorials, seminar, group work and assignment. Reading Material Bailey, C. A. (2017), A Guide to Qualitative Field Research, Sage Publications, California, United States, 3rd Edition, 280 pp. D’angelo, J. (2018), Ethics in Science: Ethical Misconduct in Scientific Research, CRC Press, Florida, United States, 160 pp. Mike, W. M. (2008), Creativity: Ethics and Excellence in Science, Lexington Books, Washington DC, United States, 149 pp. Teti, D. M. (2004), Handbook of Research Methods in Developmental Science, Wiley-Blackwell, New Jersey, United States, 1st Edition, 584 pp. 3 Assessment Student assessment will be based on 1. Continuous assessment 30% (Quizzes, assignments, experimental work, etc.) 2. Attendance 10 % 3. EXAMS 60% 4 2  12/07/2024 Contact Information Mobile Number Email Addresses +233267170846 [email protected] WhatsApp +233267170846 5 5 Course Content Research Methods & Ethics in Science Definition and concepts of research. Research process. Research design. Literature review. Sampling. Reliability and validity of data. Qualitative and quantitative research methods. Research reporting. Definition of ethics. Definition of science. 6 6 3  12/07/2024 Course Content Research Methods & Ethics in Science Definition of ethics in science. What is a profession? How ethics and values intersect with professionalism. Ethical theory and applications. Standards of ethical conduct in science. Common ethical principles in science. Fraud in science. Whistle blowing. Conflict of interest. Case studies. 7 7 RESEARCH METHODS AND ETHICS IN SCIENCE 8 8 4  12/07/2024 Unit 4 – Literature Review 9 What is Literature Review ? A literature review surveys scholarly articles, books and other sources (e.g. dissertations, conference proceedings) relevant to a particular topic, area of research, or theory, providing a description, summary, and critical evaluation of each work.” (Lyons, 2005) 10 5  12/07/2024 What is Literature Review ? The point of a literature review is to inform the reader about the area of study and to give context for how the research furthers existing knowledge. Your review should not just be a list of citations or summaries of articles. 11 The Need for Literature Review A literature review will help you determine if your research is actually relevant – Has the problem been studied before? Does it need to be replicated? A literature review will also give you background on your research, such as the pre-eminent scholars in the field or major previous advancements 12 6  12/07/2024 Define the Topic Pick a topic you are interested in If you are not interested, it will be difficult to stay motivated The topic must not be too broad but not too narrow. Don’t be afraid to refine your topic based on your initial results 13 Outline of Review Process Define your topic – What topic or field is being examined? What are its component issues? Search the literature – Find literature relevant to your area of study and problem Evaluate the data – Determine which literature is significant to the field or to your area of study Analyse and interpret – Discuss the findings and conclusions of pertinent literature (Lyons, 2005). 14 7  12/07/2024 Search the Literature Perform a preliminary search using basic keywords to give you an idea of the scope of existing literature If your topic has already been explored in depth, now is the time to pick another topic. If there is some research, you can refine your topic or see if there are any important replication studies that need to be done. From your initial search, develop a list of keywords and subject headings that relate to your topic. 15 Where to Search Search across multiple databases and information resources! Google, Google Scholar, Research Gate, ScienceDirect IEEE Librarians have lots of resources for various topics – get in touch with them for the most recent list of resources 16 8  12/07/2024 Where to Search Using Google or Google Scholar Use key words in the project topic to search for related literature You may also type the entire topic 17 18 9  12/07/2024 Selecting Literature Start by reading abstracts of your top papers. Make sure that all papers chosen are from peer- reviewed publications. The goal is to read the most relevant and significant works. You can’t decide what is relevant until you know what is out there! After you have read around ten to twenty articles, you should start to see themes in the literature. 19 Questions to Consider What do we already know? What are the main theories or findings? Where are the gaps in knowledge? What evidence is lacking, inconclusive, contradictory or too limited? What contribution can my study be expected to make? 20 10  12/07/2024 Analyze and Interpret Take notes as you read through each paper so you can remember each paper later The notes should include: Topic of the study Research design and methods Results Anything notable As you read, you can group papers based on common themes based on your notes 21 Writing the Review Your review acts as a guide of your topic for others who may not know about the topic being studied. It should be professional and clear, and free of grammar or spelling errors. Define abbreviations the first time you use them, and then use the abbreviation consistently through the rest of the paper. 22 11  12/07/2024 Writing the Review Citations are incredibly important! Use the citation style of the journal or the style your supervisor chooses. Be consistent with the style 23 Writing the Review Your literature review should explain why the topic is important and what you are going to do. Group research studies and other types of literature according to theme. Cover main findings and conclusions and how they relate to the overall body of knowledge. Offer your own interpretations of what the literature means and what research is needed. 24 12  12/07/2024 Citation Managers Citation managers (also called reference managers or bibliographic managers) are software designed to help scholars save, organize, and cite references. Citation managers allow you to import references from articles or databases, automatically create bibliographies based on what you have imported, and more. 25 Citation Managers The most popular citation managers are EndNote, Mendeley, RefWorks, and Zotero. Zotero and Mendeley since they are free to use 26 13  12/07/2024 Zotero.org 27 Mendeley.com 28 14  12/07/2024 29 30 15  12/07/2024 Unit 4 – Literature Review 31 Synopsis Outline Title of the project Introduction Review of the literature review Objectives Hypothesis Research design and Methodology Limitation of the study References/Bibliography 32 16