Finding, Analyzing, and Documenting Information Module Twenty Two McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2014 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning Objectives LO 22-1 Apply strategies for print and online information searches. LO 22-2 Apply strategies for web page evaluation. LO 22-3 Apply strategies for survey and interview question use. LO 22-1 Apply strategies for print and online information searches. LO 22-2 Apply strategies for web page evaluation. LO 22-3 Apply strategies for survey and interview question use.

Learning Objectives LO 22-4 Identify respondents for surveys and interviews. LO 22-5 Analyze information from research. LO 22-6 Practice common citation styles for research documentation. LO 22-4 Identify respondents for surveys and interviews. LO 22-5 Analyze information from research. LO 22-6 Practice common citation styles for research documentation.

Types of Research Primary Secondary Gathers new information. Includes surveys, interviews, and observations. Secondary Retrieves published information. Includes library research and online searches. When time and resources permit, gathering primary research can be very beneficial for writers. Researchers must be careful, though, to use appropriate techniques, such as the correct size and type of sample to survey. Using secondary research is more common, especially in student reports. Here, researchers must find information from credible sources.

How can I find information online and in print? Keywords the terms that the computer searches for in a database or on the web. At the beginning of a search, use all the synonyms and keywords you can think of. Keywords are the terms that the computer searches for in a database or on the web. The ABI/Inform Thesaurus lists synonyms and the hierarchies in which information is arranged in various databases. At the beginning of a search, use all the synonyms and keywords you can think of.

Examples of a Boolean Search Use a Boolean search ( Figure 22.1 ) to get fewer but more useful hits.

Sources for Electronic Research Figures 22.2 , 22.3 , and 22.4 list some of the many resources available.

Sources for Web Research Figures 22.2 , 22.3 , and 22.4 list some of the many resources available.

Using the Internet for Research Finding Web pages Use root words to find variations. Use quotation marks for exact terms. Uncapitalize words. Surveys and interviews are important components of primary research. Be familiar with how to choose sample size and word questions when using these tools. Module 23 has more information on surveys and interviews.

Using the Internet for Research Evaluating Web pages Use reputable sources. Look for an author. Check the date and source. Compare the information with other sources. Anyone can post a website, and no one may check the information for accuracy or truthfulness. By contrast, many print sources, especially academic journals, have an editorial board that reviews manuscripts for accuracy and truthfulness. The review process helps ensure that information meets high standards.

How do I write questions for surveys and interviews? A survey questions a large group of people, called respondents or subjects. Questionnaire a written list of questions that people fill out Interview a structured conversation with someone who will be able to give you useful information A survey questions a large group of people, called respondents or subjects. The easiest way to ask many questions is to create a questionnaire, a written list of questions that people fill out. Figure 22.5 shows an example of a questionnaire. An interview is a structured conversation with someone who will be able to give you useful information. Surveys and interviews can be useful only if the questions are well designed.

How do I write questions for surveys and interviews? When asking questions Use phrasing that doesn’t bias the response. Avoid questions that make assumptions about your audience. Use words that mean the same thing to you and your audience. Surveys and interviews are important components of primary research. Be familiar with how to choose sample size and word questions when using these tools. Module 23 has more information on surveys and interviews.

How do I write questions for surveys and interviews? Closed questions have a limited number of possible responses. Open questions do not lock the subject into any sort of response Closed questions have a limited number of possible responses. Open questions do not lock the subject into any sort of response. Figure 22.5 shows an example of a questionnaire.

Closed and Open Questions Figure 22.6 gives examples of closed and open questions. The second question in Figure 22.6 is an example of a Likert-type scale.

How do I write questions for surveys and interviews? Branching questions direct different respondents to different parts of the questionnaire based on their answers to earlier questions. Branching questions direct different respondents to different parts of the questionnaire based on their answers to earlier questions.

How do I decide whom to survey or interview? The population is the group you want to make statements about Defining your population correctly is crucial to getting useful information The population is the group you want to make statements about. Depending on the purpose of your research, your population might be all Fortune 1000 companies, all business students at your college, or all consumers. Defining your population correctly is crucial to getting useful information.

How do I decide whom to survey or interview? Random sample each person in the population theoretically has an equal chance of being chosen Convenience sample a group of respondents who are easy to get Judgment sample a group of people whose views seem useful In a random sample, each person in the population theoretically has an equal chance of being chosen. When people say they did something randomly they often mean without conscious bias. A convenience sample is a group of respondents who are easy to get: students who walk through the student center, people at a shopping mall, workers in your own unit. A judgment sample is a group of people whose views seem useful.

How should I analyze the information I’ve collected? Understand the source of the data. Analyze numbers. Analyze words. Check your logic. Always understand the source of your data. When analyzing numbers, start by computing the average, or mean, the median, and the range. For words, start by finding out what the words mean to the people who said them. Check your logic—causation means that one thing causes or produce another while correlation means that two things happen at the same time. Document your sources using such popular styles as MLA or APA. As you analyze your data, look for answers to your research questions and for interesting nuggets that may not have been part of your original questions but emerge from the data.

Analyzing Words Have things changed over time? Does geography account for differences? What similarities do you see? What differences do you see? What confirms your hunches? What surprises you? Look for patterns. If you have library sources, on which points do experts agree? Which disagreements can be explained by early theories or numbers that have now changed? By different interpretations of the same data? Having different values and criteria? In your interviews and surveys, what patterns do you see?

Checking Your Logic Causation Correlation means that one thing causes or produces another. Correlation means that two things happen at the same time Don’t confuse causation with correlation. Causation means that one thing causes or produces another. Correlation means that two things happen at the same time. One might cause the other, but both might be caused by a third.

Checking Your Logic Identify changes that might yield a different result Discuss circumstances that may have affected the results Summarize your negative findings in progress reports Remember that negative results aren’t always disappointing to the audience If you can’t prove the claim you originally hoped to make, modify your conclusions to fit your data. Even when your market test is a failure, you can still write a useful report. • Identify changes that might yield a different result (e.g., selling the product at a lower price might enable the company to sell enough units). • Discuss circumstances that may have affected the results. • Summarize your negative findings in progress reports to let readers down gradually and to give them a chance to modify the research design. • Remember that negative results aren’t always disappointing to the audience. For example, the people who commissioned a feasibility report may be relieved to have an impartial outsider confirm their suspicions that a project isn’t feasible

How should I document sources? The two most widely used formats for endnotes and bibliographies in reports are those of the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA). The two most widely used formats for endnotes and bibliographies in reports are those of the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA). In 2009, MLA Style changed to include such terms as “Print,” “Web,” or “E-mail” in documentation, and it no longer requires URLs to be included.

How should I document sources? Citation means attributing an idea or fact to its source in the body of the report Documentation means providing the bibliographic information readers would need to go back to the original source Citation means attributing an idea or fact to its source in the body of the report: for example, “According to the 2000 Census . . .” or “Jane Bryant Quinn argues that. . . .” Citing sources demonstrates your honesty, enhances your credibility, and protects you from charges of plagiarism. Documentation means providing the bibliographic information readers would need to go back to the original source. Note that citation and documentation are used in addition to quotation marks.

MLA and APA Formats for Documenting Sources Figure 22.7 shows the MLA and APA formats for books, government documents, journal and newspaper articles, online sources, and interviews.

MLA and APA Formats for Documenting Sources Figure 22.7 shows the MLA and APA formats for books, government documents, journal and newspaper articles, online sources, and interviews.