Research Concepts: Principles version 2.0 SIREN Workshop 24 September, 2010 Lamberton, MN Jeff Strock Soil Scientist University of Minnesota Dept. Soil, Water, & Climate Southwest Research and Outreach Center

Overview Research Basics Methodologies Research process What research is and is not Where research comes from Research deliverables Methodologies Research process Quantitative versus qualitative research This presentation is only an overview of research. The only way to get better at research is to do it.

What Research Is Not Research isn’t information gathering: Gathering information from resources such books or magazines does not constitute research. No contribution to new knowledge. Research isn’t the transportation of facts: Merely transporting facts from one resource to another does not constitute research. No contribution to new knowledge although this might make existing knowledge more accessible. While both of these are tools used during research, they are not sufficient for research.

What Research Is Research is: “…the systematic process of collecting and analyzing information (data) in order to increase our understanding of the phenomenon about which we are concerned or interested.” Leedy P. D. and Ormrod J. E., Practical Research: Planning and Design, 7th Edition. 2001.

Research Characteristics Originates with a question or problem. Requires clear articulation of a goal. Follows a specific plan or procedure. Often divides main problem into subproblems. Guided by specific problem, question, or hypothesis. Accepts certain critical assumptions. Requires collection and interpretation of data. Cyclical in nature. “If we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be called research”  These don’t represent some kind of linear plan, but are rather common characteristics shared by almost all legitimate research regardless of the venue by which that research was conducted.

Research Projects Research begins with a problem. This problem need not be Earth-shaking. Identifying this problem can actually be the hardest part of research. In general, good research projects should: Address an important question. Advance knowledge. Be original. The concept of “important” questions is subjective and will depend on who you ask as well as the purpose of the research. For instance, PhD students have a different “bar” than Masters students owing to the requirement that their research be “original and significant.”

Sources of Research Problems Observation. Literature reviews. Professional conferences. Experts. Many of us have professional experience which can lead to possible research. Always be careful to differentiate between research and self-enlightenment.

Processes & Methodologies Research Process. Common Methodologies. Methodology Comparison.

Research Process Research is an extremely cyclic process. Later stages might necessitate a review of earlier work. This isn’t a weakness of the process but is part of the built-in error correction machinery. Because of the cyclic nature of research, it can be difficult to determine where to start and when to stop. step 1 step 2 step 3 step 4 step 5 step 6 step 7 step 8 step 9 We’ll try to give some guidelines as to how to choose starting and stopping points during your research work. Please keep in mind that the following steps don’t have to be slavishly followed in the sequence in which they are presented.

Step 1: A Question Is Raised A question occurs to or is posed to the researcher for which that researcher has no answer. This doesn’t mean that someone else doesn’t already have an answer. The question needs to be converted to an appropriate problem statement. Example: What are the major factors that influence crop yield variability? Crop yield variability can be affected by nutrient management, weed competition and insect damage, yields may also be significantly reduced by residue management practices.

Step 2: Suggest Hypotheses The researcher generates intermediate hypotheses to describe a solution to the problem. This is at best a temporary solution since there is as yet no evidence to support either the acceptance or rejection of these hypotheses. Example: The hypothesis of this research is that residue management will result in decreased grain yield and profitability for corn producers: NT<RT≤ ST< CP<MB

Step 3: Literature Review The available literature is reviewed to determine if there is already a solution to the problem. Existing solutions do not always explain new observations. The existing solution might require some revision or even be discarded. It’s possible that the literature review has yielded a solution to the proposed problem. This means that you haven’t really done research. On the other hand, if the literature review turns up nothing, then additional research activities are justified. The literature review is often a good source for additional ideas. This is also a good place to go in conjunction with the prior step; there’s no point in wasting good brain cells coming up with hypotheses that solve a problem that has already been adequately addressed.

Step 4: Test Hypotheses Plan research Determine variables Independent variable – represents the factors or conditions that will be manipulated or changed by the investigator in order to do an experiment. Dependent variables – is the observed result of the independent variable being manipulated - the dependent variable depends on the outcome of the independent variable. Designing experimental procedure This involves planning how the independent variable will be changed and how to measure the impact that this change has on the dependent variable. Conduct Experiment

Step 5: Acquire Data The researcher now begins to gather data relating to the research problem. The means of data acquisition will often change based on the type of the research problem. This might entail only data gathering, but it could also require the creation of new measurement instruments.

Step 6: Data Analysis The data that were gathered in the previous step are analyzed as a first step in ascertaining their meaning. As before, the analysis of the data does not constitute research. This is basic number crunching.

Step 7: Data Interpretation The researcher interprets the newly analyzed data and suggests a conclusion. This can be difficult. Keep in mind that data analysis that suggests a correlation between two variables can’t automatically be interpreted as suggesting causality between those variables. A statement of causality is very difficult to demonstrate because there often many other confounding factors. For an example of this, do a quick bit of reading on the hoops researchers had to go through while trying to show a causal link between smoking and certain kinds of cancer.

Step 8: Hypothesis Support The data will either support the hypotheses or they won’t. This may lead the researcher to cycle back to an earlier step in the process and begin again with a new hypothesis. This is one of the self-correcting mechanisms associated with the scientific method.

Step 9: Reporting IMPACT!!! Some research has more impact than others In order for research results to have impact they need to be shared. Public presentations Written reports (formal and informal) Summary reports, Brochures, Bulletins, Abstracts, etc. Web-based, on-line delivery Peer-reviewed journal articles

Common Methodologies Methodologies are high-level approaches to conducting research. The individual steps within the methodology might vary based on the research being performed. Two commonly used research methodologies: Quantitative. Qualitative. The choice of methodology might be governed by the kind of research being conducted. For example, the hard sciences tend to favor quantitative methodologies whereas the social sciences often gravitate toward qualitative approaches. It’s quite common for both methodologies to be used during the course of a single research project.

Methodology Comparison Quantitative Explanation, prediction Test theories Known variables Large sample Standardized instruments Deductive Qualitative Explanation, description Build theories Unknown variables Small sample Observations, interviews Inductive These are some the differences in the intent and approaches between quantitative and qualitative research. There are other significant differences in approach as well, but these are some of the highlights. Keep in mind that research design is not a simple task.

Useful Websites http://www.asa-cssa-sssa.org/fourohfour.html http://www.swcs.org/ http://www.sldirectory.com/teachf/scied.html http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/pages/teacherzone/websites.asp Both of these professional organizations have their own digital libraries containing conference proceedings and journal articles across all of their topics.

THANK YOU! jstrock@umn.edu 507-752-5064 www.swroc.cfans.umn.edu/