Interdisciplinarity has become a buzzword in academia, as research universities funnel their financial resources toward collaborations between faculty in different disciplines. In theory, interdisciplinary collaboration breaks down artificial divisions between different departments, allowing more innovative and sophisticated research to flourish. But does it actually work this way in practice?Investigating Interdisciplinary Collaboration puts the common beliefs ab...

An Introduction to Data Science is an easy-to-read, gentle introduction for advanced undergraduate, certificate, and graduate students coming from a wide range of backgrounds into the world of data science. After introducing the basic concepts of data science, the book builds on these foundations to explain data science techniques using the R programming language and RStudio® from the ground up. Short chapters allow instructors to group concepts together for a semester cou...

"SURVEY & QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN: Collecting Primary Data to Answer Research Questions" presents practice-oriented guidance on survey and questionnaire design, as well as exercises and video presentations, to assist you in your research. It is based on lecture notes and hand-outs used by the authors in the various classes they have taught over the past number of years. Within the research process, you may wish to collect primary data using a survey. Surveys have a number of different steps t...

Since its first edition in 1985, Patrick McNeill's Research Methods has become a classic introductory text for students of sociology at A level and in undergraduate courses as well as for a range of specialists in education, business, social care and medicine who need a brief but authoritative account of how sociologists set about conducting research.After a brief overview of the history of sociological research which introduces key concepts, this new edition, co-authored ...

A Companion to Survey Research provides a critical overview and guide to survey methods. Rather than a set of formulas, survey design is understood as a craft where the translation of research questions into a questionnaire, sample design and data collection strategy is based on understanding how respondents answer questions and their willingness to complete a survey.Following an account of the invention of survey research in the 1930s, a synthesis of research on question design is...

Doing Visual Research offers an innovative introduction to the use of photography, collaborative video, drawing, objects, multi-media production and installation in research. Claudia Mitchell explains how visual methods can be used as modes of inquiry as well as modes of representation for social research.The book looks at a range of conceptual and practical approaches to a range of tools and methods, whilst also highlighting the interpretive and ethical issues tha...

This book bridges scholarly forms of inquiry and practitioners’ daily activities. It introduces inquiry as a process of relational construction, offering resources to practitioners who want to reflect on how their work generates practical effects.There are hundreds of books on research, but in keeping with social scientific traditions, many emphasize method and neglect broader, overarching assumptions and interests. Further, most are written in ways that speak to those in the acade...

Providing a general introduction to focus group research, The Focus Group Guidebook includes the appropriate reasons for using focus groups and what you can expect to accomplish with them. It provides a brief history of focus groups, a discussion of when to use focus groups and why, and several brief case studies illustrating different uses of focus groups. Author David L. Morgan also extensively provides the timeline and costs associated with focus groups, including a dis...

The Second Edition of this popular text confirms the book’s status as an important forerunner in the field of visual methods.Combining the theoretical, practical and technical the authors discuss changing technologies, the role of the internet and the impact of social media. Presenting an interdisciplinary guide to visual methods they explore both the creation and interpretation of visual images and their use within different methodological approaches.This ...

Building SPSS Graphs to Understand Data is a must-have for anyone needing to understand large or small amounts of data. It describes how to build and interpret graphs, showing how "understanding data" means that the graph must clearly and succinctly answer questions about the data. In most chapters, research questions are presented, and the reader builds the appropriate graph needed to answer the questions.

Research Methods in Education introduces research methods as an integrated set of techniques for investigating questions about the educational world. This lively, innovative text helps students connect technique and substance, appreciate the value of both qualitative and quantitative methodologies, and make ethical research decisions. It weaves actual research "stories" into the presentation of research topics, and it emphasizes validity, authenticity, and practical signif...

Theory and Method in Higher Education Research provides a forum specifically for higher education researchers to discuss issues of theory and method. This latest collection includes discussion of a variety of theories, including; complex systems theory, organisational identity, curriculum theory, knowledge management framework, evaluation-based decision-making, and the market-university. It also includes a number of chapters focused on methods, including mixed methods and virtual ...