Not only is this because of the different types of data that the researcher is aiming for but also the process that leads to it. In both research techniques the researcher will identify an area of interest or come up with a question, however in quantitative research the researcher will then develop this research question into a hypothesis. This method can be referred to as theory verification. That is starting with a theory, developing it into a hypothesis and then designing a study or research plan to test the hypotheses (Punch, 2005). In quantitative research the researcher is not going in blind as they might in qualitative, they have an idea of what they want to achieve and the sort of information they need to find in order to do so.
When it comes to understanding the arts and sciences and creating and developing a research program, one must keep in mind the importance and concerns of the treatment of participants and ethical conduct. Research can be defined as being the gift of intellect, curiosity, and skill, all coming together to arouse one’s desire to investigate questions, explore, and create new processes or products that will be beneficial for all individuals and society as a whole. While keeping in mind how important research is, it must be remembered that participants play a very important role in research and helping to find answers to the why’s, what’s, when’s, and how’s questions posed in stemming research activities. It is also very important that research participants be treated ethically and with the greatest respect, when choosing to participate in research projects. Ethics is a very important part of the context for compliance.
This paper will also explain the role that statistics play in research and their importance to the study of psychology. Research and The Scientific Method Research is done in many areas of life to understand how and why an individual behaves a certain way,
In my personal opinion, objectivity is very important to understand and utilize in regards to research. Moving forward, with research involving social science, there many variables thus increasing the potential of personal biases and prejudices to interject. Consequently, subjectivity is an inevitable aspect of social research. Recall, that objectivity places it’s emphasis on the facts and their ability to speak for themselves. Thus, objectivity contributes to accurate and unbiased results.
Key Words: Counseling, Role of Researcher, Contributions, and Practitioner Model Role of Researcher Research within the counseling profession plays a vital role in counseling based on science and the active role it plays in “developing the knowledge that the counseling profession is based” (Heppner, Kivligham, & Wampold, 2006, p. 16). However, in the following example the scientific method does involve many empirical tests that did establish such supportable results. In another situation if taken the same scientific method this would show a set of rules and assumptions about evaluating and collecting data that is important to more research where needed. However, according to Heppner, Kivligham, & Wampold (2006) “the philosophical foundations guide our understanding of the world, but also can affect how scientists conduct research” (Heppner et al., 2006, p. 23). These assumptions would allow counselors to have an increase of knowledge that would be relevant to guide us through our counseling professions.
The research questions guide the types of data to be collected in a study” (p.146). The study is designed to answer the research question and the research question helps the readers better understand what the study is about. Research questions are made up of a couple of elements. According to Polit and Beck (2010) in quantitative studies, “research questions identify the key study variables, the relationships among them and the population under study. The variables are all measurable concepts and the questions suggest qualification” (p.154).
He believed that people develop constructs as internal ideas of reality to help them understand the world around them and that the way the world is viewed is based on individual experiences, interpretations and observations. This essay will also look closely at the work from Hans Eysenck and Stanley Rachman on Trait Theory (1965) and Phillida Salmon (2003) who developed George Kelly’s Personal Construct Theory further by relating it to teaching. It will also discuss the interrogative themes of Power Relations, Situation Knowledge and Agency Structure. The strengths and weaknesses of both approaches will be critically compared along with looking at the contrasts of both hoping to offer an explanation to the above statement ‘The traits that we think we find in others represent our personal construction of them’ (Butt, 2012, p.53). Theories of personality were developed around a century ago in three different strands known as clinical, psychometric and experimental traditions, although all separate they seek to explain behaviour and the individual differences in the way people react to the same situation.
Assess the claim that a sociologist’s choice of research method is primarily influenced by theoretical factors (20 marks) It can be claimed that theoretical issues primarily influence the choice of research method of the researcher. However there are many other factors that need to be considered when choosing a research method such as that of ethical and practical issues. Practical issues include time and funding whilst ethical issues include whether the researcher deceives the subjects and theoretical issues include validity, reliability and representativeness. Whilst positivists prefer quantitative data, interprevists favour qualitative data. Choice of subject is also affected by society’s values and funding bodies.
Through reviewing the relationships that are there between Maslow’s theory and biological factors we will be in a position to see some focused similarities as well as its upcoming. Analyzing some of the main tenets of humanistic theory with some of the biological explanations will help us to be enlightened on different views of every personality theory. Personality is basically defined as the complex of all the attributes which are possessed by individuals and which uniquely defines their temperamental, behavioral, mental and emotional characteristics from the other people (Howard &Miriam, 2008).
Theoretical issues are important factors for influencing sociologists’ choice of method when deciding how to research a topic. Although, there are other factors that also have to be considered such as practical and ethical issues. Positivists believe that the method should produce information that is objective as possible but also produce data is representative and reliable that can then be used in statistics for government research but is collected through questionnaires and other quantitative methods. On the other hand, Interpretivists like to look at the qualitative data that includes structured/unstructured interviews and participant observation. This means that the research is more detailed and in depth, but is also more valid.