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Self Study ProjectMGT 494

Lecture-14

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Recap

• Vision and Performance Ranges• Write an Action Plan (Step 7)• Evaluate Progress and Take Corrective Action

(Step 8)• Self Study Project– Problem Identification

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Today’s Lecture

• Problem definition• Steps in analyzing problem• Literature Review• Research Design/ Methods• Case study research• Action Research• Methodology• Findings• Report

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Self Study Project

• Problem Identification– Differentiate fact from opinion – Specify underlying causes – Consult each faction involved for information – State the problem specifically – Identify what standard or expectation is violated – Determine in which process the problem lies – Avoid trying to solve the problem without data

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Some guidelines for selecting problems:

1. The problem should be such in which the researcher may be deeply interested.

2. The problem should be related with the chain of thinking. Stray problems can mislead the whole research project.

3. The problem selected should not necessarily be new one. It may be old problem or one on which work has already been done i.e., verification of old problem may be equally useful.

4. The problem should be within manageable limits i.e. it should not be too comprehensive.

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Criteria of Good Problem are:

1. It should express a relation between two or more variables.

2. It should be stated clearly and unambiguously.

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Problem definition 1. Magnitude: What is the incidence and prevalence of the

problem?2. Time Frame: When does it occur? Is it current?3. Geographic area: Where does the problem generally occur?4. Population: Does the problem affect certain groups of

people? If so, what are their characteristics?5. Why? What are the probable reasons for the problem? Is

there agreement or conflict over these reasons?6. Solutions: What solutions have already been tried? How

successful have they been? What untried solutions might there be?

7. Unanswered Questions: What parts of the problem need further research?

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Justification for Research Problem

• Is the problem a current and timely one?• Does the problem have life-threatening or serious

morbidity consequences? • Does the problem affect or potentially affect, a large

number of people? • Does the problem relate to on-going program activities? • Does the problem have broad social, economic, political or

health implications?• Is the problem viewed as a concern by many different

people?• Have many studies already addressed the problem?

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Steps in analyzing the research problem

• Step 1 Clarify the viewpoints of managers in relation to the problem

• Step 2 Further specify and describe the core problem

– Try to identify the core problem and quantity– You should attempt to describe more elaborately:

• The nature of the problem; the discrepancy between “what is” and what you prefer the situation to be, in terms of re-admissions and /or complications;

• The distribution of the problem – who is effected, when, and where; and

• The size and intensity of the problem – is it widespread, how server is it, what are its consequences (such as disability, death, and waste or resources).

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Steps in analyzing the research problem

• Step 3 Analyze the problem

– After identifying the core problem you should:• Identify factors that may have contributed to the problem.• Clarify the relationship between the problem and contributing factors.

• Analysis of the problem involves several sub-steps:

– Step 1 Write down the core problem(s) as defined in step 2 in the center of a blackboard or flip chart.

– Step 2 Brainstorm on possible causes or factors contributing to the problem.– Step 3 Identify further contributing factors.– Step 4 Attempt to organize related factors together into larger categories,

and develop your final draft of the diagram.

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Literature Review

The basic stages in a typical research project are:

• identify your topic of interest,• perform a literature review,• generate related questions,• state your unsolved problem or hypothesis,• find or develop a solution, and• document your results.

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Purpose of the literature review

1. To evaluate the current state of progress in the study of a given topic

2. To identify, organise and evaluate published material

3. To show that the reviewer knows what has been done, what is being done, and what needs to be done

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A literature review serves three important functions

• Gives reader background information regarding your own research,

• Demonstrates your familiarity with research in your field,

• Shows how your work contributes one more piece in expanding the knowledge base in your field.

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Finding material

• Ask your subject librarian for help.• Decide how far back you want to go –5 years?

10?• Be selective – for short literature reviews,

ignore minor journals, books by unknown publishers.

• Follow up references in standard works.• Search databases, including those for journals.

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How to start?

• Begin by setting up a record-keeping system that will give you an overview

• Date -Keep your record in chronological order so that you can see how research develops, changes, challenges earlier thinking etc.

• Bibliographical details –make sure you note everything you need to avoid backtracking. Can be useful to note library call number as well.

• Topic/focus – a brief note to help you remember, unless you are doing an annotated bibliography, when you will need to summarize in several sentences.

• Argument/thesis – what is the writer arguing? What is their conclusion/the point of their research?

• Strengths/weaknesses – evaluation is difficult, but the more you read about a subject, the easier it is to critique the research as you make comparisons.

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Generate alternative solutions

• Postpone evaluating alternatives initially• Include all involved individuals in the

generating of alternatives• Specify alternatives consistent with

organizational goals• Specify short- and long-term alternatives• Brainstorm on others' ideas• Seek alternatives that may solve the problem

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Evaluate and select an alternative

• Evaluate alternatives relative to a target standard

• Evaluate all alternatives without bias• Evaluate alternatives relative to established

goals• Evaluate both proven and possible outcomes• State the selected alternative explicitly

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Implement and follow up on the solution

• Plan and implement a pilot test of the chosen alternative

• Gather feedback from all affected parties• Seek acceptance or consensus by all those

affected• Establish ongoing measures and monitoring• Evaluate long-term results based on final

solution

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Understanding Self-Study Research

• Can design a study driven from research questions situated in my particular context.

• Can study practice through employing a transparent, open, reflective, and systematic research process.

• Can hold a disposition of openness to outside views, questions, and critique.

• Can use various self-study methods to study research problems.

• Can contribute to the body of knowledge • Can generate and share knowledge that can be useful to

researchers and practitioners

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Self-study is a personal situated inquiry• Self-study gives you the opportunity to examine your lived practice

and whether or not there is a living contradiction, or a contradiction between what you say you believe and what you actually do in practice (Whitehead, 1989).

• Examining the realities created by this gap leads to new understandings of personal theory making. The questions you pose can also be positive ones (LaBoskey, 2004a).

• You can choose from various self-study methods to inquire into beliefs and action in practice, explore who you are as a researcher, and self-assess your observations.

• You have the opportunity to consider the role culture and history play in your theories and practices to assess its impact on your teaching.

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Case Study

• Purpose and rationale for case study– Significance of the phenomena of interest– Research questions

• Design based on the unit of analysis and research purpose

• Data collection and management techniques– Field methods– Transcribed notes and interviews– Mapping of major concepts– Building typologies– Member checking

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What is action research about?

• Action research is a practical approach to professional inquiry in any social situation. The context for professional inquiry might change, but the principles and processes involved in action research are the same, regardless of the nature of the

practice.• As its name suggests, action research concerns actors – those

people carrying out their professional actions from day to day - and its purpose is to understand and to improve those actions. It is about trying to understand professional action from the inside; as a result, it is research that is carried out by practitioners on their own practice, not (as in other forms of research), done by someone on somebody else’s practice

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Action Research

Carr and Kemmis (1986) describe action research as being about:– the improvement of practice;– the improvement of the understanding of

practice;– the improvement of the situation in which the

practice takes place.

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Action Research

1 Why should I use action research?Because you want to change your practice. You may be concerned that things might not be going as you wish, or you may need to implement a new initiative but are unsure how to do it effectively. What you want is a way of sorting out these concerns that offers practical solutions, but that derives from the specific circumstances of your practice

2 How does this qualify as research?

Because the act of finding your solution makes you understand your practice better – not only what you are doing, but also the factors that affect what you do. Action research therefore has two aspects. The starting point is to sort out a problem or issue in practice; to this extent an action researcher seeks a solution. But the process can also be used as a deliberate attempt to understand practice better – a traditional research attitude. What is most important in both approaches is that you are open, honest and rigorous.

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Methodology• Introduce the overall methodological approach for investigating your

research problem.

• Indicate how the approach fits the overall research design

• Describe the specific methods of data collection you are going to use

• Explain how you intend to analyze your results

• Provide background and rationale for methodologies that are unfamiliar

for your readers

• Provide a rationale for subject selection and sampling procedure.

• Address potential limitations

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Findings

• When formulating the results section, it's important to remember that

the results of a study do not prove anything. Research results can only

confirm or reject the research problem underpinning your study. However,

the act of articulating the results helps you to understand the problem

from within, to break it into pieces, and to view the research problem

from various perspectives.

• Avoid providing data that is not critical to answering the research

question

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Prepare the Report

• The outline of the report includes thanking all of the participants, stating the problem, listing the research questions, describing the methods used to conduct the research and any potential flaws in the method used, explaining the data gathering and analysis techniques used, and concluding with the answers to the questions and suggestions for further research.

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Prepare the Report

• Key features of the report include a retelling of specific stories related to the successes or disappointments experienced by the organizations that were conveyed during data collection, and answers or comments illuminating issues directly related to the research questions.

• The researcher develops each issue using quotations or other details from the data collected, and points out the triangulation of data where applicable.

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Prepare the Report

• The report also includes confirming and conflicting findings from literature reviews. The report conclusion makes assertions and suggestions for further research activity, so that another researcher may apply these techniques to another electronic community network and its participants to determine whether similar findings are identifiable in other communities.

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THANK YOU