Assignment 1: Qualitative Methodology
Your research question may or may not be appropriately answered using Qualitative Research methodology. In this assignment you will apply what you have learned about qualitative methodology from the readings and the Assignment 1 discussion to your own research question.
If your research question is best answered using Qualitative methodology, stick with it and complete the critique below. If not, how might you alter your question so that it may be answered using qualitative methodology?
Although research is driven by questions, for this assignment we are going to turn it around so we may explore the benefits and differences of various types of methodologies. Adjust your question to fit a qualitative design and complete the critique below.
For instance, if you are asking the question "What are the most effective interactions students have with faculty mentors?" which is best investigated using quantitative methodology, you can ask a similar question "What are the perceptions of students regarding their experiences with faculty mentors" that would be answered best using qualitative methodology including unstructured interviews.
By the due date assigned, complete the following research critique for the Qualitative research you propose.
1. Research Topic: The research question being studied is "Does the intensity and length of a substance abuse program and the gender of the clinician impact the relapse potential of clients."
2. Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the length and intensity of a day treatment program and an intensive outpatient program for patients with a severe substance use disorder (SUD). This study will attempt to answer the following questions:
1) Will the length and intensity of a treatment experience decrease participants' relapse potential six months after treatment is completed?
2) Will the length of the program day affect how satisfied SUD clients' treatment experience?
3) Will the length of time in treatment effect if the client will maintain sobriety six months after the treatment experience is complete?
4) Does the gender of the clinician affect treatment effectiveness?
3. Overarching Research Question:
4. Specific Research Questions/ Hypotheses:
5. Type of Study: Qualitative
• Qualitative Research method design: (case study, ethnography, phenomenology, document reviews, etc.)
• Procedure/Paradigms: (How was the data collected? What was the sampling strategy used?)
• Variables/Concepts: (What will you examine in this research?)
• Rigor: (How will rigor be assured? Discuss credibility, dependability, transferability and confirmability as appropriate.)
• Data collection/ analysis: (Discuss data collection, analysis and saturation.)
• Consent: (What type of consent, if any, will be obtained from the participants?)
• If your topic was not originally best suited for a qualitative design: What did you need to change to adjust your research to fit a qualitative design? How does this design address your overarching topic differently? Discuss the differences in the type of information you would gain by using this research design.
All written assignments and responses should follow APA rules for attributing sources.
Assignment 2: Mixed Methodology
Your research question may or may not be appropriately answered using a Mixed methodology model. In this assignment you will apply what you have learned about mixed methodology from the readings and the Assignment 1 discussion to your own research question. If your research question is best answered using Mixed methodology, stick with it and complete the critique below.
If not, how might you alter your question so that it may be answered using mixed methodology? Although research is driven by questions, for this assignment we are going to turn it around so we may explore the benefits and differences of various types of methodologies. Adjust your question to fit a mixed methods design and complete the critique below.
For Example: In assignments M4A2 and M5A2 you may have had to change your research question so that it should be answered using a different design. The example questions included, "What are the perceptions of students regarding their experiences with faculty mentors", best answered using qualitative research, and "What types of interactions do students value most with their faculty mentors?", best answered using quantitative research.
Both of the questions would produce information about the topic of effective mentoring of graduate students. In a mixed methods design there is value and need to gather both quantitative and qualitative data. In this case the qualitative interviews could help provide not only greater insight into the results of the quantitative data, but could provide necessary information if the final goal was to help faculty understand their students' needs.
Note that the mixed methods researcher must determine whether concurrent or sequential data collection will best suit the purposes of the study. (See Creswell, Chapter on Mixed Methods Procedures: Timing)
By the due date assigned, complete the following research critique for the Mixed methods research you propose.
1. Research Topic: The research question being studied is "Does the intensity and length of a substance abuse program and the gender of the clinician impact the relapse potential of clients."
2. Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the length and intensity of a day treatment program and an intensive outpatient program for patients with a severe substance use disorder (SUD). This study will attempt to answer the following questions:
1) Will the length and intensity of a treatment experience decrease participants' relapse potential six months after treatment is completed?
2) Will the length of the program day affect how satisfied SUD clients' treatment experience?
3) Will the length of time in treatment effect if the client will maintain sobriety six months after the treatment experience is complete?
4) Does the gender of the clinician affect treatment effectiveness?
3. Overarching Research Question:
4. Specific Research Questions/ Hypotheses:
5. Type of Study: Mixed Methods
• Mixed method design: (present the elements of quantitative and qualitative and describe how these compliment each other and why it is important to conduct this research as a mixed methods design. find a reason!)
• Overarching Research Question:
• Specific Research Questions:
• Hypotheses:
• Procedure: (How was the data collected? What was the sampling strategy used?)
• Variables/Concepts:
• Instrument(s) analysis:
• Data analysis: Discuss the statistical software, if any, used in analysis of the data and the type of analyses included.
• Consent: What type of consent, if any, will be obtained from the participants?
All written assignments and responses should follow APA rules for attributing sources.