How to Recognize and Define a Good Social Research - Coursework Example

HOW TO RECOGNIZE AND DEFINE A GOOD SOCIAL RESEARCH By How to Recognize and Define a Good Social Research Introduction Research involves investigating an idea to uncover extra useful knowledge. Social research aims at seeking the truth on a certain issue. The researcher undertakes certain activities to prove definite facts. The knowledge attained through research benefits professional in the social field as well as learners. However, not all research is considered accurate since some researchers misinterpret the research objectives or have unclear objectives which results in propaganda. There is thus need for guidelines to evaluate the quality of research to ensure that researchers do not manipulate their research findings or methodologies to suit their needs. Distorted research does not represent the reality and should thus be avoided or censured. This paper focuses on how we can recognize and define a good social research. There are certain factors that characterize a rigorous and effective research. Any effective research should be purposive. Although all researches tend to be different, there are certain features that characterize social research. A good research should state the aims or objectives clearly. The objectives should define the research question. This is the aim or the problem addressed in the research. The aim should be directed. Additionally, the research should have a testable hypothesis, which points out to the purpose of the study. Presence of a hypothesis ensures that the study is specific (Litman, 2012, 5-9). Another factor used to recognize a good social study is the methodological design. The method used to collect and analyze data should be scientific. Most social researchers use qualitative research. However, considerable researches mix both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, which are considered problematic. In case of quantitative studies, the sample to be used for data collection should be selected randomly but should be randomized to ensure that it is representative. The method used to gather and analyze information determines the results obtained hence their credibility. For studies involving people’s perceptions, qualitative analysis is preferred since it enables analysis of large quantities of data. Additionally, unstructured interviews are preferred for collection of data for qualitative studies (Davis & Beaumont, 2007, Web). The conclusion made should follow accepted premises. Additionally, they should be logical and must have been tested in the research. The conclusion should be based on the findings, which should be reflective of the views of the participants. The study should be extensive and the participants selected randomly. The study should be rigour, which can be achieved through extensive research in addition to literature review. Another feature that characterizes a good research is the clarity. The study should clearly state the different variables and distinguish them. The variable includes dependent variables, independent variables, moderating, and intervening variables. While evaluating the research, the hypothesis should be clearly stated. This ensures that the study focuses on a specific issue and answers the research question. A good research should aim at reflecting the truth by making use of the available information. The conclusion should come last after the study has been done. A researcher who makes the conclusion before carrying the study ends up distorting the findings to suit his or her findings (“National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway”, 2011, Web). A good research should give a description of the existing data on the issue of study. Additionally, the study should consider the different perspectives regarding a given issue. The study should provide enough evidence to support the findings and conclusion. Moreover, the data should be analyzed in a way that the readers can understand (Leedy & Ormrod, 2012, 23-28). Any critical assumptions made should be clearly discussed. Additionally, alternative interpretations and conflicting findings should be included and explained. The implications of the findings should be explained (Engel & Schutt, 2005, 18-23). Another characteristic of a good research is one that contains all the information of the participants in the research. The research should also have the consent form to indicate that the participants understood the essence of the research and decided to participate voluntarily. Additionally, biasness should be avoided. By this, I mean that the researcher should not do anything to influence the results. The researcher should demonstrate cautiousness while drawing conclusions. There should be no exaggerated claims. Additionally, there should be no assumptions such as association where the researcher assumes that certain things occur together without providing sufficient evidence (“National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway”, 2011, Web). Moreover, the researcher should avoid assuming that one thing caused another without proving it. A good research should not contain spurious arguments (Litman, 2012, 2-6; “National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway,” 2011, Web). Another way of ensuring that the research is credible is by ensuring that the researcher has sufficient resources to complete the entire research. The resource could be in terms of people, money, and anything else required in the course of the study (“National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway,” 2011, Web). Another way of making sure that the study is efficient is training, the researcher, or the individuals who will be involved in carrying out the research (Leedy & Ormrod, 2012, 40-45; Babbie, 2012, 25-29). This ensures that they understand the research methods. The training should enable the researchers understand the different data collection techniques to be used in the study. The researchers should also understand the objective of the study to ensure that they are met. The researchers should be familiarized with the area of study. Some social researches involve dealing with vulnerable clients who could be at risk or require privacy. The researchers should thus understand how to deal with such clients (“National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway,” 2011, Web). To ensure that the study is done appropriately, the individuals conducting and supervising the study should have a clear understanding of all the requirements of the study. They should demonstrate clear understanding of the subject of study (Litman, 2012, 12-15; Davis & Beaumont, 2007, Web). Another feature of a good research is that it should provide adequate references to support any opinions that belong to other people other than the writer. The sources used should be original. Failure to acknowledge other peoples work results into plagiarism, which lowers the quality of the research. The source should be cited within the document and an additional page of the works referred to should be provided (Babbie, 2012, 203-207). This enables the reader to access the original source for clarity or for further reading. Another way of recognizing a good study is by determining its testability. A research should not just have an aim but the stated aim should be testable. To ensure testability of the aims, convergent validity should be used. The results of the study should be correlated (Punch, 2005, 14-19; Blaikie, 2007, 64-68; (Farooq, et al., 2011, 2083-2085). Another feature of a good research is its replicability. The context of the study should be clear such that it other researchers can repeat the research and obtain similar results. In case the research includes an experiment, the methods used in the study should be clear. Additionally, other aspects of the study should be clear and comprehensible to others. The quality of a social study can be determined by comparing its findings to real life situations. The findings should be close the actual state of matters (Davis & Beaumont, 2007, Web). This ensures that other researchers can rely on the study and use it judge their own results. However, the finding can be different from those of a similar study carried out several years ago. A study is considered to be of good quality if it adds knowledge to the field of social study. The main aim of any research is to improve on the existing knowledge. Since the field of social studies is dynamic and keeps changing, social researches should be reflective of such changes (“National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway,” 2011, Web). Another characteristic of a good social research is its objectivity. The findings of the study should be based on facts obtained through data analysis and not emotions. One mistake that researchers make is having a prejudged opinion, which results in manipulation of the results making the study insignificant. A good research should be free from generalization (Davis & Beaumont, 2007, Web; Grinnell & Unrau, 2010, 41-45). A good social research should follow the research ethics. The research article should clearly state the different ethics that were observed while conducting the study. The researcher should clearly state if the participant in the study were aware of their role in the study. Additionally, the participants should do so at will. Following the ethical guidelines ensures that the participants rights are respected and the participants (Blaikie, 2007, 23-25; Farooq, et al., 2011, 282-2084). In case the ethical guidelines are not clear, the researcher should seek clarification from the research community (Babbie, 2012, 34-36). Peer reviewed articles are also considered good. This is because peer reviewing ensures that the data in the article is correct. During peer review, the article is analyzed and any erroneous information is removed. Experts critically assess the research article, which results in enhanced quality (Punch, 2005, 23-27; Davis & Beaumont, 2007, Web). Conclusion Research is a truth seeking activity that aims at increasing the knowledge on certain issues. A good research is characterized by certain features, which include clarity. The contents of the research article should be clear for readers to understand. The research methodologies should be clearly explained such that other researchers can repeat the research and obtain similar results. Another feature of a god research is subjectivity. For a research to be considered good, the conclusion should be based on the facts that are supported using sufficient evidence. The evidence could be from previous studies as well as from the analysis of the study itself. Any critical assumptions made in the study should be clearly explained. The different opinions regarding the issue under study should be explained. Use of different approaches ensures that the conclusions made are logical and truthful. Additionally, a good study avoids making any conclusion based on association or assumptions. Another aspect to consider while determining the credibility of a research is referencing. A good article should acknowledge the works used in the article. The researcher should also follow the research ethics. Works Cited Babbie, E 2012, The Practice of Social Research. 13 Ed, Cengage Learning, New York. Blaikie, N 2007, Approaches to Social Enquiry: Advancing Knowledge,. 2 ed. Polity, London. Davis, W & Beaumont, T 2007, Research Essentials, Teaching and Learning Unit. Faculty of Business and Economics, the University of Melbourne, p. [Online] Available at: http://tlu.fbe.unimelb.edu.au/. Engel, R & Schutt, R 2005, The Practice of Research in Social Work. SAGE, New York. Farooq, M. et al., 2011, Paradigms and Characteristics of a Good Quantitative Research. World Applied Sciences Journal, 12(11), pp. 2082-2087. Grinnell, R. & Unrau, Y 2010, Social Work Research and Evaluation : Foundations of Evidence-Based Practice: Foundations of Evidence-Based Practice. 9 ed. Oxford University Press, New Jersey. Leedy, P & Ormrod, J 2012, Practical Research: Planning and Design. 10 Ed, Pearson Education, New York. Litman, T 2012, Evaluating Research Quality, Victoria Transport Policy Institute, pp. 1-20. National Committees for Research Ethics in Norway 2011, Guidelines for Research Ethic in the Social Sciences, Law and the Humanities. [Online] Available at: http://graduateschool.nd.edu/assets/21765/guidelinesresearchethicsinthesocialscienceslawhumanities.pdf [Accessed 1 Nov 2012]. Punch, K 2005, Introduction to Social Research: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches. 2 Ed. New York: SAGE. Read More