A perennial bestseller since 1997, this updated tenth edition of Understanding Research Methods provides a detailed overview of all the important concepts traditionally covered in a research methods class. It covers the principles of both qualitative and quantitative research, and how to interpret statistics without computations, so is suitable for all students regardless of their math background. The book is organized so that each concept is treated independently and can be used in any order without resulting in gaps in knowledge—allowing it to be easily and precisely adapted to any course.
It uses lively examples on contemporary topics to stimulate students’ interest, and engages them by showing the relevance of research methods to their everyday lives. Numerous case studies and end-of-section exercises help students master the material and encourage classroom discussion.
The text is divided into short, independent topic sections, making it easy for you to adapt the material to your own teaching needs and customize assignments to the aspect of qualitative or quantitative methods under study—helping to improve students’ comprehension and retention of difficult concepts. Additional online PowerPoint slides and test bank questions make this a complete resource for introducing students to research methods.
New to this edition:
- New topic section on design decisions in research
- Additional material on production of knowledge and research methods
- Significant development of material on ethical considerations in research
- Fresh and contemporary examples from a wide variety of real, published research
- Topic-specific exercises at the end of each section now include suggestions for further steps researchers can take as they build their research project.
Table of Contents:
Part A Introduction to Research Methods
1. Knowledge and Research Methods
2. Empirical Research
3. The Role of Theory in Research
4. Experimental and Nonexperimental Studies
5. Causal-Comparative Studies
6. Types of Nonexperimental Research
7. Quantitative and Qualitative Research: Key Differences
8. Quantitative and Qualitative Research Decisions
9. Program Evaluation
10. The Development of Ethical Research Standards
11. Ethical Principles in Research
Part B Reviewing and Citing the Literature
12. Why Researchers Review Literature
13. Locating Literature in Electronic Databases
14. Structuring the Literature Review
15. Connecting the Literature to Your Study
16. Preparing to Write a Critical Review
17. Creating a Synthesis
18. Why Academics Use Citation
19. Introduction to Style Guides
Part C Basic Concepts in Quantitative Research
20. Decisions in Quantitative Research Design
21. Variables in Nonexperimental Studies
22. Variables in Experimental Studies
23. Operational Definitions of Variables
24. Research Hypotheses, Purposes, and Questions
Part D Sampling
25. Biased and Unbiased Sampling
26. Simple Random and Systematic Sampling
27. Stratified Random Sampling
28. Cluster Sampling
29. Nonprobability Sampling and Qualitative Research
30. Sampling and Demographics
31. Sample Composition and Bias
32. Sample Size in Quantitative Studies
33. Sample Size and Diversity in Qualitative Research
34. Sampling in the Modern World
Part E Measurement
35. Introduction to Validity
36. Judgmental Validity
37. Empirical Validity
38. Judgmental-Empirical Validity
39. Reliability and its Relationship to Validity
40. Measures of Reliability
41. Internal Consistency and Reliability
42. Norm- and Criterion-referenced Tests
43. Measures of Optimum Performance
44. Measures of Typical Performance
45. Measurement in Qualitative Research
Part F Qualitative Research Design
46. Interviews in Qualitative Research
47. Other Methods for Collecting Qualitative Data
48. Grounded Theory and Research Design
49. Consensual Qualitative Research Design
50 Designing Case Studies
51. Mixed Methods Designs
Part G Designing Experimental Research
52. True Experimental Designs
53. Threats to Internal Validity
54. Threats to External Validity
55. Pre-experimental Designs
56. Quasi-experimental Designs
57. Confounding in Experiments
Part H Analyzing Data: Understanding Statistics
58. Descriptive and Inferential Statistics
59. Understanding Probability in Statistics
60. Introduction to the Null Hypothesis
61. Scales of Measurement
62. Descriptions of Nominal Data
63. Shapes of Distributions
64. The Mean, Median, and Mode
65. The Mean and Standard Deviation
66. The Median and Interquartile Range
67. The Chi-Square Test
68. The Bivariate Chi Square Test and Types of Error
69. The t Test
70. The Pearson Correlation Coefficient
71. One-Way Analysis of Variance
72. Two-Way Analysis of Variance
73. Basic Regression
74. Practical Significance of Results
Part I Effect Size and Meta-analysis
75. Introduction to Effect Size (d )
76. Interpretation of Effect Size (d )
77. Effect Size and Correlation (r)
78. Introduction to Meta-Analysis
79. Meta-analysis and Effect Size
80. Meta-analysis: Strengths and Weaknesses
Part J Preparing Research Reports
81. The Structure of a Research Report
82. Writing Abstracts
83. Introduction and Literature Review
84. Describing Participants
85. Describing Measures
86. Reporting Research Results
87. Writing the Discussion
88. Preparing Theses and Dissertations
Appendices
A Databases for Locating Literature
B Electronic Sources of Statistical Information
C Excerpts From Literature Reviews
D Sample Abstracts of Research Reports
E Introduction to APA Style
F Introduction to ASA Style
Tables
Table of Random Numbers (in Topic 32)
Table of Recommended Sample Sizes (in Topic 38)
Table of Statistical Tests (in Topic 61)
Index
About the Author :
Michelle Newhart teaches sociology as an adjunct professor and works as an instructional designer at Mt. San Antonio College, a large, two-year college in California. A contributor to more than a dozen nonfiction books as either an author or editor, she holds a BA in sociology from the University of Missouri and an MA and PhD in sociology from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Review :
"The tenth edition of Understanding Research Methods by Mildred L. Patten and Michelle Newhart provides a significant update and reorganization of the content provided in earlier editions. The text’s logical organization will be beneficial to students and instructors in developing students’ grasp and comprehension of research methodology. I am anxious to use the text with my students!"
-Richard C. Meyer, Ed.D., Associate Professor and Chair of Educational Administration, University of Nebraska Kearney
"I enjoyed reading this book. I recommend this book to instructors of statistics courses, research methodology, sampling, and computing professionals."
-Ramalingam Shanmugam, School of Health Administration, Texas State University, USA
