The Research Experience: Planning, Conducting, and Reporting Research

The Research Experience: Planning, Conducting and Reporting Research, Second Edition is the complete guide to the behavioral science research process. The book covers theoretical research foundations, guiding students through each step of a research project with practical instruction and help. The latest technological tools, such as SurveyMonkey®, Qualtrics®, and Amazon Mechanical Turk®, are included to show the increasing influence of the Internet to conduct studies and how research is conducted in the world today. Taking students through the process from generating ideas for research to writing and presenting findings helps them absorb and apply the material. With its practical emphasis and supporting pedagogy, students will be able to successfully design and execute a research project. Included with this title: The password-protected Instructor Resource Site (formally known as SAGE Edge) offers access to all text-specific resources, including a test bank and editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments About the Author Introduction Chapter 1 Research, Biases in Thinking, and the Role of Theories Why Research Matters The Research Process: Humans Make Predictions Heuristics and the Work of Kahneman and Tversky Other Problems in Thinking Doing Science as Tradition and Innovation Research and the Value of Common Sense Flexibility in Thinking Theories: What They Are and Why They Matter Ways in Which Theories May Differ: Scope and Parsimony Making a Connection Between a Theory and a Good Research Question Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 2 Generating and Shaping Ideas: Tradition and Innovation Overview Ideas: Information Services, aka The Library Ideas: Searching Effectively in the Library Electronic Resources and Keywords Keywords: The “Key” to Success PsycINFO Other Databases and Indexes in the Social Sciences The Web and Peer Review Particular Kinds of Articles How Journals Differ: Issues Related to Quality Open Access and Predatory Publishers Publication Practices of Journals Journal Articles Versus Book Chapters Physically Obtaining an Article: A Closer Look at Databases Summary of the Article Locator Search Process Interlibrary Loan (ILL) Systems and World Catalog (WorldCat) What to Do With Your Articles (Read More Than the Abstract!) The Introduction The Method Section The Results Section The Discussion Section: Conflicts and Gaps Keeping Track: ILL, Mendeley, and RefWorks Confounding or Third Variables: Refining the Research Question and Closing the Research Gap Time Pressure and Timelines Academic Fraud and Steps Toward Transparency Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 3 Research Design Approaches and Issues: An Overview Overview Research Quality Affects Research Answers What Research Can Tell You: The Continuum of Certainty Correlation Versus Causation Why Conduct Correlational Research? The Language of Correlation and Causation Correlational Research Approaches: Correlational and Quasi-Experimental Hallmarks of True Experimental Approaches Differentiation of Independent and Dependent Variables Reframing a Research Idea Type I Versus Type II Error Type II Errors: Sample Size, Power, and Effect Size Internal Validity Behavior of the Experimenter and Demand Characteristics Behavior of the Participant: Role Attitude Single- and Double-Blind Approaches to Research Cover Stories Pilot Tests and Manipulation Checks Summary of Additional Threats to Internal Validity External Validity and Ecological Validity Where Research Takes Place Where Qualitative Research Takes Place Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 4 Ethics and the Institutional Review Board (IRB) Process Overview What Is the IRB, and Why Does It Exist? History of Ethical Oversight The APA Code of Ethics What Is Research? What Are Human Subjects? What Kinds of Projects Do Not Require IRB Review? IRB Duties, Membership, and Levels of IRB Review Deception Components of the IRB Proposal Informed Consent Reasonable Person Standard Debriefing Children as a Vulnerable Population: Implications for Research Ethics and Student Participation in Research: Alternatives to the Participant Pool Offering Incentives in Research: Are Incentives Coercive? The IRB Training Modules Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 5 Measurement: Qualities of Measures Overview The Concept of Measurement: Ideal Versus Real The Purpose of Measures Measurement Scale Types Sensitivity of a Scale and Anchor Values The Process of Identifying Measures: The Literature Databases of Tests (PsycTESTS and HaPI) Books of Measures Department Resources and Professors Catalogues of Measures and Fees Charged Qualities of Measures: Reliability and Validity The Importance of Computing Your Own Cronbach’s Alpha Length and Difficulty of Measures Instructions for Scoring Names of Measures and Social Desirability Concerns Qualifications for Use Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 6 Surveys: Developing Measures and Items Overview Developing Your Own Instrument Scale Types and Flexibility in Answering Research Questions The Order of Questions in a Survey Online Survey Software Tools Features of Online Survey Software Programs Program Features Google Docs Forms Downloading Online Surveys Into SPSS Survey Appearance A Few Final Cautions (and Encouragements) About Online Survey Software Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 7 Correlational Research and Specialized Nonexperimental Designs Overview Correlational Research: General Characteristics What Correlational Data Can Tell Us Considerations of Internal and External Validity in Correlational Research Drawbacks to Correlational Approaches Correlational Design: Quasi-Experimental Design (i.e., Questions About Groups) Statistics Used in Correlational Designs Factor Analysis: Data Reduction for Correlations Among Multiple Variables Specialized Nonexperimental Designs Time-Series and Interrupted Time-Series Designs Strengths and Weaknesses of This Approach When Is This Approach Used? Real-World Challenges: Postoccupancy Evaluation (POE) Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Designs Advantages and Disadvantages of the Longitudinal Approach Advantages and Disadvantages of the Cross-Sectional Approach Cohort-Sequential Design Advantages of Using Multiple Methods Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 8 Qualitative Research Overview Qualitative Research Qualitative Research and the Concept of Reflexivity Acceptance of Qualitative Methodology in the Social and Behavioral Sciences Qualitative Approaches to Research How to Capture Behavior: Behavioral Categories How Often and How Long to Observe Calculation of Inter-rater Reliability (IRR) Acceptable Values for Inter-rater Agreement Participant and Nonparticipant Observation and Overt/Covert Observation Ethnography: Extended Observation Issues in Ethnography: Gaining Access Initial Ethnographic Tours Preserving Information Grounded Theory Phenomenology Focus Groups Interviews: Degrees of Structure Recording or Not Case Studies and Case Histories Where Qualitative Meets Quantitative: Content Analysis Summary of Steps in a Content Analysis Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS) Qualitative Research and the Emotional Self: A Final Consideration Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 9 Experimental Research: Between-Subjects Designs: Conceptual and Practical Considerations Overview Between-Subjects Designs: What Are They? Characteristics of Between-Subjects Designs: Advantages and Disadvantages Nomenclature Surrounding IVs Sensitivity of IV More on Power, Sample Size, and Power Calculations Number of IVs and Interaction Effects Evaluating an Interaction by Hand Common Types of Between-Subjects Design Matched Group Design Multiple Comparisons Handling Error Variance Summary of Between-Subjects Design Considerations Multiple Dependent Variables (DVs) in a Research Design Practical Considerations: Finding and Creating IVs (Scenarios, Visual Images, Movie Clips, Auditory Clips) Existing Literature: Method Section Visual Images: Manipulating an Image Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Project Update Form Chapter 10 Experimental Research: Within-Subjects Mixed , and Pre–Post Designs: Conceptual and Practical Considerations Overview Characteristics of Within-Subjects Design: Advantages and Disadvantages Types of Research Questions More Commonly Asked in Within-Subjects Designs Counterbalancing ABBA Order Block Randomization Simple and Complex Within-Subjects Designs Adding Complexity to Within-Subjects Designs Mixed Designs Pre–Post Designs: Characteristics Types of Pre–Post Designs Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 11 Recruiting Participants Overview Who Participates in Research: An Overview The Participant Pool: The Workhorse of Social Science Research The Drawbacks to Participant Pools: Concerns About Internal Validity Limits on the Number of Participants Available From Unpaid Participant Pools Keeping Track of Participants: Online Participant Management Systems Practical Issues in Communicating About Recruiting Research on Sensitive Topics and the Role of the IRB Recruiting Off Campus Using Your Personal Connections Using Your Institution’s Connections Bureaucracy Vulnerable Populations in the Community Physical Security Issues in Conducting Research Off Campus Service Learning Courses and Recruiting Participants: Opportunities and Complications Conflicts of Interest and Multiple Relationships Dustin’s Dozen: Tips for Collecting Data in the Field Identifying Information Other Sources of Participants: The Online Approach Online Use of Adverts (Advertisements) Versus Snowball Samples Ethical Issues in Online Environments: The Facebook Emotional Contagion Study Sampling Nonresponse Bias and Threats to Internal Validity Nonresponse and Nonresponse Bias Response Rates and Reporting Them Incentives: Practical Issues Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk): The World Awaits Questions of Validity in Using Amazon MTurk Google Consumer Surveys Online Paid Panels Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 12 Organizing Data and Analyzing Results Overview Paper and Online Surveys: An Overview The Importance of Labeling Labeling in a Data File and Deciding on a Coding System Other Labeling Recommendations Labeling Issues in Online Survey Software Entering Individual Items Versus Item Totals Backing Up Data Dealing With Missing Data: Differing Points of View Replacing Missing Data Through Single Value Imputation Some Recommendations for Missing Data Identifying Missing Data Handling Out-of-Range Values Handling Outliers Manipulation Checks Going Fishing and Other Data Dredging Practices Ethics, Cleaning Up, and Reporting Your Data: Final Comments Preliminary Analyses Significance Levels and p Values: What Are They? Transforming and Selecting Data: Useful Commands in SPSS Summary of Data Organization Steps Evaluating Your Hypotheses: Where to Begin Making Use of Free Response Items Additional Aids: Online Calculators and Word Clouds Other Statistical Software Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Chapter 13 Writing and Presenting Your Research Overview Writing: One Section at a Time Writing: Avoiding Plagiarism Writing: Bias-Free Language The Writing Itself: Clear and Simple The “Shape” of Your Paper Title Page, Authorship, and Author Note The Title of the Paper and Its Importance The Abstract The Introduction: Content The Method Section Writing About Results Discussion Nonsignificant Results: What Can You Say? Statistical Versus Practical Significance General Formatting Issues: Mastering APA Style Presenting Numbers: The Short Story Common Grammatical Mistakes Creating Conference Presentations Summary Practice Quiz Build Your Skills Highly Recommended Papers Appendices Glossary References

About the Author :
Dr. Devlin is a published author with more than three decades of academic and research experience. During her more than 35 years as a faculty member at Connecticut College, she has taught courses in research methods, environmental psychology, cognitive psychology, industrial and organizational psychology, and a host of related seminars. She also established and frequently serves as chair or member of the Connecticut College Human Subjects Institutional Review Board (IRB). In those roles, she has reviewed more than 800 student research proposals as well as those of faculty and staff. With this experience, she is familiar with a wide range of research topics and research designs. Dr. Devlin has published four books, the most recent of which is Transforming the Doctor’s Office: Principles from Evidence-based Design (2015). Her third book, What Americans Build and Why: Psychological Perspectives (2010) focused on five facility types: residential, educational, medical, retail, and office. In addition, she has published numerous research articles in such journals as Environment and Behavior (SAGE), Journal of Environmental Psychology, Journal of Applied Social Psychology, Professional Psychology: Research & Practice, and Journal of Counseling Psychology.  

Review :
"The material reflects current thinking in the field…This textbook does a very thoughtful job of organizing [tables and figures]. [A majority of my students are visual learners]…having all of the tables and figures is greatly appreciated…The focus on presentations and presenting the research is very helpful." "[This] textbook is very copious and thoughtful, without being overwhelming or patronizing…this textbook has a really nice balance and is comfortable to read. Additionally, the figures/tables are very helpful and are great for all learners, especially visual learners." "[The key strengths of the text are] the style of writing, the examples, the depth of the information, [and] some chapters are beautifully organized and helpful, [such as writing your research]."