The book is divided into sixteen chapters, which seemed a bit intimidating at first. It's certainly doable, but ultimately means a greater investment of my time, and I have to weigh investing my time in creating hands-on learning opportunities and providing students with thorough feedback on their work with the time I'd have to invest in using a text that is complete, but needs to be much more heavily supplemented with additional materials. Reviewed by Kelly Pereira, Assistant Professor, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro on 12/5/16, This text offers a comprehensive overview of social science research methods appropriate for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. The text could be easily adapted and/or supplemented to fit any discipline-specific needs. Again, the book is an accessible and smooth read; it will pose no challenges to an informed reader, and there will be nothing in the organization of the book that will be distracting or irritating. The bolded words invite the reader to create a self-guided glossary, not any different than a textbook in an 8th grade student collection, which is helpful to counter the sometimes sophisticated nature of research theory. This could be easily done based on the course instructor preference. Reviewed by Divya Varier, Assistant Professor, Virginia Commonwealth University on 2/8/17, The textbook adequately covers most fundamental concepts related to research methods in the social sciences. The text consistently matches the book outline. There are no major problems with the books interface. I use almost the entire text in an undergraduate Health Science research methods course. This book touches on many important topics related to the scientific research process that is typically found in several different text. It's great that a resource like this is available for free to students and faculty in a wide variety of disciplines. This makes the book quite comprehensive in that the book could be used for the length of the semester, one chapter per week. I haven't spotted any problems with internal consistency. However, the text could be made more comprehensive with the inclusion of an effective index and/or glossary. In my opinion, Chapter 16 Research Ethics should not be standalone (under the Epilogue) and it could be part of the Introduction to Research (i.e., the first few chapters). There are ample headings and sub-headings, however, that allow the text to be divided into smaller chunks, which is nice to see given how many students feel overwhelmed by this topic. This text covers all the basic concepts expected in a book on social science research. Written in 2012, the information remains relevant with few areas that would ever need to change. The text is organized well and had a professional and academic tone while also understandable. The book does not include either an index or a glossary, which is unfortunate for anyone who wants a paper version. I would say this textbook reads as modern and relevant, although perhaps it could do more to address emerging methodological concerns in social science disciplines (p-hacking, replication, pre-registration of research designs, etc.). There is an appropriate number of tables to visually demonstrate complex topics in-text. Specifically, I find that the book provides a very comprehensive introduction to research philosophy and research designs, particularly in addressing how to come up with research questions, which is often a challenge for new doctoral students. I found no cultural insensitivity in the text. I noticed the examples cited were from articles written by authors from different countries. This text is certainly consistent, and proceeds according to a methodical and logical structure. There are a few important topics missing, however. Thus, adapting social science approaches can better meet healthcare researchers needs. Beneficial. Chapters naturally flow from one another and are logical. As such, the book seems to do a good job introducing all the essential concepts for graduate research, but supplemental materials are likely needed depending on instructor or student needs. The only minor problem I noted (which made me I've a ranking of 4 as opposed to 5) was a certain amount of repetitiveness in the earlier chapters, specifically with regard to positivism/post-positivism and the discussion of theory/hypothesis creation and testing. read more. I'm delighted to have found this book. When necessary, it is cited appropriately. Given the nature of research method that does not change drastically, content is up-to-date and wont make the text obsolete within a short period of time. Many people have asked why I'm giving away something for free when I can make money selling it? The text and examples provided are not culturally insensitive or offensive. I also find it useful that the author includes sections on both qualitative and quantitative research, which is great for an introductory level course. Overall, it is well formatted. There are a few minor grammatical errors in the 2nd edition, 2012. Case studies are usually conducted by sociologists, psychologists, historians, anthropologists, or researchers from other social science disciplines. To be fair, I think that A) anyone who has taught methods before would be able to use the "bones" of this book to prepare students sufficiently well for class and then easily fill in the blanks, and B) it appears that this text was written primarily with graduate students in mind, whereas I most teach undergraduates. There is one recommendation that goes against the prevailing wisdom on survey design. The textbook does not have interface issues. The inclusion of some cases or examples showcasing how social science research methods can be applied to current events or topics would help illustrate the relevance of this book (and social science research). read more. I get the impression that the author is relying on "commonly known" ideas regarding research methods and processes, but I have to consistently remind my students to cite all non-original information, and that example is lacking in this text. The appendices are an especially nice touch and added value for faculty to understand how the author uses this text and creates a syllabus to complement it. For instance, at least one chapter should be on nonparametric statistics and their applications on research studies, while another chapter should be on research paper writing (e.g., what should be included in the Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, and so on). If your course is also covering descriptive inference, you would want to supplement the text with additional material. Technical terminology is sufficiently defined. The topics are presented in a logical manner. The later chapters explain in greater detail various kinds of methods such as how to measure constructs, and scale reliability. This book is structured as four modules and is very adaptable to instructors who want to teach any portions of the book. The chapter also does not present how the research design and threats to validity are interconnected. In addition, content within chapters is consistent, such as Dr. Bhattacherjees logical progression of concepts: empiricism, to positivism, to forms of analysis (qualitative and quantitative), etc. In general the organization makes sense; the only exception is having research ethics as an epilogue, when ethical issues need to be considered before a study is completed. It presents the information in a clear and concise way. But if teaching students to actually conduct and write up research is important to the course, there are much better books out there (although at significant cost). For this reason, the book should include a few more chapters so that course instructors can have more options for a semester-long It focuses on fundamental research methods as well as incorporates current research approaches. The prose is accessible and each chapter proceeds methodically. However, the book falls short on the depth of the essential concepts. The text is in PDF format. The sections within the chapters are clearly marked and logically organized. . (p. 44). The word "scale" is associated with scale of measurement. The content of the text is not culturally insensitive, and the author does not present any offensive statements or comments anywhere in the text. This information needs to be updated, as currently, much of the survey research is done via online platforms. I do like that it includes a chapter on research ethics and an appendix with a sample syllabus, however. I am pleased with the coverage in the text; it includes the history and foundations of research, as well as chapters on ethics and a sample syllabus. Although the sample syllabus if for a business class, I did not find the text to be relevant only to business students. Of course, most students seem to prefer an electronic text, so I assume they use a search function rather than an index. A review of the images/graphics and an update to them would be useful. This textbook does an excellent job setting the stage for what we mean by "research" in the social sciences. The major primary research methods. Each module can be a standalone unit and is very adaptable to instructors who want to teach with either the whole book or individual modules. While much of the content is 'durable' (not likely to soon become obsolete), the relevance is dependent upon the focus of the instructor/course. As a fellow social scientist from a high growth area (communication studies), I would appreciate even more breadth! Overall, this book is easy to read and use. A glossary summarizing definitions for the key terminologies would help students understand these key concepts. This text covers all the basic concepts expected in a book on social science research. The current layout of the text groups all the data collection methods together and all the data analysis methods together. Aside from these minor issues, this text is a great resource and I recommend it. For my field, it wouldn't be sufficient to use as a stand-alone text. CC BY-NC-SA, Reviewed by Sanaa Riaz, Associate Professor, Metropolitan State University of Denver on 3/27/23, While not meant for advanced graduate and doctoral students, this text is an excellent introductory resource for learning about paradigms in research methods and data analysis and prepares the learner to begin writing a successful research project The glossary for the text is clear and a sample syllabus is provided by the author for individuals wishing to use this text for their course. The later chapters can be used for "nuts and bolts" courses for addressing specific methodological issues. The primary reason I did not give this text 5 stars is that the author does not provide a great amount of detail for a lot of the book's sections. It contains information essential to understanding quantitative and qualitative research. That said, there is not a ton of depth in this textbook. However, it does so at a fairly superficial level. I have mixed feeling on the image on the cover and the limited visuals within the book. Starting with a broad/general statement of each chapter topic, the author narrowed it down to smaller element which is easy for the reader to follow and understand. This text offers a comprehensive overview of social science research methods appropriate for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. As I mentioned earlier, I like the overall sequence that the author follows, but at the same time I can appreciate how the sections can be detached and still stand alone. This is because big I anticipate that undergraduates will also appreciate how concise the text is. Simple additions on slides or class room commentary can easily take care of the various omissions that pepper the text. But for the broad mainstream of the social sciences, there will be little in this book that stands out as unusual, controversial, or one-sided. As mentioned elsewhere, the writing is comfortably academic without becoming dense or burdensome. It is free of technical jargon and is meant to provide the essentials of social science inquiry and research considerations. As a fellow social scientist from a high growth area (communication studies), I would appreciate even more breadth! The book presents all the topics in an appropriate sequence. The text uses a consistent framework throughout. Social science is a quite diverse field, including studies of socio-economic data, human behaviors, values, perceptions, and many others. I'm looking forward to adopting it for courses and using it for my own reflections on research! WebExperienced social science researcher and project manager with a demonstrated history of working in the healthcare services research industry. The book includes some helpful figures illustrating concepts in research design and statistics. read more. I think this book is very well-suited for intro graduate level courses in research methods, as long as instructors are comfortable with this as an overview supplement rather than a detailed stand alone resource for students. Only suggestion would be to introduce research ethics early on in the book. This book is designed to introduce doctoral and graduate students to the process of scientific research in the social sciences, business, education, public health, and related disciplines. The text is a quick guide to considerations and terminologies used in social science research. Case Study. There were no notable instances of cultural insensitivity throughout the text. However, due to the succinct nature of the book, some sections seemed lacking. most commonly-used research tools in the social sciences (Fife-Schaw, 2006). Updates may be needed to reflect more current research or trends, but no major changes should be necessary. I had no trouble reading or understanding the textbook. There are some things that should probably be included in subsequent revisions. It aims for breadth, but not depth. There are many social science examples that could be used. Yet, despite the 
What Are the Different Methods of Data Collection? However, I have an issues with the language in chapter 2 about about strong and weak hypotheses because it seems to treat the experimental/causal hypotheses preferentially. What I liked in particular is that the author includes information on the ENTIRE research process, including I downloaded the PDF version of the textbook and find it easy to read offline. The chapters of the book are separated by natural divisions. The text does not seem to be biased in any way. The book will also be available in Kindle e-Book, Apple iBook, and on-demand paperback versions at a nominal cost. The relevance and longevity are strong. Chapter titles are hyperlinked within PDF copies to simplify navigation. 
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