RESEARCH OVERVIEW

Nature, Cycle, and Ethics

Research MethodsGraduate Program in Human ServicesUniversity of Massachusetts at Boston

©2012William Holmes 1

NATURE OF RESEARCH

• Objective—open to alternative outcomes

• Empirical—use empirical data to answer questions

• Skeptical—recognize risk of mistakes or confounding data

• Simple—prefers simpler explanations to more complex ones

2

THE RESEARCH CYCLE

• A Continuous Process• Begins with Research Question or

Hypothesis• Design Created to Answer Question or

Test Hypothesis• Data Collected According to Design• Data Analyzed and Interpreted to

Answer Question or Test Hypothesis• Results Lead to New Questions

3

RESEARCH ETHICS

• Protects Subjects and Integrity of Data

• Obtains Informed Consent when Necessary

• Reduces Harm/Provide Benefit to Subjects

• Protect Confidentiality of Individual Data

• Avoid Fraud and Plagiarism 4

OBJECTIVITY

• Doesn’t predetermine outcome

• Conclusions based on facts

• Doesn’t make moral judgments

• Willing to change beliefs

• Evidence open to examination

5

EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

• Uses concrete facts

• Subjects facts to scrutiny

• Accessible to observation

• Accessible to challenge

• Facts are reproducible

6