Research Methods in Criminal Justice

	Scholarly
Summary	-- Start Here -- Abstract
Claim Gap	Introduction
Context	Literature Review Background Past Studies
Method	Method Experiment Interviews Data Collection
Analysis	- Skip to Here -- Results Discussion
Conclusion	This is sometimes part of the discussion.
References Citations Notes	APA, MLA, Chicago, etc. Style depends on discipline

Adapted from April Cunningham & Hal Hannon “Academic Reading Diagram”

Proposal: Reading research basics

A few weeks back you were presented with materials regarding the Introduction and Literature Review  for your proposal.  The materials here build on those explanations.  Here you will learn about the appropriate type of source/reference/publication to be used in the Introduction and Literature Review.  These sources/publications are called  scholarly research articles.  Scholarly research articles vary from other types of publications by being more formal (serious); usually written by experts in the field or professors for exports in the field; and have the following sectons/elements: 1) introduction/background, 2) literature review, 3) hypotheses, 4) desing/methods, 5) findings/results, 6) conclusion/discussion/limitations, and 7) references. 

Here you are provided with 2 articles for you to compare, one is an online publcation written for a general audience (Eharmony) and the other is a scholarly research article published in scholarly journal.  Note the following:

1) how different these articles are from one another although they are both on the topic of love/dating and both are written by people with Ph.Ds.   

2) in the Eharmony article the author presents his views and advise about dating in a chatty manner. However, in the  Meston et al article they formally present the research topic/question, why this is an important topic,  what other researchers have found on this topic,  how the data was collected to answer the question, what the analysis showed in response to the questions, the expert discussion of what was found.  The scholarly article formally presents not only discussion on a topic, but a detailed description of the process used to collect the information that is being presented.  Since the purpose of research is to enhance our understanding about a topic, the details provided in the scholarly research paper allow for other researchers to "check" on how good the research that is making certain claims was, and it also allows for a different researcher to follow the same definition, steps/procedures to see if they also find similar findings.  

Just in case you have not yet noticed:  By the time you finish next semester YOU will have written a scholarly research paper.  This semester you will write the introduction/literature review, hypotheses, design/methods, and reference sections; and in Spring you will write the findings/results, conclusion and limitations sections. Therefore, it makes sense for you to understand the "purpose" of each section in the scholarly research paper.  Think about the purpose of each of the sections when you read the Meston et al article.

 The Process of ResearchTop of FormBottom of Form

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Chapter 2

Human tendencies to look out for when conducting research.

In social science research you will usually have humans studying other humans or social matters.  Since researchers are human it means that there is always the risk of them introducing bias (prejudice in favor or against) in the process of collecting the data, or the way they interpret and reach conclusions using the data. Researcher bias is to be avoided as much as possible if we truly want to find out about the topic being studied. In addition to the researcher striving to avoid bias or influences mentioned in your text, they must also be aware of the following   errors in personal inquiry  that will impact the data they collect and the conclusions they will reach.

 

Proposal Introduction/Literature Search Basics

The first main section of your proposal and research paper will be the  Introduction.   In the Introduction you discuss the following areas:

1.  topic of your research (inform the reader what this proposal study is about) 

In the first paragraph of the Introduction you could add a sentence such as:  "The topic of this study is..."

2.  explain why is this topic important to research (inform the reader why this topic is worthy of study, what are possible benefits)

Following that statement on what you are researching, you should provide an explanation on why this research should be done according to you.  Perhaps a sentence that starts: "This study is important because..."

3.  what have other researchers already found when they studied this same topic (this is called the literature review)?

A summary and discussion of studies that have already be done on your topic needs to be provided so the reader of your proposal/paper gets some basic information on your topic before you present what your proposed analysis and findings are.  (This semester you will be PROPOSING to conduct analysis on a topic of your choice and next semester you willl be DOING the analysis you proposed on this topic).

The PowerPoint in this section introduces you to the process of doing the library research and writing about other studies already done on your topic (literature review).  Note that you still have to select your topic and that you will be asked to seek 5 research articles on your topic BEFORE you write the literature review section.  The topic selection and 5 library article search will be happening in the coming weeks.  This PowerPoint is just to begin to give you the basic understanding of the literature review.

Writing the Hypotheses (worksheet included)

A hypothesis is a statement usually derived from a theory that makes a prediction. There are several types of hypotheses.

Difference and Association Hypotheses

Some hypotheses predict that two groups are different or that the exposure to something causes change. These are called hypotheses of difference. Here is an example.

The threat of mandatory arrest deters potential domestic abusers from engaging in domestic violence.

This hypothesis predicts that potential domestic abusers will change their behavior (e.g. decide not to abuse their spouses) when they believe they will be arrested for doing so. Furthermore, this hypothesis proposes that domestic abusers will not be deterred without the threat of an arrest.

Some hypotheses predict that things are associated, that is, they happen together. These are called hypotheses of association. Here is an example.

The adoption of a mandatory arrest policy for domestic abusers is associated with a reduction of domestic violence incidents in a community.

The distinction between hypotheses of difference and hypotheses of association is most critical during the analysis phase of the research process. The type of hypothesis and the level at which the data are measured determine the statistical techniques that are available to the researcher.

Null and Alternative Hypotheses

Hypotheses come in pairs. Research is intended to gather and analyze information or data in order to support or falsify a hypothesis. These hypotheses can either predict a difference or establish an association. The hypothesis the researcher wants to prove is normally referred to as the alternative hypothesis, but may also be referred to as the research hypothesis.

The null hypothesis is a statement of no difference or association. The structure of research requires the researcher to develop a null hypothesis for each alternative hypothesis. Here is an example.

The Null Hypothesis (Ho:)

The threat of mandatory arrest does not influence potential domestic abusers from engaging in domestic violence.

The Alternative Hypothesis (Ha:)

The threat of mandatory arrest deters potential domestic abusers from engaging in domestic violence.

Notice that in the previous example the null hypothesis is not the opposite of the alternative hypothesis. For the null hypothesis to be the opposite it would have to state that the threat of mandatory arrest encourages domestic abusers to engage in domestic violence. Instead, the null hypothesis merely states that the threat of mandatory arrest does not influence potential domestic abusers in any way.

The Researcher’s Decision

The focus of every research project is initially on the null hypothesis. After gathering and analyzing the information or data the researcher must answer the following question.

Does the information or data I collected and analyzed support the null hypothesis?

If the answer to this question is yes the researcher accepts the null hypothesis and rejects the alternative hypothesis. In other words, the researcher failed to prove his original alternative hypothesis. This, however, should not be considered a failure. Instead the researcher has contributed to the literature and now should be challenged to revise his alternative hypothesis and begin a new research project.

If the answer to this question is no the researcher rejects the null hypothesis as false and accepts the alternative hypothesis. In other words, the researcher proved his original alternative hypothesis.

Hypothesis Worksheet

Let’s write the alternative and null hypotheses for your research project using the following example.

Ha: The threat of mandatory arrest deters potential domestic abusers from engaging in domestic violence.

Ho: The threat of mandatory arrest does not affect a potential domestic abuser from engaging in domestic violence.

These hypotheses, like all hypotheses, have at least two variables, one dependent (the effect) and one independent (the cause). In our example;

· The independent variable (or cause of the dependent variable) is: The threat of mandatory arrest.

· The dependent variable (or the result of the independent variable) is: Engaging in domestic violence.

Follow these steps to help you write your alternative and null hypotheses.

1. Write your research question in the following blank.

2. Write the independent and dependent variables in your research question in the following spaces. You may have more than one independent variable, but for now use only one.

Independent variable

Dependent variable

Our example hypothesis, again like all hypotheses, has an action word or phrase. This word or phrase describes the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. In our example;

The action word/phrase is: Deters.

3. Write the action word or phrase for your research question in the following blank. Be specific about how you think the independent variable will affect (i.e. change or be associated with) the dependent variable. You might try using synonyms or similar phrases.

4. Now, in the blank below write the three elements of your alternative hypothesis (the independent variable, the action word/phrase, and the dependent variable) into a single predictive sentence.

5. This alternative hypothesis is (select one)

· A hypothesis of difference

· A hypothesis of association

6. Write your null hypothesis in the following blank. Be sure your null hypothesis is a statement of no difference or association.

Repeat this process if your research has more than one hypothesis.