The selection of a research design is guided by the study’s purpose and research questions and hypotheses, and the design then links the research questions and hypotheses to the data that will be collected. You should keep in mind, however, that the research process is interactive, not necessarily proceeding in a linear fashion from one component to the next. Rather, the writing of research questions could, for example, necessitate adjustments to the study’s purpose statement. Nevertheless, when presented together, the various components of a research study should align. As you learned last week, alignment means that a research study possesses clear and logical connections among all of its various components.
In addition to considering alignment, when researchers select a research design, they must also consider the ethical implications of their choice, including, for example, what their design selection means for participant recruitment, procedures, and privacy.
For this Discussion, you will evaluate quantitative research questions and hypotheses in assigned journal articles in your discipline and consider the alignment of theory, problem, purpose, research questions and hypotheses, and design. You will also identify the type of quantitative research design the authors used and explain how it was implemented. You will also complete online training in the protection of human research participants.
With these thoughts in mind, refer to the Journal Articles handout for your assigned articles for this Discussion. If your last name starts with A through I, use Article A. If your last name starts with J through R, use Article B. If your last name starts with S through Z, use Article C.
Post or write a critique of the research study in which you:
- Evaluate the research questions and hypotheses using the Research Questions and Hypotheses Checklist as a guide
- Identify the type of quantitative research design used and explain how the researchers implemented the design
- Analyze alignment among the theory, problem, purpose, research questions and hypotheses, and design
Be sure to support your Main Issue Post and Response Post with reference to the week’s Learning Resources and other scholarly evidence in APA Style.
READINGS
- Course Text: Babbie, E. (2016). Basics of social research (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
- Chapter 5, “Conceptualization, Operationalization, and Measurement”
- Course Text: Burkholder, G. J., Cox, K. A., & Crawford, L. M. (2016). The scholar-practitioner’s guide to research design. Baltimore, MD: Laureate Publishing.
- Chapter 4, “Quantitative Research Designs”
- Handout: Journal Articles (Word Document)
For the Discussion, download this handout, refer to the assigned journal articles for your program, and find these articles in the Walden Library.
- Handout: Research Questions and Hypotheses Checklist (PDF)
- Online Training: National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Extramural Research. (2008). Protecting human research participants [Online training course]. Retrieved fromhttp://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php
MEDIA
- Laureate Education (Producer). (2015). Overview of quantitative research methods [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
- Laureate Education (Producer). (2009d). Quantitative methods: An example [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
