A500.7.3.RB_DiazBrian

This week I learned about quantitative research and its elements.  What is quantitative research?  Quantitative research is "research based on traditional scientific methods, which generates numerical data and usually seeks to establish casual relationships between two or more variables, using statistical methods to test the strength and significance of the relationships." Retrieved from http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O62-quantitativeresearch.html

 

“The information about a social phenomenon is expressed in numeric terms that can be analyzed by statistical methods.” wrote Mamia about the quantitative method.  I had to sit back for a minute and ask myself “Can I think of a social phenomenon that can be expressed in numerical terms and analyzed by statistics?”  It took me a moment but then I thought about Facebook (Twitter came to mind as well but Facebook came to me first).  Here is a social phenomenon that has not only captivated millions of people in the U.S. but has really made a global impact.  Certainly this could be an example of a social phenomenon that can be expressed numerically and analyzed by statistical methods.  My curiosity began to get the better of me so I used the Hunt Library in search of an article to corroborate my suspicion and I found How large companies react to negative Facebook comments.  “The study identifies official Facebook pages sponsored by the top ten companies (as defined by the Forbes 2000 for 2010) in four industry groups - banking, retailing, software and services, and household and personal products. The number of negative comments posted to these pages is calculated and corporate reactions to the comments analyzed. “

I remember years ago when I started to hear all the buzz about Facebook.  I didn’t quite get it.  At the time MySpace was pretty popular and I the interface was more appealing to me.  However as time went on I kept hearing more and more buzz about Facebook so I finally decided to give it a try.  Well looks like I’m not the only one who decided to give Facebook a go.  It now boasts upwards of up to a billion users (although it is very hard to determine the actual number because of fake accounts, and underage users).  I guess a quantitative study could theoretically be performed to verify the number of actual users on the website.  The scope of such a study I can imagine would be a challenging task given variable such as new daily members, members leaving, member inactivity, etc.

The quantitative method seemed to make more sense to me when I considered it in terms of the study performed by Dekay.  Research usually involves the elements of theoretical and empirical research as well.   Empirical research involves learning through direct or indirect observation.  Theoretical research studies problems relating to or based on theory. 

Quantitative research has strengths and weaknesses.  Some of the strengths are: it enables the research and description of social structures and processes that are not directly observable, tests hypothesis that are formed before data is collected, you can use statistical software to analyze data, useful for studying large groups.  Some of its weaknesses may include: the categories and theories used by the researcher might not might reflect the understanding of the study’s participants, the information gathered might be too abstract or general for application to specific groups, only applicable for measurable phenomena.

In order to conduct your research you have to have a plan.  First you will want to select a topic to research.  Once you have selected a topic you will want to learn what previous research on the same topic has been done before.  How was the study conducted?  Was there any reoccurring themes discovered?  Is there enough data?  Next you can select your theoretical approach.  Specify the research problem into questions that the research can answer.  Lastly plan the empirical research process or research design.  Research design is the structure of the research data.  How will it be organized?  What will be explored?  When studying large groups it may not be possible to obtain all of the observations.  When this occurs a “sample” of the population is studied.  Generalizations can be made from these samples.  To obtain data you can use face to face interviews, questionnaires, phone interviews, or systematic observation.  When collecting data you need informed consent, anonymity, you cannot harm the participants.  Without a plan where would you know where to begin?  How would you know what to expect or anticipate?  I like to consider myself a pretty good planner.  When my wife and I planned our honeymoon trip to San Francisco a few years ago, I was determined to learn as much about the city as possible.  I bought Fodor’s San Francisco 2011: with the Wine Country in anticipation of our trip.  I planned our trip from the moment we touched down until the very last day.  We visited Alcatraz, walked across the Golden Gate Bridge, and made our way to Sonoma for some amazing wine tastings.  I fell in love with San Francisco on this trip and we hope to return as soon as Caiden is old enough to travel well.  I enjoy learning about different cultures, experiencing new places, and building memories with my wife.  In order to have experienced all the amazing sights of San Francisco I needed to have a plan.

For example, say I wanted to explore why ERAU students would choose to shop at a Sam’s Club vs. a Costco.  I would research reliable sources to determine if there had been any similar previous studies completed.  I would conduct theoretical and empirical research.  I would devise a plan in order to collect data by developing a questionnaire and distributing it via email.  I would record and analyze the responses.  Once that was completed I would answer the empirical questions and conduct my theoretical interpretations of the results.  Those results would then be compared to earlier research so that I could make my conclusion.

        

Dekay, S. H. (2012). How large companies react to negative Facebook comments, 17, 3. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/10.1108/13563281211253539

                                                                                                                                                               

A500.6.3.RB_DiazBrian

Qualitative research can be defined as “Data-gathering techniques that are focused on the significance of observations made in a study rather than the raw numbers themselves.”  Retrieved from http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Qualitative+Research   Strauss and Corbin (1990) define qualitative research as “any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical procedures or other means of quantification.” (p.17).  How can qualitative research benefit me?  If I practice qualitative research will I have a better understanding of my question at issue?  To gain a better understanding I analyzed the journal article Choosing Qualitative Research: A Primer for Technology Researchers.

As I learned about qualitative research I couldn’t help but notice some similarities and parallels to critical thinking.  Qualitative research is made up of several elements and like critical thinking uses standards in the evaluation of its data.  Within the workplace (or natural setting) the researcher makes observations and interpretations in order to collect data for analyzation.  When we utilize critical thinking we make interpretations and use data as well in order to reason through an issue.  In my opinion qualitative research is critical thinking! 

 The role of the researcher in a qualitative inquiry is explored in our readings.  Who is performing the study?  What are their expectations?  In my role as an academic advisor I do not conduct qualitative research, however my Director does.  Our team uses the information she has collected and analyzed in an effort to perform our jobs more efficiently.  We have bi-monthly meetings where this information is shared and discussed.  For example, she recently conducted a qualitative study to evaluate student enrollment totals across all of the campuses for the 2012-2013 academic year.  She pulled enrollment data from each campus, compared it with the previous academic year, and presented the information to us.  The information gathered was analyzed in an effort to project our enrollment goals for the next academic year (broken down by terms) as well as to compare our individual success against the other campuses.  She categorizes the information and how the information impacts different areas of focus with our students.  For instance, once a student is admitted to the university we reach out to them in an effort to get them to matriculate, this is the first step.  Once matriculated the goal then becomes to offer continued support to the student.  This effort is performed to assist the student so that they continuously enroll term after term all the way through to graduation.  The data analysis collected assists my team with individual goals as well as future expectations of our performance.  

Qualitative research can be conducted through interviews, recording data, and through observations.  How will the data be collected?  How much data is needed?  What goal needs am I trying to accomplish by conducting this study?  As I’ve learned from my critical thinking I want to approach my research with questions.  Once I have asked myself some of these questions I can reflect on what it is I want to achieve.  I worked in the restaurant business FOREVER (almost 20 years, to me that is forever).  I started at about 16 or 17 as a dishwasher.  I worked my way up to cook and eventually became a server.  I even worked as a restaurant manager but I liked serving the most.  I made fast, easy money, had lots of flexibility, and got to meet pretty girls every day.  I did my job really well and was respected by my employers as reliable, hardworking, and honest.  I usually trained new hires and observed how they worked.  I would also supervise the wait staff as the manager’s “eyes and ears” on the floor.  When evaluating staff members I would passively observe how they interacted with the guests.  I would only intervene if a question was asked they did not know.  If a trainee approached a table, introduced themselves, and only asked “What would you like to drink?” I would offer some advice.  I would let them know that as a server your job is in sales.  It is your job to get guests to spend as much money as possible for the benefit of the restaurant, but also for the server.  The higher the bill, the higher the tip (in theory) generally.  So I would suggest to the new hire that next time they approached a table they suggestively sell an alcoholic beverage (by brand) such as a Heineken or maybe a Tanqueray and tonic.  Followed by a suggested appetizer.  This way instead of walking away with an order for only two waters you have a bill that is already $30.00.  In essence you have made $6.00 already by just saying hello and getting a drink order.  I guess I never knew it but I in was conducting qualitative research as a server.  I was interviewing guests, recording data, making observations of their needs, and analyzing all of this data in order to ensure a quality dining experience.  The product of this analysis increased the amount of money I made.  As I write this I am amused by the fact that the very practice that I am now consciously learning about, I was unconsciously performing for years!

I learned a great deal about human nature from my many years of interactions with people as a server.  I especially liked difficult guests because they challenged me to to persuade them to have a good experience.  If a hostess had a guest that was extremely difficult or demanding they would always say, “Give them to Diaz!”  I had a reputation for making people take a look at themselves and their actions and how those actions were not acceptable simply because you were at a restaurant for dinner.  I guess you could say that I enjoyed the job as sort of a sociological experiment.  My only regret in doing it for so long was that I did not go back to school earlier.  Who knows, instead of learning about qualitative research in my master’s program right now, I could be conducting qualitative research for my doctorate?  But it’s like the old saying, “You’re never too old to learn something new.”

Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.