Research Methods

• Credit value: 15 credits at Level 7
• Convenor: Kevin Teoh
• Tutors: Kevin Teoh, Kate Mackenzie Davey, Professor Almuth McDowall, Rebecca Whiting
• Assessment: a 1500-word quantitative research proposal (50%) and 1500-word qualitative research proposal (50%)

This module covers key issues in organisational research that apply to both academic and applied contexts. Three main areas are covered, including (a) foundations of research, including ethics, epistemology, ontology, theories, reliability, validity, databases, literature searches, writing research questions and hypotheses, avoiding plagiarism, and practical issues when engaging with a research project; (b) qualitative methods, including assumptions, paradigms, reflexivity, value and credibility, data gathering and analytic techniques, interviews, thematic analysis, collecting and analysing digital data, discourse analysis, and visual approaches; and (c) quantitative methods, including item and scale analysis, an introduction to generalisability theory, multiple regression, factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.

We also host an online, self-study statistics bridging course for students who require extra support on statistics, or those who would like a refresher. This bridging course is entirely optional and is not assessed.

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• formulate sound research questions and/or hypotheses
• demonstrate awareness of ethical issues involved in your research project
• demonstrate a familiarity with research process (e.g. recruiting participants, designing research materials, analysing data)
• critically evaluate empirical studies from a methodological perspective
• demonstrate an approach to examining research questions or hypotheses by following robust qualitative or quantitative methods
• understand the pros and cons of using different methodological approaches.