Nine Basic Methods of Research
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HISTORICAL
Purpose
To
reconstruct the past objectively and accurately, often in relation to the
tenability of an hypothesis.
Examples
A
study reconstructing practices in the teaching of spelling in the United States
during the past 50 years; tracing the history of civil rights in the United
States education since the civil war; testing the hypothesis that Francis Bacon
is the real author of the works of Shakespeare.
DESCRIPTIVE
Purpose
To
describe systematically a situation or area of interest factually and
accurately.
Examples
Public
opinion surveys, fact-finding surveys, job descriptions, surveys of the
literature, documentary analyses, anecdotal records, critical incident reports,
test score analyses, normative data, description of the type and age of
computers in rural schools.
Note
Policy
makers often rely on this type of research to inform their decisions.
DEVELOPMENTAL
Purpose
To
investigate the patterns and sequences of growth and/or change as a function of
time.
Examples
A
longitudinal growth study following an initial sample of 200 children from six
months of age to adulthood; a cross -sectional growth study investigating
changing patterns of intelligence by sampling groups of children at 10
different age levels; a trend study projecting the future growth and
educational needs of a community from past trends and recent building
estimates; Terman's studies of high IQ children.
CASE and FIELD
Purpose
To
study intensively the background, current status, and environmental
interactions of a given social unit: and individual, group, institution, or
community.
Examples
The
case history of a child with and above average IQ, but with severe learning
disabilities, an intensive study of a group of teenage youngsters on probation
for drug abuse; an intensive study of a gifted student who is having emotional
problems.
CORRELATIONAL
Purpose
To
investigate the extent to which variations in one factor correspond with
variations in one or more other factors based on correlation coefficients.
Examples
To
investigate relationships between reading achievement scores and one or more
the variables of interest; a factor-analytic study of several intelligence
tests; a study to predict success in college based on intercorrelation patterns
between college grades and select high school variables.
Keep in Mind
Correlation
does not equal causation
CAUSAL-COMPARATIVE or EX
POST FACTO
Purpose
To
investigate possible cause-and-effect relationships by observing some existing
consequences and searching back through the data for plausible causal factors.
Examples
To
identify factors related to the drop-out problem in a particular high school
using data from records over the past ten years; to investigate similarities
and differences between such groups as smokers and nonsmokers, readers and non
readers, or delinquents and nondelinquents, using available data.
TRUE EXPERIMENTAL
Purpose
To
investigate possible cause-and-effect relationships by exposing one or more
experimental groups to one or more treatment conditions and comparing the
results to one or more control groups not receiving the treatment (random
assignment being essential).
Examples
To
investigate the effectiveness of three methods of teaching reading to first
grade children using random assignments of children and teachers to groups and
methods; to investigate the effects of a specific tranquilizing drug on the
learning behavior of boys identified as hyperactive using random assignment to
groups receiving three different levels of the drug and two control groups with
and without a placebo, respectively; Solomon four-group design.
Note
Very
difficult to implement due to logistical and ethical problems.
QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL
Purpose
To
approximate the conditions of the true experiment in a setting which does not
allow the control and or manipulations of all relevant variables. The
researcher must clearly understand what compromises exist in the internal and
external validity of his design and proceed within these limitations.
Examples
Most
so-called field experiments, operational research, and even the more
sophisticated forms of action research which attempt to get at causal factors
in real life settings where only partial control is possible; e.g., an
investigation of the effectiveness of any method or treatment condition where
random assignment of subjects to met6hods or conditions is not possible.
ACTION
Purpose
To
develop new skills or new approaches and to solve problems with direct application
to the classroom or other applied setting.
Examples
An inservice training program to help teachers develop new skills in facilitating class discussions; to experiment with new approaches to teaching reading to bilingual children to develop more effective counseling techniques for underachievers.
Source: Issac, S. & Michael, W.B. (1981) Handbook
in Research and Evaluation. (Edits, San Diego)
