Drafting Methods Section
Now that you have decided what you will do for your field research, it
is time to write the methods section to your revised research plan (this
will also be the methods section for your final paper, so it is
important that you write in past tense). As we have gone over in class,
you will present your methods in as much detail as possible. The goal is
for your research to be replicable--this means that another researcher
can easily repeat the steps of your research (remember the details from
the methodology sections of student papers that we deemed as more
successful). You should be able to describe and justify every step of
your research methodology. Explain what you did, what you asked, and
why.
Remember, these steps are flexible. You will likely need to make
adjustments based on what is necessary for your research area and
methodology. With that said, these steps are a great jumping off point
for writing an effective and detailed methodology section that is
replicable and viable for your final project.
Here are some steps to follow:
1. What type of study (interview, survey, observation/focus group) did
you conduct, and what was its purpose? {notice that this question along
with the others is in past tense, and I want your response to be in past
tense too- this will save you a load of time in the end because you
will not have to go back and make everything past tense}
Start with: I conducted a _______________ in order to __________________.
2.Where/with whom was your study conducted? Why did you pick this group?
Start with: I studied/observed/surveyed ______ # of people (adults/students) in __________ because ____________.
3.How did you chose your participants?
Example: My participants were chosen based on their willingness to
participate in my study and under the criteria that they had taken the
FCAT Writes exam and Composition I at UCF. I chose this criteria because
_______________.
4.What were you looking for in your study, or what types of questions did you ask your participants?
Start with: In my ___________ I asked questions regarding ____________. These questions were important because___________.
OR: I conducted a study that required my participants to ___________ because _____________.
5. Provide examples of your questions, and explain why these examples are important.
Start with: For example, I asked the question ______________ because
____________. Also, I asked ___________ because ____________.
6. If you asked additional questions or elaborated on any part of your
study, insert the phrase in parenthesis: (See Appendix A for a list of
all survey/interview/study questions).
7. What did you want to find out by conducting this study?
Start with: By conducting this study, I wanted to find out ____________________.
Example:
I conducted a survey in order to trace the factors that cause
Composition students to experience writer's block when writing their
papers for Composition class. I surveyed 60 Composition II students at
UCF who experience writer's block because these students had written
papers in Composition class and had experienced factors preventing them
from writing. My participants were chosen based on the criteria that
they had written papers for Composition class, and they claimed to
experience writer's block on a frequent basis.
In my survey, I asked questions regarding the students' writing habits
and fears about writing, in order to trace any similarities that may
cause writer's block for these students in their composition classes.
These questions were important because they allowed me to study both the
circumstances from which these students were being blocked from
writing, as well as the assignments that may have caused this anxiety.
For example, I asked the question, "What are you worried about before
you start writing your composition papers?" because I wanted to see the
fears students had in relation to writing. I also asked, "what types of
writing assignments do you find most stressful for you?" because I
wanted to see if similar assignments caused students to experience
writer's block within their composition courses (See Appendix A for a
list of all survey questions). By conducting this survey, I wanted to
explore the factors contributing to the writer's block experienced by
composition students, in order to see if and how these stresses can be
potentially addressed.
I conducted a content analysis, as well as a survey, in order to address the questions: what messages pertaining to gender stereotypes and sex roles are people being taught through Disney princess movies, and are theses messages consistent across generations? In order to answer these questions, I observed the 12 Disney princess titles and coded them for certain content. The survey portion of my study required me to question 12 women, four born in between 1929-1969, four between 1970-2005, and four born in between 2006-2011. These time frames were strategically chosen in order to match up with Disney’s three eras of princess films. My participants were chosen based on their willingness to participate in my study and under the criteria that they had viewed at least two movies from their targeted Disney Era.
ReplyDeleteIn my study, I viewed the 12 Disney princess movies in chronological order, and coded them based on feminine and masculine characteristics possessed by the films main female and male characters (See Appendix A for content analysis results and study questions). For the survey portion of the study, I asked questions regarding women’s understanding of the role Disney played in their gender socialization, their thoughts on the currents princesses, as well as what traits they believe the ideal princess should portray (See Appendix B for a list of all survey questions). These questions were important because they gave me some insight into what each generation thought their sex role is in society. For example, I asked the question “do you feel as though the Disney Princesses and Princes are too feminine/masculine respectively?” because I wanted to understand my participant’s views of these characters in comparison to the results the content analysis yielded. Also, I asked participants who their favorite princess was and for what reason because certain princesses defy gender stereotypes more than others, and I thought it was worth noting what made a princess favorable. By conducting this study, I wanted to find out if the messages transcribed in Disney films are consistent across generations, how the girls who grew up watching these films have been impacted by the movies, and if these women still felt the need to conform to Disney’s societal standards.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI conducted an interview in order to gather vital information regarding concussion management in formerly concussed football players. I interviewed two subjects because they both had played football at the professional level and they both were also diagnosed with concussions at some point during their career. My two participants were chosen based on meeting my criteria about being former football players who have been diagnosed with concussions. Both participants were also willing to participate in this study to help benefit my research.
ReplyDeleteIn my interviews, I asked questions regarding how their particular concussion incidents were handled during their games. I asked my participants these questions to get a better understanding of what truly happens on the sidelines when a player is concussed. For example, I asked my participants “Did you feel pressured by coaches, teammates, or medical staff members to either return to play or sit out for the remainder of the game?” I also asked “Are you aware of the neurological disease known as CTE, and if so are concerned whether or not you may potentially develop it?” These were just two examples out of many questions I asked my participants. This information was vital in helping me to better understand how concussions can be mishandled in the game of football. By conducting this study, I wanted to get concrete, real life examples of players who have been through exactly what I am researching. My interviews that were conducted helped me to better understand what happens to a concussed player during a game. Overall, by interviewing my two participants, I received two information filled interviews that helped show applicable examples of how concussions are handled in American football.
I conducted an interview with several players of the online game “Second Life” (SL) in order to effectively flesh out the ideas of their personal transformation via virtual reality. This study was conducted in online chat rooms of “Second Life” with 3 SL players because I wanted to be in a comfortable environment to chat. My participants were chosen based on the criteria that they have used the program for a year or longer, know the ins and outs of second life, and have projected some form of their identity out into the game. I chose this criteria because I wanted them to be experienced players who have had the potential to change over time. In my interviews I asked questions regarding identity and how it has been influenced by gaming in the virtual environment. These questions were important because they gave me insight into how an everyday gamer can potentially change overtime, due to their craft. For example, I asked the question “Are you more open to other things the more you play SL” because I wanted to establish that there is a potential change in their ideals due to the game. Also, I asked “How have you felt about your body image after playing second life for a year” because body image is another sense of identity, and if it has changed because of the game that they are playing it could mean that other identity traits have been affected as well. By conducting this study, I wanted to find out if virtual reality and gaming could change a person’s personal identity.
ReplyDeleteI conducted content analysis in order to address the question, how well do crime dramas represent the working women within the Criminal Justice Field. I analyzed three different television programs which were chosen based the following criteria:
ReplyDelete1.The program must be about the Criminal Justice field.
2.It must not follow one specific person rather, a group.
3.There must be more than one season available for viewing.
4.Each program cannot follow the same division (i.e. Narcotics, Homicide), and or, level (i.e. local, state, federal) as the previously selected programs.
Law and order: SVU, NCIS and Flashpoint all met the criteria listed above. Law and order: SVU is about the Special Victims Unit of a New York precinct, NCIS is a federal agency and Flashpoint follows a Canadian, what could be compared to in America as a, “SWAT” team.
Before I could analyze the TV programs, I had to compile a list of questions in order to later compare them to real life data. Questions were chosen based on the reading done in the previous section, “POLICEWOMAN: The ‘Leaking Pipeline’”. For example, the list included questions regarding the number of women in the show and how many lines they have, as well as how often women were doing the ‘feminine’ work compared to the ‘masculine’ work (See Appendix A for a list of all study questions). There were many other questions that explored the treatment of women in the Criminal Justice field however, I focused mainly on the previously listed questions because they revolve around the representation of women. Through this study I hoped to find if the life of a working women in the CJ field transfers accurately to the small screen.
I conducted a survey in order to see how tobacco advertising affects individuals based on their own beliefs as well as a content analysis of tobacco marketing spanning from the late 20th Century to Modern Day in order to see what methods were successful in attracting youth to try tobacco products.
ReplyDeleteThe survey was posted online through social media in order to survey all age groups, both students and non-students, for a large range of results as well as gather a general mean of the population in order to observe any patterns. I analyzed different methods through the internet and prior tobacco marketing reports. My survey was open to the general public, but I aimed to gather data from both smokers and non-smokers to compare their results. I did this because I wanted to see what drove one individual toward tobacco while the other strayed away. The articles were chosen based on their content containing sales reports, details on marketing campaigns, and recorded results from the campaign. The survey required individuals to answer questions about smoking and their beliefs. For example, I asked if they believe smoking is a appropriate in social scenes. Also, I asked if they have ever been tempted to experiment with tobacco and what caused this if answered yes. In my analysis I looked for changes of design or thought in tobacco marketing and whether it caused an effect in the consumer base. By conducting this survey, I wanted to find out to what effect doe tobacco have on one’s life whether they smoke or not. This was important because it can be used to create a timeline to show the evolution of tobacco marketing and whether old techniques were brought back to attract new customers.
ReplyDeleteI conducted a survey/focus group in order to identify which types of animal rights campaigns are most compelling to make others want to put an end to animal testing themselves. I surveyed five random University of Central Florida students. My participants were chosen based on a post on the UCF Facebook page in which they volunteered to take part in my research and were chosen at random draw. I chose to select them at random in order to prevent any biased opinions on the subject matter so that the data would accurately represent a wide variety of people.
In my survey/focus group, I asked questions regarding the ways in which the campaigns effected the participants. These questions were important because it laid out the most effective and persuasive techniques to convince others to take notice of animal testing in the environment, For example, I asked the question “which of the following campaigns you just viewed had the most effect on you and why?” because it got straight to the point of the survey. Also, I asked “Did any of the campaigns that you just viewed change your view on animal testing?” (See Appendix A for a list of all survey questions.) By conducting this study, I wanted to find out which campaign approaches effected the viewers most dramatically. By doing so, they might convince the viewers to take action against animal testing and joining the movement to put an end to it for good.
I conducted a study in order to see how women feel about the objectification and misinterpretation of women in comics. I studied and surveyed 15 college women who were willing to participate. I chose these participants because by the time women are in college they will have probably been exposed to seeing other women being objectified thorough various media (e.g. magazines, television etc.) and will have already formulated an opinion on the way women are seen though this media. I would like to expose them, if they have not been already, to this problem within comic media, and I would like to see where they stand on this issue and if we can overcome it.
ReplyDeleteThis study required my participants to pose as superheroes on covers of various comics because I wanted to show them the different ways woman are being portrayed through comics. In my study I asked questions regarding the nature of these portrayals and how they affect the audience. These questions were important because comic-book industries seem to adhere to popular opinion, so if the consumer population becomes aware of such issues and we are able to talk about it, then then comic book industries may reflect these concerns and can begin to create more diverse comic books that accurately represent women. For example, I asked the questions like “How do you feel about a cover like this being sold?”, “What type of audience do you think the authors were catering to?”, “How do you think girls who are seeing comics like this on shelves feel about it? Do you think they would buy it?” because I would like to see if others view this as an issue and discuss the reasons. (See Appendix A for a list of all survey questions). By conducting this study, I wanted to find out if women view portrayals of females in comic book media as a problem and if they are unfamiliar with comic books I would like to educate them on how this is an issue.
I conducted textual analysis using an observation/focus group in order to address the question: to what extent did Major League Baseball benefit from the steroid era? I analyzed three different groups and these groups were split up according to time eras. The first group is titled “Pre Steroid Era” and this group looked at the years 1980-1994. The second group is titled “Steroid Era” and this group looked at the years 1995-2004. And the last group is titled “Post Steroid Era” and this group looked at the years 2006-2015. The reason why I decided to look at more years in the pre steroid era group is because of the strike, which caused two shortened seasons during this time era.
ReplyDeleteI decided to split the groups into these three time eras because I figured it would cover a lot of baseball’s history. In each group I looked at many different statistics such as: homeruns, strikeouts, RBIS’s, batting average, wins, revenue, TV ratings etc. I decided to look at these specific statistics because I think that an increase in performance enhancing drugs would affect these statistics. I used the pre steroid era and post steroid era as control groups and used the steroid era as the focus group. I compared the statistics from all three groups in each specific category. The overall objective of this study was to see if there was an increase in the statistics during the steroid era.
I conducted a textual analysis, in order to look at the different sources in the media and to see how the topic of the Deaf community is represented. I studied different media sources from news articles, to new Broadway show productions. The sources also included popular t.v. shows, Deaf restaurant, and popular videos that are being seen everyday. I decided to use these methods because it gives me an expanded look on the subject of the Deaf community and it's acceptance. I can take a look at the way the Deaf community has made it’s way into everyday society. My sources were chosen based on the question that I am researching, To what extent is the Deaf community being recognized throughout society in jobs and socially. The sources I chose were one's that I came across on Facebook or YouTube, I chose these because I wanted to see the reactions they would get from watching those videos, whether they are a part of the Deaf community or someone unknowing of that particular community. In my textual analysis I was looking for sources that related to the social aspect of the Deaf community throughout society, socially and through work settings. If there were was a particular conversation that stemmed form the subject. For example the criteria that I used to decide for my study was: Did the media/videos create a conversation among deaf and hearing communities; How did these sources capture the essence of the Deaf community; Do these sources show how the hearing people react to the Deaf community. By conducting this study, I wanted to find out what challenges the Deaf community face while interacting in the hearing community. Whether they are recognized socially and throughout jobs, expanding the knowledge that deaf people can do anything but hear.
ReplyDeleteMichael Moore
ReplyDeleteI conducted a survey in order to analyze the true effects of balancing a part-time job and school. There are plenty of known effects such as additional stress or lack of study time. The purpose of the survey was to see which effects are more likely to happen by asking students to weigh them based on the frequency they feel it happens to them. I made the survey public to UCF and FSU students and randomly chose 100 from the submitted surveys. Of the 100 I chose 50 that had a job, and 50 that did not, that way I had a control group. I used students because they meet my criteria of someone who is enrolled in school and may or may not have apart-time job.
The survey contained a list of effects (See appendix A for full list) and asked the students to weigh them from one to five, Five being the most likely to happen, one being vice versa. An example of these effects would be, How often does the balance of school and work cause you to miss assignment deadlines? Then the students was asked to rate that 1-5. By conducting this survey i wanted to find out which effects that students may be prone to by balancing school and work are more likely to happen. This will provide evidence of which effects are truly from that balance and are not effected by other personal issues, such as a student who is just generally irresponsible.
I conducted a few interviews in order to find the reason for baseball’s decline in popularity. I interviewed four people, two older baseball fans and two younger kids who were not baseball fans. I interviewed the older guys to hear about baseball’s popularity in the past and to hear their opinion of why they think baseball’s popularity is declining. I figured that these two people have seen the game at its peak and at its current stage and they would be able to tell me the difference in the game in both eras. I interviewed the two younger people to find out why they are not a fan of baseball and why they prefer other sports instead. With other sports increasing in popularity, I figured baseball needs to be doing something different than these sports and I thought these kids might know why. Also, interviewing both younger and older people might allow me to see a difference in mentalities between people in the past and people now. This allows me to see if a difference in the mentality of Americans may have caused baseball’s decrease in popularity.
ReplyDeleteI created a survey that contained questions directed at 10 current and former coaches from all levels of both football and basketball. The goal of this survey was to examine the coaches’ opinion on what factors play into a coaches firing and to see how they felt about job security in the realm of coaching. The participants were selected based on if they coached basketball or football and their willingness to be involved in my research.
ReplyDeleteIn my research I asked questions dealing with what factors did the coaches I studied think played into a coaches’ premature dismissal. Also asked questions geared to what the coaches studied felt about the current job security of coaches at both the college and professional level These questions were important because they provided me with new data that I can compare and contrast with my gathered sources. It was also beneficial on seeing the coaches’ perspective on the premature firing issue and what they thought about their job security. By conducting this research, I wanted to be able to gather data from the coaches themselves because there is not any research that examine the coaches’ perspective on the issue at hand. By doing this, I am exploring the issue of premature firings of coaches from a different angle then other studies done in the past.
I conducted an interview in order to gather information on the barriers first-generation students face during their college career. In order to achieve the maximum quality of answers, I interviewed 24 students from the University of Central Florida, who agreed to answer to the questions such as “ Are there any exterior factors outside of school that may jeopardize your education and the goal of graduation?” with a number ranging from 1(very low)- 5(very high). (See Appendix A for a list of all interview questions) Questions like this will help me understand the problems outside of the general college “struggles” everyone faces such as homework, test, etc. My participants were chosen on the first main priority, which is being the first in their family to attend college. I decided to interview twelve males, and twelve females to keep it as fair as possible. After the interview I compared information and analyzed it further to tie it with my study. Asking a question like “Are you afraid of being another statistic” helped me figure out the fear and pressure many first-generation students feel burdened on. By conducting this study, I wanted to found the many struggles and burden many first-generation faces on day-to-day bases.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI conducted an observations over long periods of time, this was in order to see exactly what are the effects of the research pertaining to how distractions effect the driver, when being applied by the government via new legislation, and what kind of effects that had. But also from the media, and how they used the data to notify their viewers and if the viewers changed their habits. Then interview people to see on a personal level if their habits change based on what is said by the media or by any laws that are passed.
ReplyDeleteI studied information from all groups of people all around the world and surveyed three people of various ages in Florida because it gives me view points from different genders and ages.
My participants were chosen because of their willingness to participate in my study and they are all licensed to drive.
In my survey I asked question regarding habits while driving, and how external forces effect their driving. These questions were important because it will show if they are impacted by the media or laws that have been put in place.
How often do you use your mobile device while you drive? To determine if they use their phone while driving and if so how much.
How many times have you been involved in an accident? To see if accidents can correlate with phone usage.
For example, if someone is fatally wounded in a car crash and you hear about it, is your driving affected? See how the media can effect the participants driving.
Would you consider your self a law abiding driver? To determine if laws effect someone's driving.
7. By conducting this study I wanted to find out if actions by the media or the government can reduce cell phone usage of people driving.
I created a survey in order to determine how satisfied college students are with their romantic relationships. I am looking at individuals in college because not much research has focused on college students, even though there are many individuals who are long- distance on a campus. I will be surveying individuals in long- distance relationships and geographically close relationships. The purpose of this survey is to compare the satisfaction levels of individuals in long- distance relationships to those in geographically close relationships by asking each participant how they feel about their relationship and how happy they are. My study also serves the purpose of determining unique benefits individuals feel they gain from their long- distance relationship. The satisfaction will be determined by scale- based questions while the benefits will be determined by free response questions. I made the survey public to students at UCF and chose the first 100 responses. Of the 100, I chose 50 that were in long- distance relationships and 50 that were in geographically close relationships. After collecting the results from my survey, I interviewed 15 people from each relationship type to get a more detailed description on their thoughts on their relationship and why they feel the way they do. The overall objective of this study was to determine how satisfied individuals in long- distance relationships are and if there are any benefits unique to this type of relationship.
ReplyDeleteI conducted a survey to obtain information on the short term and long term effects of concussions for former football players. I questioned 4 different people 1 who played in the NFL for 4 years and the other 3 having played in college. All of these individuals are former high school football coaches of mine. In my survey I asked a number of questions about how they felt physically and, mentally during and after the concussion and if they have had any long lasting effects due to the concussion. From this survey I hoped to attain information that supported my theory that the individuals would have had severe effects immediately due to the concussion but would not have long lasting effects.
ReplyDeleteI conducted a semi survey/interview process in order to find out how changing the framing of a question affects a person’s response. I studied 20 students at University of Central Florida who are non-psychology majors. Along with the 20 students I surveyed, I also created an online poll for my survey and go responses of about 30 people from there. I chose non-psychology majors because the study I am conducting correlate with famous psychological study of language and memory and therefore psychological students had a chance of skewing the data. The 20 students I interviewed one on one was my control group. The thirty responses I got from the online poll are on my non-control group since there is slight chances of students skewing the data by lying that they are not psychology majors. I chose my 20 interviewed participants by going to business and engineering buildings at University of Central Florida and asked them if they would like to take part on a quick survey. While describing the interview process I debriefed them about the process and mentioned that the purpose of the study is to raise carefulness among young drivers. The questions I asked after showing the individuals same sets of car accidents videos, that if they have seen the man pointing the gun at the little children (but on the actual video it is the little child pointing the gun at the man). This is important in order to see if my twisted description of man pointing the gun has any effect on their memory, for example, if they go with the flow of believing it was the man pointing the gun at the little children or if they argue that it was the other way around. From this study I found out that twisted the description did reconstruct the participants memory in believing that it was the man holding the gun and pointing it at the children.
ReplyDeleteI conducted a survey/interview in order to gather information regarding their personal responses from my questionnaire. I would ask questions to students of all kinds of majors I studied around 5 to 10 students and adults because it gives me a perspective coming from an older generation and as well as a newer generation. My participants were chosen based on their willingness to participate in my interview and were also chosen based on that they have understood the information of the survey and will be able to give thoughtful answers. I chose these criteria because it’s quite simple and the main priority of the survey is to just answer the questions. In my interview, I asked questions regarding success and motivation. These questions were important because they will allow me to gather data from other people and use it as a resource for my research. I asked the questions, what is your definition of success, what motivates you throughout the day, can you be successful without motivation, can you be motivated without success, and do you believe that you are successful now because these types of questions able to be easily answered but also have to be thoughtful considering it’s another person’s beliefs in what certain things mean to them. By conducting this study, I wanted to find out what other people thought of what these topics meant to them and it is also interesting to understand people’s thought process when it comes to important paradigms such as these.
ReplyDeleteI conducted an interview of 6 couples in order to more closely examine the intensity in which social media and other digital outlets have affected romantic relationships. I interviewed 12 people in relationships of people of generation Y, because they are the most active and involved within our digital revolution. My participants were chosen based on their willingness to participate in my study and under the criteria that they are in relationships either just beginning, long term, and already ended by being either extremely involved or rarely involved in the social outlets we now have. I chose this criteria because affects the vast majority of our generation and how our romantic relationships develop in either healthy or unhealthy ways.
ReplyDeleteIn my interviews I asked questions regarding how frequently there was tension about something relating to their cellphones and if they had ever faced infidelity issues via social media. These questions were important because each couple will have different guidelines in what they consider loyal and not loyal. I conducted a study that required my participants to think thoroughly about different social media situations, because many couples don’t realize the problems social media is causing to their relationships. I asked the question, "If you partner left their laptop at your house, would you go through their messages while they aren’t there. Why or why not?”, because many couples have different boundaries which makes each situation different. Also, I asked "If you saw your partner snap chatting a female, what would you think of the situation?” , because different couples have different levels of trust. By conducting this study, I wanted to find out if new technologies really did bring new complications into romantic relationships, or if trust would waver in certain couples no matter what level of social freedom online.
I conducted a survey in order to demonstrate that the general population has a deficit of knowledge about nature vs nurture. I surveyed 74 individuals from different groups. I surveyed 33 random students at UCF, 22 online participants, and 19 family members or friends. I chose my participants simply by willingness to participate.
ReplyDeleteIn my survey, I listed statements that I believe most people should be able to identify as either true or false. These true/false questions were intended to be difficult, but I kept them very simple and straightforward. For example, one statement I included was “If a child’s parents have a relatively low IQ, the child will also have a low IQ score.” This was a statement that I believed most people would claim to be true, when in reality, there is no evidence that a direct genetic link between a parent’s IQ and their offspring’s intelligence exists. I also included the statement “Most modern researchers today are still trying to prove that either nature or nurture is more important to development.” I expected the participants to mark this statement as true, but it is also false. Most modern researchers are currently working on ways to utilize nature vs nurture research or explain the intricate connection between the two rather than trying to prove that one or the other is more important. See Appendix A for a list of all survey/interview/study questions.
By conducting this study, I wanted to find out what people really knew about the nature vs nurture debate and its importance and uses in the modern world. This study was designed to demonstrate a deficit of knowledge, and the questions posed reflect that.