Abstract
The paper presents a research methodology for a project on deferred benefits.

From the Paper
"At issue herein is the development of a research methodology for exploring employee attitudes toward a deferred benefit or deferred pay plan, described by Brandon and Smith as plans allowing employees to reduce taxes by deferring the receipt of compensation or bonuses to a later date. These plans were described by Finerty as popular because they allow employees to defer taxes until later in life when they may be in lower tax brackets."

Tags:research methodology, surveys, deferred compensation

Abstract
The paper outlines the methodology for a study that aims to understand how resource officers in suburban middle schools identify their duties and also aims to gather their recommendations on ways to make the learning environment in suburban middle schools safer. The paper explains the benefits of using the case study methodology, and specifically, the multi-site case study methodology.

From the Paper
"The ability of using multiple sources of evidence is often cited as one of the key strengths of the case study methodology. This strength of the case study methodology "allows one to 'triangulate' the data, or arrive at converging sources of information" (Stake, 1999, p. 219) According to Tellis (1997), "the need for triangulation arises from the ethical need to confirm the validity of the processes." Moreover, according to Yin (as cited in Tellis, 1997), the case study methodology can be able to satisfy "the three tenets of the qualitative method: describing, understanding, and explaining".
"Stake (1999, p. 8) said that "the real business of case study is particularization, not generalization." A particular case is fully examined and understood for what it is and how it operates. Its uniqueness is emphasized. However, the case study methodology does not delve into how a case is similar or different from other cases. Understanding the case itself is the primary emphasis of the case study methodology. In this light, the research studies using the case study methodology is not sampling research as a case is studied primarily to understand the one case and not to understand other cases (Stake, 1999).
"The six sources of evidence in case studies, which have been identified by Stake and Yin (as cited in Tellis, 1997), are documents, archival records, interviews, direct observation, participant-observation, and physical artifacts."

Tags:interviews, observation, data

Abstract
This paper discusses the importance of using the correct and appropriate research methodology. It explains that a qualitative or quantitative analysis is often the perfect fit for a given research topic, but knowing the difference in the methodologies is required, as well as when they should be use separately or in combination with each other or another research methodology. To this end, the paper provides a critical evaluation of the merits and shortcomings of qualitative and quantitative research techniques and procedures, followed by a summary of the research and salient findings in the conclusion.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Review and Discussion
Qualitative Research
Quantitative Research
Discussion
Conclusion
References

From the Paper
"This lengthy history of controversy has added some fuel to the current fires over which research technique is superior and why, especially during a period in history where so much information has now become available for analysis that was not possible even a few years ago. According to Goodson and Phillimore (2004), "Researchers are beginning to consider important issues concerning the nature of research and knowledge, the role of researchers, the ways in which research questions are determined and the ways in which data are interpreted" (p. 42). Much of this attention has been directed to the application of qualitative techniques in social research settings. "Increasingly," Crowley advises, "courses in educational research, conferences, and professional associations focus on the use of qualitative methods, and a plethora of textbooks, journal articles, and research monographs have been published in recent years" (1994, p. 55)."

Tags:qualitative, quantitative, technique, design

Abstract
This paper explains that the type of data outcome needed for a specific case is most important in selecting whether the research methodology should be either qualitative or quantitative. Next, the author reviews the requirements of the case study and a variety of potential research frameworks. The paper concludes that, in this case that measures the contextualized responsibilities and experiences of resource officers, observational research is the ideal research methodology to gather the necessary humanistic-type, rather than experimental-type, data.

From the Paper
"In participant observation, which more closely parallels our approach, researchers will take an active role in the course of experimental events. Chiefly, here the researcher will interact with subjects in order to yield desired information. Here though, there is somewhat of a defining grey area. Another alternative form which can help to truly insert the researcher into the context of the school is ethnography. In the case of ethnography, likely the most apt example of research participant observation, the researcher is quite evidently an actor within the world of an experiment."

Tags:context, numerical scales, validity, constructive empathy, field-research

Abstract
This paper examines how social research most often begins with a need to answer or understand a question or phenomena regarding human interactions and tendencies and how for the most part this research is conducted in various forms of surveys applied to a section or group to be studied. It looks at how the methodology by which these surveys are conducted can also vary greatly across several variables, the particular information needed and how, while for the most part these surveys are conducted under the strict conditions of scientific inquiry and generally yield useful information, there are some areas that need to be specifically monitored in order not to skew the results of the research. This paper analyzes the pros and cons of this methodology.

From the Paper
"Surveys help the social researcher to organize data into meaningful components that can assist in understanding the human condition on many levels. By necessity surveys are tools of generalizations and the researcher will form certain ideas or see certain patterns in the result of these assumptions created by the data. In a sense it is a shorthand method of gaining information from a subset of the entire group studied. You could not realistically survey the entire population of the United States, but you could take a sampling of data across the region. There are however several shortfalls in this particular methodology. "

Tags:sample, information, tools

Abstract
This study attempts to discern whether a qualitative or quantitative approach to research methodology is appropriate for examining PALS. PALS measures young children's knowledge of important literacy fundamentals, including phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge, knowledge of letter sounds, spelling concept of word, word recognition in isolation, and oral passage reading.

Outline
Literature Review: Introduction to Research Methodology
History of Qualitative-Quantitative Research
Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research
Education and Literacy
Quantitative Methods
Research in Education
Analysis
Conclusions

From the Paper
"In fact, there are many that might argue that a quantitative approach is preferable to a qualitative approach in all situations regardless of the phenomena being studied (Myburgh, Poggenpoel & Van Der Linde, 2001) because it lends itself to less 'subjective analysis.' However further exploration into the matter suggests that qualitative analysis is not subjective in nature and may in fact be the preferred method for research analysis into complex behavioral issues, particularly when the researcher is attempting to determine patterns in behavior and conduct (Myburgh, et. al, 2001).
That there is a great deal of 'opinion' surrounding the issue of both qualitative and quantitative research methodology cannot be argued. Thus research will be examined from both perspectives, qualitative and quantitative, in order to ascertain which methodology is best suited to provide detailed analysis of the PALS program, and in order to determine which methodology should be adopted by the researcher to provide adequate insight into the given phenomena that the researcher is attempting to explore. No conclusions will be made with regard to the legitimacy of either research approach until the final portion of this analysis, where a determination will be made as to whether a qualitative or quantitative approach is more appropriate in this particularly setting."

Tags:qualitative, quantitative, literacy

Abstract
This paper describes how one would go about researching and preparing a research project. The project compares and contrast the effectiveness of person-centered therapy vs. that using a spiritual/Christian approach to counseling. Each section of a dissertation is described relative to the approach that could be taken. Inclusive in the study question and optional hypotheses, literature review, methodology, results, discussion and conclusion.

From the Paper
"There are numerous ways of researching a topic. This paper describes a combined research approach utilizing a literature review and meta analysis combined with a research project. The first step is to find a proper topic. It is generally recommended that a topic be specific enough to target the relevant question asked (see below) yet broad enough to allow for a sufficient volume of current research on the topic. The issue of topic controversially is a personal issue. In this case assessing the effects of a person centered approach vs. a Christian/spiritual approach to therapy has been selected. Second, within the topic, a question must be asked and a hypothesis developed to test the question (although at times one comes up with a hypothesis first, then states the question and then derives a topic, such as in the case of stating your hypothesis is that ..."

Tags:spiritual, person, centered, effectivity

Abstract
This paper related that Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of "The Harmless People" (1989), and Tim O'Meara, author of "Samoan Planters: Tradition and Economic Development in Polynesia" (1990), used simple anthropological research methodology to study the influence of external forces like globalization and development on primitive civilizations, such as the Kalahari Desert Bushmen and the Samoan planters. The author points out that both anthropologists situated themselves in the community being studied. O'Meara mixed with the local Samoan farmers to learn how they behave and interact, whereas, Thomas relied only on her observations of the Bushmen. The paper relates that O'Meara's method, limited by his research question, focused on developmental stages rather than on how people evolved; on the other hand, Thomas concentrated on the outcome of her subjects' ways of living.

From the Paper
"Taking each day at a time, he had been able to relate with the locals at a personal level. He encountered their personal life by mixing with the male members of society. For example, he learned why the male considered it illicit to meet with their sisters. The Samoan men were proud of their ability to deflower virgins but it was injurious to their family pride if their females were subjected to such conduct. O'Meara hence depended on mixing with the locals to learn how they behave and how they interact."

Tags:interaction, observation, simple, external, developmental

Abstract
This paper provides a basic overview of standard research methods used to demonstrate a familiarity with how, why and effectiveness in conducting dissertations. The author compares the differences between qualitative, quantitative and mixed research methodologies. The paper explores the effectiveness of these strategies by evaluating each as a method for measuring followership qualities in a medical facility.

From the Paper
"Identifying applicable research strategies at a level suitable for dissertations is almost as difficult as the process of conducting and completing a dissertation-level research experiment. Methodology tends to differ according to the various factors found within the desired outcome. Yet methods cannot be orchestrated to generate this outcome from the data, but merely facilitate its collection and synthesis. Any successful research methodology does not, therefore, create knowledge, but rather is an applicable strategy for identifying and processing the information which exists. Hathaway (1995) stresses that there are decisions embedded within the creation and conduct of research methodologies that are generated both within the research setting and within the perceptions of the researcher. The concept of an unbiased methodology is thus inherently impossible: All researchers come to the experimentation process with preconceived opinions of how and why the research process should transpire."

Tags:thesis, dissertation, method

Abstract
This paper critiques a 2001 report entitled "Negotiation of HIV Preventive Behaviors in Divorced and Separated Women Reentering the Sexual Arena." The paper examines the justification of the methodology used in the report and the method used for recruiting subjects for the study. The paper contends that the conclusions drawn in the report may not be reliable.

From the Paper
"The phenomenon being studied in the report "Negotiation of HIV Preventive Behaviors in Divorced and Separated Women Reentering the Sexual Arena" was clearly stated and delineated by the author. The author wanted to look at how women who had been in long-term monogamous relationships which had ended in separation or divorce, handled discussing preventive measures against HIV and STDs with men once they resumed sexual activity after the breakup of their monogamous relationship."

Tags:qualitiative research, Colaizzi methodology