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Description
- Overview:
- A free, brief textbook to introduce students to the core concepts of empirical social science research methods, available in PDF (main download link below) and EPUB (additional file below). This textbook has been used as the main textbook in an undergraduate social science research methods course (supplemented by many in-class exercises and research reports) and as the basis of a review in preparation for graduate-level study in research methods and program evaluation.
Contents: (1) Identifying the research question (and an aside about theory); (2) Conceptualizing and operationalizing (and sometimes hypothesizing); (3) Data collection structured by formal research designs; (3.1) Sampling; (3.2) Data collection methods; (3.3) Formal research designs; (4) Data analysis; (5) Generalizing and theorizing; (6) Evaluating research: Validity and reliability; (7) Research ethics; (8) Appendix A: More research designs; (9) Appendix B: Elaboration modeling; (10) Appendix C: Research Methods Glossary.
A note to instructors: If you use this text in any way, whether as the primary text, a supplemental text, or a recommended resource, I ask only two small favors: (1) When you make it available to students, please always include a link back to the text’s download site, https://scholar.utc.edu/oer/1/. While you are free to download and distribute the text intact under the Creative Commons 4.0 license, my preference is that you point students to this website to download it themselves. Seeing the download numbers tick up is a treat, and I plan to add additional appendices over time, so the download file will be updated occasionally. (2) Please send me a quick email at Christopher-Horne@utc.edu letting me know you’re using it. I certainly welcome your feedback as well. Thank you, and best wishes for successful research methods instruction.
- Subject:
- Social Science
- Level:
- Community College / Lower Division, College / Upper Division
- Material Type:
- Textbook
- Author:
- Christopher S. Horne
- Provider:
- University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
- Date Added:
- 04/21/2018
- License:
-
Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives
- Language:
- English
- Media Format:
- Downloadable docs
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This text was reviewed as part of planning an undergraduate program evaluation course, detailed in this resource: https://oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/111406/overview
A Quick, Free, Somewhat Easy-to-Read Introduction to Empirical Social Science Research Methods
by Christopher S. Horne
Link: https://scholar.utc.edu/oer/1/
License: Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives
Publication Date: 2018
Horne provides an excellent summary on research methods that, surprisingly, also includes discussion and examples of evaluation, making this text particularly helpful for a program evaluation class. This text is written in a fun, informal manner as if the author was “talking to a friend” as they say. Although many of the concepts that Horne is discussing are no doubt ones that many students can find intimidating, especially at the undergraduate level, the writing style and many examples make the writing quite accessible and engaging.
Horne uses many different kinds of examples from public policy, social work, health, and education to show how both research and evaluation are done. The author also includes robust discussions of both quantitative and qualitative methods with a clear explanation of what should be used when and what some of the broader ontological and epistemological frameworks undergirding each are (without confusing students by actually using those words). As a qualitative researcher, I particularly appreciated the explanation of qualitative data analysis and the excellent resources that Horne provides on qualitative data analysis, including for evaluation.
To be clear, this text does not teach students how to do statistics or other specific analysis methods, but it does teach students what inferential statistics actually mean and how they can be applied. Horne is very successful in providing a broad overview, not a specific how-to, which is beyond the scope of such a short text. Particularly for a program evaluation class in which the students do not necessarily have a strong background in research methods, this short text is an excellent refresher on what they should have learned in an introductory undergraduate or graduate level research methods course. Further, Horne helps readers to become more discerning consumers of empirical research, which at the undergraduate level is an outstanding contribution.