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The methods for choosing the group of people to be studied; or the larger group from which that group is chosen.
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Sampling is the process by which you reduce the total number of possible respondents for a research project (the research population) to a number which is practically feasible and theoretically acceptable (the sample).
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Giving numbers, in order, to information which was in words or ideas. For example, showing a person’s opinion by a number from this list: 1) strongly agree; 2) agree; 3) disagree; 4) strongly disagree. Scaling always uses numbers.
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A way of studying information that has been found or written about by someone else.
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A primary source is that which provides the initial basic data set under discussion, while a secondary source is one which offers further analysis or commentary on the data. For example, the primary source for demographic data in the UK is likely to be the publications of the Office of Population and Census Studies (OPCS), while there are many secondary sources which make use of OPCS output. Generally it is better, if you can, to make reference to primary sources.
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A way of choosing the people for a study by letting them set themselves apart from a larger group in some way; for example, by responding to a questionnaire or by going to a program.
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Contains a mix of structured questions, often to get factual data, and more general open-ended questions, which allow the respondent to elaborate on particular issues.
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A measure of how well a scale shows differences among people.
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A mathematical test of whether a study’s results could be caused by chance, or whether they really show what they seem to show.
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Refers to a lack of symmetry in a distribution represented in a "bell curve". Data from a positively skewed (skewed to the right) distribution have values that are bunched together below the average (lower scores are prevalent). Data from a negatively skewed (skewed to the left) distribution have values that are bunched together above the average (higher scores are prevalent).
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A way of finding people to study by asking them about each other; for example, choosing one person who was born in Germany, then asking that person for the name of a second person born in Germany, and so on, in a chain.
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Also called socioeconomic position (SEP). A measure that combines a person’s education, work history, income, etc. into a single rating that tries to show where that person is placed in his or her society, and what larger group (for example, the "middle class") that person is part of.
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Data that may include items such as people's ideas and opinions. A characteristic of qualitative research.
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The measure of how well a scale shows whether a certain person is a member of a certain group; for example, how well it shows whether a client has a phobia of books, rather than showing only whether that client has a high level of general anxiety.
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People with an interest (stake) in the research. Examples are subjects of the research, including service users and carers, researchers, agency staff, funding bodies and commissioners of research. Politicians and policy makers are also increasingly becoming research stakeholders.
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A measure of how widely the values (amounts, numbers, scores) in a group of values are spread around the mean (midpoint). For example, all the scores may be very close to the midpoint, or many of them may be much higher or lower.
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In social science research, especially in survey analysis, there are a range of variables which are usually considered 'standard' or 'key', in the sense that some analysis is undertaken in relation to each of them. The list will change according to the specific research project, but may well include such items as age, gender, socio-economic group, ethnicity, employment, family background, and housing.
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Any scale or testing instrument that has been proven to be valid and reliable through experimentation and trial.
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Tests of statistical significance of which the best known is probably the Chi-square, which is a measure of probability. Where a research sample has been used, it is important to know whether the findings are valid or came about by chance.
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Being able to draw a conclusion from a sample and generalizing it to a wider population.
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The study (usually mathematical analysis) of information that is in the form of numbers or can be given numbers; the term can also mean that information itself.
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Interviews that use a set list of questions that the interviewer asks every person. The interviewer writes down each person’s answers on the form with the questions.
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Surveys can be defined as the systematic collection of data (facts, ideas, opinions) from a number of people for the purposes of analysis.
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A statistical test of the difference between two "means."
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A way of assessing the consistency of a research instrument by calculating the correlation between scores obtained on repeated administrations.
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Textual analysis is used in the analysis of secondary source data and also in qualitative research. It involves working on a text in depth, looking for keywords and concepts and making links between them. The term also extends to literature reviewing. Increasingly, much textual analysis is done using computer programs such as NVivo, ATLAS.ti, and NU*DIST.
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A way of explaining, or trying to explain, a set of facts.
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A way of studying what researchers have noticed at set times; for example, studying how many cavities a group of children have every 6 months.
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A statistical method that combines data from different groups by exploring the data downwards – that is, first comparing data from the whole set, and then looking at individual sites or groups.
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Triangulation is a multi-method or pluralistic approach, using different methods in order to focus on the research topic from different viewpoints and to produce a multi-faceted set of data. Also used to check the validity of findings from any one method.
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A mistake based on saying that there is a difference when there is not.
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A mistake based on saying that there isn’t a difference when there is.
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A system that groups information into different types.