research methods IN HUMAN ECOLOGY 11:374:201 Spring 2013 This course is an introduction to the design, conduct and interpretation of social science research. Human ecology investigates the interaction between humans and the environment--so we will focus on research methods that address relationships between human beings, the social world, the built environment, and more. We will also dip our toes into statistics--used to understand the results of research. When The New York Times reports that procrastination can be positive, that alcohol-based hand sanitizers are effective against some viruses but not others, or that Chinese population control policies (one child per family) could have negative psychological effects on children, where do those assertions come from? From research studies, of course! How about a New York Times report that a median-income household can afford a median priced home in only 14 of the country s 25 largest metropolitan areas. What are those terms? Statistics! Understanding how to design and interpret research studies is important for all informed citizens. Even if you do not foresee a career in research, the skills and concepts we will cover in this class are essential in understanding the world around you. Professor Naa Oyo A. Kwate Dept. of Human Ecology, Cook Office Bldg., Office #210 nokwate@rci.rutgers.edu Day/Time: Location: MON & THURS, 12:35-2:15 PM BLAKE HALL, RM. 131 Office Hrs: THURS, 2:30-3:30 and by appt.
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 2 Course Objectives Students who take the course will: Describe the basic characteristics of the scientific method Define core research terms such as variables, hypotheses, and correlation Learn how to ask social scientific questions and develop research methods to answer those questions Learn the ethical principles that undergird research Gain exposure to selected statistical tests Use computers to conduct selected research methodologies and statistical analyses Conduct hands-on research exercises and report findings in writing Learn to critically assess published research and research findings in public discourse Course Structure Class time will be a mix of lecture, exercises, and hands-on application, including the computer lab. Outside of class, you will complete two fieldwork assignments in which you actually conduct research. All of the course activities are designed to make research methods come alive. You might not think quizzes or homework are fun, but they reinforce learning in ways that just reading a textbook cannot. Research is something you learn by doing in a variety of ways. We will do some introductory work with selected statistical methods. Since you are learning how to design and conduct research, you are going to learn a bit about how to analyze the results you get. However, this is not a statistics class, so we will not be covering everything there is to know about statistics. With regard to both research methods and statistics, we are going for depth, rather than breadth. Course Requirements & Grading Quizzes (15%): Quizzes are short tests based on the reading for the day and/or concepts from previous classes/readings. Fieldwork research reports (15%): There are two fieldwork assignments, where you will conduct a brief research study in the field. The research report is a 2-page write-up of your results. More details will be given at the time of fieldwork. Homework (20%): Homework assignments will draw upon the lectures and reading. Whether a homework assignment is due on any given day is outlined in the schedule. Assignments will be posted in Sakai and handed out in class. Midterm Exam (25%): The midterm is an in-class exam that will assess your comprehension and skills with the material from January 24 to March 11. It will be a mix of true/false, multiple choice, definitions, matching, and short answer. Final Exam (25%): The final exam will have the same format as the midterm, and will cover all the material in the course. It will therefore require the integration of much more information than the midterm. On deadlines: In fairness to all students, assignments will NOT be accepted late without penalty. Late work without a reported absence (see below in Absences and accommodations ) and appropriate documentation (e.g., doctor s note) will drop by 10 points per day, including weekends. Extensions will not be granted for
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 3 routine conflicts, other curricular requirements, computer glitches, etc. Q: What if I finish my homework at 12:30 but Sakai is down and won t allow me to upload by 12:35? Will I still get marked off? A: don t wait that late to finish your homework. Q: Really? A:. Turning in assignments: For all assignments, you must: a) Upload your work to Sakai before class, so I have a permanent record of everyone s work for the semester; and b) Bring a hard copy to class, which I will grade and return to you. BOTH submissions are required. Your upload to Sakai is due by class time, 12:35. It will lock you out after that. If you bring the print version of your assignment to class and you have not uploaded it to Sakai by the deadline, it is LATE. If you upload to Sakai on time, but do not bring a hard copy to class, I will have nothing to grade, and therefore you will not get feedback on what you have completed/how you are doing in the class. I will not download and print your assignments for you. Academic Integrity Academic integrity refers to honest and ethical conduct by members of the University community. With regard to coursework, this means completing work that is entirely yours, that appropriately cites and gives credit to other sources, that adheres to research ethics, and that does not use unsanctioned materials or methods. Cheating, fabricating work, plagiarizing, or facilitating such behaviors for other students violates academic integrity. Of course, this brief description does not cover all forms of academically honest or dishonest behavior. If you have not done so already, you should visit the Rutgers Academic Integrity webpage (http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/), and thoroughly familiarize yourself with the policies and procedures outlined therein. I expect everyone to adhere to the policies set forth by the University, and I will act on all violations. Consequences can include a failing grade for an assignment, failing the course, or suspension or expulsion. All assignments in this course are to be completed individually, not collaboratively with other students unless otherwise noted. Absences and accommodations Absence reporting I will not take attendance and attendance does not count towards your grade. You are responsible for the material, and it is up to you to come to class. If you have an unexcused absence on a day when we have a quiz, you will receive a zero for that quiz. If you are ill or have an emergency and are unable to come to class, you must let me know via Rutgers absence reporting system, at: https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/. Rutgers employs a system-wide procedure for student absences, which ensures students and faculty that there is an official record of missed classes. The system will automatically send me an email, do not email me from your own account. If you know in advance that you will miss one or two classes (e.g., attending a conference), please use the University absence reporting website ahead of time to indicate the date and reason for your absence. We can then talk about make-up assignments if necessary. If you anticipate missing more classes than that, you should meet with me to determine whether this semester is a good time for you to take this course, as you are not likely to do well. Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Students who require accommodations for disabilities are urged to contact the Office of Disability Services at 732-932-2848 or dsoffice@rci.rutgers.edu. This office works with students to document any disability and to determine appropriate accommodations. I am unable to create accommodations on an individual basis. Please see me if you have further questions.
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 4 Required Readings The two required books are: 1. Chambliss, D.F., & Schutt, R.K. (2012). Making Sense of the Social World: Methods of Investigation. 4th Ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. (Listed in the schedule as C&S ) 2. Salkind, N.J. (2011). Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics. 4th Ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Additional articles and other readings are located in Sakai. Always bring your books and readings to class! We will refer to them regularly. You will also need a calculator; a scientific one is ideal but not necessary. Course Schedule Required readings are outlined for each class day. Readings are due on the date for which they are listed, so you must read them BEFORE you come to class. You will have a much harder time understanding lectures or passing quizzes if you haven t read ahead of time. If a chapter has lots of exercises in it (mostly applies to Salkind), read through them, but don t actually work on them as if you were doing homework. We ll work on them in class. Each class meeting lists whether homework (6 total) or a fieldwork report (2 total) will be due that day, and whether a quiz is scheduled for that day. Quizzes take place in class, at the beginning of class. If you are late, you will still have to turn it in at the same time as everyone else. Homework will of course have been assigned (posted in Sakai and handed out in class) beforehand, and is to be turned in that day. Class dates that are outlined in a box will not meet in Blake 131, they will meet down the hall in the computer lab, which is Blake 120. Jan. 24: Introduction to the class C&S: Chapter 1, & Chap 2: p18-20 Jan. 28: Research ethics C&S: Chapter 3, & Chap 2: p32-33 Jan. 31: Levels of measurement C&S: Chapter 4: p71-75 Salkind: Chapter 3: p103-105
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 5 Feb. 4: Independent & dependent variables and descriptive statistics C&S: Chapter 2: p21-24 Salkind: Chapters 2 & 3 Feb. 7: Independent & dependent variables and descriptive stats cntd. te: Kwate away, guest lecturer Feb. 11: Validity & reliability C&S: Chapter 4: p75-79 Salkind: Chapter 6: p106-123 Feb. 14: Hypothesis formulation and testing C&S: Chapter 4: p59-68 Salkind: Chapter 7
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 6 Feb. 18: Observation C&S: Chapter 4: p68-70 Feb. 21: class Observation fieldwork reading today Feb. 25: Summarizing and visual presentation of data, and scientific writing C&S: Chapter 12: p272-277 Salkind: Chapter 4 Feb. 28: Sampling C&S: Chapter 5 Fieldwork report due
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 7 Mar. 4: Sampling, cntd. C&S: Chapter 5 Mar. 7: Surveys C&S: Chapter 7: p128-135 Mar. 11: Surveys, cntd. C&S: Chapter 7: p135-147 Mar. 14: ***************MIDTERM EXAM*********************** Mar. 18 & 21: SPRING BREAK Mar. 25: Types of research designs, statistical significance C&S: Chapter 2: p25-34
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 8 Mar. 28: Correlation, group differences Salkind: Chapter 15 Apr. 1: Publicly available datasets applying statistics C&S: Chapter 8: p168-172 Apr 4: Ethnography C&S: Chapter 9: p179-192. Bourgois, P. (1998). Just another night in a shooting gallery. Theory, Culture & Society, 15(2), 37-66. Apr. 8: Intensive interviewing and focus groups C&S: Chapter 9: p195-200, 205-216 Apr. 11: class intensive interviewing fieldwork reading today
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 9 Apr. 15: Experiments C&S: Chapter 6: p103-109, 114-123 Fieldwork report due Apr. 18: Experiments, cntd. C&S: Chapter 6: p103-109, 114-123 Apr. 22: Quasi-experiments C&S: Chapter 6: p109-114 Apr. 25: Community-based participatory research Cannuscio, C. C., Weiss, E. E., Fruchtman, H., Schroeder, J., Weiner, J., & Asch, D. A. (2009). Visual epidemiology: Photographs as tools for probing street-level etiologies. Social Science & Medicine, 69, 553-564.
Research Methods in Human Ecology, Spring 2013 10 Apr. 29: Spatial methods with GIS Reading TBA May 2: The Black LIFE Study (Prof. Kwate s research) May 6: Review May 9: FINAL EXAM