School of Information and Library Science
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

INLS 691H, Research Methods in Information Science
Fall 2014

CLASS SCHEDULE

Developing a Research Question / Learning from the Literature / Research Design /
Data Collection / Data Analysis / Writing and Defending the Proposal

Syllabus / Assignments / Sakai site for class

DEVELOPING A RESEARCH QUESTION

1, August 19: Introduction to research

Wildemuth, Chapter 2, Developing a Research Question, p11-20

2, August 21: Stating your research question

Select ONE of the following for careful reading; skim the rest
- Wildemuth, Chapter 3, Questions Originating in Library and Information Practice, p21-26
- Wildemuth, Chapter 4, Descriptions of Phenomena or Settings, p27-32
- Wildemuth, Chapter 5, Testing Hypotheses, p33-39
- Morgan & Wildemuth, Chapter 6, Questions Related to Theory, 40-50

Begin developing Research question

LEARNING FROM THE LITERATURE

3, August 26: Searching the literature

No reading assignment; bring laptop to class

4, August 28: Using conceptual mapping to organize your literature review

Mitchell, M. L., & Jolley, J. M. (2000). Research Design Explained. 3rd edition. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt College Publishers.
- Things to look for in a journal article [online handout]
Novak, J. D. (2010). Learning, Creating, and Using Knowledge : Concept Maps As Facilitative Tools in Schools and Corporations. 2nd edition. Mahwah, N.J. Lawrence Erlbaum. [SILS Reserve - LB1060 .N677 2020; or Electronic Book netLibrary]
- Chapter 3, Section on Concept maps and knowledge organization, 32-38
- Review all the example concept maps in Chapters 3 & 4
Mind maps: a powerful approach to note taking. http://www.mindtools.com/mindmaps.html
See example concept map, based on reverse engineering of Hayslett and Wildemuth (2004) literature review [Sakai resources]

Begin Concept map of literature

5, September 2: Training on reference manager software (Gary Patillo)

No reading assignment; bring laptop to class

First draft of Research question due

6, September 4: Moving from the concept map to the literature review; The role of the literature review

Why do I have to have a literature review? [FAQ, plus all the links from it to related pages]. University of Queensland Student Support Services, 1994. http://www.uq.edu.au/student-services/phdwriting/phfaq23.html
Taylor, D., & Procter, M. (2001). The literature review: A few tips on conducting it. University of Toronto. http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/specific-types-of-writing/literature-review

7, September 9: Writing a literature review

Literature reviews. UNC-CH Writing Center, not dated. http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/literature-reviews/
Writing a psychology literature review. Seattle, WA: University of Washington, Psychology Writing Center, February 2000.http://www.psych.uw.edu/writingcenter/writingguides/pdf/litrev.pdf

8, September 11: Review on literature reviews

No reading assignment; be prepared to review your progress on your literature review

Begin writing Literature review

RESEARCH DESIGN

9, September 16: Introduction to research design

Trochim, W.M.K. (2006). Research Methods Knowledge Base. (Online textbook).
- Design, http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/design.php
- Introduction to design, http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/desintro.php
- Types of designs, http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/destypes.php
- Internal validity, http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/intval.php
- Establishing cause and effect, http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/causeeff.php
- Additional pages on internal validity, relevant to your particular study
Werts, C.E. (2007). Applying scientifically based research to a peppermint patty. Information Outlook, 11(12), 16-20. [Sakai Resources]

Schuyler, W.H. (1991). True experimental design [poem]. In Dawson, T.E. (1997). A primer on experimental and quasi-experimental design. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southwest Educational Research Association (Austin, Tx, January 2-23, 1997), p3-6. ED 406 440. http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED406440.pdf.

Second draft of Research question due, for peer review (comments/suggestions to be returned by September 23)

10, September 18: Experimental designs

Hank & Wildemuth, Chapter 11, Quasi-experimental studies, p93-104
Wildemuth & Cao, Chapter 12, Experimental studies, p105-115

First draft of Concept map due

11, September 23: Interpretive methods and other alternatives

Choemprayong & Wildemuth, Chapter 7, Case studies, p51-61
Crystal & Wildemuth, Chapter 8, Naturalistic research, p62-72
Optional: Bradley, J. (1993). Methodological issues and practices in qualitative research. Library Quarterly, 63(4), 431-449. [SILS Library]

12, September 25: Sampling issues; Ethical treatment of human subjects

Wildemuth, Chapter 13, Sampling for extensive studies, p116-128
Wildemuth & Cao, Chapter 14, Sampling for intensive studies, p129-137
Optional: UNC-CH IRB and Office of Human Research Ethics: Review Process Overview. http://research.unc.edu/offices/human-research-ethics/submission-instructions/.
Optional: The Belmont Report: Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research. Office of the Secretary, The National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, April 18, 1979. http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/belmont.html.

Complete UNC IRB-required online training in Human Research Ethics, Human Research Ethics Training page, first item on bulleted list
Final draft of Research question due, for grading

13, September 30: Review on research design

No reading assignment; be prepared to present your plans for your research design

Second draft of Concept map due, for peer review (comments/suggestions to be returned by October 2)
Begin developing Methods proposal

DATA COLLECTION

14, October 2: Existing Artifacts as Data; Observation

Wildemuth, Chapter 17, Existing documents and artifacts as data, p158-165
Wildemuth, Chapter 20, Direct observation, p189-198

15, October 7: Interviews; Surveys and questionnaires

Luo & Wildemuth, Chapter 24, Semi-structured interviews, p232-241
Oh & Wildemuth, Chapter 19, Think-aloud protocols, p178-188
Hank, Wilkins Jordan, & Wildemuth, Chapter 26, Survey research, p256-269

First draft of Literature review due

16, October 9 : Tests and scales

Wildemuth, Chapter 27, Measuring cognitive and affective variables, p270-277
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3), 319-340. [UNC Libraries]
Optional: Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 1, Introduction to statistics: Section 7, Measurement scales. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/intro.html
Optional: Kline, P. (1990). Selecting the best test. In Beech, J.R., & Harding, L. (eds.), Testing People: A Practical Guide to Psychometrics.Windsor, Berkshire, England: NFER-NELSON Pub. Co., 107-117. (Read only pages 107-110.) [Sakai Resources / Readings and Handouts]

Additional resources
- American Psychological Association. FAQ / Finding information about psychological tests. http://www.apa.org/science/programs/testing/find-tests.aspx
- ETS Test Collection. http://www.ets.org/testcoll/

Final draft of Concept map due, for grading

17, October 14: Data collection examples from class research proposals; Review

Readings to be assigned by class members

October 16: No class (Fall Break)

October 21 & 23: No class; Schedule individual appointments to review specific plans for study methods

DATA ANALYSIS

18, October 28: Preparing the data for analysis; Descriptive statistics

Wildemuth, Chapter 33, Descriptive statistics, p338-347
Optional: Byrne, G. (2007). A statistical primer: Understanding descriptive and inferential statistics. Evidence-Based Library & Information Practice, 2(1), 32-47. Online at http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP/article/view/168/239.
Optional: Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 1, Introduction to statistics:Sections 1-6. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/intro.html
- Chapter 2, Describing univariate data. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/desc_univ.html

Additional resources on data analysis
- StatSoft Electronic Statistics Textbook. http://www.statsoft.com/textbook/stathome.html
- Easton, V. J., McColl, J. H., & Young, S. G. (1997). STEPS Statistics Glossary, v. 1.1. http://www.stats.gla.ac.uk/steps/glossary/index.html

19, October 30: Chi square; correlation

Wildemuth, Chapter 34, Frequencies, cross-tabulation and the chi square statistic, p348-360
Wildemuth, Chapter 36, Correlation, p375-382
Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 3, Describing bivariate data. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/desc_biv.html

First draft of Methods proposal due

November 4 & November 6: No class (ASIST)

21, November 20: Analyzing qualitative data

Zhang & Wildemuth, Chapter 30, Qualitative analysis of content, p308-319

22, November 11: The logic of hypothesis testing

Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 9, The logic of hypothesis testing. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/logic_hypothesis.htm

Second draft of Literature review due, for peer review (comments/suggestions to be returned by November 18)

23, November 13: Comparing two means

Crystal & Wildemuth, Chapter 37, Comparing means: t tests and analysis of variance, p383-392
Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 4, Introduction to probability. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/probability.html
- Chapter 5, Normal distribution. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/normal_distribution.html
- Chapter 6, Sampling distributions, Sections 1-6. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/sampling_dist.html
- Chapter 10, Testing hypotheses with standard errors, Sections 1, 4, and 5. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/hypothesis_testing_se.html

24, November 18: Hypothesis testing, ANOVA

Lane, D. M. (2003). HyperStat Online Textbook. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/index.html
- Chapter 12, Introduction to between-subjects ANOVA, Sections 1 and 2. http://davidmlane.com/hyperstat/intro_ANOVA.htm

WRITING AND DEFENDING THE PROPOSAL

25, November 25: Writing and presenting the research proposal

Wildemuth, Chapter 38, Putting it all together, p395-404
Kahn, J. (2010). Reporting statistics in APA style. http://my.ilstu.edu/~jhkahn/apastats.html.
Tutorials on effective presentations, http://www.kumc.edu/SAH/OTEd/jradel/effective.html
- Developing an effective oral presentation
- Designing effective visual aids for presentations

Final draft of Literature review due, for grading

November 27: No class (Thanksgiving break)

26, December 2: Review and resolution of any questions

Second draft of Methods proposal due, for peer review (comments/suggestions to be returned during class)

Dec 5, 5pm:

Second draft of Methods proposal due, for grading

December 11, 1pm:

Presentations of research proposals; thesis advisors to be invited

December 12, 8am:

Final draft of Introduction, Literature Review, and Methods due, for re-grading
Draft of IRB proposal (if applicable) due, for instructor/advisor review, December 12