Doing Social Research and Publishing Results : A Guide to Non-native English Speakers

This book provides a guide to such budding social researchers, who are non-native English speakers drawing examples from literature to show how to conduct a research, present research results, integrate with existing literature to draw conclusions through real-world examples. Existing English books teaching research methods and philosophy of academic research are written in ‘academic English’ and, it is hard for non-native English-speaking budding researchers to study and understand those books. Also, this book uses examples to show how to communicate with journal editors and peer reviewers to get published the research results as journal articles, book chapters or conference papers. This book connects different quantitative techniques, qualitative methodologies (case studies, phenomenology and ethnography and Grounded theory) as well as Mixed methods methodology through a single example. This book attempts to describe a holistic approach introducing a 10Ps model that incorporates the essential elements of the research process. The process focuses on combining philosophical framework and arguments from research results. This book focuses not only on conducting a research project, but also on the approach and procedures to be followed to achieve higher marks for course work assignments and publishing research articles in international journals. This book shows how to create many papers from one research/data set to increase number of publications and citations. This book has fewer words and more illustrations, tables, figures, pictures and YouTube tutorial links. This book outlines how to present test results in APA style for all the statistical test used in this book, using examples. Foreword Preface Acknowledgements Reviews Chapter Summary Contents LIST OF EXAMPLES (PAGE #) AND REFERENCES About the Author Part I Overview 1 Introduction 1.1 Preparation 1.2 Annotated Bibliography 1.3 Positive and Flexible Attitudes 1.4 Research 1.5 Importance and Objectives of the Research Work: Publishing 1.6 Summary References/Further Reading 2 Evolution of Western Research Methodology 2.1 Historical Development 2.2 How Do We Know the World? 2.3 Scientific Knowledge and Positivism 2.3.1 Empiricism and Rationalism 2.3.2 Liberalism and Naturalism/Realism 2.4 Pragmatism 2.5 Critical Education 2.6 Newtonian and Quantum Mechanics 2.7 Paradigm 2.8 Pseudoscience and Social Constructivism 2.9 Paradigm Comparison 2.10 Induction, Deduction and Abduction 2.11 Perspectives and Theories 2.12 Summary References/Further Reading 3 Qualitative Versus Quantitative 3.1 Quantitative or Qualitative? 3.2 From Positivism to Post-positivism 3.3 Summary References/Further Reading 4 Research Types and Approaches 4.1 Academic Research Types 4.2 Research Designs 4.3 Ethical Issues 4.3.1 Anonymity and Confidentiality 4.3.2 Universalistic and Contingent/Relativistic 4.3.3 Whistle Blowing 4.4 Summary References/Further Reading 5 The 10 Elements of Academic Research (10Ps) 5.1 Is the Research Process Linear and Sequential? 5.2 Evolution and Composition of Research 5.3 What is the Starting Point? 5.4 Summary References/Further Reading Part II Methods 1: Purpose and Approach Articulation of Research Problem, Literature Review and Data Collection 6 Articulation of Research Problem 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Articulation of Research Problem 6.3 Articulation of Research Problems for Qualitative Studies 6.4 Hypothesis Testing 6.5 Construction of Quantitative Research Hypothesis 6.6 Basic Guidelines for Building Quantitative Hypotheses or Questions 6.7 Articulation of Research Problems for Mixed Methods Approach 6.8 Summary References/Further Reading 7 Literature Review 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Selecting a Topic 7.3 Searching and Surveying the Literature 7.3.1 Choosing Search Terms 7.3.2 Accessing Articles 7.3.3 CRAP Test 7.3.4 Screening: Scan, Skim and Map 7.3.5 Storing 7.4 Critical Review 7.4.1 The 10 Qualities of a Critical Thinker 7.5 Structure of the Presentation of the Literature Review 7.5.1 Annotated Bibliography 7.6 Development Arguments 7.6.1 Simple Argument 7.6.2 Type of Arguments, Claims and Assertions 7.6.3 Complex Claims 7.6.4 Organizing the Premises and Reasoning Patterns 7.6.5 Simple Reasoning 7.6.6 Complex Reasoning 7.7 Synthesizing and Integration 7.7.1 Testing the Validity of the Arguments and Thesis 7.7.2 Fallacies 7.8 Using the Literature Review to Generalize the Cases 7.9 Positioning 7.10 Summary References/Further Reading 8 Data Collection 8.1 Introduction 8.1.1 Validity/Conformability and Reliability/Credibility 8.2 Data Collection 8.3 Data Types 8.3.1 Classification of Data According to Scales 8.4 Surveys 8.4.1 Sampling Techniques 8.4.2 Asking Questions that Make Survey Participants Feel Uncomfortable 8.4.3 Type of Questions 8.4.4 Response Categories 8.5 Interviews and Conversations 8.6 Focus Groups 8.7 Observation 8.7.1 Naturalistic (Non-participant or Non-reactive) Observation 8.7.2 Overt and Covert Observation 8.7.3 Participant Observation 8.8 Example 8.3: The Role of Bank Lending in Sustaining Income and Wealth Inequality 8.9 Case Studies 8.10 Unobstructive Data 8.10.1 Physical Measures 8.10.2 Documents (Secondary Sources) 8.11 Summary References/Further Reading Part III Research Traditions: Quantitative Strategies 9 Research Traditions 9.1 Validity/Conformability and Reliability/Credibility 9.1.1 Validity/Confirmability 9.1.2 Reliability/Credibility 9.1.3 Cherry-Picking 9.2 Summary References/Further Reading 10 Data and Variables 10.1 Types of Data 10.1.1 Data Classification for Statistical Techniques 10.1.2 Parametric and Non-parametric Statistics 10.1.3 Variables 10.1.4 Data Feed to SPSS 10.1.5 SPSS Statistical Techniques 10.2 Normality Tests, Overdispersion and Corrections 10.2.1 Outliers 10.2.2 Normal Distribution and Normality Tests 10.2.3 Chi-Square Test for Normal Distribution 10.2.4 Plotting a Histogram or QQ 10.2.5 Skewness and Peakedness 10.2.6 Jarque Bera Test 10.2.7 Overdispersion 10.3 Reliability Test 10.3.1 Reliability Test of Consistency 10.3.2 Assessing Agreement Between Raters/Instruments 10.3.3 Intraclass Correlation Coefficient-(ICC) 10.4 Data Reduction 10.4.1 Principal Component Analysis (PCA) 10.4.2 Communalities Table 10.4.3 Component Matrix 10.4.4 Correlation Matrix 10.4.5 Exploratory Factor Analysis 10.4.6 Cluster Analysis 10.5 Summary References/Further Reading 11 Relevant Statistical Concepts 11.1 Hypothesis Testing 11.1.1 Type I and Type II Error 11.2 p Value 11.2.1 Critical Value 11.2.2 Significance Level: α and Confidence Levels and Intervals 11.3 Z Test 11.3.1 Z Test by SPSS Syntax 11.3.2 Z Test Versus t Test 11.3.3 Calculating a Z Statistic in a Test About a Proportion 11.4 T Tests 11.5 Chi-Square (χ2–Distribution) 11.6 Obtaining Statistics of Normal Distribution Using SPSS 11.6.1 Outliers 11.6.2 Histogram or QQ 11.6.3 Kolmogorov–Smirnov and Shapiro–Wilk Tests 11.6.4 Skewness, Peakedness and Kurtosis Values 11.6.5 Chi-Square Fitness Test 11.6.6 Chi-Square Test for Independence; Distribution of Religions 11.7 Degree of Freedom (d.f.)​ 11.7.1 F-Test 11.7.2 Structural Equation Modeling–(SEM) RMSEA, CFI and TLI 11.7.3 Growth Curve Model-GCM, RMSEA, CFI and TLI 11.8 Other Assumptions and Concepts 11.8.1 Effect Size 11.8.2 Statistical Power 11.9 Summary References/Further Reading 12 Statistical Testing Methods 12.1 Descriptive Analysis 12.1.1 Descriptive Statistics and Charts 12.2 Statistical Technical Analysis 12.2.1 Ordinal Data 12.2.2 What Tests? 12.3 Commonly Used Statistical Techniques 12.3.1 Independent Samples t-test and Homogeneity of Variances: Levene’s Test 12.3.2 Statistical Techniques for Data that Do not Show the Nature of a Normal Distribution 12.4 Analysis of Variance-ANOVA 12.4.1 Kruskal–Wallis Test 12.4.2 ANOVA (Two-Way ANOVA) 12.5 Correlation 12.5.1 Simple Associations 12.5.2 Correlation Between Non-parametric Variables 12.5.3 Kendall’s Tau Rank Correlation Coefficient 12.5.4 Regression Tests 12.5.5 Multivariate Regression 12.5.6 Other Factors 12.6 Model Building and Path Diagrams 12.6.1 Single Variable Regression 12.6.2 Multivariate Regression​​ 12.6.3 An Interrelationship is Presented as Follows 12.7 Summary References/Further Reading 13 Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) 13.1 Multilevel Modeling-MLM 13.2 Latent Growth Curve Analysis-LGCA 13.3 Statistical Models and Path Diagrams 13.4 Summary References/Further Reading 14 Econometrics 14.1 Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Approach 14.1.1 Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Cointegration Technique or Bound Testing 14.1.2 Stationary or Stable Process 14.1.3 Unit Root 14.1.4 Cointegration Process 14.1.5 Bounds Testing Approach to Cointegration 14.1.6 Autoregressive Model 14.1.7 Lagged Regression 14.2 Summary References/Further Reading Part IV Research Traditions: Qualitative Strategies 15 Qualitative Startegies 15.1 Other Qualitative Strategies 15.2 Summary References/Further Reading 16 Narrative Research 16.1 Participatory Narrative Inquiry (PNI) 16.2 Biography 16.3 Testimonios 16.4 Examples D: The Role of Bank Lending in Sustaining Income and Wealth Inequality 16.5 Summary References/Further Reading 17 Case Studies 17.1 Case Study Definition 17.2 Types of Case Study Strategies 17.3 Credibility, Dependability and Conformability 17.4 Summary References 18 Phenomenology 18.1 Summary References 19 Ethnography 19.1 Critical Ethnography 19.2 Auto-ethnography 19.3 Performance Ethnography 19.4 Summary References/Further Reading 20 Grounded Theory 20.1 Theoretical Sampling 20.2 Glaser’s Traditional or Classic GT 20.3 Constructivist GT of Chamaz 20.4 Codification 20.5 Summary References/Further Reading 21 Action Research 21.1 Action Research in Organization Development 21.1.1 Identifying and Defining the Problem 21.2 Strategy Formulation 21.3 Implementation 21.4 Reflection 21.5 Balanced Scorecard—Wide Recognition 21.6 Summary References 22 Poetic Inquiry 22.1 Found Poetry 22.2 Generated Poetry 22.3 Summary References 23 Mixed Methods Strategy 23.1 Triangulation 23.2 Mixed Methods Research Design 23.3 Other Approaches 23.4 Summary References Part V Methods 2: The Revelation 24 Analysis 24.1 Introduction 24.2 Content Analysis 24.2.1 Quantitative Content Analysis 24.2.2 Qualitative Content Analysis 24.3 Quantitative Data Analysis 24.3.1 Constructing Data Matrix 24.3.2 Cleaning the Data 24.3.3 Statistical Analysis 24.3.4 Quantitative Interpretative Analysis 24.4 Quantitative Results Analysis 24.5 Thematic/Interpretive Analysis 24.5.1 Discourse Analysis 24.5.2 Narrative Analysis 24.5.3 Conversation Analysis 24.5.4 Semiotics 24.5.5 Objective Hermeneutics 24.6 Coding 24.6.1 Thematic Coding 24.6.2 Computer Software for Qualitative Data Analysis 24.6.3 Nvivo 24.7 Grounded Theory 24.8 Summary References/Further Reading 25 Typologies and Graphics 25.1 Four Credit Decision-Makers 25.1.1 Typology 25.2 The Nexus of Liquidity 25.3 Women’s Expectations and Destiny 25.3.1 Graphical Presentation 25.4 Poverty and Certain Financing Decisions 25.4.1 Arbitrary Decision-Making Model 25.4.2 Research Problem and Conclusions 25.4.3 Discriminatory Credit Decision Model 25.5 Balanced Scorecard—A Graphical Presentation 25.6 Methodological Graphical Presentations 25.6.1 Research Lenses on the Study Approach 25.6.2 Constructivist Grounded Theory Process 25.7 Summary References 26 Discussion and Conclusions 26.1 Discussion Section 26.1.1 Significance 26.1.2 Generalizability 26.1.3 Reliability 26.1.4 Validity 26.2 Google Translations and Adaptation 26.3 Drawing Conclusions 26.4 Quantitative Discussions and Conclusions 26.4.1 Discussion of a Descriptive Statistics 26.4.2 Discussions of Survey Results 26.4.3 Discussion of a Simple Regression Analysis 26.4.4 Conclusions 26.5 Qualitative Discussions and Conclusions 26.5.1 Discussion 26.5.2 Conclusion 26.6 Mixed Methods Discussions and Conclusions 26.6.1 Discussion 26.6.2 Conclusions 26.6.3 Future Research 26.7 Summary References/Further Reading 27 Writing Abstracts/Summaries 27.1 Introduction 27.1.1 What a Summary Should Not Include 27.1.2 Purpose 27.1.3 Methods 27.1.4 Results 27.1.5 Conclusions 27.1.6 Key Words 27.1.7 Instructions to Write an Abstract or a Summary 27.2 Types of Abstracts 27.2.1 Classified Abstracts 27.2.2 Single Para Abstracts 27.2.3 Descriptive Abstracts 27.3 One Research Many Outputs 27.4 Summary References Part VI Publishing Process, Cover Letters and Addressing Reviewers’ Comments 28 The Publishing Process 28.1 Introduction 28.2 Crafting Multiple Manuscripts from a Data-Set 28.3 Writing a Manuscript 28.4 Publishing Process of a Research Paper by a Journal 28.4.1 Submission 28.4.2 Editorial Review 28.4.3 Selecting Peer-Reviewers 28.4.4 Peer-Review Process 28.4.5 Editor’s Decision 28.4.6 Author’s Response 28.4.7 Second Round of Review 28.4.8 Copyediting, Proofreading, and Publication 28.4.9 Editor’s Acceptance ‘As It Is’ 28.5 Submission Process 28.5.1 Choosing a Journal 28.5.2 Formatting the Manuscript 28.5.3 Re writing Certain Paras to Match the “Focus” or “Aim” of the Journal 28.5.4 Focusing the Literature Review Towards the Journal’s Scope/Aim 28.6 Similarity Test 28.6.1 Rejecting the Manuscript 28.6.2 Editing Similarities 28.6.3 Providing References for Such Similarities and Avoid Plagiarism 28.6.4 Websites for Similarity Checks 28.7 Popularising a Published Paper 28.7.1 Register in Academic Websites 28.7.2 Exhibiting or Displaying Publication 28.8 Collaboration 28.9 Summary References 29 Cover Letters 29.1 Essential Features of a Cover Letter 29.2 Format of a Cover Letter 29.2.1 Cover Letters to Be Submitted with Submisions 29.3 Drafting Cover Letters After Checking the Suitability 29.3.1 Negative Responses and Sample Cover Letters 29.3.2 Positive Responses and Sample Cover Letters 29.4 Summary​ References/Further Reading 30 Addressing Reviewers’ Critics 30.1 Introduction 30.2 Criticisms and Feedback Leading to Minor Edits 30.3 Serious Reviews Expecting Major Revisions 30.4 Reviews Leading for Rejection of a Manuscript Reference