Free Lessons | drtamarahsmith

We don't just tell you what research is. We help you get it done!

There is a lot of information out there on how to do research. The following lessons chunk that information into three categories and provide concrete tasks to help you move through each one.

Start with the foundation: the problem, purpose, and research questions for the study.
Generate the necessary background information with a strong literature review.
Design a strong methodology to help you collect and analyze data for your study.

Follow the lessons below to help you complete your research project.

You can get more help by scheduling a one-on-one meeting or submitting your written work for review. Just click "Get Help" above!

Foundation: The Problem, Purpose, and Research Questions

Objectives

Understand the difference between the problem statement, purpose statement, and research questions.
Develop strong problem and purpose statements.
Create research questions that align with your problem and purpose.

Activities

What is the Problem, Purpose, and Research Question?
- Once you have developed a topic, you will need to refine your focus within the topic. The problem, purpose, and research question(s) help you to do this.
  - Problem: This refers to the general social or world issue that situates your research.
  - Purpose: This is NOT the same as the problem and it is NOT a lack of research in an area. The purpose needs to be specific around understanding something.
  - Research Questions: once you have a clear problem and purpose, the research question(s) should come more easily. They should be set up in such a way that they make it clear what data need to be collected. The research question(s) are the bridge between the problem and purpose and the methodology.
Review the P/P/RQ Worksheet. This will help describe the problem, purpose, and research question and walk you through defining your own. Note in this process that the problem, purpose, and research questions are intricately related to each other.
Write out the problem, purpose, and research questions for your study. These will be a strong foundation for you to build your literature and study methodology.

Need Help?

Submit your work for review or schedule a meeting.

Create a Strong Literature Review

Objectives

Understand the purpose of a literature review.
Collect concrete approaches for doing a literature review, including helpful tools!
Develop a strong outline for your literature review.

Activities

Make a list of the key concepts in your problem, purpose, and research questions.
Review the example on How to Use Key Concepts and Variables to Create an Outline.
Develop an outline for your literature review.
- Start with the key concepts and variables you identified.
- Expand the list as needed.
Plan your literature review process.
- Consider how you would like to do the literature review
  - Where will you search for articles and save the articles?
    - Google Scholar?
    - EBSCO (via a University library)?
- Create a system for tracking your articles (document, spreadsheet, file system).
Set yourself “assignments”
- Chunk your work and make a list. For example:
  - search for 3 articles about concept #1
  - write a summary of 3 articles
  - save articles with appropriate name
  - write out full APA reference for all 3 articles
- Determine your timeline.
  - How much time will you typically spend working on the literature review? 15 minutes? 30 minutes? 3 hours?
  - How often would you like to work on the literature review each week?
  - Put it on your calendar.
  - Note: When determining your timeline, think about what is really reasonable with your other commitments? Don’t overload your calendar. Overdoing it means you won't do it. You can always increase how often you work on the literature review. If you do too much and burn out, it will be really hard to get back to a place where you can work on it. Start slow, if needed. But no matter what: put it on your calendar and defend it like a doctor’s appointment!
Ready, set, go!

Need Help?

Submit your work for review or schedule a meeting.

Design a Strong Methodology

Objectives

Determine what methodology is right for your research question(s).
Understand the general research steps related to the methodology.
Define the specific elements of your research study.

Activities

Get organized.
- Review your problem, purpose, and research questions. If you need help developing them, review the P/P/RQ worksheet
- Review your key concepts and variables; you might look at your Chapter Two outline or subheadings to find these.
Determine your general methodology: quantitative, qualitative, or mixed method.
- Your research question determines the methodology.
  - Quantitative research looks at relationships between variables, differences between groups, and changes or impacts that occur due to an intervention or other experience. Research questions for quantitative studies should reflect this. The terms "relationship", "difference", "change/impact", or "effect" will likely be in your research question.
  - If you have a research question looking to understand relationships, differences, impact, or effects, you need to design a quantitative study to answer that question.

Qualitative research often looks at the "how" and provides deep description of experiences. Qualitative research does not examine "impact" "cause" "effect" or "impact".
If your research questions are looking to describe the experiences or understand how an event, culture, or experience unfolds, you need to design a qualitative study to answer that question.

Mixed methods approaches use both quantitative and qualitative research. However, just like quantitative and qualitative studies, whether you are using mixed methods is determined by the research questions. If you are using a mix of research questions -- some qualify as quantitative and some qualitative -- then you are doing mixed methods.

Watch this video for a review between quantitative and qualitative methodology.

Doing a quantitative study?
- There are two key tools below to help guide your process. Use these tools if you are doing a standalone quantitative study or to help design the quantitative portion of a mixed methods study.
  - Use this worksheet to help you design a quantitative research methodology
  - Learn about the steps in the process: read up on quantitative research here.

Doing a qualitative study?
- There are two key tools below to help guide your process. Use these tools if you are doing a standalone quantitative study or to help design the quantitative portion of a mixed methods study.
  - Use this worksheet to help you design a qualitative research methodology.
  - Learn about the steps in the process: read up on qualitative research here.

Foundation: The Problem, Purpose, and Research Questions

​​

Objectives

Understand the difference between the problem statement, purpose statement, and research questions.

Develop strong problem and purpose statements.

Create research questions that align with your problem and purpose.

Activities

What is the Problem, Purpose, and Research Question?

Once you have developed a topic, you will need to refine your focus within the topic. The problem, purpose, and research question(s) help you to do this. ​

Review the P/P/RQ Worksheet. This will help describe the problem, purpose, and research question and walk you through defining your own. Note in this process that the problem, purpose, and research questions are intricately related to each other.

Write out the problem, purpose, and research questions for your study. These will be a strong foundation for you to build your literature and study methodology.

​

Need Help?

Submit your work for review or schedule a meeting.

Create a Strong Literature Review ​

​

Objectives

Understand the purpose of a literature review.

Collect concrete approaches for doing a literature review, including helpful tools!

Develop a strong outline for your literature review.

Activities

Design a Strong Methodology

​

Objectives

Determine what methodology is right for your research question(s).

Understand the general research steps related to the methodology.

Define the specific elements of your research study.

Activities

Get organized.

Review your problem, purpose, and research questions. If you need help developing them, review the P/P/RQ worksheet

Review your key concepts and variables; you might look at your Chapter Two outline or subheadings to find these.

Determine your general methodology: quantitative, qualitative, or mixed method.

Your research question determines the methodology.

If you have a research question looking to understand relationships, differences, impact, or effects, you need to design a quantitative study to answer that question.

​​

Qualitative research often looks at the "how" and provides deep description of experiences. Qualitative research does not examine "impact" "cause" "effect" or "impact".

If your research questions are looking to describe the experiences or understand how an event, culture, or experience unfolds, you need to design a qualitative study to answer that question.

​​

Watch this video for a review between quantitative and qualitative methodology.

​

Doing a quantitative study?

There are two key tools below to help guide your process. Use these tools if you are doing a standalone quantitative study or to help design the quantitative portion of a mixed methods study.

Use this worksheet to help you design a quantitative research methodology

Learn about the steps in the process: read up on quantitative research here.

​

Doing a qualitative study?​

​There are two key tools below to help guide your process. Use these tools if you are doing a standalone quantitative study or to help design the quantitative portion of a mixed methods study.​

Need Help?

Submit your work for review or schedule a meeting with me.​​​​

Once you have developed a topic, you will need to refine your focus within the topic. The problem, purpose, and research question(s) help you to do this.

Create a Strong Literature Review

Doing a qualitative study?

There are two key tools below to help guide your process. Use these tools if you are doing a standalone quantitative study or to help design the quantitative portion of a mixed methods study.

Submit your work for review or schedule a meeting with me.