Research methods for public administrators

Research methods for public administrators /

A simple, straightforward presentation of the concepts, methods, and tools of research in the public sector, emphasizing the "how" of research - how to do it, how to make sense of it--all in one reader-friendly volume stripped of arcane theory and impenetrable mathematics. Without jargon o...

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Bibliographic Details
Online Access: Full text (MCPHS users only)
Main Author: Johnson, Gail, 1947-
Format: Electronic eBook
Language:English
Published: Westport, CT : Quorum Books, 2002
Subjects:
Public administration > Research > Methodology.
Local Note:ProQuest Ebook Central
Table of Contents:
  • Cover
  • Research Methods for Public Administrators
  • Contents
  • Illustrations
  • FIGURES
  • TABLES
  • Acknowledgments
  • 1 Introduction: Research Methods for Public Administrators
  • INTENTION
  • WHY IS RESEARCH IMPORTANT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR?
  • WHAT IS RESEARCH?
  • TYPES OF RESEARCH
  • THE RESEARCH PROCESS
  • ETHICS AND PRINCIPLES OF GOOD RESEARCH
  • OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK
  • 2 Basic Concepts
  • THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF SCIENCE
  • Theory
  • Hypothesis
  • Variables
  • Variable Values
  • RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN VARIABLES
  • Direction of Relationships
  • Direct Relationship
  • Inverse Relationship
  • Nonlinear
  • THE CHALLENGE OF DETERMINING RELATIONSHIPS
  • MEASURING RESULTS: PROGRAM OUTCOME MODEL
  • CONCLUSION
  • 3 What Is Your Question?
  • DETERMINING YOUR QUESTION
  • TYPES OF QUESTIONS
  • Descriptive Questions
  • Normative Questions
  • Relationship Questions
  • A Logical Theory
  • Time Order
  • Co-variation
  • Elimination of Rival Explanations
  • LINKAGE: QUESTIONS AND HYPOTHESES
  • CONCLUSION
  • NOTE
  • 4 Designing a Research Study
  • HOW DOES DESIGN CONNECT TO THE QUESTIONS?
  • ELEMENTS OF DESIGN
  • Before and After Measures
  • Comparison Groups
  • Random Assignment
  • TYPES OF DESIGN
  • Experimental Design
  • Quasi-Experimental Designs
  • Correlational Design with Statistical Controls
  • Interrupted Time Series
  • Nonexperimental (or Pre-Experimental) Design
  • Pre/Post Without Controls (Also Called Before and After Design)
  • Static Group Comparison
  • The One-Shot Design
  • CASE STUDY
  • INTERNAL VALIDITY
  • Threats to Internal Validity
  • History
  • Maturation
  • Testing
  • Instrumentation
  • Regression to the Mean
  • Selection
  • Attrition
  • KEY POINTS ABOUT DESIGN
  • CONCLUSION
  • 5 Choosing Measures
  • DEVELOPING A MEASUREMENT STRATEGY
  • Defining Key Terms
  • Definition Challenges
  • Setting Boundaries
  • Operational Definitions.
  • KEY ISSUES ABOUT MEASURES
  • CONCLUSION
  • 6 Data Collection: Observation and Available Data
  • DATA COLLECTION: THE DEGREE OF STRUCTURE
  • COMMON DATA COLLECTION APPROACHES
  • OBSERVATION
  • AVAILABLE DATA
  • Collecting Data from Existing Reports
  • Evaluation Synthesis and Meta-Analysis
  • Collecting Data from Paper Files or Records
  • Collecting Data from Files and Records: Data Collection Instruments
  • Collecting Data from Documents
  • Content Analysis
  • Collecting Computer Data
  • CONCLUSION
  • 7 Data Collection: Surveys and Focus Groups
  • SURVEY RESEARCH
  • In-Person Interviews
  • Example of Skip Questions
  • Questionnaires
  • Response Rate
  • FOCUS GROUPS
  • Typical Elements of Focus Groups
  • How Many Focus Groups?
  • CONCLUSION
  • 8 Sampling Demystified
  • SAMPLING: THE JARGON
  • TYPES OF SAMPLES: RANDOM AND NON-RANDOM
  • Random Sample
  • Types of Random Samples
  • Simple Random Sample
  • Stratified Random Sample
  • Cluster Sample
  • Non-Random Sampling
  • Types of Non-Random Samples
  • Quota
  • Accidental
  • Snowball
  • Judgmental
  • Convenience
  • Combining Random and Non-Random Sampling
  • DETERMINING SAMPLE SIZE FOR RANDOM SAMPLES
  • How Large a Sample?
  • CONCLUSION
  • 9 Data Analysis for Description
  • ANALYZING QUALITATIVE DATA
  • QUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS
  • Commonly Used Descriptive Statistics
  • Frequency Distribution
  • Interpreting the Scales
  • Other Descriptive Analysis Techniques
  • Rates
  • Ratio
  • Rate of Change
  • Describing Distributions
  • Measures of Dispersion
  • DESCRIBING TWO VARIABLES AT THE SAME TIME
  • Crosstabs or Contingency Tables
  • Comparison of Means
  • COMMON INTERPRETATION MISTAKES
  • 10 Data Analysis: Exploring Relationships
  • USING CROSSTABS TO EXAMINE RELATIONSHIPS
  • CONTROLLING FOR A THIRD VARIABLE
  • EXPLORING RELATIONSHIPS: COMPARISON OF MEANS
  • STRENGTH OF RELATIONSHIP.
  • Measures of Association
  • FREQUENTLY USED MEASURES OF ASSOCIATION
  • Crosstab Analysis Using Nominal Data
  • Crosstab Analysis or Correlation Analysis Using Ordinal Data
  • CORRELATIONS WITH INTERVAL/RATIO DATA
  • Regression Analysis
  • Multiple Regression
  • CONCLUSION
  • 11 Data Analysis Using Inferential Statistics
  • THE LOGIC OF STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE TESTING
  • Potential Errors in Inference:
  • Type I Error
  • Type II Error
  • Directional and Non-Directional Hypotheses
  • COMMON TESTS FOR STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE
  • Chi-Square
  • T-tests: Analyzing the Difference in Means
  • Testing a Hypothesis about a Single Mean
  • Testing Paired Results: Paired Samples
  • Testing a Hypothesis about Two Independent Means
  • Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
  • Tests for Statistical Significance in Regression Analysis
  • REPORTING RESULTS OF STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE
  • CONCLUSION
  • 12 Putting the Pieces Together
  • HOW PUBLIC ADMINISTRATORS CAN USE RESEARCH METHODS
  • QUALITY ASSURANCE IN RESEARCH
  • LIMITATIONS OF QUANTITATIVE TECHNIQUES
  • CONCLUSION
  • Appendix A The Mathematical Formulae for Selected Statistics
  • COMMON COMPARISON TECHNIQUES
  • Calculating Rates
  • Calculating a Ratio
  • Calculating the Rate of Change
  • COMMON DESCRIPTIVE TECHNIQUES
  • Mean
  • Median
  • Variance
  • Standard Deviation
  • Z-Score
  • MAKING ESTIMATES USING SAMPLE DATA
  • The Confidence Interval
  • Sampling Error
  • CALCULATING TESTS FOR STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE
  • Chi-Square
  • T-tests
  • Measures of Relationship
  • NOTES
  • Appendix B Glossary
  • Appendix C Merit Principles Survey 2000
  • Appendix D 2000 Citizen Survey Results
  • Sampling error
  • Representativeness of respondents
  • Follow-up on non-respondents
  • Neighborhoods
  • Results
  • Appendix E Guidelines for Reporting Research Results
  • GUIDELINES FOR WRITING RESEARCH REPORTS.
  • GUIDELINES FOR WRITING AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
  • GUIDELINES FOR FORMATTING THE REPORT
  • GUIDELINES FOR USING CHARTS AND TABLES
  • GUIDELINES FOR PRESENTATIONS
  • Appendix F Resources
  • WEB SITES:
  • Index
  • About the Author.

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