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Research Methods

for Social Workers

A Practice- Based Approach

T H I R D E D I T I O N

Samuel S. Faulkner

Cynthia A. Faulkner

Copyright 2019. Oxford University Press.

All rights reserved. May not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except fair uses permitted under U.S. or applicable copyright law.

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Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication DataNames: Faulkner, Cynthia A., author. | Faulkner, Samuel S., author.

Title: Research methods for social workers : a practice- based approach / Samuel S. Faulkner, Cynthia A. Faulkner.

Description: Third edition. | New York, NY : Oxford University Press, 2019. |Cynthia A. Faulkner appears as the first named author on earlier editions.|

Includes bibliographical references and index.Identifiers: LCCN 2018015252 (print) | LCCN 2018016001 (ebook) | 

ISBN 9780190858957 (updf) | ISBN 9780190858964 (epub) | ISBN 9780190858940 (pbk. : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Social service— Research— Methodology.Classification: LCC HV11 (ebook) | LCC HV11 .F37 2019 (print) | 

DDC 361.0072/ 1— dc23LC record available at https:// lccn.loc.gov/ 2018015252

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CONTE NTS

Preface ixAcknowledgments xiAbout the Authors xiii

1. What Is Research? 1Importance of Social Work Research 1Defining Research 2Ways of Knowing 3Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed- Method Research 4Developing Your Research Questions 6What Is a Hypothesis? 7Research Designs 8Strengths and Limitations of Research 10Case Scenario 10Critical Thinking Questions 11Key Points 11Practice Exam 12

2. Ethical Considerations 13Historical Overview 13Respect for Individuals 14Beneficence 20Justice 22Other Ethical Considerations 23Case Scenario 25Critical Thinking Questions 26Key Points 26Practice Exam 26

3. Qualitative Research Designs 28How Is Qualitative Research Used? 28Descriptive Inquiry 29Speculative Inquiry 30Qualitative Research Methods 30Data Collection 35An Example of a Qualitative Study 39

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vi C O N T E N T S

Case Scenario 47Critical Thinking Questions 48Key Points 48Practice Exam 50

4. Literature Review 52What Is a Literature Review? 52Step 1: Conducting Your Search for Research Articles 54Step 2: Choosing Your Articles 55Step 3: Reviewing Your Articles 56Step 4: Organizing Your Search Results 60Step 5: Developing a Problem Statement or Hypothesis 64Step 6: Compiling Your Reference Page 65Case Scenario 67Critical Thinking Questions 67Key Points 67Practice Exam 68

5. Quantitative Research Designs 69Getting Started 69Developing a Testable Hypothesis 70What Is Descriptive Research? 70Correlation Versus Causation 71Data Collection 72Cross- Sectional and Longitudinal Designs 72Group Research Designs 74Case Scenario 80Critical Thinking Questions 80Key Points 81Practice Exam 81

6. Variables and Measures 83Variables in Research Design 83Viewing and Using Variables 84Types of Variables 84What Is a Measure? 87Defining and Operationalizing Measures 87Levels of Measurement 88Reliability and Validity in Measurement 92Case Scenario 96Critical Thinking Questions 97Key Points 97Practice Exam 98

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C O N T E N T S vii

7. Sampling 99What Is Sampling? 99Random Selection and Random Assignment 100Sample Size: How Many Is Enough? 100External and Internal Validity 101Probability Sampling 103Probability Sampling Techniques 103Sampling Error 106Nonprobability Sampling 106Limitations of Nonprobability Sampling 107Case Scenario 108Critical Thinking Questions 108Key Points 108Practice Exam 109

8. Survey Research 111Defining Survey Research 111Appropriate Survey Topics 112Developing a Survey 112Administering Surveys and Expected Rates of Returns 121Advantages and Disadvantages of Survey Research 124Case Scenario 125Critical Thinking Questions 125Key Points 125Practice Exam 126

9. Evaluative Research Designs 127Program Evaluation 128Process Evaluation 128Outcome Evaluation 132Strengths and Weaknesses of Program Evaluation 135Practical Considerations and Common Problems 136Case Scenario 137Critical Thinking Questions 138Key Points 138Practice Exam 138

10. Single- Subject Design 140What Is a Single- Subject Design? 140Elements of Single- Subject Design Research 141Types of Single- Subject Designs 144Strengths and Limitations of Single- Subject Designs 147Case Scenario 147Critical Thinking Questions 148

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viii C O N T E N T S

Key Points 148Practice Exam 148

11. Introduction to Descriptive Statistics 150What Is Data Analysis? 150The First Step of Data Analysis 150Descriptive Analysis 152Strengths and Limitations of Descriptive Statistics 160Case Scenario 161Critical Thinking Questions 161Key Points 161Practice Exam 162

12. Introduction to Inferential Statistics 164What Are Inferential Statistics? 164Four Types of Correlation 165Determining the Strength of the Correlation 166Probability Values and Confidence Intervals 167Parametric Statistics 167Nonparametric Statistics 174Strengths and Limitations of Inferential Statistics 176Which Statistical Program Is Right for Me? 176Case Scenario 177Critical Thinking Questions 177Key Points 177Practice Exam 178

13. Practicing Your Research Skills 180Example of a Research Proposal 180Example of a Research Report 190

Answers to Practice Exam 205Glossary 217References 227Index 229

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PR E FACE

Welcome to the third edition of Research Methods for Social Workers: A Practice- Based Approach. When we set out to write the first edition (now almost fifteen years ago) we had two major goals in mind: to create a research text that students would be able to understand and a book that they would actually read. Now, after the first edition in 2009 and the second edition in 2014, we have attempted, with each new edition to make the book even more user friendly and helpful, to you, the reader. The feedback from students has been gratifying and rewarding. Students tell us over and over that they appreciate this text because it makes re-search accessible to them— they actually read it and understand it.

At the same time, after having used the book (and garnering candid and appreciated feedback from other faculty who use the text), we have made some important additions and changes to the original text (while staying true to the readable and understandable style of the first edition). The order of the chapters is rearranged (not for the sake of having a new edition but because we feel this better fits the flow of introducing and developing the concepts of the research process). Also, in this edition, we have included some much- needed information to meet the changing and evolving standards of social work education.

As we continue to teach from this book, it continues to evolve and grow based on comments from students and other faculty members. We appreciate the thoughtful comments from our students and colleagues. A  special thank you goes out to Daniel Weisman, Professor of Social Work at Rhode Island College of Social Work, for his thoughtful comments and feedback— much of which we incorporated into this edition.

In short, we feel this new edition will be even more valuable in helping you to teach research methods to your students. As you use this book, we invite comments, feedback, suggestions, and other responses to help us know how we might improve future editions (and what you like or don’t like about this current edition). As fellow educators, we want to be as responsive and helpful as possible.

Thanks,Sam and Cindy Faulkner

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ACK NOW L E DGM E NTS

As with most writings, there are many people who contributed their time and expertise to this text. A special thank you goes to our colleagues and friends, Lisa Shannon and Lynn Geurin, associate professors of social work at Morehead State University, Kentucky, who have given valuable feedback and support. Our gratitude goes to David Follmer, consultant to Oxford University Press, for his encouragement and patience in the rewrite of the third edition of this book. We want to thank Daniel Weisman, Professor of Social Work at Rhode Island College of Social Work, for his thoughtful comments and feedback— much of which we incorporated into this edition. And special thanks go to our children (Wayne, Shay, Christina, Alisa, McKennzie, and Ezra) for inspiring us to be life-long learners and our fourteen grandchildren (so far), and our great- grandson for helping us stay young. “I can do everything through God who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13).

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A BOUT TH E AUTHOR S

Cynthia A. Faulkner has served as full- time social work faculty since 2001. She recently retired as Professor from Morehead State University after sixteen years of service to relocate to Corpus Christi, Texas, where she is near family. She is now serving as Professor and Program Director of the new online MSW pro-gram at Indiana Wesleyan University. Her previous titles include eight years as Field Education Coordinator and three years as BSW Program Coordinator. Dr. Faulkner has developed multiple online social work, courses including those used for a Chemical Dependency minor, and she is a Certified Quality Matters Reviewer. Dr.  Faulkner has also taught many study- abroad classes, taking students to England, Scotland, and Ireland to study child maltreatment with a specialty in abuse by priests. She is the co- author of a textbook under contract titled Addictions Counseling: A Competency- Based Approach (Oxford University Press).

Samuel S. Faulkner has been full- time faculty in social work since 2001 and re-tired as Professor from Morehead State University in June 2017. Now relocated in Corpus Christi, Texas, he is employed as Associate Professor at Texas A&M— Kingsville teaching in their new MSW Program. Previously, he has served as BSW Program Coordinator, Director of International Education, and thirteen years as Chair of the IRB. Dr. Faulkner served as Campus Representative to the Board of Directors for the Cooperative Center for Study Abroad from 2006 to 2014, and he was the onsite administrator for multiple programs including London Summer, London Winter, Ireland Summer, and Australia Summer. Dr. Faulkner created the first Chemical Dependency Minor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He has taught research courses, and he is co- author of a textbook under contact ti-tled Addictions Counseling: A Competency- Based Approach (Oxford University Press).

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Research Methods for Social Workers

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1

What Is Research?

R esearch has become an increasingly valuable tool for social work practitioners and scholars. Research is a systematic and methodolog-ical approach to creating knowledge. In social work, research is instru-

mental in the development of effective practice outcomes, or the outcomes of professional activities that are designed to improve or change the well- being of an individual, agency, or other system. For instance, we can research an issue concerning practice accountability, such as whether an intervention is effective, or we can measure an issue related to the characteristics of an agency population, such as changes in the ages of substance abuse admissions over time. Measuring practice accountability and monitoring agency populations both provide in-formation that can be used to create evidence- based practices. Evidence- based practices are practices whose efficacy is supported by evidence. In this chapter, we will discuss why research is important in social work practice and what re-search entails, critically examine ways of knowing, define the two fields of re-search, and provide an overview of four methods of research.

IMPORTA NCE OF SOCIA L WORK RESEA RCH

Perhaps you are asking yourself something along the lines of “Why should I have to take a class in research? After all, I  am interested in working with people. I could care less about research methods.” The reality is that research is gaining an increasingly important place in the practice of social work. For instance, managed care companies, insurance companies, and consumers themselves are demanding that social workers be able to demonstrate not only that the techniques, methods, and practices that they employ are useful and effective, but also that these practices can be used effectively in other settings and with other populations. Gone are the days when a social worker could rely on per-sonal intuition and undocumented outcomes as proof that his or her practices were effective. In fact, the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers has an entire section on evaluation and research. Section 5.02 stresses

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2 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

that “Social workers should monitor and evaluate policies, the implementation of programs, and practice interventions.” In addition, “Social workers should promote and facilitate evaluation and research to contribute to the development of knowledge” (National Association of Social Workers, 1999).

There are other reasons why researchers are compelled to adopt more rigorous ways of measuring the effectiveness of social work practice. In difficult eco-nomic times, as programs are experiencing a decrease in funding, it is becoming increasingly important to utilize evidence- based practices to demonstrate accountability. An increasing number of both government and private grant- funding sources are requiring evaluation components to be incorporated into grant proposals. In this age of shrinking dollars, foundations and governmental funding agencies want assurances that money is spent in the most effective way possible. Program evaluation can help agencies obtain or retain grants and other such funding by demonstrating program success. When writing proposals and developing new programs, social workers need to have at least a basic under-standing of how to carry out a program evaluation.

Additionally, by researching specific social problems, social workers can be-come agents of macro change. Social workers can devise social policies and large- scale interventions to alter inequality and injustice in their agencies and communities. For instance, a social service agency identifies a significant amount of no- shows for job- skills training appointments. The agency conducts a tele-phone survey to identify barriers that prevent clients from keeping appointments and discovers that lack of access to transportation is the most significant barrier and lack of child care the second most significant barrier. In response to these findings, an agency policy is developed to provide taxi tokens and child care vouchers to consumers with financial need.

DEFINING RESEA RCH

With that in mind, we turn to the question “What is research?” Chances are, you are already a researcher and do not know it. We often use research methods without actually labeling what we are doing as research. For example, think back to the last time you were going to see a movie. If you have ever solicited a review from a friend or read a review in a paper or magazine and then based your deci-sion to see the film on the reviewer’s opinion, you were utilizing research meth-odology. Similarly, if you have ever consulted a newspaper or a local television station for information about the weather so that you could decide how to dress for the day, you are utilizing research methods.

Research is, in its simplest form, the assimilation of knowledge and the gath-ering of data in a logical manner in order to become informed about something. We often consult with others whose opinions we value (friends, experts, etc.) and then make a decision based on our informed judgment. The process of conducting research is essentially the same, but much more thorough.

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What Is Research? 3

WAYS OF K NOWING

The Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers (1999) states that “Social workers should promote and facilitate evaluation and research to contribute to the development of knowledge” (section 5.02b). Have you ever wondered how we gain knowledge (how we know what we know)? Here, we will discuss four ways in which knowledge can be gained.

First, we can use our own experiences to gain knowledge. Simply by trial and error we can gradually make decisions about a problem and eventually de-velop enough knowledge to solve a problem. For instance, you require a cer-tain amount of sleep at night to feel rested the next day. A  pattern of sleep experiences over time provides you with enough information to determine the specific amount of sleep you require. However, in social work practice, personal experiences can be misleading because our experiences and the experiences of our consumers may be different, just as others may need more or less sleep than you do.

Second, we can rely on the knowledge of others. Agency supervisors and other coworkers who have years of practice experience can be important sources of knowledge. Many have developed tried- and- true practices that have over time become evidence- based practices. For instance, a supervisor explains that a par-ticular judge prefers for documentation on a case to be presented in a certain way and that this practice increases the possibility of a positive outcome in court. In addition, consulting an expert or some authority in a field outside our own ex-pertise can help us make better practice decisions.

However, if we rely on faulty information, we may be taking misperceptions as truth. For instance, many self- help books are available on how to intervene with an active alcoholic. While many are reliable resources, authors without evidence- based practice experiences may be offering advice that is based on just one person’s experience. Therefore, you must look at the qualifications of the person who is offering advice and ensure it has been shown to be reliable and valid through repeated positive outcomes.

Third, we can rely on traditions. Tradition provides us with knowledge passed down over time. Many new social work practitioners are indoctrinated into agency practice through the established practices of those who have worked there over time. For instance, agency traditions may include weekly team meetings to staff cases, debriefing with a supervisor after a difficult assessment, and identifying caseload counts to ensure equitable distribution. These practices have proved to increase accountability, reduce turnover rates, and monitor workloads, all of which are beneficial. However, there are traditions that are not best practices. For instance, taking consumer files home to work on, giving consumers our home or cell phone numbers, and standardized group notes are practices that can bring up issues of confidentiality, boundaries, and lack of individualized documentation. We have to be careful when relying on tradition, however. Just because a practice or tradition is “how it has always been done” does not make

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4 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

it a best practice. In some ways, tradition is the least reliable source for gaining knowledge.

The fourth way to gather knowledge is by using scientific methods to answer our questions. By researching our questions, we can increase our knowledge about a particular issue or population. It should be noted that one misconception about research is that studies are large experiments that are able to solve whole problems. The truth is that the research process involves small incremental steps. Each study adds a small piece of information to the whole. The process is much like painting a picture. Each brushstroke, each dab of paint, adds a small amount of detail until eventually a coherent picture emerges. Each stroke or dab of paint, standing alone, may not represent much, but when all the dabs of paint are viewed together as a whole, we see a picture. Research studies, by themselves, may only explain a small part of the whole, but, when linked together with other studies, they begin to help us see a larger picture or describe an occurrence. For example, there is a plethora of child maltreatment research. Some studies may examine characteristics of the abusers, others the abused children, and still others the family dynamics of families in which child abuse is occurring. Each study is a small part that contributes to our understanding of child maltreatment.

Therefore, one study is not sufficient to apply to everyone. Different studies may have different— and sometimes opposite— findings because of the specific characteristics of the populations being researched. For instance, a child protec-tion agency in a large urban city may report a high percentage of parents using street drugs, whereas a small rural community may report a high percentage of parents using prescription drugs. As you can see, the findings of the larger urban study do not apply to the rural study because the characteristics of the populations are different.

In summary, it is important to explore all possible ways of knowing about social work practice. The Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers (1999) emphasizes that “Social workers should critically examine and keep current with emerging knowledge relevant to social work” (section 5.01c). Critical examination of personal experiences, the experiences of others, traditions, and research methods can contribute to evidence- based practices in social work. The ability to use critical thinking to determine how reliable the information is an important skill for all social work practitioners. Incompatible findings are the result of different decisions made by researchers, and this book will teach you to determine which studies are relatively better.

QUA LITATIVE, QUA NTITATIVE, A ND MIXED- METHOD RESEA RCH

There are two overarching ways of gathering data, or fields of research. These are qualitative research methods and quantitative research methods. Qualitative research is concerned with developing knowledge where little or none exists and uses words, observations, and descriptions to develop this knowledge.

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What Is Research? 5

Quantitative research is concerned with expanding knowledge that already exists and using numerical data to report the findings from the research. But perhaps you want to use both qualitative and quantitative methods, or a mixed- method design, in your research. Mixed- method designs allow researchers to design a study using both qualitative and quantitative methods by using numer-ical and textual data.

Qualitative Research

Social work is a profession that owes a large debt of gratitude to many other disciplines. Anthropology, psychology, sociology, and medicine have all contributed to the development of our profession. One of the areas in which this becomes exceedingly clear is the field of qualitative research. Qualitative research has deep roots in the fields of anthropology and sociology, where the development of rigorous and exact methods for fieldwork has long been fostered.

The use of qualitative research methods is debated among social work practitioners, faculty, researchers, and other professionals. It is generally agreed that qualitative research is employed when little or nothing is known about a subject or when the researcher wants to gain an in- depth understanding of a person’s experience. Some may argue that qualitative methods are better suited to studies on complicated topics such as a person’s comfort level with death, how it feels to be unemployed, or how a child views the drinking habits of an al-coholic parent. Qualitative research primarily relies on information generated from observations of the researcher and discussions and interviews with study participants. However, researchers engaged in qualitative research might also gather some descriptive information such as the demographics of participants and their settings in order to place their experiences within a context. In their simplest form, qualitative research methods are used to help us understand the characteristics of a phenomenon. Often this type of research uncovers these characteristics by focusing on the ideas of the people involved.

As an example, let us imagine for a moment that you are a case manager in a community health agency and the year is 1982. You have noticed that a large number of your consumers who report being intravenous drug users are also suffering from a strange new illness that seems to impair their immune system. You may be aware that acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was a rel-atively unknown disease in 1982 and that scientists were just beginning to un-derstand the causes of the transmission of this disease. As a case manager, you may want to design a qualitative study that will help you explore the experiences of those who are suffering from this disease by interviewing people living with AIDS (recording their own words). You may also want to collect some demo-graphic information such as sex, age, race, and length of illness to describe their experiences within the context of the research population.

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6 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

Quantitative Research

Advocates of quantitative research argue that it is only through the use of methods that report numerical representation that the social sciences can be-come truly valid. Quantitative research seeks to explain relationships between two or more factors. The aim of quantitative research is to determine how one thing (a variable) affects another in a population. A variable is any attribute or characteristic that changes or assumes different values. Variables can represent subject characteristics (e.g., age, race, sex) or the things you are really interested in (e.g., agency performance; rate of relapse in addiction treatment; physiolog-ical, psychological, or sociological causes of child maltreatment). Variables can also represent the effect of any intervention that subjects receive, such as a cul-tural sensitivity training.

Mixed- Method Research

Mixed- method research uses both qualitative and quantitative research designs. Using more than one research method while collecting and analyzing data in a study is called concurrent mixed- method research. When data collected through the use of one type of research design provide a basis for the collection of data using the other type, this is called sequential mixed- method research. There are several reasons to use a mixed- method design. Among these are that it can test the consistency of findings obtained through different forms of data collection. This is referred to as triangulation; this means that the findings from the methods used are consistent and support each other. Or a researcher might use a mixed- method design because it allows him or her to use qualitative methods to add richness and detail to the results obtained from the use of quantitative methods. Researchers may also choose a mixed- method design so they can use results from one method to shape subsequent methods or steps in the research process. This is frequently seen when a qualitative study is used to shape a quan-titative study. In addition, mixed- method research can be used as a means to de-velop new research questions or to use one method to challenge results obtained through another method.

DEVELOPING YOUR RESEA RCH QUESTIONS

You may be asking yourself at this point, “Where do research questions orig-inate?” Research questions may arise from your personal experience. Thus, a person who was adopted may feel compelled to study the factors that make adoptions work well for children. Research questions may develop out of re-search articles or theories you are studying. A  theory is a statement or set of statements designed to explain a phenomenon based upon observations and

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What Is Research? 7

experiments and often agreed upon by most experts in a particular field. For example, you may want to test the credibility of the claims put forth by a devel-opmental theory on aging that you learned about in one of your human behav-ior classes. Research questions may arise out of your own practice experience. Regardless of the source, most questions are born out of the researcher’s personal interest in a subject.

To illustrate this process, we may begin with an observation (“This person smiles at me and goes out of her way to help me”), then we have an idea (“This person would make a good friend”), and then we develop a question (“Does this person like me?”). We can examine this question by drawing from our past experiences, by consulting others, or by asking the person directly.

When you are developing research questions, there are some issues to keep in mind. The first thing to consider is whether the question is empirical. This means the researcher must decide whether it can be quantified. For example, a question such as “What is the best religion?” is both value laden and subjective (“the best”). As a researcher, you need to be careful to remember that we can study values in order to understand what others think, but we cannot conduct research on values in order to evaluate them. Therefore, we can approach value- laden issues through qualitative methods that are meant to deal with the sub-jective questions we would have— this would eliminate any objectivity from the research. “How many people cheat on their partner?” or “Has having an abortion prevented further unwanted pregnancies?” are both examples of questions that attempt to quantify issues of moral worth and can be measured through quan-titative methods.

WHAT IS A HYPOTHESIS?

A hypothesis is a research statement about relationships between variables that is testable and that can be accepted or rejected based on the evidence. Therefore, you can only develop hypotheses that are quantifiable. To design a study to test your hypothesis, you use quantitative research methods. Hypotheses are divided into two categories:  research hypotheses and null hypotheses. The research hy-pothesis asserts that there is a relationship between the variables, and the null hypothesis claims that the relationship between the variables can be rejected. In other words, the null hypothesis is what the researcher is attempting to re-ject. For example, we may have a null hypothesis that no difference exists be-tween a treatment group and a nontreatment group after intervention. If this is rejected, then the research hypothesis that the treatment group will be different from the nontreatment group after intervention (e.g., less sick or more educated) is supported. Hypotheses are typically abbreviated as Ho (null hypothesis), Ha (research hypothesis), and H1, H2, H3 (a number is used when there is more than one research hypothesis).

Imagine that you are working at an emergency shelter with a consumer named Joe.Joe is in need of permanent housing (he has been living on the streets for

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8 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

the past two years). While you are collecting assessment history with Joe, he discloses that he has a long history of drug abuse. One initial hypothesis may be “A history of substance abuse is related to not having stable housing.” In fur-ther discussions with Joe, you explore this hypothesis with him, and he confirms that his substance abuse has interfered with his ability to seek and keep a job— a strong factor in his being homeless. You then decide to design a research study to determine if this relationship between substance abuse and homelessness exists beyond your client. You can also test a second hypothesis that looks at the rela-tionship between substance abuse and unemployment.

RESEA RCH DESIGNS

There are different designs that researchers can choose from to collect data in conducting qualitative, quantitative, and mixed- method research. Exploratory designs are exclusively grounded in qualitative research, and explanatory designs are exclusively grounded in quantitative research. Descriptive designs, evaluative designs, and single- subject designs can draw from either or both types of research.

Exploratory Designs

An exploratory design is a type of research design that allows us to use our powers of observation, inquiry, and assessment to form tentative theories about what we are seeing and experiencing. It is generally used to explore understudied topics. In essence, we need to find out about a phenomenon. By asking an open- ended question (that is, a question that is worded in a way that allows the re-spondent to answer in his or her own words as opposed to merely soliciting a yes- or- no response) and observing the environment, we can begin to identify common themes from the information we gather. For instance, imagine you are a crisis call worker shortly after the 9/ 11 terrorist attacks. You are receiving a high volume of calls from rescue workers involved in the recovery of human remains. You have little or no knowledge about this experience; therefore, you explore the callers’ experiences with them by asking questions such as “What is it like for you?” After listening to several workers, you might discover evidence of a common theme, for example, that the callers have been experiencing periods of tearfulness. Based on this evidence, you can then tell other callers that this experience appears to be common among rescue workers.

Explanatory Designs

An explanatory design is a type of research design that focuses on examining the relationships between two or more factors and attempting to determine if

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What Is Research? 9

they are related, and, if so, in what ways and how strongly they are related. For example, you may believe there is a relationship between the amount of time students spend studying for their research methods class and their final course grade in that class. Your hypothesis might be “The more students study research methods, the better their grades in that course will be.” In fact, you would be able to find studies that have provided evidence that a relationship exists. If you were so inclined, it would be possible to design a study to examine just how strong the relationship is between hours spent studying and final course grades.

Descriptive Designs

In a sense, all research is descriptive by nature because it describes how and/ or why a phenomenon occurs. Qualitative research methods do this using words and quantitative research methods using numbers. A  descriptive design is a method that can be used to seek information that uses numeric language (how many, how much, etc.) to describe a population or phenomenon. This can be used in both qualitative and quantitative methods of research. For example, if you are conducting a quantitative study of victims of domestic violence, you may want to collect information on certain characteristics, such as their average age, what percentage of them have children, and the type of abuse and how frequently is occurs. You might also ask them to interpret the severity of the last abuse epi-sode using a scale from 1 to 5. It is important to note here that although this type of research looks at patterns such as how often an event occurs or ways these answers develop in relation to each other, it does not try to address why these patterns exist.

Descriptive information is also collected during qualitative studies to help put the experiences into context with the population reporting them. For example, while conducting interviews with 9/ 11 rescue workers, you might also collect in-formation on how many of these individuals are firefighters, police officers, health professionals, volunteer civilians, and so forth. By using this mixed- method design, you may also be reporting how frequently the rescue workers reported similar textual information— for example, “Six out of ten volunteers stated they would volunteer again, regardless of the difficulties they are experiencing now.”

Evaluative Designs

Evaluative designs can also draw from both fields of research. An evalua-tive design draws from qualitative research methods when statements made in interviews and focus groups and written comments are used to describe outcomes. For instance, positive comments from a survey may be included in a program evaluation to demonstrate consumer satisfaction. Evaluative designs can also draw from the quantitative field of research. For instance, an evaluative

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10 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

design might examine how many and what type of residents were serviced at an agency over the past month.

Single- Subject Designs

Finally, a single- subject design uses systematic methodology to measure an individual’s progress over time and measures whether a relationship exists be-tween an intervention and a specific outcome. These designs can also draw from either or both methods of research. In a study using qualitative methods, the consumer’s own statement that he or she is suicidal might be used to justify an extension for mental health treatment from an insurance company.

STRENGTHS A ND LIMITATIONS OF RESEA RCH

A major strength of research is that it can help us gain an understanding of many social problems. Through research, we can gain knowledge of issues such as child maltreatment, domestic violence, and substance abuse. Another benefit is that research has led to the development of new agency policies, greater practice accountability, evidence- based treatment strategies, and new knowledge.

Research also has inherent limitations. First, research is conducted in small steps that are often repeated to build evidence. Each new study adds to the overall body of knowledge, which is considered a strength. However, knowledge is built slowly over time— not in quantum leaps. A second limitation of research is that the knowledge that it yields is confined to the questions that are asked. Only by asking enough relevant questions can we obtain useful answers. Finally, research is subject to bias. Bias is the unknown or unacknowledged error created during the design of the research method, in the choice of problem to be studied, over the course of the study itself, or during the interpretation of findings. This is not to say that the research is necessarily flawed— only limited. For example, if your study examines parents’ use of corporal punishment with their children but all your research participants are white, your findings are racially biased. Therefore, bias can be unintentional and sometimes unavoidable but must al-ways be identified as a limitation.

CASE SCENA RIO

You are a case manager working in a homeless shelter in a large metropolitan city. Assigned to your caseload is a family of four— the father, Art; the mother, Janice; and twin boys (aged seven), Matt and Justin. The mother and father are both hearing impaired. The twin sons do not have a hearing impairment, but they use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate with their parents. Art and

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What Is Research? 11

Janice communicate with each other using ASL and communicate with you (and other hearing people) using a combination of lip reading and written notes. Both the parents were employed at a local manufacturing plant until about six months ago when they were laid off. They moved in with relatives until the relatives were no longer able to afford having an additional four people living with them. They are now homeless and living on the street. As a case manager, you wish to learn more about them, their challenges in living with a disability (hearing impair-ment), and the customs and culture of the deaf community.

CRITICA L THINKING QUESTIONS

Based on the information in this chapter, answer the following questions:

1. Which research method qualitative (exploratory) or quantitative (explanatory) would be most appropriate with your clients? Give reasons for choosing this method.

2. What are three questions that you might ask your clients that would help you to better understand them, their world, and their culture?

3. What would be at least one limitation of your findings?

KEY POINTS

• Research is the process of systematically gaining information.• Research is becoming increasingly important as governing agencies

demand evidence that programs and practices are effective.• Knowledge is gained through our own experiences, through others,

through tradition, and through the use of scientific methods.• There are two types of research methods: qualitative research methods

and quantitative research methods. When both research methods are used, this is called a mixed- method design.

• Research questions may arise from personal experience, out of research articles or theories under study, or out of practice experience and are born out of the researcher’s personal interest in a subject.

• Hypotheses are research statements about relationships between variables that are testable and that can be accepted or rejected based on the findings from a study.

• Exploratory research designs allow the researcher to use his or her powers of observation, inquiry, and assessment to form tentative theories about what is being seen and experienced.

• Descriptive research designs use descriptive language to provide information about a phenomenon.

• Explanatory research designs attempt to explain the relationship between two or more factors.

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12 R E S E A R C H M E T H O D S F O R S O C I A L W O R K E R S

• Evaluative research designs attempt to examine the effectiveness of programs and services.

• Single- subject designs are used to measure a person’s progress over time.

PR ACTICE EX AM

True or False

1. There are four types of research. These are qualitative, inferential, descriptive, and informative.

2. Quantitative research is usually characterized by the fact that results are reported in numerical terms (in numbers and figures).

3. The Social Work Code of Ethics promotes social workers conducting research.

Multiple Choice

4. Knowledge is transferred in four ways. These four ways are:a. tradition, others’ experiences, our experience, our best guess.b. others’ experiences, our experience, scientific inquiry, expert opinion.c. our experience, others’ experiences or knowledge, tradition, and the

scientific method.d. others’ experiences, our knowledge, tradition, and the Internet.

5. Quantitative research is most often associated with what?a. explanatory researchb. research that determines why a phenomenon existsc. research that is generalizable to a large populationd. exploratory researche. none of the above

6. The NASW _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ of _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ recommends that social workers conduct research.

7. Hypotheses are divided into two categories: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ hypotheses and _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ hypotheses.

8. Single- subject designs measure an _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ progress over time.

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