Need for topical expertise in quantitative methods : the example of college test preparation /

This case study draws on my quantitative study of college entrance exam preparation (also known as test prep) to illustrate how a researcher goes about setting up a quantitative project using existing datasets. I describe how I decided between two different datasets, a decision which required attent...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Devine Eller, Audrey Elizabeth, 1979- (Author)
Format: eBook
Language:English
Published: [Place of publication not identified] Sage Publications Ltd, 2017.
Series:SAGE Research Methods. Cases. Part 2.
Subjects:
Online Access:Connect to the full text of this electronic book
Description
Summary:This case study draws on my quantitative study of college entrance exam preparation (also known as test prep) to illustrate how a researcher goes about setting up a quantitative project using existing datasets. I describe how I decided between two different datasets, a decision which required attention to how the research question was asked. I also discuss how I decided on an analytic strategy, and how to interpret results from logistic regression analysis. I offer a detailed description of the ways that expert background knowledge shape research questions and decisions about the research from the very beginning. In particular, I discuss how the lack of expert knowledge might hinder efforts at understanding the statistical phenomenon at hand or even result in misunderstanding it altogether. I use the case study to illustrate a more general problem (what does no mean?) in the interpretation of quantitative survey questions which embed time-sensitive processes. Finally, I recommend that researchers draw on subject-matter expertise (their own or others) in designing and interpreting their studies.
Item Description:Title from content provider.
Physical Description:1 online resource
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:9781473979642
1473979641