Going over: people and their times

Author(s):  
Alasdair Whittle

This concluding chapter does not aim to be a magisterial overview or a comprehensive summary. The preceding chapters speak for themselves of the range and quality of research currently being carried out across north-west Europe relevant to the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. Instead, the chapter offers some brief, personal reflections on what we are doing well and what we could still do better, and thus tries to define some of the continuing challenges for future research.

2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-39
Author(s):  
John L. Luckner ◽  
Rashida Banerjee ◽  
Sara Movahedazarhouligh ◽  
Kaitlyn Millen

Current federal legislation emphasizes the use of programs, interventions, strategies, and activities that have been demonstrated through research to be effective. One way to increase the quantity and quality of research that guides practice is to conduct replication research. The purpose of this study was to undertake a systematic review of the replication research focused on self-determination conducted between 2007 and 2017. Using methods used by Cook and colleagues, we identified 80 intervention studies on topics related to self-determination, of which 31 were coded as replications. Intervention study trends, rate of replication studies, percentage of agreements between findings of original and replication studies, amount of author overlap, and types of research designs used are reported along with recommendations for future research.


Author(s):  
Kathryn Rayson ◽  
Louise Waddington ◽  
Dougal Julian Hare

Abstract Background: Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is in high demand due to its strong evidence base and cost effectiveness. To ensure CBT is delivered as intended in research, training and practice, fidelity assessment is needed. Fidelity is commonly measured by assessors rating treatment sessions, using CBT competence scales (CCSs). Aims: The current review assessed the quality of the literature examining the measurement properties of CCSs and makes recommendations for future research, training and practice. Method: Medline, PsychINFO, Scopus and Web of Science databases were systematically searched to identify relevant peer-reviewed, English language studies from 1980 onwards. Relevant studies were those that were primarily examining the measurement properties of CCSs used to assess adult 1:1 CBT treatment sessions. The quality of studies was assessed using a novel tool created for this study, following which a narrative synthesis is presented. Results: Ten studies met inclusion criteria, most of which were assessed as being ‘fair’ methodological quality, primarily due to small sample sizes. Construct validity and responsiveness definitions were applied inconsistently in the studies, leading to confusion over what was being measured. Conclusions: Although CCSs are widely used, we need to pay careful attention to the quality of research exploring their measurement properties. Consistent definitions of measurement properties, consensus about adequate sample sizes and improved reporting of individual properties are required to ensure the quality of future research.


Author(s):  
Rebecca Golenya ◽  
George D Chloros ◽  
Michalis Panteli ◽  
Peter V Giannoudis ◽  
Anthony Howard

Patient and public involvement involves ascertaining the opinions of and collaborating with patients and members of the public to holistically improve the quality of research. Patient and public involvement provides patients with a platform to use and share their lived experiences. This allows healthcare professionals to gain a deeper appreciation of the patient's perspective, which enables future research to be more patient centred and tailored to patients' requirements. Patient and public involvement aims to broadly encapsulate the opinions of the public, so ensuring diversity is recommended. This article provides a practical framework to increase diversity and engage hard-to-reach demographics in patient and public involvement. It highlights some common barriers to participation and methods for overcoming this, describes sampling frameworks and provides examples of how these have been adopted in practice.


2005 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 491-501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeanette Harder

Child abuse and neglect is a problem of vast proportions. Research on the effectiveness of child abuse and neglect prevention programs is critical for the provision of effective and efficient services. This article is a critical analysis of the research methodologies on child abuse and neglect prevention programs at the secondary and tertiary levels as represented in the empirical literature. The article describes child abuse and neglect prevention programs, describes and analyzes the research conducted on these programs, and suggests ways to improve and validity of future research. There is a need for greater quantity and quality of research on child abuse and neglect prevention programs, including the increased use of comparison groups, larger sample sizes, and follow-up measurement.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10(1) (10(1)) ◽  
pp. 288-301
Author(s):  
Peter Onyonje Osiako ◽  
Viktória Szente

The quantity and quality of research output available on the subject of domestic tourism in Kenya is yet to be sufficiently documented. This review evaluates trends in the studies carried out on this subject and establishes perspectives revealed in these studies' findings. Methodologically, this is a conceptual review of integrative nature in which the reviewer summarized the findings of other studies conducted on domestic tourism in different parts of Kenya. Both published and unpublished works addressing domestic tourism in Kenya, and authored in the English language from January 1990 to August 2020 have been considered in the review. The reviewer used keywords to search relevant databases, arriving at thirty two pieces of work that were reviewed. The analysis focuses on themes covered by previous studies, methodologies used, and perspectives revealed in key findings. The review established a gap in existing literature in terms of quantity, quality, and scope, as discussed in the document. Recommendations are highlighted on ways to improve future research on domestic tourism in Kenya. This review will inform future approaches to research on domestic tourism in Kenya, for better policies and practice.


1976 ◽  
Vol 9 (01) ◽  
pp. 8-17
Author(s):  
David Calhoun Leege

The Political Science Program of the National Science Foundation is the primary source of support for basic research conducted by university-based political scientists. While the scientific progress of the discipline depends on what happens in the minds, the fields, the laboratories, the libraries, and the typewriters of scholars across the country, there is little question that the size of the Program budget and its usage affects the type and quality of research done by political scientists.This article offers a public accounting to an interested clientele. In no way is it an officially sanctioned statement from NSF. It is a set of personal reflections with some analysis, parts of which my superiors at the Foundation find objectionable. Some of the arguments will not please important sectors of the discipline's intellectual and political leadership as well. I offer it in hopes of stimulating reaction and change. It is limited to basic research support, primarily through the Political Science Program, and does not extend to support for applied research funded typically through RANN-NSF. Finally, the Foundation is effecting a major reorganization which may have far-reaching consequences for the Division of Social Science of which the Program is a part; thus what is said here is subject to change over the next few years.


Author(s):  
Marcy Meyer ◽  
Kiesha Warren-Gordon

This study is a collaborative investigation that melds traditional qualitative social scientific and contemporary autoethnographic methods to examine diversified mentoring relationships at a midsized midwestern state university (MMSU). The first author conducted 21 semi - structured interview s with MMSU faculty members and professional personnel who were members of underrepresented minority (URM) groups. A thematic analysis of the data, informed by the literature on developmental relationships and intergroup communication, reveals a number of problems with MMSU’s formal mentoring program and intergroup communication climate. Moreover, the findings indicate that the quality of mentoring relationships affects protégés’ co - cultural communication practices. The second author, who is also a participant in the project, interjects her personal reflections about diversified mentoring relationships throughout the analysis. Together, the authors give voice to participants’ suggestions to improve the quality of mentoring that occurs in MMSU’s contact space and explore the implications of the findings for future research about diversified mentoring relationships.


2015 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 624-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rozalia Kouvelioti ◽  
George Vagenas

The assessment of dietary attitudes and behaviors provides information of interest to sports nutritionists. Although there has been little analysis of the quality of research undertaken in this field, there is evidence of a number of flaws and methodological concerns in some of the studies in the available literature. This review undertook a systematic assessment of the attributes of research assessing the nutritional knowledge and attitudes of athletes and coaches. Sixty questionnaire-based studies were identified by a search of official databases using specific key terms with subsequent analysis by certain inclusion–exclusion criteria. These studies were then analyzed using 33 research quality criteria related to the methods, questionnaires, and statistics used. We found that many studies did not provide information on critical issues such as research hypotheses (92%), the gaining of ethics approval (50%) or informed consent (35%), or acknowledgment of limitations in the implementation of studies or interpretation of data (72%). Many of the samples were nonprobabilistic (85%) and rather small (42%). Many questionnaires were of unknown origin (30%), validity (72%), and reliability (70%) and resulted in low (≤ 60%) response rates (38%). Pilot testing was not undertaken in 67% of the studies. Few studies dealt with sample size (2%), power (3%), assumptions (7%), confidence intervals (3%), or effect sizes (3%). Improving some of these problems and deficits may enhance future research in this field.


2017 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 512-543 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian V. Sabey ◽  
Cade T. Charlton ◽  
Daniel Pyle ◽  
Benjamin Lignugaris-Kraft ◽  
Scott W. Ross

The purpose of this article is to synthesize the existing research on classwide social, emotional, and behavioral programs for kindergarten students. The researchers identified 26 studies in peer-reviewed journals and dissertation databases to review. Each study was examined and coded in terms of study characteristics, strength of evidence, and quality of evidence. The interventions represented in the studies were grouped into four categories: social–emotional learning, behavioral, coping skills, and other. The studies of behavioral interventions demonstrated the strongest effects on increasing prosocial behavior and decreasing antisocial behavior. These studies also included the highest quality of research. The social–emotional learning intervention studies consistently demonstrated weaker effects and lower quality research. The remaining categories included too few studies to draw meaningful conclusions. Implications for practice and future research regarding classwide kindergarten social, emotional, and behavioral interventions are discussed.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. e0253911
Author(s):  
Marlene Sophie Altenmüller ◽  
Leonie Lucia Lange ◽  
Mario Gollwitzer

Research is often fueled by researchers’ scientific, but also their personal interests: Sometimes, researchers decide to pursue a specific research question because the answer to that question is idiosyncratically relevant for themselves: Such “me-search” may not only affect the quality of research, but also how it is perceived by the general public. In two studies (N = 621), we investigate the circumstances under which learning about a researcher’s “me-search” increases or decreases laypeople’s ascriptions of trustworthiness and credibility to the respective researcher. Results suggest that participants’ own preexisting attitudes towards the research topic moderate the effects of “me-search” substantially: When participants hold favorable attitudes towards the research topic (i.e., LGBTQ or veganism), “me-searchers” were perceived as more trustworthy and their research was perceived as more credible. This pattern was reversed when participants held unfavorable attitudes towards the research topic. Study 2 furthermore shows that trustworthiness and credibility perceptions generalize to evaluations of the entire field of research. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.


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