Measurement Development and Validation in Research

This chapter describes the importance of measurement in social research and education research. In order to validly compare across groups, whether it is age, gender, ethnicities, or cultures, measurement invariance needs to be established. This is accomplished through single-group and multi-group confirmatory factor analysis. The procedural approach is presented with a detailed illustration from real research in servant leadership in K-12 principals in the United States. Second-order confirmatory factor analysis is described due to its popularity. Procedural steps are cited, and an example is given for illustration. As a major statistical technique in instrument development, exploratory factor analysis is discussed and illustrated at the beginning of this chapter.

Demystifying the Delphi Method

The Delphi research method was specifically designed as a forecasting tool for the Rand Corporation in the 1950s. However, in the last several decades, Delphi research has been more frequently used for facilitating group communication for decision making and planning. Because of the Delphi Method's increased use, more information is needed for researchers to understand how to best utilize the method to precisely complete a Delphi study with rigor. This chapter explores the Delphi Method's origin, provides an explanation of the methodology, acknowledges the types and variations in Delphi studies, discusses the advantages and limitations, and provides clear, step-by-step guidelines for employing a successful research study.

Information Architecture and the Comic Arts

Information architecture is the structural design of shared information environments, optimizing users' interaction with that content and their context. Comic arts may be considered in light of information architecture in that it uses sequential frames, text, and their “containers,” and design conventions as information architectural “tools” to represent information and engage the user in interacting with it. This chapter explains information architecture, focusing on comic arts' features for representing and structuring knowledge. Then it details information design theory and information behaviors relative to this format, also noting visual literacy. Next, applications of comic arts in education are listed. With this background, several research methods that combine information design and comic arts are explained, followed by a concrete research example. It also recommends strategies for addressing information architecture explicitly for knowledge acquisition and communication.

Creating a Support Structure for Academic Writing and Publication Support

Although research and writing for publication are seen as important responsibilities for most graduate students and faculty, many struggle to understand the process and how to succeed. Unfortunately, writing centers at most universities do not cater to these kinds of needs but rather to course-specific needs of undergraduate students. This chapter presents and explains the principles underlying Florida International University's establishment of The Office of Academic Writing and Publication Support, an office specifically designed to aid the scholarly writing efforts of graduate students and faculty. In doing so, this chapter aims to describe strategies and programs for the improvement of scholarly writing, provide insight into the kind of learning that can take place in a university writing center, and reflect on successes and missteps along the way. This chapter may be especially helpful to educators who seek to create similar offices or services at their own institutions.

Growth Models in the Age of School Reform and Accountability

The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary School Act (ESEA) in 2002, also called “No Child Left Behind,” mandated use of accountability systems to evaluate school and district performance. The accountability systems were initially required to use cross-sectional student level assessment results in the evaluation models when assigning performance labels to school systems. Growth models were approved for use in the evaluation models in 2006, but their implementation required development of policy, identification of appropriate methods, and guidelines for assigning labels of performance to schools. The purpose of this chapter is to review the development of educational policy, implementation, and challenges in the use of growth models in accountability systems.

Research as Curriculum Inquiry

Research sometimes leads to new discoveries and new directions other than the ones originally intended. This chapter began as a study using both quantitative and qualitative methods to learn about the connections between writing and healing. College students who wrote in journals throughout the semester as part of normal classroom practices for an education methods class in reading and writing completed surveys answering questions about their writing and their health. The original goal was to add insights to studies completed a quarter century ago by other researchers to assess similarities and differences. Initial analysis of the data echoed the findings of previous studies: writing is healing. However, the more important observation became that on one of the health survey questions, 92% of the subjects reported experiencing anxiety or stress. Consequently, the research evolved into a social action project to help college students cope with stress and anxiety.

Learning and Teaching Qualitative Data Analysis in a US University

This chapter presents a case study that examines how the learning experience of graduate students enrolled in a seminar at a US university prepares them to conduct qualitative research, specifically data analysis. Adult development theory and literature related to doctoral student preparation for research and curriculum development informed the course design and data analysis. The research questions focus on course structure, pedagogical strategies, how doctoral students experience these aspects in learning qualitative research methods, and how faculty learned to identify and meet students' emerging needs. Findings include contextualized examples of how the course supported students, how students received feedback in developmentally different ways, and the role of student resistance and emotion in learning. This chapter highlights the need to create a context of supports and challenges for learners and illuminates the benefits of a constructivist curriculum with scaffolding for doctoral student development and learning to become a qualitative researcher.

Connecting Theory to Practice

With higher education becoming more dynamic and institutions providing multiple venues for students to obtain advanced degrees, graduate programs are under increasing pressure to make explicit efforts to provide students with meaningful, practical application of research methods in order to prepare them to be successful researchers. Students must emerge from these programs with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to partake in research on their own. Yet, the current trend seems to be that students enter these programs lacking the basic skills needed to ensure success. They exhibit minimal self-efficacy and insufficient readiness to connect their coursework to application in their chosen profession. This chapter provides an overview of the skills and issues of graduate students and a discussion of how those issues affect student success in conducting independent research. The chapter concludes with recommendations for addressing those issues and an exploration of future trends.

Developing Multilevel Models for Research

In the past, a large number of research efforts concentrated on single-level analysis; however, researchers who only conduct this level of analysis are finding it harder to justify due to the advancements in statistical software and research techniques. The validation of research findings comes partially from others replicating existing studies as well as building onto theories. Through replication and validation, the research process becomes cyclical in nature, and each iteration builds upon the next. Each succession of tests sets new boundaries, further verification, or falsification. For a model to be correctly specified, the level of analysis needs to be in congruence with the level of measurement. This chapter provides an overview of multilevel modeling for researchers and provides guides for the development and investigation of these models.

Surveys as Tools to Measure Qualitative and Quantitative Data

This chapter critically explores the tendency of research methods books to discuss survey research under the header of quantitative research approaches. It starts by providing a brief history on survey research, sets out core definitions, and situates survey research in the current methodological literature. The chapter then explores the nature of specific survey questions and the differences in format based on whether one is gathering qualitative versus quantitative data. Finally, the chapter explores the impact of survey methodologies and provides insight into the format of questions to be used during telephone, face-to-face, and self-completing surveys.