Getting Started
To use the research roadmap (RR) in advising students on academic writing please note the following constraints:
If you are writing a thesis or research project, start your final document now, and write as you go! E. g. create a "mythesis.doc" file right now.
You need an experienced advisor. A formal summary of research methods would take hundreds of pages. To get this see publications like Rosenthal, R. & Rosnow, R. L. (1991). Essentials of Behavioural Research; Methods and Data Analysis (Second ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill. The research roadmap is just a map not a bible. In the research wilderness a personal guide can:
- a) Point out the right directions to go
- b) Interpret signs along the way left by other people
- c) Warn of pitfalls and dangers
- Use elements as topics for student/advisor discussions.
Element are signposts. The RR elements "signpost" knowledge rather than define it. If an advisor finds an element incomplete or disagrees with it, they can use it to expand or correct the point, e. g. as a pointer to part of a larger text.
Element relevance varies by discipline. Different disciplines prioritize research aspects differently, and find some aspects irrelevant The research roadmap "toolbox" approach lets users choose what relates to them, e. g. clicking the tag "Quantitative" selects elements relevant to quantitative studies, which use statistics.
Element order and terms vary by discipline. Within a section the typical element order varies by discipline. Different disciplines also use different names, e. g. in experiments "topic construct" is called the "dependent variable".
The order the research is presented is not necessarily the order it arises. As the Research Snake figure shows, all the parts connect, and one may begin the process at many points.
Tags: Introduction