Introduces the process of survey research, focusing specifically on the questionnaire method. Lists and discusses eight essential steps in the process, reviews the relevant literature, and ends with the hope that readers will become better consumers of research and possibly researchers themselves. (SR)

Compares and contrasts standards and techniques of qualitative and quantitative usability testing methodologies. Focuses on ways technical communicators can ensure rigorous tests in terms of the validity and reliability of findings, defining criteria of validity and reliability for both quantitative and qualitative methods. Presents a list of…

This book for doctoral students is designed to provide direct, in-depth support for learning about qualitative research. The data sources for the book are reflections of research correspondents who describe their experiences with choosing qualitative research methodologies for their thesis research. The book begins with a chapter about "the end,"…

Discusses ethnographic studies in business and technical writing, noting that ethnography comprises four essential, overlapping contexts: the phenomenal context, the site's cultural context, the research community context, and the researcher's interior context. Claims ethnographic accounts should balance the input of each of these areas rather…

Presents a case study of a pilot test of usability testing with farm instructions for applying pesticides. Discusses adapting usability testing to the field setting; selecting a topic, usability testing sight, and participants; developing the usability scenario and securing institutional review board approval; conducting usability testing in the…

Outlines research basics for technical communicators collecting qualitative information in a workplace environment. Discusses: developing researchable questions from workplace experiences; searching existing literature for credible research reports; using observation, artifacts, and interviews as sources of information for answering workplace…

Considers how if literacy is envisioned as a sort of competence in a set of social and intellectual practices, then scientific literacy must encompass the realization that "statistical significance," the cardinal arbiter of social scientific knowledge, was not born out of an immanent logic of mathematics but socially constructed and…

Reviews ways educational research has most commonly involved the Internet. Discusses issues that complicate educational research conducted in computer-enhanced instructional environments, focusing on privacy, ownership, and permissions. Offers a case study at an online writing center, and provides guidelines for technical communication researchers…

Written reports still constitute the primary means of communicating institutional research findings. They may have a variety of formats, but should always rest on a well-documented research process. (Author/MSE)

In contrast to the considerable coverage of research methods and report writing, relatively little attention has been given in the professional literature to the steps that should be taken and issues which may be borne in mind by a researcher seeking to have his or her work published. By addressing ten broad questions reflecting common concerns,…

This book describes how it feels and what it means to do qualitative research, and it provides support for doctoral students who choose this form of inquiry for their dissertation research. It serves as a guide to the processes and procedures involved in writing the qualitative dissertation. The reflections of research correspondents are the data…

Explores three ways to design cross-cultural studies to be more valid and ethical: (1) intercultural researchers need to distinguish broad rhetorical and cultural patterns from regional, organizational, and personal patterns; (2) United States researchers need to distinguish differences in rhetorical patterns in a form of communication and ways…

This guide is designed to assist adult educators who are also first-time practitioner-researchers. It is organized in three parts. Part 1 is an introduction to practitioner research. The following steps of designing and conducting a research project are examined in a section on strategies and methods: identify a research question, collect data,…

This guide outlines the process for writing a research proposal for classroom research on second language teaching, and suggests that this process is an important step in the process of planning and implementing the study itself. The format of such a proposal is first outlined, and each element (title, introduction, methodology, analysis,…

This manual, prepared by the Distance Education Council (India) presents guidelines for action research in distance education, balancing practical research activities with a sound theoretical research base. Chapter 1, "Scope, Purpose and Design of the Manual," suggests several definitions of research; draws distinctions between academic…