About this Book

This introductory text provides an overview of the book with details about its features. It includes a statement of purpose, a rationale, details about the structure of the book and organization of chapters, a chapter outline, an explanation of key features, and information on additional support.

Purpose

The purpose of this book is to provide graduate students, faculty, and professionals with a primary textbook and reference guide for understanding, reading, evaluating, and applying research in student affairs. Continued calls for accountability and the ability to demonstrate how programs and practices connect to learning outcomes are no longer outlooks, but are expectations of every professional (Schuh, Biddix, Dean, & Kinzie, 2016). Supporting professionals who are competent with research methods and applications, capable of consuming, critiquing, applying, and creating knowledge based on evidence, is increasingly important. Yet, both new graduates and chief student affairs officers admit to lacking fundamental research proficiencies (Sriram, 2014; Sriram & Oster, 2012). This textbook is intended to addresses these needs by providing an instructional guide as well as a professional reference for research methods and applications.

Rationale

Student affairs professionals often are exposed to research in the field for the first time during an introductory graduate course in research methods. In contrast to applied courses and internships, a research methods course can seem unconnected to practice. Common criticisms include:

1. “I just don't understand why I need to learn research.”
2. “I am least excited to learn about this topic.”
3. “I came into this program to work as a practitioner, not to be a researcher.”
4. “I don't want to be a faculty member.”
5. “I hate [am terrible at] statistics.”

This book was written with those reservations and misperceptions in mind. Specifically, the first chapter incorporates these objections to serve as a convincing argument for the need to learn about research for practice and to appreciate the broader applicability of a research skillset. Learning about research can be challenging, particularly for learners who do not see clear connections between research and practice. Others may find the language of research difficult. Research can be engaging when it is relevant, and intimidating and overwhelming when it is not. Similar to job training, learning about research cannot be accomplished simply by taking one course. Learning about research is an engagement activity that begins with an introduction in formal coursework and extends into practice. The authors of the ASK standards (2006) noted:

While student affairs graduates are taught basic research and assessment skills in their programs, many more seasoned professionals look to current publications and professional organizations such as ACPA to assist them with the development of the skills and knowledge needed to successfully identify, measure, evaluate and articulate students' co-curricular learning outcomes. (American College Personnel Association, 2006, p. 1)

Research is a broad and complex topic, spanning multiple disciplines, perspectives, and skillsets. Learning to effectively read, evaluate, and apply research can require substantial time and effort. This book is organized to help make learning easier and seeing connections to practice clearer.

Structure of the Book

This book contains 14 chapters. Structurally, the chapters are divided into Frames, Foundations, and Methods chapters. Each section also has a specific organization. An overview follows.

Research Frames chapters introduce rationale, basic terminology and applications, and incorporates guidelines for reading research. Also included are ethical considerations. These chapters comprise the skills needed for a basic understanding of research in student affairs. Each is organized to build knowledge logically from initial concepts to applications.

Research Foundations chapters include core concepts, terminology, and basic applications for the main types of research methods. These chapters are structured in a question-and-answer format designed to address a central question: What essential concepts do student affairs practitioners and researchers need to know to understand (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed) methods? Each of the associated questions are derived from frequently asked questions, misunderstandings, and misconceptions about research. Key concepts are included for reference.

Research Methods chapters present a detailed overview of specific research methods. There are three qualitative-focused and four quantitative-focused chapters. Each is organized into four subsections corresponding to learning outcomes. Each subsection also includes a summary list to help guide the reader. Following is an outline of each subsection and associated summary list:

1. Understanding > Reasons for Understanding
2. Reading > Guidelines for Reading
3. Evaluating > Questions for Evaluating
4. Applying > Opportunities for Applying

This structure of the book and organization of the chapters was designed to promote usability. A scaffolding approach paired with Bloom's taxonomy was used to build learning sequences. This decision was intended to accomplish two goals:

1. To order content from lower- to higher-ordered understanding.
2. To portion content so that it could be assigned in total or referenced in sections.

The Research Foundations and Methods chapters, in particular, were organized in this way to present an easily accessed, single reference for reading and evaluating research. For example, if a reader needs to learn the difference between a descriptive and an inferential statistic, they could quickly reference that question in text. Or, if a reader simply wants to know how to read regression results, they should be able to review the section labeled Reading Prediction Research along with the accompanying checklist Guidelines for Reading. Each chapter also contains numerous examples from student affairs research to contextualize the content.

Chapter Outline

Chapter 1 (Studying Research) introduces the role of research in student affairs and demonstrates connections between the text and skills, competencies, and intended learning outcomes. Chapter 2 (Reading Research) describes the individual sections that make up a research study and applies concepts by taking apart an article to analyze each section. Chapter 3 (Framing Research) overviews the four core components of methodology and details how they work together to create a study. Chapter 4 (Considering Ethics) provides an overview of ethical considerations in research, including origins and student affairs applications.

Chapter 5 (Learning Qualitative Research) contains the basics of qualitative research methods and emphasizes essential questions such as “How much qualitative data are enough?” and “How do researchers analyze qualitative data?” Chapters 6 (Reviewing Documents), 7 (Observing People and Places), and 8 (Interviewing Individuals and Groups) detail each of the main types of qualitative research methods. Each chapter emphasizes the purpose and rationale for each method, how to differentiate major types, and how to understand, read, evaluate, and apply results.

Chapter 9 (Learning Quantitative Research) contains the basics of quantitative research methods emphasizing essential questions such as “What is a statistic?” and “How are they classified?” Chapters 10 (Describing Trends), 11 (Testing Differences), 12 (Assessing Relationships), and 13 (Making Predictions) detail the main types of quantitative research methods. Each chapter emphasizes the purpose and rationale for each method, how to differentiate major types, and how to understand, read, evaluate, and apply results.

Chapter 14 (Exploring Mixed Methods) contains the basics of mixed methods research emphasizing essential questions such as “What is meant by mixed methods?” and “How are mixed methods results presented?” Fundamental concepts in mixed methods research are introduced, such as diagramming, method prioritization, and integration.

Features of the Book

The book is structured and organized to support formal (classroom) learning, self-directed learning, and referencing. The book also features a glossary of common terms that are also identified in corresponding text sections. Two additional features are highlighted:

• Perspectives From the Field
  1. Perspectives From the Field are small commentaries solicited from faculty and practitioner experts about specific topics. Some emphasize information already in the text, others offer a different perspective, while others expand or introduce concepts and applications.
• Words Researchers Use
  1. Most chapters include several Words Researchers Use features. The concepts described typically are not common terms to be considered keywords, but are the source of many questions students and practitioners ask when learning about research methods.

Additional Support

Each chapter ends with a section titled Building Your Research Skillset that includes references and suggestions for expanding the information in each...