Social Research Methods Final Project Bloomsburg University, Dr. Leo Barrile, April 28, 2004

Your final project is to write a research paper on the issue of student participation in class using the two data sets that we collected and constructed for the class. The following steps are provided as a way for you to organize the paper. I want to see each step covered, though you can exceed these requirements if you wish. Refer to your textbook, especially pp. 107 to 114.

1. Research question or idea. State your research problem or issue generally. Restate it with conceptual clarity, that is, describe more specifically what you mean by the terms you used in the general research question. Briefly describe your purpose or objective for doing the research.

2. Literature Review. Summarize, briefly, the major findings of other researchers. Identify the variables, methods and samples that were used in previous research.

3. Methods. Describe the two main methodologies that were used in the study including the type of research, the subjects, the units of observation, and the units of analysis.

4. Operationalization. Discuss the variables that were used in the study. What were the variables and how were they constructed? What are the hypothesized relationships between the variables.

5. Sample/Data Collection. Describe the sample, how it was selected and how data were collected and coded.

6. Data Analysis. Describe the data and construct tables using output from the SPSS program that you artfully transform into neat and readable Microsoft Word tables. Interpret the tables by describing the categories of a single variable or by describing the categories of two or more variables. Indicate differences among categories or apparent relationships between variables.

7. Discussion/Findings. Discuss the results. What do they seem to indicate: A clear relationship? No relationship? An inverse relationship? Confirmation or not of hypotheses or intuitions? Surprises?

8. Conclusion. What were the strengths and weaknesses of the study. What would have improved the study? From the study could you make suggestions to professors or students about increasing class participation? What suggestions would you make to future methods classes about conducting this type of study?

9. References. List a bibliography of the sources that you used for the literature review. Follow the format used by Babbie in his bibliography or the format used in one of the articles that you summarized.