Identify and describe five scientific methods of research inquiry and how you would apply them to a research project
There are five scientific methods of a research inquiry namely The Question, Hypothesis, Experimentation, Data Analysis, and Conclusion. Each of the five methods is significant and completion of one leads to the other methodically. The question, also called the research question, is an answerable statement that is used to make an inquiry into a problem or a situation (Creswell, 2013). It is the known position taken by the people who undertake the research. The question forms the basis upon which the whole research is developed. It identifies the core issue to be addressed by the research and at the end, the study should answer it. In a given study, the question identifies a gap, an existing problem or a lasting solution to an issue. It can also seek to compare a situation with another one that is closely related.
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Example: Is illegal firearm ownership a contributor to the recent surge in gun violence cases in the United States?
The second scientific method of research inquiry is the hypothesis. It is defined as an informed guess about a given situation or issue ((Creswell, 2013)). The guess is developed from the information acquired during the formulation of the research question. The hypothesis thus predetermines a likely outcome should a study, project, or programme be carried out. Scientists use hypotheses to predict a future situation and carry out an experimentation to prove it. A hypothesis is an unknown position that has to stands to be proved or disproved by the collected data.
Example: Illegal gun ownership contributes to the most gun violence cases in the United States
Experimentation is the third method of a scientific research inquiry. Once the researchers have formulated the hypothesis, they then carry out an experiment to test the hypothesis (Yin, 2013). The experiment involves carrying out an actual study and observing the outcome so that it can be used to determine if the hypothesis is true. Usually, the experimentation method involves carrying out surveys to collect data that is used to test the hypothesis. It involves manipulating variables and observing how they are affected by others or by a situation. In some cases, the experiment can be conducted simultaneously with a control experiment to establish the positive or negative outcomes of a given issue, product, or service.
Example: There were over 8000 Gun violence cases in the United States. About 40% of the homes in the US own a gun. In the US, there are more than 100 million guns owned by citizens.
After carrying out the experiments and collecting adequate data, the fourth method of a research inquiry is data analysis. This is a stage where the data collected is analyzed using software and other mechanisms and evaluated based on the perspective of the hypothesis (Yin, 2013). In most cases, the dependent and independent variables are put against each other to determine how they dependent ones are changed with a change in the independent variables. An analysis leads to a report written in text, graphs, and table formats to summarize the outcomes of the experiment. At this stage, there is also a comparison between the known data and the experimental data to establish the differences and answer the research question.
Example: Most of the guns, 96% are owned legally (they are licensed). Most of the violent acts, 79%, involve licensed firearms. Only 21% of the gun violence cases involve an illegally owned firearm.
The final method of a research inquiry is the conclusion. It is at this stage that the person undertaking the research determines if the research answered their questions (Eisner, 2017). This has to go hand in hand with the data analysis proving that the hypothesis is correct. If there is no such proof, then the hypothesis is disproved and rejected. A proven hypothesis shows that there exists a situation as per the research questions.
Example: In the US, most of the gun violence cases involve a legally owned firearm and not ones that are owned illegally.
The five methods of research, the question, the hypothesis, experimentation, data analysis and the conclusion are systematic and methodical. A research question leads to the formulation of the hypothesis. Once formulated, the hypothesis leads to experimentation which yields data for analysis. The outcomes of the analysis are then used to make conclusions as to whether there is a situation based on the research question or not.
Develop a hypothesis focused on the professional practices of criminal justice practitioners
The shooting in Orlando in June 2016 at a night club shows that the United States has not made significant steps in mitigating terrorism since 9/11.
The two methods of research inquiry selected are experimentation and data analysis. In experimentation, the study would focus on the number of attacks that have taken place between 9/11 and the Orlando shooting, the number of lives lost and that of the people injured since. Once the data has been collected, it would be analyzed into lives and injuries per year as well as attacks per year. This would give the annual values of lives lost and the frequency of terrorist attacks in the United States between 9/11 and June 2016. The numbers can then be used to determine the extent to which the US has gone in limiting terrorist activities within her soil or if the efforts are less significant.
References;
Creswell, J. W. (2013). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches . Sage Publications. Print
Eisner, E. W. (2017). The enlightened eye: Qualitative inquiry and the enhancement of educational practice . Teachers College Press. Print
Yin, R. K. (2013). Case study research: Design and methods . Sage Publications. Print
