《研究方法讲座》PPT课件.ppt

Introduction to Empirical Research Methods in Language Studies,Liu Yi,Pre-writing,Please write down your plan for your research.,OUTLINE,Definition of research. Categorization of research paradigms. Structure of a research report. Evaluation of a research project. Your research project.,What Is Research,Research: “a systematic approach to searching for answers to questions (Hatch and Lazarton, 1991: 9). what is meant by systematic? what is meant by questions? what is meant by answers?,研究,规范研究,实征研究,质的研究,量的研究,研究的分类(陈向明),定性研究,行动研究,学术研究,Different categorization,Oppositional categorization. Four-parameter categorization (Van Lier, 1988) More specific/detailed categorization,Empirical Research,A specific and strict definition: “Research is a systematic process of inquiry consisting 3 elements: (1) a question, problem or hypothesis, (2) data, (3) analysis and interpretation of data.” (Nunan, 1992:3) It is generally agreed, however, that “empirical research” is data-driven, that is, the inquiry is based on systematic collection and analysis of data.,4 parameters in research design (Van Lier 1988),HIGHLY SELECTIVE,NON-SELECTIVE,INTERVENTION,NON-INTERVENTION,CONTROLLING,MEASURING,ASKING/DOING,WATCHING,Chaudron (1988),Psychometric tradition Interaction analysis Discourse analysis Ethnography,Data collection,Grotjahn (1987),Two pure research paradigms: 1. exploratory-interpretive 2. analytical-nomological Five mixed forms. 1. Experimental-qualitative-interpretative 2. Experimental-qualitative-statistics 3. Exploratory-qualitatve-statistical 4. Exploratory-quantitative-statistical 5. Experimental-quantitative-interpretive,Quantitative (or Positivist) orientations,Objectivism: Assume that there is an objective Truth about social life that can be measured. (VS Subjectivism and experientialism) Questions: Start with Pre-formulated hypotheses, though these can be formed after observations of real behavior in real situations. Systematic: Are concerned largely with controlling variables. Answers: Use statistical ways of measuring and quantifying these variables (Psychometric). Researchers: Are objective in that the researcher is not personally involved with the participants or the outcomes. Generalisability: Are designed so that the results are generalizable. (part of answer),Qualitative (or Naturalistic) Traditions,Relativism: Assume that truth is relative, and that knowledge is provisional. Questions: Start with provisional questions, which are open to change as the study progresses, rather than starting with fixed hypotheses. These questions are answered through systematic empirical observation of specified events in their natural context, rather than in a controlled or experimental situation. Are subjective is the sense that the researcher is necessarily involved with the processes and outcomes of the study. Observations are processed in a variety of ways, not necessarily statistical. Assume that there is value in holistic study whose insights are not necessarily generalisable from the individual study.,Summary,Quantitative Positivism Controlled “Objective” Removed from data, etic view Verification oriented (Deductivism) Test hypothesis Outcome oriented Hard & replicable data Generalisable 将复杂的问题简化,Qualitative Phenomenologism Naturalistic “Subjective” Close to data, emic view Discovery oriented (Inductivism) Generate hypothesis Process oriented Rich & deep data Ungeneralizable 将简单的问题复杂化,Quantitative or Qualitative?,1. 学生的性别与其作文中情态动词的使用是什么关系？ 2、学习者是如何“选择”自己的学习策略的？ 3、学生的英语口语与自信之间是什么关系？ 4、在英语专业学生看来，“英语专业”对他们意味着什么？,Empirical Research & Language Studies,Not all language studies will employ empirical approaches. Some studies are theoretical or speculative. Empirical methods are commonly used in certain subfields of linguistics, e.g., applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, and anthropological linguistics. Empirical research methods are commonly used in social sciences, e.g., sociology, psychology, anthropology, education, and communication studies.,Types of Empirical Research,Descriptive research Historical research Correlational research Causal-comparative research Experimental research,Descriptive Research,Descriptive research involves collecting data in order to answer questions concerning the current status of the subject of the study. A descriptive study reports the way things are. E.g.: To count the type and frequency of teachers questions used over a one week period in one classroom,Descriptive research includes,Self-report research (e.g., survey & developmental studies) Observational research (e.g., case study & ethnography).,Survey,With surveys, a large sample of individuals answer, in either written or spoken form, a series of questions on a specific issue. An attempt to collect data from members of a population in order to determine the current status of that population with respect to one or more variables E.g. Political pollsters use surveys to gauge the feeling of voters towards the various political parties; social surveyors might try to gauge the feelings of a community towards a local initiative,Developmental Studies,Developmental studies are concerned with behavior variables that differentiate subjects at different levels of age, growth, or maturation. Developmental studies can be either longitudinal or cross-sectional. E.g. Attitudes towards “comrade” before 1997 and after 1997 in Hong Kong.,Case Study,A case study is the in-depth investigation of an individual, group, or institution. The primary purpose of a case study is to determine the factors, and relationships among the factors, that have resulted in the current behavior or status of the subject of the study. The purpose of a case study is to determine why, not just what. E.g. Halliday (1975): the language development of his own child.,Strengths of Case study,Deep and rich data. Strong in reality. Generalisability (analytical, not statistical) Multiplicity of viewpoints (Holistic) Immediate use Accessibility,Ethnography,Ethnography, as a sub-branch of the discipline of anthropology, is the study of the lives and the cultures of a particular group of human beings as they operate in their natural contexts. Ethnography involves intensive data collection, that is, collection of data on many variables over an extended period of time, in a naturalistic setting. E.g. B. K. Malinowski (1923): Malinowskis Ethnography (context of culture).,Historical Research,Historical research is the systematic collection and evaluation of data related to past occurrences in order to find out the causes, effects, or trends of those events that may help to explain present events and anticipate future events. E.g. The development of V/T form in French in Canada since 1960,Correlational Research,Correlational research involves collecting data in order to determine whether, and to what degree, a relationship exists between two or more quantifiable variables. E.g. EFL learners IQ and EFL learners CET scores.,EXAMPLE (1),大学生俄语学习动机研究1 单荣荣 周海燕 提要 本文拟以高一虹教授的成果为基础，通过大样本的调查分析，对中国大学俄语专业本科生的学习动机进行研究。通过统计分析，俄语学习动机可以归纳为就业前景动机、中学俄语优势动机、文化情结动机，内在兴趣动机、外部影响动机、学习情境动机及被迫型动机等七大类。并以学校类型、性别、年级为自变量，俄语学习动机类型（斜交旋转因子分析得出的因子值）为因变量，对不同组别的学习动机类型进行分析。 关键词 俄语学习 动机研究,Causal-Comparative Research,Causal-comparative research (or ex post facto research) is the research in which the researcher attempts to determine the cause, or reason, for existing differences in the behavior or status of groups of individuals. E.g. The motivation and the learners CET results,Experimental Research,Experimental research is that research in which the researcher vs at least one independent variable, controls other relevant variables, and observes the effect on one or more dependent variables. E.g. The effect of the adoption of task-based teaching methods on the communicative competence of EFL learners (the same teachers, the same level of English, etc.),EXAMPLE (2),Shifting Identities and Switching Codes1 - A case study of the classroom code-switching of an EFL teacher Yi Liu Yi Feng ABSTRACT: Code-switching has been regarded as a marker of bilingual and multilingual speakers social identities. Based on the code-switching instances of a Chinese EFL teacher in ten hours teaching sessions and the autobiography of the teacher on her English learning and teaching experience, this paper discusses how code-switching is related to the shifting of the teachers professional identities. With the structuration and duality theories of Anthony Giddens (1984, 1991) and dramaturgical theory of Erving Goffman (1959) as theoretical framework, the paper also explores how the teachers professional identities are constructed through a reflexive, constructive and self-monitoring process and how her professional roles are performed in the classroom. It is hoped that the study on the relationship of code-switching and EFL teachers identities may explore a new perspective for the research on foreign language teacher development in China. KEY WORDS: code-switching, professional identity, foreign language education, constructivism,Components in a Research Report,Abstract & Keywords Introduction Method Results & Discussion Conclusion Acknowledgements References Appendices,Introduction,Background to the question Literature review Statement of research questions (Research hypotheses),Method,Subjects (Sampling, informants, participants) Data collection methods: questionaires, interview, observation, stimulated recalls, diary studies , narrative inquiry Materials and procedure Data analysis method,Results and Discussion,Results Discussion,Conclusion,Summary of research findings Implications Research limitations Suggestions for future research,Acknowledgements,“We gratefully acknowledge the help of Batia Laufer who not only discussed the issues with us but also kindly sent us a number of her related publications. We are also grateful to Pat Snipe for her comments on an early version of this article.”,References,Brown, H.D. (1981). Affective factors in second language learning. In J. Alatis, H. Altman, & P. Alatis (Eds.), The second language classroom: Directions for the eighties (pp.111-129). New York: Oxford University Press. Wardhaugh, R. (1986). An introduction to sociolinguistics. Oxford: Blackwell. Norton, B. (1997). Language, identity, and the ownership of English. TESOL Quarterly, 31, 409-429.,Appendices,Sample of instruments used (e.g., questionnaire, interview outline) Sample of data (e.g., speech transcripts, student diaries, compositions, pictures, fieldnotes) List of special terms or abbreviations Additional tables and figures,EVALUATION OF RESEARCH,Reliability Validity,Reliability,Reliability refers to the concern for consistency in any piece of research. External reliability refers to the consistency with which the study can be replicated by others. Internal reliability refers to the consistency with which the same data would be analysed by an independent researcher.,Validity,Validity refers to the concern for truth rather than consistency. Internal validity is concerned with how well the research actually accounts for what it purports to account for. In experimental paradigms, a study is said to have internal validity if the outcomes of the experiment can be directly and unambiguously attributed to the treatment applied to the experimental group, rather than to uncontrolled factors. External validity is the same as the notion of generalisability. It refers to the extent to which the findings of a study can be applied to other (external) situations. In experimental paradigms, researchers select samples, supposedly at random so that they can as far as possible represent the larger population from which the sample is selected. Construct validity: establishing correct operational measures for concepts being studies.,Other criteria for qualitative research,Apparency, Verisimilitude, Transferability (Connelly & Clandinin: 1990:7).,Ethics in research,Whatever the context, the Key Principles of ethical conduct outlined below must be followed: Always t