This comprehensive, accessible and practical handbook provides a complete foundation in both qualitative and quantitative research methods for the sports studies student. Chris Gratton is Professor of Sport Economics and Director of the Sport Industry Research Center at Sheffield Hallam University, UK.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
The second part of the text deals with the questions in connection with actually carrying out a research project. The third part of the book is about the analysis of the data you will collect and the reporting of the research.
WHAT IS RESEARCH?
We even have an idea which is faster, swimming in syrup or swimming in water (the answer may surprise you!). We also know that swimming in syrup is as fast as swimming in water (see Gettelfinger and Cussler 2004).
KEY TERM
You are also more likely to be able to understand the overall objectives of the study. Try to carry out a small research project beforehand, preferably during your research methods training, so that you do not approach your research 'coldly', but with some awareness of the research process, the possible pitfalls and the time and effort required to develop a to conduct research. research project.
SUMMARY
5 The best way to start developing your understanding of research, its role and the type of research is to do some reading. Such a diary can be an extremely useful resource, and you should make sure that it is as detailed as possible.
ACTIVITIES
2 Ideas that are relevant to the research, e.g. in the form of potential sources of information or possible directions for the research. At this stage, however, you should also read up on your own subject area and start developing a few ideas about your own research.
THE RESEARCH PROCESS
- Selection of topic
- Reviewing the literature
- Development of theoretical and conceptual frameworks As you read the literature, you should be continually developing and
- Clarification of the research question
- Research design
- Data collection
- Data analysis and discussion of the findings
- Drawing conclusions
Some of the issues related to setting the research question will be discussed in more detail in Chapter 4. A literature review is generally done together with the development of theoretical and conceptual frameworks (3rd stage of the research process).
RESEARCH TRADITIONS
While these are the strengths of the interpretive approach, positivists might argue that there are also weaknesses. Rather than referring to the underlying philosophy of the nature of knowledge, this distinction—between qualitative and quantitative research—refers to the characteristics of the data the researcher collects.
CASE STUDY
The decision to collect either quantitative or qualitative data depends on the nature of the research question and the objectives of your research. For example, you may be interested in the sports participation patterns of immigrant groups.
ABOUT YOUR RESEARCH PROJECTACTIVITIES
If the research is deductive in nature, try to determine (a) what is the underlying theory used by the researcher(s) and (b) what is the hypothesis.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
One of the constant complaints from examiners of research projects is that the research question chosen is too broad. 5 What is your unit of analysis (ie the 'thing' about which you collect data and from which you draw conclusions).
ABOUT YOUR RESEARCH PROJECT
4 The topic should lead to a focused question, which forms the 'vertical thread' of the research. 5 The answer to the research question must be achievable, in terms of the researcher's personal skills, access to a suitable sample and the availability of any specialized resources or equipment. Try to identify the limitations of each of the questions and rewrite accordingly if necessary.
All of the above activities are relevant to your research project and should be carried out according to the proposed question. Consider the criteria mentioned earlier in the chapter (see the “Choosing a Research Question” box) and assess whether your research question meets these criteria. Can you relate your question to the four elements of CAFE described in this chapter.
Is your question sufficiently focused, or can you further focus your question in any way.
REVIEWING THE LITERATURE
It is important that you do not assume that every piece of literature you find is of the same standard. Be prepared to be critical of the research, both in your reading and in writing the literature review if you can support your criticism. It is important that the literature review is not just a generic overview of the topic.
3 The full reference in the reference list or bibliography at the end of the research report. Many inexperienced (but also more experienced) researchers find writing the literature review a difficult part of the research process. Do not relate the literature review to the research, and simply make it a general overview of the topic.
Have you related the review to your research question and considered the implications of the literature review for your research question.
THEORIES, CONCEPTS AND VARIABLES
This is perfectly acceptable if you can fill in the rest of the pedigree table. Another option is to start with the theory you are interested in and then try to fill in the rest of the ancestry chart. Let's say you are interested in whether there is any relationship between the leadership style of sports coaches and the resulting success of the teams they coach.
Dependent variables are those that can be explained by the effect of the independent variable, which in the above case is the attitude towards violent sports. You must be able to control for such intervening variables if you want to determine the true influence of the independent variable on the dependent variable. One of your tasks as a researcher is to identify reliable measurements of the phenomenon under investigation.
If you have a qualitative approach, how will you ensure the quality of the data you collect.
RESEARCH DESIGNS FOR SPORTS STUDIES
The effect of the treatment is thus assumed to be the difference between the two measures. The responses from the sample, if it has external validity, can then be applied to the total population. In most cases, your goal is to produce a sample that is representative of the population.
You may be interested in the influence of the influx of foreign expertise on, for example, the management culture of sports organisations. A common mistake is to assume that the sample should be a certain percentage of the population, say 10 percent. For example, at the very simplest level, you should be able to compare the gender distribution of your sample reached with that of the population.
Each research participant should then be informed about the nature of the research and the use of the data provided before data is collected from them.
COLLECTING DATA I
THE QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY
Research projects such as the FA Carling Premiership Research (SNCCFR) are a good example of the use of postal questionnaires. The presence of a researcher interested in certain sensitive issues, such as player violence or drug use, or. answered the question that there was no way I could get him or her to expand or clarify any of the points that might have been made.
Once you have decided that it is an appropriate data collection technique, the second stage of questionnaire-based research is that of initial questionnaire design. As a general rule, you should try to keep the questionnaire as short as possible, but make sure it provides all the necessary information. In terms of the information you need, you should be guided by the scope and objectives of the research, the literature review and your conceptual framework, which should be linked.
Sometimes it is not possible to predict all the responses you will receive, or you can expect a wide variety of responses.
USE EXISTING QUESTIONS OR SCALES OR DEVELOP MY OWN?
Ask personal or potentially threatening questions at the end of the questionnaire (and only if they are really necessary). If you ask such questions, you should clearly inform potential respondents of the confidential nature of the data. Check that the wording of the questionnaire is clear, unambiguous and understandable for the intended sample.
Other characteristics, such as the size of the group the respondent was part of, are included in the questionnaire. If you would like to be entered into the draw, please complete the section at the end of the questionnaire. Investigate the importance of the survey and how valuable the contribution would be made by completing the questionnaire.
What will be the effect of a low response rate on the reliability and validity of the data I collect.
COLLECTING DATA II
RESEARCH INTERVIEWS
Here, the researcher has a general idea of the topics to be addressed and the respondent tends to direct the direction of the interview. A potential danger is that the interviewee becomes dominant and leads the interview in unwanted directions. As with all methods, the strengths of the interview must therefore be consolidated and the weaknesses eradicated as far as possible.
Always remember that the overall goal of the interview is to gather rich, detailed data to answer your research question. One important advantage of the interview as a research method is that of your opportunity to investigate. Secondly, the informant must be informed about the nature of the interview and how it will be conducted, and be given an indication of the likely length.
First, it is important to ensure that the subject is aware of the confidentiality of the interview.
COLLECTING DATA III
UNOBTRUSIVE METHODS – OBSERVATION AND CONTENT ANALYSIS
As a result, they are often repeatable, and the researcher can revisit the research site to collect additional data. Since the researcher does not interact with the participants in the same way, it can be difficult to understand or explain the phenomenon under investigation. The second form is that of participant observation, where the researcher actually participates in the phenomenon being studied.
The researcher experiences, rather than observes, what is going on, and it is this experience that provides data to the researcher. The researcher is able to observe the phenomenon in its natural setting, rather than in the rather 'artificial' one. This allows the researcher to observe the context in which such behavior takes place and - in the case of participant observation - to experience this context themselves.
It is always possible for the researcher to influence the behavior of the subjects to such an extent that it can invalidate the entire research.
