What are the research methods in term paper
The research methods of the coursework are methods, certain techniques or means by which the assigned tasks were solved and, as a result, the stated goals were achieved. Despite all the diversity and presence of highly specialized techniques, research methods are divided into two large groups: theoretical and practical, or empirical.
Content
What are the research methods in the courseworkTheoreticalPracticalHow to design research methods in coursework
What are the research methods in the coursework
Theoretical
Serve for comprehending and processing empirical materials using logical operations and inferences.
| Analysis | Material or speculative division of an object, process, object, phenomenon into its component parts in order to study their features and properties. Historical analysis is used to introduce complex evolving systems. |
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| Synthesis | A procedure inverse to analysis and organically related to it. It consists in combining the data obtained in the course of the previous consideration of individual elements into a single whole. |
| Classification | Distribution of information based on comparison. A simple but effective way of structuring is suitable for absolutely all coursework. |
| Abstraction | Abstraction from secondary signs to concretize the properties of the studied subject of interest. It is often used in the humanitarian field: in philosophy, philology, pedagogy, literary criticism, psychology and other sciences – to reveal the key patterns hidden under the layering of irrelevant details. |
| Analogy |
Reasoned assignment of attributes of one object to another based on the similarity of their features. There are two forms: associative – can combine phenomena and objects that are very distant in nature; logical – probabilistic conclusions about the similarity of the units under consideration are made based on the phenomena observed during their parallel study. Without analogy, ideal and material modeling is impossible. |
| Induction | Drawing conclusions based on the generalization of individual facts. |
| Deduction | The transition from the general to the particular. |
| Generalization | Identification of common properties and features of the studied phenomena, according to which they are combined into groups, classes, etc. |
| Idealization | A subspecies of abstraction, in which concepts are mentally created about objects that do not exist in reality, but have real prototypes. Often used as a research method in coursework in the natural and social sciences. |
| Formalization | Disclosure of the essence of processes through mathematical models, formulas. The cornerstone of algorithms, programming. It is widely used in linguistics, exact disciplines, logic. |
| Axiomatic construction | The assertions follow from the postulates taken as the starting point of reasoning and do not require proof. |
| Climbing from the abstract to the concrete | Theoretical disclosure of the essence of the object under study through the movement from the initial definitions of its important aspects to the compilation of a holistic picture of their interaction. |
| Forecasting | A complex technique that is often used when writing diplomas. It is a chain of logical and mathematical operations undertaken in order to obtain specific results for the formation of a variety of forecasts – from anticipating demographic crises in sociology to planning the profit of enterprises in the economy. |
Theoretical methods are used to generalize and systematize information, therefore they are typical for the first part of the course work.
Practical
Assume the acquisition of knowledge through practical application.
| Comparison | Establishes similarities and differences, identifies general and specific, identifies changes, trends and patterns. The first level of any analytical research. |
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| Observation |
It is considered the simplest method, an element of other practical techniques. This is the basis for further practical or theoretical action. It relies on the perception of object-related activity by the sense organs and leads to results that do not depend on the will of the observer. May be: direct (visual) – information is collected without the use of special equipment; indirect – data is obtained manually with the help of instruments and in automatic mode with recording equipment. |
| Measurement | Determines the numerical value of the studied quantity, expressed in generally accepted units, in comparison with the standard. |
| Description | It is based on the results of observation (qualitative) and measurement (quantitative) and can qualify as their final phase. The collected information is presented in the language of scientific concepts, diagrams, graphs, digital data, which are then presented in the course work. |
| Experiment | In fact, a special case of observation. Provides for the experimental study of objects and phenomena in a natural or deliberately created environment. It can be carried out directly with the investigated object or with its model and provides an opportunity to track their properties in extreme conditions. An obligatory property of reliable experience is repeatability. |
| Material hero essay examples modeling |
A kind of experiment. It is built at work with artificially created imitations of real objects, the operation with which is actually associated with significant difficulties or even impossible. Material models can be similar to the original: geometrically (dummies, models); graphically (drawings, diagrams); mathematically; Physically. Modeling is also the reproduction of a fragment of reality (situation, process, etc.). |
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Questionnaire Poll Testing Conversation Interview |
They are widely used in term papers on social and humanitarian disciplines. They consist in collecting oral or written information from interlocutors or respondents. |
Empirical methods are used to accumulate data about the objects under study, therefore they are used in the practical part of the course work.
The division of the coursework research methods into empirical and theoretical ones is rather arbitrary, since many techniques relate to universal scientific methods of working with the objects under study, for example, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, abstraction, analogy, generalization, modeling.
How to design research methods in coursework
The choice of a particular method depends on the theme of the project, its goals and objectives. Techniques should correspond to the content of the research stages and contribute to obtaining the most accurate results at each of them.
Research methods are indicated in the introduction to the coursework. It is not required to decipher each and write down its classification, a simple listing is enough. It is not worth writing superfluous ones: the teacher may ask exactly where and why they were used, but it is necessary to designate specific research areas.
Sample design
Example No. 1. History.
Research methods: analysis and generalization of special literature, publications in periodicals devoted to events in the history of the city; study of archival materials and closed funds of the Museum of Military Glory, interviewing veterans of the Great Patriotic War.
Example No. 2. Right.
The methodological basis of the course work includes: system analysis, comparison, typology, theoretical and legal forecasting.
Example No. 3. Psychology.
Research methods: observation, survey, testing, questioning, projective method (according to L. Frank), quantification. Psychodiagnostic professional methods for diagnosing emotional burnout of personality according to V.V. Boyko, “Mississippi PTSD Scale”.