Research Methods for Postgraduates

An indispensable reference for postgraduates, providing up to date guidance in all subject areas Methods for Postgraduates brings together guidance for postgraduate students on how to organise, plan and do research from an interdisciplinary perspective. In this new edition, the already wide-ranging coverage is enhanced by the addition of new chapters on social media, evaluating the research process, Kansei engineering and medical research reporting. The extensive updates also provide the latest guidance on issues relevant to postgraduates in all subject areas, from writing a proposal and securing research funds, to data analysis and the presentation of research, through to intellectual property protection and career opportunities. This thoroughly revised new edition provides: Clear and concise advice from distinguished international researchers on how to plan, organise and conduct research. New chapters explore social media in research, evaluate the research process, Kansei engineering and discuss the reporting of medical research. Check lists and diagrams throughout. Praise for the second edition: ... the most useful book any new postgraduate could ever buy. (New Scientist) The book certainly merits its acceptance as essential reading for postgraduates and will be valuable to anyone associated in any way with research or with presentation of technical or scientific information of any kind. (Robotica) Like its predecessors, the third edition of Research Methods for Postgraduates is accessible and comprehensive, and is a must-read for any postgraduate student.

An indispensable reference for postgraduates, providing up to date guidance in all subject areasMethods for Postgraduates brings together guidance for postgraduate students on how to organise, plan and do research from an interdisciplinary perspective. In this new edition, the already wide-ranging coverage is enhanced by the addition of new chapters on social media, evaluating the research process, Kansei engineering and medical research reporting. The extensive updates also provide the latest guidance on issues relevant to postgraduates in all subject areas, from writing a proposal and securing research funds, to data analysis and the presentation of research, through to intellectual property protection and career opportunities.This thoroughly revised new edition provides:* Clear and concise advice from distinguished international researchers on how to plan, organise and conduct research.* New chapters explore social media in research, evaluate the research process, Kansei engineering and discuss the reporting of medical research.* Check lists and diagrams throughout.Praise for the second edition:"... the most useful book any new postgraduate could ever buy." (New Scientist)"The book certainly merits its acceptance as essential reading for postgraduates and will be valuable to anyone associated in any way with research or with presentation of technical or scientific information of any kind."(Robotica)Like its predecessors, the third edition of Research Methods for Postgraduates is accessible and comprehensive, and is a must-read for any postgraduate student.

About the Author ixList of Contributors xiPreface to the Third Edition xiiiPreface to the Second Edition xixPreface to the First Edition xxiPart I First Steps 11 A View of Research 3Tony Greenfield2 The Research Journey: Four Steps to Success 7Tom Bourner and Sue Greener3 Managing Your Doctorate 13Stan Taylor4 Documenting Your Work 34Vivien Martin5 Ethics of Research 46Tony Greenfield6 Plagiarism 56Tony Greenfield7 Critically Reviewing Your Own Research 60Tom Bourner and Juliet MillicanPart II Support 698 Research Proposals for Funding 71Lowry McComb9 Who Can Help? 81Shirley Coleman10 Information and Library Services 86Claire Abson and Alastair Allan11 Research Methods for Advanced Web Searching 94Alastair Allan12 Searching in Unfamiliar Fields 113Tom Bourner and Sue Greener13 Sources of Population Statistics 121Keith Dugmore14 An Introduction to Bibliometrics 130Silvia Salini15 Choosing and Using Software for Statistics 144Felix Grant16 Computer Support for Data Analysis 152Clifford E. LunneborgPart III Measurement and Experimentation 15717 Instrumentation in Experimentation 159Anand D. Pandyan, Frederike van Wijck and Garth R. Johnson18 Randomised Trials 171Douglas G. Altman19 Laboratory and Industrial Experiments 180Tony Greenfield20 Experiments in Biological Sciences 193Roger Payne21 Survey Research 202David de Vaus22 Theory and Practice of Qualitative Research 214Irena Ograjensek23 Kansei Engineering 231Lluis Marco-Almagro24 Principles of Sampling 244Peter Lynn25 Sampling in Human Studies 255Peter Lynn26 Interviewing 264Mark Hughes27 Measurement Error 275Roland CaulcuttPart IV Data Analysis 28728 Elementary Statistics 289David J. Hand29 Further Statistical Methods 299David J. Hand30 Spreadsheets: A Few Tips 307Tony Greenfield and Andrea BennPart V Special Tools 32331 The Value of Mathematical Models 325Andrew Metcalfe32 Deterministic Models 342Andrew Metcalfe33 Stochastic Models and Simulation 357David Green and Andrew Metcalfe34 Optimisation 372Aiden Fisher and Andrew MetcalfePart VI Presentation 38735 Writing the Thesis 389Tony Greenfield36 The Logic of a Research Report 400Tom Bourner and Linda Heath37 Presenting Data 412Sue Greener38 Presenting and Sharing Your Research 419Sue Greener39 Reporting Research 429Iveta Simera and Douglas G. Altman40 Social Media - How to Make ItWork for You as a Post-Graduate 440Suzanne Fraser-Martin and Catherine Fraser-MartinPart VII Next Steps 45541 Protection and Exploitation of Intellectual Property 457Patrick Andrews42 Career Opportunities 470Sara ShintonIndex 479