MDIV315 - IfE

MDIV315
Research Component

MQF Level: 7

ECTS Value: 20 ECTS

Self Study Hours: 360

Contact Hours: 15

Assessment Hours: 125

Duration: 40 sessions

Overall Objectives and Outcomes

This module requires course participants to undertake an individual research component relevant to the field of adolescents with divergent behaviour. This part of the course requires the individual to identify and construct research questions related to addressing adolescents with divergent behaviours, critically evaluate appropriate literature of the respective field, devise and carry out appropriate research methods, and critically interpret and examine the results and contribution of one’s research to the growing body of knowledge and professional practice. In the process, the course participant is expected to comply with academic rigour and present findings in a well-structured and cogently argued form.

By the end of this programme, participants should be able to:

Competences

a. Critically assess and evaluate current literature on the chosen subject to define an area of study and formulate the research questions;

b. Employ the appropriate methodology to achieve the research targets formulated in the research questions;

c. Clearly communicate to a specialised and non-specialised audiences of own research findings;

d. Manage a research project within a specified timeframe;

e. Employ strategies to ensure ethical and social issues that may arise from the research are addressed and mitigated.

Knowledge

a. Identify and critically appraise the theoretical, scientific and/or empirical knowledge appropriate for the study;

b. Determine the contextual framework for the research;

c. Demonstrates critical knowledge of theoretical and evidence-based practices within the field of addressing divergent behaviours;

d. Identify and appreciate ethical and social issues within the field of adolescents with divergent behaviour research;

e. Demonstrate a critical and analytical approach towards in-depth knowledge of the specific subject matter.

Skills

a. Design a research project related to an area within the field of addressing divergent behaviours;

b. Adapt appropriate research methods to the field of study;

c. Dormulate methods of collecting, manipulating and analysing data;

d. Compare and critically reflect on research findings and triangulate these findings with published literature;

e. Analyse and assess the ethical implications of the research.

Assessment Methods

This module will be assessed through: Dissertation.

Suggested Readings

Core Reading List

Andrew B., Diana P., and Anthea S. (2017) Systematic Approaches to a Successful Literature Review. UK: The University of Sheffield.
Booth W., Colomb G., Williams J. (2016) The Craft of Research. University of Chicago Press
Bordens K., Abbott B. (2017) Research Design and Methods: A Process Approach. McGraw Hill.
Bryman, A. (2012). Social research methods (4^th). Oxford.
Clark, A., Flewitt, R., Hammersley, M. and Robb, M. (2013). Understanding Research with Children and Young People. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Charmaz K. (2014) Constructing Grounded Theory. US: Sonama State University.
Donald T. Campbell, Julian C. Stanley (2015) Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Research. Ravenio Books
Elliott, G.C., Kadi-Hanifi, K. and Solvason, C. (2018). Your Guide to Successful Postgraduate Study. SAGE Publications, London.
Floyd J. and Fowler Jr. (2013). Survey Research Methods. Center for Survey Research, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA.
Krippendorff, K. (2019). Content analysis. SAGE Publications, Inc.
Neuman, W. L., (2013). Social Research Methods: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches. 7^th USA: Pearson Education, Inc.
Olson, K. (2016). Essentials of Qualitative Interviewing. Routledge
Pring, R. (2015). Philosophy of educational research (3^rd). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Plano Clark, V., & Ivankova, N. (2016). Mixed methods research: A guide to the field. SAGE Publications, Inc.
Yin, R.K. (2014). Case Study Research Design and Methods (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. The Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation.

Supplementary Reading List

Adams T., Jones S., Ellis C. (2014) Autoethnography: Understanding Qualitative Research. Oxford University Press.
Arthur, J., Hedges, L. V., Waring, M., & Coe, R. (2017). Research Methods and Methodologies in Education. SAGE Publications.
Atkinson, P., Coffey, A., Delamont, S., Lofland J. and Lofland L. (2007). Handbook of Ethnography. UK: Sage Publications Ltd.
Bachman, R.D. and Schutt, R.K. (2019). The Practice of Research in Criminology and Criminal Justice. 7^th SAGE Publications Inc.
Brooks, R., te Riele, K., & Maguire, M. (2014). Ethics and Education Research. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Butler-Kisber, L. (2018). Qualitative inquiry: Thematic, Narrative and Arts-based Perspectives. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Bryant, A., & Charmaz, K. (2019). The SAGE handbook of current developments in grounded theory. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Bryman, A., (2004). Social Research Methods. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press