Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Research Methods and Methodologies (DJ)









 

1. Introduction
The purpose of this manual is to provide you with essential materials that will help you conduct professional and academic research. In addition, there are also suggestions to guide you in extending your research skills and exploring further sources of information. We encourage you to take up these opportunities regularly because your success as a researcher depends at least in part on your familiarity with available resources.

2. Referencing
Referencing is a method of acknowledging the sources you have used in your academic work. It is a way of ensuring that you maintain academic integrity in all of your written assignments and that you use the work of others in an ethical way.

Acknowledge any ideas or information which are not your own when:
      quoting directly, or word for word
      summarising or paraphrasing another person’s work
      using data such as statistics, images, diagrams, graphs, etc.

Sources of information you need to reference include:
      books or chapters from books
      articles from journals or newspapers, both print and online
      films, television, podcasts or radio programs
      emails, interviews or letters
      blogs or wikis
      works of art or music
      websites

Your list of references, or bibliography enables another to follow the steps you have taken in your research. In addition, this enables others to verify your citations and confirm that you have not plagiarised the work of another person. Plagiarism is the act of presenting another person’s work or ideas as your own. Plagiarism is a serious breach of ethics in the workplace and is not taken lightly.


2.1 Styles of Referencing
While there are multiple referencing systems that exist throughout the world, it is important to choose one style and apply it consistently throughout your work. Two of the most widely applied referencing systems are as follows:
      An online guide for the Harvard referencing system can be found here: http://www.staffs.ac.uk/assets/harvard_quick_guide_tcm44-47797.pdf
      An online guide for the Vancouver referencing system can be found here: https://workspace.imperial.ac.uk/library/Public/Vancouver_referencing.pdf

2.2 Citation Machines
Citation machines or generators help students and professional researchers to properly credit the information that they use. Citation machines can be found for a variety of referencing systems, including ALA, MLA, Harvard, Vancouver and Chicago.

      Queen’s University of Belfast provides a citation machine that generates the Harvard and Vancouver system of referencing: http://www.qub.ac.uk/cite2write/
      The website ‘Cite This For Me’ also provides a citation machine that generates the ALA, MLA and Harvard systems of referencing: http://www.citethisforme.com/

3. Locating Resources

This section will help you learn how to find the various types of academic information that will assist you in the workplace and university.

3.1 Primary and Secondary Sources
Primary sources represent original thinking, reports on discoveries or events, or they can share new information. They are usually the first formal appearance of original research.

Secondary sources involve analysis, synthesis, interpretation, or evaluation of primary sources. They often attempt to describe or explain primary sources.

Scholarly journals, although generally considered to be secondary sources, often contain articles on very specific subjects and may be the primary source of information on new developments.

Secondary Sources
      commentary and digests
      journal articles and research reports
      textbooks
      books and articles that interpret or review research works
      histories
      criticism of literature
      biographies
      political commentary
      encyclopedias
      dictionaries
      newspaper editorials
Primary Resources
      statistical data
      manuscripts
      surveys and interviews
      speeches
      autobiographies
      oral histories, interviews
      reports involving empirical research
      government documents
      original documents e.g. trial transcripts
      domestic and international legislation
      domestic and international case law

3.2 Peer-Reviewed Literature
Journal articles that are peer-reviewed have been assessed by the author’s peers, an editorial board of subject specialists in a particular discipline. They review, and accept or reject articles that have been submitted for publication based on the validity and scholarship of the article.

This scrutiny by the author's peers ensures that high standards of research and scholarship are maintained. The peer-review process also helps build a reliable body of knowledge.

Peer-reviewed articles:
      present more highly regarded and authoritative information
      include bibliographies that provide you with further reading of a similar quality and standard
      focus on original academic research
      are also called refereed articles

3.3 Alternative Subject Terms
When you start to look for resources on a topic, it is useful to identify some alternative terms or keywords to help you search.

The words in your assignment question may not be the same words or terms that are used in a library catalogue or database.

Terms that describe things may vary between countries, for example:
      caravans can also be referred to as trailers
      primary school can also be referred to as elementary school
      university can also be referred to as college

Identifying alternative terms or keywords will help you to find a range of resources that are relevant to your topic.

Subject dictionaries and encyclopedias help you identify alternative terms and keywords.If you are looking for a definition of fascism, look for a dictionary or encyclopedia on a broader subject such as politics.

Find dictionaries and encyclopedias using www.thefreedictionary.com or www.tfode.com
      search using broad subject terms, such as politics, medicine, engineering
      truncate encyclopedia e.g. encyclop* to find encyclopedia (US spelling) and encyclopaedia (UK spelling)

Very new terms
As subjects develop, new terms are created. If you are trying to find a very new term, look in a recently published dictionary.

Some terms could be too new to be included in print dictionaries. Search the internet for information about very recent terms, but remember to evaluate information found via the internet before using it in your work.

3.4 Selecting Information
When you are researching a new topic and you don't have a reading list, you will need to find information that will be appropriate for your assignments.
Some sources of information are regarded as more reliable than others because of the way they are produced or created.

The following guidelines will help you select information:
      some sources of information have a higher level of accountability, e.g academic texts and peer-reviewed journals;
      take time to read widely to gain a deeper understanding of a topic, and;
      go through an evaluation process with any information you find, checking it for quality, relevance and usefulness.

3.5 Sources of Academic Information

Databases
A library database is a collection of published literature, such as journal and newspaper articles, conference proceedings, reports and book chapters. Databases can be subject specific or multi-disciplinary. They can als be subscription or open access. Searching a library database is a good way to find scholarly information.

      Subscription databases
Many important databases require users to pay for access to their content. Libraries subscribe to these databases and access to each individual database is subject to licence agreements. This means that only currently enrolled students and staff have access to UNSW Library subscription databases.
      We encourage all interns to ask whether their universities or employers have access to any subscription databases.

      Open Access Databases
Some databases are open access, providing free access to selected scholarly journal articles, these, scholarly monographs and book chapters.

      The Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) is an online database that aims to be comprehensive and cover all open access scientific and scholarly journals that use a quality control system to guarantee the content: www.doaj.org
      Jurn provides journal articles in the arts and humanities: www.jurn.org/
      Social Science Research Network is a website devoted to the rapid dissemination of scholarly research in the social sciences and humanities: http://www.ssrn.com/en/

Library Catalogues
Library Catalogues provide records of items held in a library’s collection. They can also link you to online content such as e-books, e-journals, digitised content such as images, documents and databases. Library Catalogues can be searched online from anywhere in the world, helping you discover what is held in a Library’s collection.
      We encourage all interns to ask whether their universities or employers have access to any library catalogues, as they usually require a login.

Google
Google is a fast, easy way to search for information, ranging from the very general to the scholarly. It is important to carefully evaluate any information you find through Google. If you are specifically searching for scholarly information, it can save you time to first search library resources such as databases, journals and catalogues.
      www.google.com

Google Scholar
Google Scholar can link you to scholarly literature, such as journal articles, books and conference papers. Not all academic material will be available via Google Scholar. Searching library resources such as databases can be a more thorough way of checking the literature in a subject area, ensuring you do not miss key information.
      www.scholar.google.com

Legal Resources

International and Foreign Sources of Law
      GlobaLex provides information on international law, comparative law, foreign law research, as well as tools for building foreign, comparative and international law collections: www.nyulawglobal.org/Globalex/
      JuriGlobe provides multilingual information data bank, containing general information relating to the different legal systems in the world, to the different official languages and to some of the most important international commercial conventions and multilateral commercial tools: www.juriglobe.ca/eng/apropos/index.php
      LLRX provides free international and foreign legal research resources and tools:
      LLRX International: www.llrx.com/category/857
      LLRX Foreign: www.llrx.com/category/1050
      Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law (MPEPIL) provides a comprehensive analytical resource covering the whole of public international law, plus online-only articles since 2001: http://opil.ouplaw.com/home/EPIL
      WordLii is a free, independent and non-profit public access to worldwide law by the Free Access to Law movement. It provides access to law journals, databases, international law libraries, courts and case law and an international treaty collection:  http://www.worldlii.org/
      HUDOC provides a database of the case-law of the supervisory organs of the European Convention of Human Rights: www.hudoc.echr.coe.int/
      African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights provides relevant legal information on African legal instruments: www.achpr.org
Domestic Sources of Law
      The Chbab.net website is building a repository of Cambodian jurisprudence to enable access to Cambodian laws: www.chbab.net
      Cambodian Centre of Human Rights provides relevant legal information on human rights law in Cambodia: http://www.sithi.org/
      The Senate website provides law lists, reports and publications on legal developments in Cambodia: http://www.senate.gov.kh/
      Asian Legal Information Institute (AsianLii) provides free access to Asian Law, including Cambodia: http://www.asianlii.org/
      Open Development provides certain Cambodian laws and regulations: http://www.opendevelopmentcambodia.net/laws-regulations/
      The Guide to Law Online contains a selection of Cambodian legal, juridicial and governmental sources accessible through their website: http://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide/nations/cambodia.php
      GoCambodia provides a wide variety of laws and regulations: http://www.gocambodia.com/laws/





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