4.3
Getting Started
In Workshop Three, you described the design of your research and why your selected methodology would best support your study. That stage of your research also entailed collection of data.
Now, you will analyze the data collected, and then present the results of your research in a way that clearly demonstrates a link to your research questions.
Upon successful completion of this assignment, you will be able to:
· Analyze the data collected in your research.
· Present the results of your research that link to your research questions and accurately interpret your findings.
Resources
· Textbook: Research Methods in Criminal Justice and Criminology
· File: Chapter 9.ppt
· File: Chapter 12.ppt
· File: Research Paper Criteria x
Background Information
Demonstrating a proper data analysis plan is vital during this assignment. You have been provided supplemental resources to assist in developing and presenting your findings. Be proficient in the interpretation of themes and patterns based on your results, as they are a direct correlation of your data analysis.
Instructions
1. Review the rubric to make sure you understand the criteria for earning your grade.
2. You used the textbook, Research Methods in Criminal Justice and Criminology in the course CRJ–467 Research Methods and Analysis in Criminal Justice. Review the following chapters as needed, in preparation for this assignment:
a.
Chapter 9, “Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies”
b. Chapter 12, “Data Management: Coding, Tabulation and Simple Data Presentation”
3. Download and review the following textbook PowerPoint presentations, as needed, in preparation for this assignment:
a.
Chapter 9.ppt
b.
Chapter 12.ppt
4. Prepare a presentation of your findings as a 500–word narrative. Base your findings on the themes and patterns of the responses made by your case study subject or subjects during the interview process.
5. You must present the results of your research in such a way that makes their link to the research questions apparent. Follow these guidelines in preparing your results:
a. Findings are accurately interpreted.
b. Presentation of the results is clear within your written synopsis.
c. Analysis is supported by the data or evidence provided in your literature review.
6. Download the
Research Paper Criteria x
file. Use this document to review and evaluate your capstone research paper in progress against the required criteria. Is your work on each section of the paper satisfactory, or does it need improvement?
© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Class Name,
Instructor Name
Date, Semester
Hagan, Research Methods in Criminal Justice and Criminology, 9/e
Chapter 9
Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Error is another term for invalidity.
Sources of potential error or invalidity are always present, even in some of the best research.
Error in Research
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Validity
Accuracy of measurement
Does the instrument in fact measure that which it purports to measure?
Reliability
Consistency and/or stability of a measuring instrument
Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Little professional esteem in replication
Lack of complexity in technique
Design faults in original study
Unfavorable climate
Interjurisdictional disputes
Tradition
Reasons for Lack of Validation Studies in Criminal Justice
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Construct validity
Content validity
Face validity
Convergent-discriminant validity
Pragmatic validity
Types of Validity
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
9
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Face Validity
The simplest measurement
Asks “Does the measuring instrument appear, at face value, to be measuring what I am attempting to measure?”
Types of Validity
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Content Validity
Examines each item—the content of an instrument—to judge whether each element measures the concept in question
Similar to face validity, content validity is also judgmental and usually nonempirical in nature.
However, an item analysis may be employed to eliminate nondiscriminatory items.
Types of Validity
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Construct Validity
Sometimes called concept validity
Asks whether the instrument in question does, in fact, measure what it has been designated to measure
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Types of Validity
Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Pragmatic Validity
Asks “Does it work?”
Two types:
Concurrent Validity: whether the measure enhances the ability to gauge present characteristics of the item in question
Predictive Validity: concerns the ability to accurately forecast future events or conditions
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Types of Validity
Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Convergent-Discriminant Validation (also called Triangulation)
Involves the use of multiple measures to measure multiple traits
Convergence: different measures of the same concept should yield similar results
Discrimination: the same measure of different concepts should yield different results
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Types of Validity
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
9
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Reliability
Demonstrated through stable and consistent
replication of findings on repeated measurement
Test-Retest
A means of determining reliability in which the same
instrument is administered twice to the same population
Multiple Forms
Involves the administration of alternate
forms of the instrument to the same group
Split-Half Reliability
A form is administered one time to one group,
then split in half and inter-correlated
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Validity, Reliability, and Triangulated Strategies
9
Drug Use Forecasting (DUF)
A research program sponsored by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
Asked volunteers from a population of arrestees in various cities to provide urine specimens that are then tested for drugs
Adam (Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring Program)
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
The question of error unreliability and invalidity is central to criminal justice research.
Validity refers to the accuracy of findings, whereas reliability is concerned with consistency and predictability of research.
In its assessment of the state of Criminal Justice Research and Development, the National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals partly explains why there has been a lack of validation studies in criminal justice.
The principal measures of validity are face validity, content validity, construct validity, pragmatic validity (which includes concurrent and predictive validity), and convergent-discriminant validity (triangulation).
CHAPTER SUMMARY
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Class Name,
Instructor Name
Date, Semester
Hagan, Research Methods in Criminal Justice and Criminology, 9/e
Chapter 12
Data Management: Coding, Tabulating, and Simple Data Presentation
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Variables List
12
A variables list is a list of variables being measured that is keyed to the question number that is designed to measure each variable.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
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12
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Simple Data Presentation
Ratios
Percentages
Proportions
Rates
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
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12
The Frequency Distribution
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Frequency Distribution
In addition to the calculation of summary statistics, it is standard procedure for researchers to summarize and group data into a form that is more easily interpreted by the reader.
Graphs or pictorial presentations of data are an attractive means of capturing the reader’s attention as well as of summarizing data, particularly information from frequency distributions.
Pie charts
Bar graphs
Frequency polygons
Software programs such as SPSS aid considerably in the process of selecting and constructing highly useful graphic displays.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
Crime clocks are highly inaccurate means of depicting crime change that fails to control for population growth.
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12
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Table-Reading
Tables are presentations of quantitative data in a summary or uniform fashion.
The first step in systematically reading a table
is to carefully read the title. A good title will inform the reader of exactly what is being presented. Table 12.3, for instance, tells us that we are examining personal crimes as opposed to crimes committed against commercial establishments.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
12
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Presentation of Complex Data
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One-variable tables are only the first and simplest step in reporting research findings.
It is not unusual to find errors in the presentation of data caused by the improper percentaging of raw information.
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Elaboration
Elaboration refers to the process of introducing or controlling for third variables (control or test factors) by subclassifying original tables.
In discussing the resolution of the causality problem in Chapter 3, we described three steps:
Control for or exclude rival causal factors
Specify the time order (which is X and which is Y)
Demonstrate a relationship between the variables
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Lying with Statistics
12
Zeisel (1957) describes how to lie with
statistics.
Illustrates the misuse of graphic displays that exaggerate or underplay statistical findings by drawing figures out of scale or using calibrations of the horizontal or vertical axes that are misleading
Zeisel, Hans. Say It with Figures. 4th ed. New York: Harper, 1957.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Simple data presentation begins with the re- porting of one-variable frequencies, tallies, or marginals.
Three-variable tables involve the introduction of a third (control) variable to assess its impact (elaborate) on the original relationship.
Elaboration refers to the process of introducing or controlling for third variables by subclassifying tables (creating partial tables).
CHAPTER SUMMARY
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Capstone Research Paper – Criteria Review Form
Use this form to review the sections of your capstone research paper that form the actual body of the paper.
Section
Satisfactory
Needs Improvement
Unsatisfactory
1
: Introduction and Research Problem (Thesis Statement)
1a: A compelling case for the study has been made.
1b: Relevant work has been cited to support the need for the study.
1c: Problem statement is well articulated.
1d: Purpose is clear.
1e: Arguments on the significance of the study are well made.
1f: Research questions are clearly stated.
1g: In qualitative studies, key variables are evident from the research questions.
1h: Section demonstrates awareness of any limitations to the study.
1i: Section is well written; ideas are logically presented.
1j: Sentence structure, APA format, and grammar are correct.
Section
Satisfactory
Needs Improvement
Unsatisfactory
2: Literature Review
2a: Relevant works on all the major variables and concepts in the study are included.
2b: Section shows that other pertinent variables that have an impact on the study have been taken into account, but are not being examined in the present study.
2c: The section represents a critique of the studies.
2d: Citations are current.
2e: Reviewed studies support the significance of the study, as stated in Section 1.
2f: In-text citation follows APA format.
2g: The section reads as a well-organized critique of the literature, with logical flow to the presentation of the reviewed studies.
Section
Satisfactory
Needs Improvement
Unsatisfactory
3: Methodology
3a: Population and sample are well described.
3b: Data sources are clearly identified and allow for the answering of the research question.
3c: Data collection strategies are clearly discussed.
3d: Instrumentations are well described.
3e: Reliable and valid information is presented.
3f: Data analytical strategies are suited to answering the research questions.
3g: Measurement and coding of key variables are presented.
Section
Satisfactory
Needs Improvement
Unsatisfactory
4: Analysis and Presentation of Findings
4a: Results are presented in a way that their link to the research questions is apparent.
4b: Findings are accurately interpreted.
4c: Presentation of the results is clear within written synopsis.
4d: Analysis is supported by the data or evidence provided in the literature review.
4e: In-text citation follows APA format.
4f: Sentence structure, grammar, and APA formatting are correct.
1
Section
Satisfactory
Needs Improvement
Unsatisfactory
5: Discussion and Conclusions
5a: Identification of key findings is presented.
5b: Link to prior research is well established.
5c: Discussion of the key findings is interesting and well articulated.
5d: Recommendations are linked to the findings.
5e: Sentence structure, grammar, and APA formatting are correct.