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Starting a research project, however large or small can be a daunting prospect. New researchers can be confronted with a huge number of options not only of topic, but of conceptual underpinning. It is quite possible to conduct research into say, memory, from a number of research traditions. Psychology also has links with several other disciplines and it is possible to utilise their techniques; the difficulty is quite simply the wide variety of methodological approaches that psychological research embraces. In this collection, authors have been recruited to explain a wide range of different research strategies and theories with examples from their own work. Their successes as well as the problems they encountered are explained to provide a comprehensive and practical guide for all new researchers. The collection will be a great help to undergraduates about to start final year projects and should be required reading for all those thinking of graduate level research.
E-Book Content
Psychological research
Psychological Research examines how research is undertaken in psychology and the social sciences where many different and evolving traditions exist together. John Haworth examines how we come to know things in today’s world and how we should appraise the results of research in the social sciences and science in general. Implicit in such concerns are fundamental questions concerning the nature of truth and objectivity and the importance of values in making judgements. These questions form the theoretical base from which research strategies and methods are discussed. Psychological Research is divided into three sections; survey research, qualitative research and controlled investigations, with contributions from experts in a wide range of research areas. Methods and strategies of research are related to areas such as health behaviour, work psychology and social remembering, offering the reader critical understanding of research in areas at the forefront of psychology. This book will be of direct benefit to all students and professionals undertaking research and to all those concerned with the nature and use of knowledge. John Haworth is a Lecturer in Psychology at Manchester University with research interests in mental health, work and leisure. His previous books are Work and Leisure (1975) and Community Involvement and Leisure (1979). He has published extensively in academic journals.
Psychological research
Innovative methods and strategies
Edited by John Haworth
London and New York
First published 1996 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2001. © 1996 Selection and editorial matter, John Haworth; individual chapters, the contributors All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book has been requested ISBN 0–415–11789–5 (hbk) ISBN 0–415–11790–9 (pbk) ISBN 0-203-13815-5 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-18570-6 (Glassbook Format)
Contents
List of illustrations List of contributors Foreword 1
Introduction: contemporary psychological research: visions from positional standpoints John Haworth
vii ix xiv 1
Part I Survey research Preface
17
2
Mental health, work and leisure John Haworth