Quantitative Research in Social Sciences: Methods, Issues, and Strategies
Abstract
Quantitative research seeks to draw on numerical data to explore the occurrence of events, the relationship between phenomena, and the effects of systematic interventions on related outcomes. This talk provides an introductory, practical, and comprehensive guide to the steps involved in carrying out a quantitative study, including problem formulation, literature review, research methods, data analysis, result reporting, and discussion. Drawing on his expertise in research methods and rich experience in conducting different types of quantitative research, Dr. Li will clarify issues and judgment calls at each stage of a quantitative study and make recommendations on how to address related issues. He will discuss key statistical analyses utilized in correlational and experimental studies, which roughly correspond to analyses involving covariance and mean difference respectively. He will also address topics that have received little attention in methodological and statistical guides such as literature review and meta-analysis.
About the speaker
Shaofeng Li is an Associate Professor of Second and Foreign Language Education at Florida State University. Dr. Li’s main research interests include language aptitude, working memory, form-focused instruction, task-based language teaching and learning, corrective feedback, and research methods (including meta-analysis). His research has primarily focused on the joint effects of learner-external (e.g. instruction) and learner-internal (e.g. cognitive aptitudes) factors on second language learning outcomes. His publications have appeared in Applied Linguistics, International Review of Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, System, among others.
About the workshop
COVID-19 is fundamentally changing academic research landscape. Humanities and social sciences, relying heavily on fieldwork for data collection, are particularly hit hard by the pandemic. The cessation of travel opportunities brought by international or domestic travel bans and limitations has forced many researchers to either change, postpone, or even cancel their original research plans. As a group of social science PhD students from U21 universities, we are launching a Social Sciences Online Writing Workshop to self-empower ourselves by innovatively refreshing research skills and writing collaboratively and inter-disciplinarily.
About Quantitative Research in Social Sciences: Methods, Issues, and Strategies
Abstract
Quantitative research seeks to draw on numerical data to explore the occurrence of events, the relationship between phenomena, and the effects of systematic interventions on related outcomes. This talk provides an introductory, practical, and comprehensive guide to the steps involved in carrying out a quantitative study, including problem formulation, literature review, research methods, data analysis, result reporting, and discussion. Drawing on his expertise in research methods and rich experience in conducting different types of quantitative research, Dr. Li will clarify issues and judgment calls at each stage of a quantitative study and make recommendations on how to address related issues. He will discuss key statistical analyses utilized in correlational and experimental studies, which roughly correspond to analyses involving covariance and mean difference respectively. He will also address topics that have received little attention in methodological and statistical guides such as literature review and meta-analysis.
About the speaker
Shaofeng Li is an Associate Professor of Second and Foreign Language Education at Florida State University. Dr. Li’s main research interests include language aptitude, working memory, form-focused instruction, task-based language teaching and learning, corrective feedback, and research methods (including meta-analysis). His research has primarily focused on the joint effects of learner-external (e.g. instruction) and learner-internal (e.g. cognitive aptitudes) factors on second language learning outcomes. His publications have appeared in Applied Linguistics, International Review of Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, System, among others.
About the workshop
COVID-19 is fundamentally changing academic research landscape. Humanities and social sciences, relying heavily on fieldwork for data collection, are particularly hit hard by the pandemic. The cessation of travel opportunities brought by international or domestic travel bans and limitations has forced many researchers to either change, postpone, or even cancel their original research plans. As a group of social science PhD students from U21 universities, we are launching a Social Sciences Online Writing Workshop to self-empower ourselves by innovatively refreshing research skills and writing collaboratively and inter-disciplinarily.