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Creating research questions, orientation and design

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The assignment: At-Risk Children

Create a document that has three clearly defined sections (listed below), and that totals no more than 3 pages in length.

- Research Question(s). State the research question(s) you are proposing to study.
- Qualitative Research Orientation. Clearly state why a qualitative method would be appropriate given your research question(s), the inquiry orientation you would draw upon, defending why it is an appropriate strategy to use.
- Research Design. Include the following information in this Research Design section:
a. Role of Researcher. Briefly, but explicitly, state biases, values, personal interest in the area, and experience with it, and discuss how these would affect your study.
b. Sample Size. Given the type of research you would conduct, state how many participants/items you would plan to study.
c. Sample and Context. Define the sample you would propose to study and its characteristics. If studying human participants, this should include, but is not limited to: 1) age, 2) gender, 3) ethnicity, 4) additional cultural factors, and 5) education level. If studying artifacts, media, etc., state relevant characteristics. Also give the context as appropriate, for example, city characteristics, organizational characteristics, etc.
d. Sampling Procedure. Define your method of sampling. Your description should include how you would gain access to participants/items.
e. Data Type and Collection. State the type of data you would collect and how it would be collected.
f. Data Analysis. Briefly describe the steps you would take to analyze the data.
g. Ethical Protection of Participants. State briefly any ethical issues you foresee with your study. Also, make a preliminary assessment of the level of risk associated with participation in your study that might need to be raised with Walden's Institutional Review Board (IRB).

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The expert examines creating research questions for orientation and design.

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Here is what I think should be included in your qualitative research design. Look over the material carefully and make the necessary adjustments. Thanks and I hope this helps. Cliff

- Research Question(s). State the research question(s) you are proposing to study.

This study will seek to understand how diet might affect low self-esteem/efficacy, which may contribute to poor academic performance. In doing so, we will have to define and study at-risk children but also the environments and social structures that effect or impede their progress. The premise of this study includes in the research question whether or not good nutrition helps improve cognitive development and performance by positively effecting self-esteem and efficacy issues. We would be specifically exploring whether biology in this case affects an area of psychosocial functioning.

- Qualitative Research Orientation. Clearly state why a qualitative method would be appropriate given your research question(s), the inquiry orientation you would draw upon, defending why it is an appropriate strategy to use.

The chosen design for this study was grounded theory, which was chosen to specifically address researcher bias. In using grounded theory, the researcher gathers information from all possible sources. This essentially means that data gathering is a multivariate process including student and family records, observation, case-study development, measures of self-esteem, self-efficacy and cognitive development from both the study group which is identified as at-risk and the control. Only after data has been gathered from all possible sources will a hypothesis be reverse constructed that fits the data and that can be validated through meta-analysis. Given the above, researcher bias should be sufficiently minimized to secure valid data.

- Research Design. Include the following information in this Research Design section:
a. Role of Researcher. Briefly, but explicitly, state biases, values, personal interest in the area, and experience with it, and discuss how these would affect your study.

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