Demonstrate understanding of quantitative and qualitative research methods, the ability to design a research project, and the ability to evaluate and synthesize research literature
Introduction
Conducting research is an important aspect of the LIS profession, specifically of librarians in their various atmospheres. Research moves libraries forward by reflecting on the effectiveness of services and resources, noticing any gaps in what is offered, and understanding and imagining improvements to missing areas (Luo et al., 2017). The questioning aspect of research is a particularly important component of academic libraries and allows the library to align with the mission of the institution and situate the library as a part of the culture of the academy (Luo et al., 2017). Research is thought of as a “process that leads to the dependable resolution of problems or things we want to know more about” (Powell, 2018, p. 243). Luo et al. (2017) defines research as the process of arriving at dependable solutions to problems or questions through a planned and systematic process of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data which could be through qualitative or quantitative methods. Many librarians conduct research at their own institutions, and while it can be a beneficial process to the library and the larger institution, there are some barriers to success. Particularly in the academic library atmosphere barriers have been identified including a lack of time to conduct research, unfamiliarity with the research process, a lack of support from leadership, a lack of confidence, and insufficient training in various research methods (Luo et al., 2017). In order to conduct research, it is first important for librarians to have a solid understanding of research methods, the research design process, and how to effectively evaluate and synthesize research literature.
Research Methods
“Research methods offer specific tools that you can use to collect and analyze data” (Luo et al., 2017, p. 73). Data and information can be gathered through qualitative methods, quantitative methods, or a mixed methods approach (Luo et al., 2017). Quantitative research deals with numerical data and information or something that can be quantified (Powell, 2018). Quantitative research is typically conducted in a highly structured environment and is well suited to testing the hypothesis of a research question (Powell, 2018). Qualitative research is focused on observation of behaviors, characteristics, and events from the perspective of the person conducting the research (Powell, 2018). Qualitative research takes a natural approach and is useful for researching “complex phenomena and for taking a relatively holistic approach to the resolution of a research problem” (Powell, 2018, p. 246). There are various quantitative and qualitative research methods that assist librarians in their research projects including in-depth interviews, content analysis, focus groups, analysis of existing techniques, and surveys. The survey method is the most popular research method in academic libraries and “can be used to collect a broad range of data such as attitudes, opinions, beliefs, values, and behavior” (Luo et al., 2017, p.73). Survey questionnaires can be administered physically in person or online through various methods such as a QR code to scan or a link to fill out, and more. Surveys can also be in the form of a telephone interview where the questions are read and responded to verbally (Luo et al., 2017). Understanding and deciding on which methodology to use is just one of many steps in designing a research project.
Designing a Research Project
Depending on the field, there can be many different types of research projects, primarily in the library field, particularly academic libraries, it is social science research (Luo et al., 2017). Research involves more than simply deciding to answer a question, there is a process that goes into the designing and application of a research project. The goal of a research study is to be original and make a meaningful contribution to the improvement and practice and or the growth of knowledge (Luo et al., 2017). “The research process refers to the planned and systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of data” (Luo et al., 2017, p.19). The research process typically begins with the identification of a research need or problem that is identified by librarians through their professional practice and is typically something that is of interest to them and can be fulfilled through a research study (Luo et al., 2017). The next step of the process is to develop a research question. “The research question is the anchor that centers the study and prevents it from aimless floating” (Luo et al., 2017, p.23). Scholarly and professional research literature is utilized in this stage to gather understanding and support for the research question. Once the research question and a gathering of the history on this topic has been established, the research design, methodology, and instruments for data collection are discovered (Luo et al., 2017). If the study involves human subjects, the next step is to attain ethical clearance from the institution’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) through a research proposal. It is critical to ensure the study is conducted ethically and that people do not feel forced to participate. Babbie (2012) stresses the importance of ethics and that no harm is to come to research study participants. Once approved, the research projects moves on to data collection, analysis, and synthesis of the discovered data. The synthesis of the research project and the data found should answer the research question and address the research need (Luo et al., 2017). The researcher will then disseminate the findings through various methods such as writing a research article and getting it published in an appropriate journal, discussing findings at conferences, poster presentations and other ways where an audience can benefit from what was discovered (Luo et al., 2017).
Evaluating and Synthesizing Research Literature
“A literature review identifies and critically evaluates published literature that is relevant to a research topic and provides a summary and synthesis of it” (Luo et al., 2017, p.52). Literature reviews are in high demand in many fields, particularly scientific fields. Literature reviews serve two primary purposes, to provide an overview of the history of a topic, and to provide a background of context for a research project (Luo et al., 2017). Reviewing literature requires many different skills such as finding and evaluating literature and critical thinking and paraphrasing of important information (Pautasso, 2013). Critical steps in the literature review process include analysis where the literature is examined for appropriateness to the research topic, comparison and contrast where patterns are found in two or more pieces of literature that is important to the research topic, evaluation which connects articles to the research topic and helps justify the study, synthesis where different themes are found among comparing and contrasting articles to get an overall understanding of the topic, and integration where disparities of the topic are explained (Luo et al., 2017). The synthesis portion of this process is the key step in determining the themes that emerge from the literature and is the most important part of the literature review (Luo et al., 2017). Pautasso (2013) offers ten rules for writing literature reviews most notably are to search and then re-search your topic, take notes while reading to better comprehend and connect themes, be critical and consistent with the context of the review, and be sure to use newer information while not forgetting older important research studies. Academic librarians in particular will need to develop good skills at reading literature and synthesizing it to assist with various needs including research studies.
Evidence
Info 200 - Literature Review Matrix
My first piece of evidence is the Literature Review Matrix created for Info 200 Information Communities. This assignment was one step of many to get to the culmination of the course which was a research paper. This assignment in particular was to gather eight research studies relevant to our information community and evaluate them. The evaluation process consisted of two sections, They Say and I Say. The “They Say” section analyzed the article's main ideas and their research question, the theoretical framework utilized in their study, their research methodology, results and analysis, and conclusion. The “I Say” section contained my analysis of the article, implications of this study for future research, and implications for LIS professional practices. This evidence shows my knowledge on evaluating and synthesizing research literature including understanding how to properly search and locate relevant information to my research topic. This assignment is an outline of a literature review and utilizes the same skills as creating a literature review.
My second piece of evidence is an In-Depth Interview created for Info 285 Research in Academic Libraries. In this assignment, we were given two scenarios to formulate an in-depth interview around. This assignment included the scenario chosen, when and where the interview took place, the interview guide of five questions, the development of the interview questions, an explanation of how the questions and the interview guide were constructed to elicit the information needed to answer the research question and accomplish the research goal, a discussion of the main themes that were found and how they help accomplish the goal of the research, and a reflection of this qualitative research study process. The research scenario was to ask academic librarians how their MLIS program prepared them professionally for their work in a real-world setting. The research goal was to improve the iSchool curriculum to benefit students who wish to pursue a career in academic libraries. For this study, I created a list of interview questions and established an interview guide, which included creating a research question to guide the process. In the interview guide, I outline the definitions and context for the interview question and discuss the overall research goal for the qualitative methodology to achieve. In this assignment, I also evaluated and synthesized the data collection from the interview and found main themes to the research and provided insight into how the iSchool could improve the curriculum. This piece of evidence shows my knowledge in qualitative research including formulating a research question, identifying a research goal, using a methodology of in-depth interviewing to find common themes and achieve the research goal.
Info 285 - Research Proposal Draft #3
My third piece of evidence is the final draft of my research proposal created for Info 285 Research in Academic Libraries. This proposal is the culminating assignment for this course. My proposal included nine sections consisting of an introduction to the problem which includes my research question, a literature review emphasizing the relationship between the literature and the problem, a section on methodology including my study population, sampling design, data collection instruments, and a description of my data analysis technique. This proposal also includes a project schedule including dates for each stage of the research project, researcher qualifications, a detail of the significance of the project and who it will benefit, a summary of the proposal, a list of references, and an appendix with the attached survey. This assignment was intended to reflect a proposal that would be submitted to an IRB for ethical clearance to begin a project. My research proposal was about the utilization of academic library’s course reserve collections, primarily the current student needs. In my current job as circulation supervisor, I had noticed a reduction of course reserve utilization and came up with this research proposal to potentially assist in funding decisions for reducing the collection. This evidence shows my knowledge in understanding a research need, formulating a research question, looking at research literature and creating a literature review in relation to the question, deciding on which methodology to use, for my project it was a mixed-methods approach of a survey questionnaire paired with content analysis data statistics. This proposal shows my ability to create a research project and my understanding of all variables that go into a detailed study including an analysis and synthesizing results for future research implications.
Conclusion
As a future academic librarian, I will use research skills when conducting my own formal research, but also when discovering a potential user need of the library and conduct a literature review to understand it more. Currently in my position at CSN Libraries, I am a leader for a collection diversity audit assessment project and these skills have come into play when researching literature, formalizing the project including decision-making with methodology and sampling. To stay up to date with new research skills I will seek professional development through webinars and other training opportunities through various library sources such as ACRL and ALA.
References
Babbie, E. (2012). The practice of social research (13th ed.). Wadsworth Publishing.
Luo, L., Brancolini, R., & Kennedy, M.R. (2017). Enhancing library and information research skills: A guide for academic librarians. Libraries Unlimited.
Pautasso, M. (2013). Ten simple rules for writing a literature review. PLoS Computational Biology 9(7). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003149
Powell, R.R. (2018). Research. In K. Haycock & M.J. Romaniuk (Eds.), The Portable MLIS. (2nd ed., pp. 243-254). Libraries Unlimited.