developing study skills and research methods unit leader: dr james betts unit code: hl20107...
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Developing Study Skills and Research Methods
Unit Leader: Dr James Betts
Unit Code: HL20107
Objectives:
• Learn to review and critique scientific literature• Develop your presentation skills• Expand your understanding of research design• Gain a more advanced appreciation of data
analysis • Introduce you to different perspectives in
Exercise Science.
Lecture Schedule• Mondays 1515• All in room 3E 3.8• Weeks 1-11.
Week Topic1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Unit Overview/How to Write a literature Review
Presenting Scientific Research
Plagiarism
Job Applications/CV Writing
Can We Trust Sports Science?*
Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods*
Assessed Presentations I
Scientific Writing
Data Collection and Analysis in Qualitative Research
Assessed Presentations II
Assessed Presentations III.
* Prior reading required
Semester 1 Computer Laboratory Classes
• Friday 12.15• Weeks 4 & 5• Room 2E 1.14
• Friday 13.15• Week 4 & 5• Room CB 5.13
Surnames A-J
Surnames K-Z
Week Topic19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
29
30
31
Introduction and Revision Session
Managing Violated Statistical Assumptions
Locating Variance: Post-Hoc Tests
Statistical Power: Sample and Effect Size
Linear Regression and Coursework Details
Data Collection Practical
Coursework Revision Lecture
One-Way Analysis of Variance
Timed Practical Computing Exercise
Coursework Hand-In.
Practice for Timed Practical Computing Exercise
Assessment• Coursework Project (40%)
– 2000 word project similar to the one you did last year but using more advanced statistical analyses
– The relevant research scenarios and data will be added to the web page in week 24
– Hand-in date TBC in week 19.
• Timed Practical Computing Exercise (20%)– In week 30 you will be required to use SPSS to
analyse a number of data sets
Assessment• Group Literature Review (20%)
– Organise yourselves into groups of 5– Select an area of research that is of interest to you – Find and read relevant articles– Fill in the form on the web page to let us know
your group/topic by week 4 (21st October)– Write a 2000 word literature review– To be handed in Thursday 21st November 2012– Groups distribute your grades amongst others.
Assessment
• Group Presentations (20%)– Choose one original research article that is central to
your group literature review– Prepare a PowerPoint presentation as if the study was
to be presented at a scientific conference– You will be presenting as groups in weeks 9, 10 &11– I will let you know which week via Email after your
lecture on the 21st October
Previous Topics…
• The Effects of Training at Altitude
• Nutritional Strategies to Promote Recovery
• Psychological Components of Injury and Rehabilitation
• The Effects of Smoking on VO2 max
• The Effect of Pre-Exercise Stretching on Muscle Power Output.
Different types of papers• Primary literature• Secondary literature• Tertiary literature
Primary Literature• Research Papers• Case Studies• Conference Proceedings• Dissertations
Primary Literature• Research papers
– Original data
– First published record of the findings of an experiment of series of experiments
– Peer reviewed
– Normally a group of authors
Primary Literature• Case studies
– Medical/veterinary/psychology literature
– Normally peer reviewed
– Report the circumstances of a particular case
• i.e. an unusual repair technique for a ruptured achilles tendon
Primary Literature• Conference proceedings
– Vary in length and quality!
– Sometimes reviewed, sometimes not
– Often preliminary data
– Will often appear later in research paper form
Primary Literature• Dissertations
– Undergraduate research (BSc, MSc, BEng or MEng)
– Graduate research (MSc, MPhil, PhD)
– University published
– BSc all dissertation that achieve mark of 50% or above in library
– MPhil & PhD theses are examined and corrected
Secondary Literature• Review articles
– Information about primary sources
– Compilation or synthesis of ideas and data
– Should be reasonably objective (although often aren’t)
– Usually peer reviewed
Tertiary Literature• Textbooks – present science theory rather than
contributing to it
Research Paper Structure• Abstract• Introduction• Materials and Methods• Results• Discussion• References
Abstract• Advertisement for the paper• Summary of paper
– Reason for performing the study
– Hypothesis
– Important results
– Implications of the findings
Introduction• Background to the study• Brief overview of the current state of the field
– Citing other people’s work
“The function of tendons can be classified into two categories: tensile force transmission, and storage of elastic strain energy during locomotion (Ker et al., 1988, 2000; Shadwick, 1990; Pollock and Shadwick, 1994).”
(Maganaris and Paul, 2002)
Introduction• Background to the study• Brief overview of the current state of the field
– Citing other people’s work
• How the authors arrived at their research question• Why this is the most important question in the
world!• HYPOTHESIS
– Simple
– Easily answered
Materials and Methods• Clear concise description of what they did
– Often includes figure of experimental setup if appropriate
• Subjects• Data collection – what they were measuring and how• Analysis• Statistics
• Methods should be clear enough to repeat the experiment and give the same results
Results
• What they found• Visual representation of the data
– Graphs
– Tables
• Good figure legends• Description of their results - no
discussion of the implications
Discussion• Interpretation of the results• How they relate to previous research• Implication and/or applications of the findings
– How supplement A might improve endurance
– How knowledge of the forces at the knee during a cutting manoeuvre might be used to reduce injury risk
• Future directions for research
References• Expansion of the citations in the text• Record of the authors, title and journal where the
papers were published• Critically important to avoid plagiarism – must
include the sources of all information that is other people’s intellectual property
• Two citation methods– Harvard System– Numeric System
• Individual journals will request specific methods
References• Harvard System
– Cite references in the text by giving author’s surname(s) and year of publication.
“The function of tendons can be classified into two categories: tensile force transmission, and storage of elastic strain energy during locomotion (Ker et al., 1988, 2000; Shadwick, 1990; Pollock and Shadwick, 1994).”
References• Harvard System
– Cite references in the text by giving author’s surname(s) and year of publication.
“The function of tendons can be classified into two categories: tensile force transmission, and storage of elastic strain energy during locomotion (Ker et al., 1988, 2000; Shadwick, 1990; Pollock and Shadwick, 1994).”
(Maganaris and Paul, 2002)
– Reference list – alphabetical orderKer, R.F., Alexander, R.McN. and Bennet, M.B. 1988. Why are
mammalian tendons so thick? Journal of Zoology, London 216, 309-324
• Don’t use capitals for authors’ names as in library guide to referencing
References• Numeric System
– Each citation is given a number in parentheses. These are numbered according to where they appear in the text. First reference is (1), second reference is (2) etc
“However, excess tendon elongation leads to a partial or complete tendon rupture (4), and the Achilles tendon is one of the most frequently injured tendons in the human body (5)”
(Muraoka et al., 2005)
– Reference list – listed in numerical order based on number you have given each citation in the text.
4. Butler, D.L., Grood, E.S., Noyes, F.R.and Zernicke, R.F. 1978. Biomechanics of ligaments and tendons. Exerc. Sport Sci. Rev. 6, 125-181
References• Library Guide to Referencinghttp://www.bath.ac.uk/library/guides/references.html
What is a literature review?
• Critical look at existing research relevant to your question in order to– Identify the problem– Develop a hypothesis– Develop a method
• It is NOT just a summary of a series of research papers
• You must evaluate the research papers and show the relationships between different work
What is a literature review?• Approach it with the following questions
– What do we already know in the area concerned?– What are the key concepts?– What are the existing theories?– What are the inconsistencies?– What evidence is lacking, inconclusive, contradictory
or too limited?– What views need to be tested further?
Selecting a topic• Real World vs Theoretical
• Research at Bath or another institution
• Controversial issues
• Relevant to your sport
• Review papers
• Interesting!!!
Six Step Procedure (Thomas and Nelson, 1996)
• Problem statement
• Consult secondary sources– Reviews – Exercise and Sport Science reviews– Be wary of www sources
Evaluating Internet Sources• Is it someone’s ‘personal’ page?
• What type of domain does it come from?– academic, charity, industry, government
• Who published the page?
• What are the author’s credentials?
• Are sources documented?
• When was it last updated?
Six Step Procedure (Thomas and Nelson, 1996)
• Problem statement• Consult secondary sources
– Reviews – Exercise and Sport Science reviews– Be wary of www sources
• Determine descriptors– Search terms
• Search for primary sources• Read and record literature• Write literature review
Read and Record Literature• Hypothesis / Question• Methods
– Subjects– Instruments/tests used– Testing procedures
• Independent/dependent variables• Analysis• Findings and Conclusions• Critique of paper – strengths/weaknesses
How to Write a Literature Review• Background
– Introduce to topic to the reader– Make it interesting and easily understandable by
explaining it in plain language and relating to actual or potential applications
– Explain scientific principles underlying the topic– Define and justify the scope of the review – i.e. your
question
How to Write a Literature Review• Critique of the Literature
– Do not give a summary paper by paper– Deal with themes and try to draw together the results
from several papers into each theme.– Use sub-headings to identify your themes– Try and create a logical progression through the
subject/argument– Use what you have learnt about research design to
critically evaluate the results of the papers you are discussing
How to Write a Literature Review• Tables and Figures
– Tables can be a useful, concise way of summarising the findings of a number of similar studies
– You must cite the sources of the information– Use tables alongside your evaluation of the data in the
text, not instead of it– Figures and diagrams can be very useful to explain
important principles• Cite source of information
How to Write a Literature Review• Conclusions
– Should be short and concise– What is your opinion
• Further Research– Finish your review with some ideas for further
research that needs to be done in the area and why.
How to Write a Literature Review• References
– As used in Journal of Sports Sciences• Names of author (s) and date of publication in the text
• Full references listed in alphabetical order in the reference list
• Instructions on formatting references can be found in all issues of JSS or on the JSS website
• http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/authors/rjspauth.pdf Section 5(h)
Writing Style• Spelling, grammar and punctuation matter!
– Use spell check– Ask someone to read your paper for you before
handing it in
• Fonts and Symbols– Do not use stylised fonts– Many of the symbols needed for scientific
information can be found in insert-symbol• Normal text (° ± Δ ½)
• Mathematical operators (Ω √ ≤ ∑)
Writing Style• Abbreviations and Acronyms
– Keep to a minimum– Only use if full expression is excessively long or abbreviation
is in common use– Define the first time it is used
• Use SI (Systeme Internationale) Units
Système Internationale (SI) UnitsSeven ‘constant’* base units using the metric system
Variable Unit Symbol Accepted Derivations
Distance metre m ha for area; º for angle; #l or L for volume
Mass* kilogram kg t
Time second s min, h, d (not year)
Temperature kelvin K
Mole mole mol #l or L for volume
Current ampere A
Luminance candela cdUnits always lower-case#, neither italicised nor pleuralised (i.e. kg not KGS) and with space between value and unit (inc. % but exc. º).
Writing Style• Tables
– Insert-Table in word– Units in column and row headings– Use a realistic number of significant figures– Include a legend which describes the table
• Figures– Create figure in powerpoint of graphics software– Insert-picture from file– Create graphs in Excel or other graph drawing package– Paste into word– For this review paste figures into appropriate place in the text.
For publication figures should be separate
Writing Style• Use of Words
– Be economical – don’t waffle– Be precise – don’t generalise, be specific if you can– Don’t use however more than once in a paragraph
• changing the direction of an argument twice in one paragraph can confuse the reader
– Don’t use however too often• Thesaurus for synonyms
– Keep technical terms to a minimum– Avoid colloquialisms such as steer clear of
Writing Style• Use of Words
– Don’t use long complicated sentences– Beware of tenses
• When describing experiments and reporting results use past tense
• When discussing implications use present tense
– Beware of singular and plural terms• Datum – data
• Medium – media
• Phenomenon – phenomena
Writing Style• Flow of Ideas
– Focus your thoughts by writing a plan/outline first– The first sentence of a paragraph usually sets the
topic for the paragraph– Check that you don’t contradict yourself– Aim for simplicity!
READ YOUR WORK BEFORE YOU HAND IT IN!!!
Preferably ask someone else to read it too!