This book is a special edition, compiled for to the MSc Course Research Methodologies as taught at the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at Delft University of Technology. It is a compilation of useful chapters from several sources on how to structure, set up, carry out and write up your (thesis) research to aid you in writing your research plan. Next to that it acts as a companion during your thesis research. After introducing you to the philosophy of scientific research, subsequent chapters each contribute to the different phases of your research. The book uniquely allows for the often multi- or interdisciplinary research many of you carry out, based on the established Dutch university tradition of (semi-)independent student research, creating a thread through the process for you to follow.
This edition is a collection of chapters from An Introduction to Interdisciplinary Research (2016), edited by Steph Menken and Machiel Keestra, and Academic Skills for Interdisciplinary Studies. Revised edition (2019), by Koen van der Gaast, Laura Koenders and Ger Post, published by Amsterdam University Press.
- Contents
- Part 1. From ‘An Introduction to Interdisciplinary Research’
- 1. Introduction
- 2. What is science? A brief philosophy of science
- 2.1 What is science?
- 2.2 Moving through the Science Cycle
- 4. Interdisciplinarity
- 7. The interdisciplinary research process
- 7.1 The IIS model of interdisciplinary research
- 7.2 Planning your research project
- 8. The problem
- Step 1. Identify problem or topic
- Step 2. Formulate preliminary research question
- 9. Theoretical framework and research question
- Step 3. Develop theoretical framework
- Step 4. Finalize research question
- Step 5. Formulate sub-questions
- 10. How to collect and analyze your data
- Step 6. Develop research methods and design
- Step 7. Data collection and analysis
- 11. Discussion and conclusion(s)
- Step 8. Interpret results, discuss research & draw conclusion(s)
- References
- Part 2. From ‘Academic Skills to Interdisciplinary Studies’
- 1. Preparatory reading and searching
- Familiarizing yourself with a topic
- An initial literature search
- Exploratory reading
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 2. Gathering and organizing key information
- Optimizing your study environment
- Learning objectives
- Reading strategies
- Organizing information
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 3. Studying thoroughly and critically
- Sentence-level analysis
- Types of argumentation
- Critically evaluating texts
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 4. From your topic to your question
- Theoretical framework
- Sources
- 5. Formulating a good question
- Characteristics of a research question
- Types of questions
- Sources
- 6. A testable concept
- Why operationalize?
- From dimensions to indicators and variables
- Operationalization and validity
- Other forms of operationalization
- Sources
- 7. Making a research instrument
- Qualitative versus quantitative
- When qualitative and when quantitative?
- Making a qualitative research instrument
- Validity and reliability of your instrument
- Assessment by an ethics committee
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 8. Research practice
- Research practice: quantitative research
- Research practice for qualitative research: conducting interviews
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 9. The structure of your article
- Argumentation structure
- The structure of a scholarly article
- Valorization
- Sources
- 10. Finishing your article: academic writing, titles, and abstracts
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 11. Citing sources and the bibliography
- Reference management software
- In-text citations
- Citations in the bibliography
- Sources
- Other useful sources
- 12. Preventing fraud and plagiarism
- Appendices
- Appendix A. Sample literature review
- Appendix B. Sample research article
- Colophon
Text
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