What have you learned about the processes of designing a sound research study in class?
I've learned that designing a sound research study is a very iterative process.
It involves continually challenging the starting point of a proposed study and then refining it as more information is discovered or complications arise. What was right yesterday often needs improvement today. My original blog post ideas underwent multiple transformations before I arrived at my current proposal's research questions. I had to pare down from three questions to two. This made sense because of the brevity of the survey. It also demanded a decision to be made for what was "most important" for me to research.
There was a lot of reflection involved as I went through the piece repeatedly to see what "made sense" or needed to be addressed. For example, some portions needed to be combined or moved to better suit the needs of the study and/or paper. Other times, different words could be optimized for greater clarity. Then there were certain ideas that remained central and were well-placed. I had to decide which questions were better geared towards one Research Question over the other while making sure there were enough Survey Questions to generate valuable data for both. I also had to consider which styles worked best for what questions were being asked (ex: rating, close-ended, open-ended, etc.). It was also my first time creating a digital version of a survey which was an adventure (the free version of Qualtrics didn't want to make Likert Scale styled questions and SurveyMonkey charges after creating 10 questions!) Which led me to Google Forms!
Still, the overall experience impressed on me how fluid the design process was and how flexible a technical writer/researcher needs to be. It's easy to see how this feeds into the idea of scholarship taking researchers' studies and then building onto them or trying them in alternate situations; there's always so much room for variation, refinement, and/or expansion.
Great observations and I love your statement that designing a research study is "a very iterative process." I too felt that the process was fluid and discoveries led to changes in the way the study was designed. I appreciate your attention to detail and your willingness to let the study take you where you needed to go. I also appreciate that you are willing to try new things until you find the one that works best for you and your goal. You didn't stop when Qualtrics didn't give you what you wanted. This shows that the process is fluid and you are willing to work with it. I am excited to see what you come up with and see your presentation.
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