Sufficient skills to carry out credible research

Question and Answer

Part A:

Before taking this course, I thought conducting successful research was a tough task. Furthermore, I believed that undertaking field research is boring because of the presumed negative attitudes researchers get from respondents. Research, from my point of view, was time-consuming and a mere waste of my time because the findings would not significantly affect my well-being. Further, I believed that the research was outdated as the targeted audience seldom utilizes documented findings. Before the course, I thought that research entailed reading what previous writers have documented and compared these to the field findings. However, these thoughts changed during the course of study and upon completion, I now have sufficient skills to carry out credible research.

Sufficient skills to carry out credible research

I now believe that I can undertake serious research and develop a quality paper using the acquired skills. The availability of various resources makes the research a simple and exciting rather than a difficult and daunting task. I also understand that research is very complex and goes beyond causal relationships or statistical equivalence. Further, I believe researchers need to exercise extreme care when undertaking research. There is no need to place undue emphasis on ‘bigger’ findings. Smaller findings can in most cases be equally insightful and helpful to society. Currently, I know that there are various types of research including qualitative and quantitative methods. I appreciate that research is not confined to statistics and data; rather it also involves opinions and reactions.

Part B:

Research is used for various purposes in social science. In psychology, research is used to understand the role of external and developmental factors on an individual’s mental health. Findings of this are important because they are employed in ensuring that individuals live in safe environments. Then, research is useful for understanding the impact and complexity of various psychological disorders and their symptoms and characteristics. Also, psychological research is used for developing viable treatment approaches geared towards enhancing an individual’s quality of life. This goes a long way in enhancing the quality of life of an individual. Finally, research is employed for developing tests that are then used for measuring specific psychological phenomena.

In social work, research is useful for understanding the perceptions of individuals towards certain social problems. This ensures that proposed solutions reduce rather than increase the negative impacts of the social problems. In addition, research plays an important role in informing policy formulation. Basically, viable decision making in this regard needs to be reflective of the social problems that individuals grapple with. Research in social work also ensures alignment of social practices to the expectations of the society. This is instrumental in avoiding conflicts that can undermine the effectiveness of the social practice.

Various cultural concerns need to be put in consideration when undertaking research in social science. The research methods need to be in line with the cultural expectations of the society. For example, aspects related to language and general conduct of the researchers should be culturally acceptable. For optimal results, interventions should also reflect the values, culture as well as perceptions of the respective society.