This practical book sets out how to approach each stage of your research project, from choosing a research design and methodology to collecting and analysing data and communicating your results - and showcases best practice along the way. Packed with pragmatic guidance for tackling research in the real world, this fourth edition: Offers support for diving into a project using digital data, with how-to guidance on conducting online and social media research Empowers you to confidently disseminate your work and present with impact Helps you map out your research journey and put a plan in place with decision trees in every chapter Challenges you to be reflective and critical about the research you consume and undertake Zina O'Leary's detailed and down-to-earth approach gives you the research skills and momentum you need to successfully complete your research project.

Undertaking small-scale applied workplace-based research presents a unique set of challenges including how to conduct good research in time pressured situations and how to thrive in unfamiliar work environments. This book will help you to meet these challenges by setting out a step-by-step guide to planning, conducting and delivering top quality small-scale work-based research projects. In addition this book will help you to adapt quickly to your new surroundings. It will provide a strong strategic skill set that will enable you to navigate the workplace and ensure that your research findings inform organizational decision making. It tackles the challenge of conducting rigorous credible research FOR and WITHIN organizations and provides tangible advice for those looking to complete their research in very short time frames and with limited resources. Written by established academics, with significant experience coordinating industry/government placements and internships, the book will help you to bridge the gap between academic expectations and the requirements of the organisation, including the need to Develop a 'pitch' as well as a proposal; Produce powerful visualizations as well as logical narrative; Present practicable recommendations as well as findings/conclusions; Develop persuasive deliverables as well as traditional research reports; Create presentations that persuade as well as inform. Packed full of real-life examples, actionable advice and sensitive pedagogy this book will get you through your placement with confidence and style.

Undertaking small-scale applied workplace-based research presents a unique set of challenges including how to conduct good research in time pressured situations and how to thrive in unfamiliar work environments. This book will help you to meet these challenges by setting out a step-by-step guide to planning, conducting and delivering top quality small-scale work-based research projects. In addition this book will help you to adapt quickly to your new surroundings. It will provide a strong strategic skill set that will enable you to navigate the workplace and ensure that your research findings inform organizational decision making. It tackles the challenge of conducting rigorous credible research FOR and WITHIN organizations and provides tangible advice for those looking to complete their research in very short time frames and with limited resources. Written by established academics, with significant experience coordinating industry/government placements and internships, the book will help you to bridge the gap between academic expectations and the requirements of the organisation, including the need to Develop a 'pitch' as well as a proposal; Produce powerful visualizations as well as logical narrative; Present practicable recommendations as well as findings/conclusions; Develop persuasive deliverables as well as traditional research reports; Create presentations that persuade as well as inform. Packed full of real-life examples, actionable advice and sensitive pedagogy this book will get you through your placement with confidence and style.

This practical book sets out how to approach each stage of your research project, from choosing a research design and methodology to collecting and analysing data and communicating your results - and showcases best practice along the way. Packed with pragmatic guidance for tackling research in the real world, this fourth edition: Offers support for diving into a project using digital data, with how-to guidance on conducting online and social media research Empowers you to confidently disseminate your work and present with impact Helps you map out your research journey and put a plan in place with decision trees in every chapter Challenges you to be reflective and critical about the research you consume and undertake Zina O'Leary's detailed and down-to-earth approach gives you the research skills and momentum you need to successfully complete your research project.

When it comes to research proposals, there's the good, the bad, and the messy; there are essential elements and students often forget them, miss them, or struggle to find a workable plan. Zina O'Leary's Research Proposal Little Quick Fix gives you a clever, beautiful workbook packed with real-life examples to keep you on track. Use it to: work through guided exercises; understand the elements of the proposal; and, put them together thoughtfully to create your very own research proposal-fast. Little Quick Fix titles provide quick but authoritative answers to the problems, hurdles, and assessment points students face in the research course, project proposal, or design-whatever their methods learning is. Lively, ultra-modern design; full-colour, each page a tailored design. An hour's read. Easy to dip in and out of with clear navigation enables the reader to find what she needs-quick. Direct written style gets to the point with clear language. Nothing needs to be read twice. No fluff. Learning is reinforced through a 2-minute overview summary; 3-second summaries with super-quick Q&A DIY tasks create a work plan to accomplish a task, do a self-check quiz, solve a problem, get students to what they need to show their supervisor. Checkpoints in each section make sure students are nailing it as they go and support self-directed learning. How do I know I'm done? Each Little Quick Fix wraps up with a finale checklist that allows the reader to self-assess they've got what they need to progress, submit, or ace the test or task.

When it comes to presenting research there's the good, the bad, and the messy. Students need to factor in the different elements of a presentation and learn how to draw upon their existing skills to improve their presentation skills for maximum impact. Present Your Research provides a clever, beautiful workbook packed with real life examples to help students understand the elements of presentations and how to build confidence around them by working through Zina O'Leary's guided exercises. Presentations are increasingly a key assessment of student research and projects and are one of the core employability skills. Zina's Present Your Research Little Quick Fix shows students how to nail them. Little Quick Fix titles provide quick but authoritative answers to the problems, hurdles, and assessment points students face in the research course, project proposal, or design whatever their methods learning is. Lively, ultra-modern design; full-colour, each page a tailored design. An hour's read. Easy to dip in and out of with clear navigation enables the reader to find what she needs-quick. Direct written style gets to the point with clear language. Nothing needs to be read twice. No fluff. Learning is reinforced through a 2-minute overview summary; 3-second summaries with super-quick Q&A DIY tasks create a work plan to accomplish a task, do a self-check quiz, solve a problem, get students to what they need to show their supervisor. Checkpoints in each section make sure students are nailing it as they go and support self-directed learning. How do I know I'm done? Each Little Quick Fix wraps up with a finale checklist that allows the reader to self-assess they've got what they need to progress, submit, or ace the test or task.

Zina O'Leary's Research Question Little Quick Fix teaches students how to find their interest, hone it to a topic, and turn it into a research question that is relevant, interesting, and researchable. Little Quick Fix titles provide quick but authoritative answers to the problems, hurdles, and assessment points students face in the research course, project proposal or design-whatever their methods learning is. Lively, ultra-modern design; full-colour, each page a tailored design. An hour's read. Easy to dip in and out of with clear navigation enables the reader to find what she needs-quick. Direct written style gets to the point with clear language. Nothing needs to be read twice. No fluff. Learning is reinforced through a 2-minute overview summary; 3-second summaries with super-quick Q&A DIY tasks create a work plan to accomplish a task, do a self-check quiz, solve a problem, get students to what they need to show their supervisor. Checkpoints in each section make sure students are nailing it as they go and support self-directed learning. How do I know I'm done? Each Little Quick Fix wraps up with a finale checklist that allows the reader to self-assess they've got what they need to progress, submit, or ace the test or task.

This is the perfect book for any student new to Research Methods. It is brilliantly written, witty, and always easy to understand.

Taking as her starting point the need for students to conduct research for themselves in the real world', Zina O'Leary guides those new to research through the whys and how-tos of the entire research process. Always student-focused, this book offers a hands on and practical guide to the research process from the initial process of coming up with a good question, via methods of gathering information, through to the writing process itself.

Researching Real-World Problems

- Makes the entire research process a meaningful experience

- Provides a jargon-busting hands-on guide to the entire research process

- Is illustrated throughout with real-life examples

- Speaks directly to the needs of the new researcher

- Locates the researcher and research process at heart of a complex web of social structures

- Provides via the Companion Website link above, PowerPoint slides that cover all 12 chapters of the book. They can be printed out as separate transparencies or used in PowerPoint based lectures. They would also be suitable for applications in e-learning/ web-based teaching.

O'Leary draws her examples from the full range of the Social Sciences, and this is the perfect text for any student in Health, Education or Applied Social Science.

- Are you confused by academic jargon? - Do you know your `discourse' from your `dialectic'? - Can you tell the difference between `anomie' and `alienation'? The Social Science Jargon Buster tackles the most confusing concepts in the social sciences, breaking each down and bringing impressive clarity and insight to even the most complex terms. `This book successfully addresses the central task for any teacher of social theory - how to make the material accessible without making it simplistic and banal. The overall effect is a most effective text that hard-pressed students and lecturers will grab with both hands' - Dave Harris, Senior Lecturer in Social Science This practical, down-to-earth dictionary will help students new to social science discourse gain a thorough understanding of the key terms. Each entry includes a concise core definition, a more detailed explanation and an introduction to the associated debates and controversies. In addition, students will find a useful outline of the practical application of each term, as well as a list of key figures and recommendations for futher reading. This dictionary brings a refreshing clarity to social science discourse, making it essential reading for all students on undergraduate social science courses.

- Are you confused by academic jargon? - Do you know your `discourse' from your `dialectic'? - Can you tell the difference between `anomie' and `alienation'? The Social Science Jargon Buster tackles the most confusing concepts in the social sciences, breaking each down and bringing impressive clarity and insight to even the most complex terms. `This book successfully addresses the central task for any teacher of social theory - how to make the material accessible without making it simplistic and banal. The overall effect is a most effective text that hard-pressed students and lecturers will grab with both hands' - Dave Harris, Senior Lecturer in Social Science This practical, down-to-earth dictionary will help students new to social science discourse gain a thorough understanding of the key terms. Each entry includes a concise core definition, a more detailed explanation and an introduction to the associated debates and controversies. In addition, students will find a useful outline of the practical application of each term, as well as a list of key figures and recommendations for futher reading. This dictionary brings a refreshing clarity to social science discourse, making it essential reading for all students on undergraduate social science courses.