COURSE OUTLINE

1. COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE: RSH8901-B Research Questions and Constructs

2. COURSE PREREQUISITES: Consent of academic advisor.

3. COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will assist the Learner in establishing the research question(s) for his/her dissertation. A brief generalized statement is required to define what will be studied and how the study will be accomplished. In addition, an annotated bibliography of relevant references is required. This course is a prerequisite for RSH8902-B.

4. COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES: During this course Learners will be expected to...

4.1. Formulate research questions

4.2. Identify research constructs

4.3. Conduct a thorough literature review

4.4. Produce an annotated bibliography associated with the relevant literature

4.5. Describe the potential significance of the research

4.6. Preview how the research questions will be investigated

5. COURSE CONCEPTS: After completing this course Learners will understand the major concepts of...

5.1. Research question(s)

5.2. Research constructs

5.3. Significance of research

6. COURSE/LEARNING ASSESSMENT: Learners are expected to complete all performance requirements for the course and to demonstrate mastery of the course concepts and course learning outcomes through the assignments described in the syllabus.

7. PRIMARY TEXTS / WEB RESOURCES:

Aczel, A. D. & Sounderpandian, J. (2002). Complete Business Statistics (5^th ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0072524855.

American Psychological Association (2002). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5^th ed.). Washington, D.C: ISBN 1557987912.

American Psychological Association Style Resource Page (http://www.apastyle.org)

Cozby, P.C. (2003). Methods in Behavioral Research (8^th ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0072523425.

Dissertation Handbook, (July, 2002). Prescott, AZ: Northcentral University.

Methods in Behavioral Research Resource Page (http://methods.fullerton.edu)

Trochim, William (2001). The Research Methods Knowledge Base (2^nd ed.). Atomicdogpublishing.com. ISBN 0970138598.

NOTE: This text is available online or in print. Procedures for purchasing this text are provided at the end of this Course Outline.

8. OPTIONAL REFERENCES AND READINGS:

Bordens, Kenneth (2003). Research Design and Methods (4^th ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0072932325.

Fowler, Floyd (2001). Survey Research Methods (3^rd ed.). Sage. ISBN 0761921915.

Kjell, Erik. et al. (2000). Surviving Your Dissertation: A Comprehensive Guide to Content and Process. Sage Publications. ISBN 0761919627.

McMillan, James (2000). Research in Education: A Conceptual Introduction (5^th ed.). Longman Publishing. ISBN 03211080874.

Newman, Isadore (1998). Qualitative – Quantitative Research Methodology: Exploring the Interactive Continuum. Southern Illinois University Press. ISBN 0809321505.

Patton, Michael (2001). Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods (3^rd ed.). Sage. ISBN 0761919716.

Seidman, Irving (1998). Interviewing as Qualitative Research (2^nd ed.). Teachers College Press, Columbia University. ISBN 080773697X.

Yin, Robert (2003.) Case Study Research (3^rd ed.). Sage. ISBN 0761925538.

Zikmund, William (1989). Business Research Methods (6^th ed.). Harcourt. ISBN 0030258170.

9. Academic Integrity:

“Northcentral University’s distance learning programs present an opportunity for mature adult learners to obtain higher education and a college degree. All work submitted in a course must be the Learner’s own work on all open book assignments, exams, term papers, and other assignments required by the mentor. The knowing submission of another’s work represented as that of the Learner’s without properly citing the source of the work will be considered plagiarism and will result in an unsatisfactory grade for the work submitted or for the entire course, and may result in academic dismissal.” Learner Handbook, Prescott, AZ: Northcentral University, 2002. http://learners.ncu.edu

Note: Assignments will be turned in to the software site called TurnItIn to verify that it has not been copied from a source.

Online Student Purchase Procedures

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COURSE SYLLABUS

COURSE NUMBER & TITLE: RSH 8901-B Research Questions and Constructs

FACULTY MENTOR: Michael Guth

Email: mike@ @michaelguth.com

PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS / COURSE GRADE: Your grade for this course will be based upon mastery of course concepts as demonstrated by successfully completing all course requirements. Your performance will be evaluated as Satisfactory (S) or Unsatisfactory (U).

During this research module the Learner will chose a topic for his/her dissertation, and will review the literature relevant to the chosen topic. A major purpose of this module is to assist the Learner in formulating suitable research questions for his/her chosen dissertation topic. Formulating research questions is a crucial first step in moving from choosing the general topic of one’s dissertation to specifying how that topic will be researched. This first step usually results in improved clarity and specification of the chosen topic. Improved clarity and specification results from two activities; (a) dialogue between the Learner and the Mentor, and (b) a thorough literature review of the chosen topic by the Learner.

The literature review helps to clarify research questions and to identify the key constructs that are associated with research questions. The literature review should support the potential significance of planned research, including its expected contributions to theory development, knowledge acquisition, and/or practical applications. Finally, the literature review will be the source of a dissertation’s annotated bibliography.

The annotated bibliography for this course will be more detailed than the usual annotations provided in reviewing a body of literature. A central purpose of preparing the annotated bibliography is to assist in reaching decisions about how best to plan and conduct research in support of the dissertation. The key topics listed under Course Concepts in the outline for this course will provide guidelines for initiating the development of the bibliography. Course Concepts associated with follow-on research modules will provide guidelines for adding to the annotated bibliography. Thus, development of the bibliography is a work in progress as dissertation literature is reviewed and annotated.

It is important to emphasize that the development of your annotated bibliography will become an iterative process occurring throughout the six RSH8901-6 research modules. What this means is that you will return to your bibliography from time to time to review what the literature has to tell you about various issues that arise as you develop your plan for conducting your dissertation research. Your annotated bibliography outline will help you to keep these topics in mind as you read the literature, but it is virtually impossible to anticipate all of the issues that will arise as you create your dissertation research plan. So you should expect to be re-reading articles from time to time, or reviewing some of your annotated information from a different perspective. This is normal, and very important to be sure that you have a well-developed plan for preparing your dissertation.

Term Assignment: There are three parts to your term assignment.

1. Write a paper in APA style in which you describe your chosen dissertation topic being as specific as possible; you state your research question(s) as specifically as possible; and you identify your constructs as clearly as possible. Then explain the significance of answering your research question(s). Explaining the significance requires answering the “So what?” question. What is the point of answering your research question(s) about your chosen topic? What are the implications of different possible outcomes of your research for either the development of theory, the acquisition of knowledge or for practical application? Explain why your study is worth doing.

The paper should be from 5-7 pages (double-spaced) in length, excluding title page and references. Use section headings to organize the content, including at least these headings: Topic, Question(s), Constructs, and Significance. Conclude with a summary paragraph that encapsulates the content of the entire paper.

2. Prepare a topical outline of what your annotated bibliography will contain. Your outline should be double-spaced and of sufficient length to be comprehensive. To be most useful for your dissertation research, your annotated bibliography will eventually include information from the literature about most of the main research concepts covered in all six research modules.

3. Compile your initial annotated bibliography. This first iteration of your annotated bibliography should include comprehensive coverage of your literature regarding the Course Concepts for this research module (RSH8901-B).

Submitting Your Assignments: Your responses to all assignments should be submitted to your Mentor at the email address provided in this syllabus. An evaluated and critiqued copy of your work will be returned to you via email.

RECOMMENDED SCHEDULE FOR COURSE COMPLETION:

Weeks 1 & 2 Read about formulating research questions and identifying constructs (see for example Cozby, Chapter 4).

Assignment 1 Weeks 3 - 5 Prepare and submit paper on dissertation topic.

Assignment 2 Weeks 6 - 8 Prepare and submit outline of annotated bibliography

Assignment 3 Weeks 9 & 10 Revise and resubmit assignment 1 as required.

Assignment 4 Weeks 11 & 12 Revise and resubmit assignment 2 as required.

Assignment 5 Weeks 13 – 16 Compile and submit initial annotated bibliography.

Complete and submit the post-course questionnaire to the University, not your Mentor.

MICHAEL A. S. GUTH, Ph.D., J.D. Professor of Financial Economics and Law send e-mail (E-mail is quickest method of contact).   116 Oklahoma Ave.   Oak Ridge, TN   37830-8604   Phone: (865) 483-8309

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