MLIS Research

This was the most challenging chapter yet. I don't deal with formal research in my life. A reason to go for a masters is to get better at things. Now is my chance!

I wrote a lot down and at one point just stopped due to overload. Research for me is getting on the Internet and looking at the responses and evaluating them for what I need. This is far from the research this chapter speaks about. I learned about the difference between qualitative and quantitative research. This was another one of those terms that I knew what it meant but not formally. Quantitative deals with the numbers side and qualitative deals with behaviors and observations. I learned so much in this chapter that it is too much to name in this setting. I am going to give you the highlights of what I found interesting.

True research vs research. Research doesn't use a lot of primary sources and is based mostly on opinion. True research deals with the resolution of a problem. There are different types of research methods, such as the scientific method of inquiry and applied research. The basic differences in these are the methods used and the results obtained. Then there is formulative and summative research. Formulative research takes place while the something is in progress and summative research takes place at the end.

I stopped counting at twelve different methods of research. Surveys and benchmarking to name a few. My favorite was the delphi study, which is a process to develop a consensus among experts in that field and get them to edit and add to the work. I have to say my brain froze when I came to the term bibliometrics, it is not as bad as it sounds. Bibliometrics is looking at written communication to see how it is formed and how many times certain terms appear within certain works. This is fascinating to me. In writing this entry, I don't think the chapter was as daunting as I originally thought. In sum I have learned a lot and hope to pass it along so you can enjoy this learning process along with me!

Powell, R. (2008). Research. In Haycock, K., & Sheldon B. E. (Eds.)

The Portable MLIS: Insights from the experts. (pp. 168-178).

Westport, Connecticut. Libraries Unlimited