Handbook of Research Methods in Public Administration, Second Edition

by Miller; Gerald J.

• ISBN13: 9780849353840
• ISBN10: 084935384X
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-11-14
• Publisher: CRC Press

Summary

Describing new techniques and novel applications, Handbook of Research Methods in Public Administration, Second Edition demonstrates the use of tools designed to meet the increased complexity of problems in government and non-profit organizations with ever-more rigorous and systematic research. It presents detailed information on conceptualizing, planning, and implementing research projects involving a wide variety of available methodologies. Providing a reference of systematic research methods, this second edition explains how these techniques aid in understanding traditional issues, and reveals how they might be applied to answer emerging theoretical and practical questions.Following a linear, logical organization, this handbook meets systematic goals and objectives through eight groups of chapters. The first group explains the logic of inquiry and the practical problems of locating existing research. The second group deals with research design and the third examines pitfalls in measurement and data collection. The authors give practical, considered advice in the fourth section to anticipate and solve data management problems. They include numerous illustrations to supplement two separate sections devoted to basic and advanced quantitative analysis. The seventh section covers unique analytical techniques used to gain insight specific to the non-market sector's knotty problems. The final section addresses the impact of research and describes how to overcome illusive, tricky, and sizeable barriers to influence other researchers, decision makers, foundations, and grant making institutions.With a comprehensive survey of research methods and an examination of their practical and theoretical application in the past, present, and future, Handbook of Research Methods in Public Administration, Second Edition gives you the tools to make informed decisions.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xvii
Introduction	p. xix
Contributors	p. xxiii
Theory-Based Public Administration Inquiry	p. 1
The Logic of Inquiry in the Field of Public Administration	p. 3
Theory	p. 13
Dealing with Multiple Paradigms in Public Administration Research	p. 25
Where Do Research Questions Come from and How Are They Developed?	p. 45
Writing a Literature Review: The Art of Scientific Literature	p. 61
Research Design	p. 73
Purpose and Significance of Research Design	p. 75
The Research Problem, Method, and Serendipity: An Investigator's Journey	p. 93
Threats to Validity in Research Designs	p. 109
The Responsible Conduct of Social Research	p. 129
Qualitative Research Methods	p. 141
Comparative Research in Public Administration: A Historical-Institutionalist Perspective	p. 169
Legal Research Methods	p. 189
Measurement and Data Collection	p. 203
Describing and Measuring Phenomena in Public Administration	p. 205
Sampling and Data Collection	p. 213
Using the Survey as an Instrument of Inquiry in Research	p. 241
Questionnaire Construction	p. 255
Collecting Survey Data via Telephone: A Primer	p. 269
Obtaining Archival and Other Existing Records	p. 279
Data Management	p. 291
General Issues in Data Management	p. 293
Constructing Data Sets and Manipulating Data	p. 303
Managing Large-Scale Electronic Data for Public Administration Research: An Information System Approach	p. 323
Basic Quantitative Analysis	p. 341
Introduction to Data Analysis	p. 343
Applying Matrix Algebra in Statistical Analysis	p. 361
Univariate Analysis	p. 375
Statistics for Nominal and Ordinal Data	p. 385
Analysis of Variance	p. 405
Linear Correlation and Regression	p. 427
Advanced Quantitative Analysis	p. 455
Multivariate Regression Analysis	p. 457
Multivariate Techniques for Dichotomous Dependent Variables: An Application to Public Policy	p. 489
Identifying Dimensions and Types in Public Administration Research: Introduction to Principal Components Analysis, Factor Analysis, and Cluster Analysis	p. 515
Confirmatory Factor Analysis: A Practical Introduction	p. 565
Introduction to Panel Data Analysis: Concepts and Practices	p. 575
Forecasting Methods for Serial Data	p. 595
Other Techniques	p. 667
Data Envelopment Analysis for Performance Assessment and Decision Making	p. 669
Content Analysis	p. 689
Meta-Analysis	p. 705
Q Methodology	p. 721
Methods of Network Analysis	p. 765
Economic Modeling	p. 787
Grounded Analysis: Going Beyond Description to Derive Theory from Qualitative Data	p. 823
Research Methods Using Geographic Information Systems	p. 841
Reporting, Presentation, and Teaching	p. 859
Presenting Quantitative Research Results	p. 861
Styles of Scholarship in Public Administration	p. 879
Making the Translation: Strategies for Effective Data Presentation	p. 893
Influencing the Policy Process: Making Performance Reports Relevant to Citizens	p. 903
Applying for Research Grants	p. 929
Index	p. 945
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