Longman / Prentice Hall

Political Science

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Research Methods for Public Administrators, 5/E
Elizabethann O'Sullivan, North Carolina State University
Gary R. Rassel, University of North Carolina - Charlotte
Maureen Berner, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

ISBN-10: 0321431375
ISBN-13: 9780321431370

Publisher: Longman
Copyright: 2008
Format: Paper; 512 pp
Published: 06/22/2007

Suggested retail price: $129.00
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This practical, lucid text with bound-in CD introduces students to the methodological tools public administrators and policy analysts use to conduct research in today's world.

 

This accessible text and CD offers an abundance of engaging examples and provides step-by-step instructions to illustrate common research methods and techniques, providing students and future administrators with a sound foundation in model building, research design, measurement, and sampling. The book's statistical section focuses on correct use and interpretation of commonly used statistics, including linear regression.

 

The book's overall aim is to develop effective, efficient research skills among future public administrators so that they will be better policy makers. It accomplishes this not only by providing a comprehensive survey of research techniques, but also by developing students' awareness of the ethical issues associated with conducting research and reporting findings.

  • Terms for review at the end of each chapter are clearly defined in an accessible and comprehensive glossary at the back of the book.
  • “Problems for Homework and Discussion” appear in each chapter, assessing students' comprehension of concepts and techniques discussed in the chapter.
  • “Disk Work” at the end of each chapter utilizes the data files on the CD that is bound into the back of the text.  Exercises allow students to become familiar with statistical software, which holds data in ASCII, spreadsheets, and SPSS formats.
  • Internet surveys are interspersed throughout the text, reflecting the growing influence of this medium on research methods and data sources. 

  •  Information and exercises have been updated throughout the book in light of new technologies and public demands.
  • The discussion of  measurement concepts in Chapter 4 has been revised in line with the current Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing.
  • Chapter 6 presents up to date information on Internet surveys and the impact of cell phones on data collection.
  • Recent changes in the decennial U.S. Census, including the end of the long form and the use of the American Community Survey, are discussed in Chapter 9.  
  • New and revised problems have been in included at the end of every chapter, and a revised instructor’s manual with solutions has also been prepared for this edition.
  • A completely new set of data is available with this edition and is on the CD included with the text.  The new data set includes 43 variables on 100 counties, allowing for a variety of exercises, statistical applications, and investigations of relevant administrative and  policy issues.
  • Expanded use of new statistical software packages has been employed, allowing for more statistical analysis with spreadsheets and the use of Geographic Information System (GIS) software to combine geographic analysis with statistical applications. 

Preface

 

Chapter 1: Beginning a Research Project: The Preliminary Steps

Chapter 2: Designs for Description

Chapter 3: Designs for Explanation

Chapter 4: Measuring Variables

Chapter 5: Sampling

Chapter 6: Contacting and Talking to Subjects

Chapter 7: Data Collection: Questions and Questionnaires

Chapter 8: Protection of Human Research Subjects and Other Ethical Issues

Chapter 9: Secondary Data Analysis: Finding and Analyzing Existing Data

Chapter 10: Combining Indicators: Index Construction

Chapter 11: Univariate Analysis

Chapter 12: Examining Relationships among Variables: Tests of Statistical Significance

Chapter 13: Examining Relationships among Variables: Contingency Tables with Measures of Association, Analysis of Variance

Chapter 14: Regression Analysis and Correlation

Chapter 15: Communicating Findings and Completing the Project

 

Glossary

Index

For Research Methods in Political Science


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