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Method of Research--Research Process

Exploring Web Resources

More than likely Google will be your initial starting point for topic ideas and information. This is ok! Informal channels or information, such as blogs or podcasts, are invaluable resources that can keep you up to date and informed in your research areas. These resources will also assist you in finding resources to begin your research.

Start by searching for keywords related to your area of interest to begin your research.  A quick, very broad scan of topics and information can help you gather points of interest.  Use keywords that are focused on trending news, recent research, controversial issues, policy debates, or other relevant terms. The internet is full of information, some good and some bad, so be careful in evaluating the information you find.

Website Evaluation

In today’s time, anyone can publish webpages. Most websites have not undergone a review process for inclusion in a collection. You should closely evaluate any internet resources you find to ensure they contain unbiased, factual information. Reliable internet resources may include peer-reviewed journal articles, government reports, associations and organizations, government papers, conference papers, industry and professional standards, scientific papers, news reports, and quick facts and figures.

The criteria that you need to determine to wither you have a reliable source:

  • Can you identify the author of an Internet resource? If so, what do you know about this author's education, work history, affiliations, additional publications, etc.?
  • Can you find the date the Internet resource was last updated or published?
  • Does the Internet resource cite the work of others?
  • Does the content of the resource seem balanced and scholarly, or is it biased?
  • Who published the Internet resource? Was the web page published by a business, university, government organization, or professional association?
  • What is the intended audience for the Internet resource? Is it appropriate for university-level research? Or is it geared toward secondary education or a more general audience?
  • What is the domain of Internet resource? If it ends in .org, .gov, or .edu it is more likely to be a scholarly source. If it ends in .com or .net it is less likely to be a scholarly source. 

Types of Web Sources

Blogs can be a valuable source for information on trending issues, current events, recent research, debates and more. Scholars, associations, executives, innovative researchers, everyday practitioners, and students are just some of the people who write blogs. Knowing about and reading blogs that are written by experts in the field, or relevant associations may be an important step in identifying current studies and trends in a subject area.

There is a neat website called:ResearchBlogging.org that aggregates blog posts regarding recent peer-reviewed research and publications. 

Many online popular and news magazines have blog sections. For example, Psychology Today offers a large index of their blogs with a guide to their blogging experts’ credentials

 

Some of the top Psychology Blogs are listed below

 

  • Child Psychology Research Blog - Research based commentary on child psychology from a clinical child psychologist.
  • Commitment to Living - A family psychologist learns and teaches about suicide risk and prevention.
  • Experimental Theology - A research psychologist attempts to integrate theology with the experimental social sciences.
  • Idiolect - Thoughts and links on psychology and neuroscience from Dr. Tom Stafford at the University of Sheffield.
  • International Cognition and Culture Institute Blog - A collaborative blog on cognitive science, psychology and culture.
  • Jeromy Anglim's Blog - Psychology and statistics from a University of Melbourne psychologist.
  • Laura's Psychology Blog - One professor's observations of the world of psychology.
  • Milton Broome's Virtual Psychology - A blog on psychology, virtual worlds, skepticism and more from the avatar of Dr. Simon Bignell, Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Derby.
  • Mind Hacks - Neuroscience and psychology tricks to find out what's going on inside your brain.
  • Mindreaders Dictionary - An evolutionary epistemologist's blog on learning how to "read between the lines" with greater comprehension.
  • Pop Psychology - Gender issues and popular culture from a psychologist's angle.
  • PsyBlog - Helping you understand your mind.
  • Society for Christian Psychology Blog - A collaborative blog by members of the Society for Christian Psychology seeking to understand how the Christian story and faith shape the understanding and practice of psychology.
  • The Hot Hand in Sports - Dr. Alan Reifman's blog on the psychology of winning and losing streaks in sports.
  • the Human Factors Blog - Human factors psychology (aka applied psychology) from Dr. Anne Collins McLaughlin and Dr. Richard Pak.
  • The Media Psychology Blog - The psychology of media, social media and emerging technologies from Dr. Pamela Rutledge.
  • The Mouse Trap - Interesting musings on all aspects of psychology and neuroscience.
  • The Situationist - A forum for scholars, students, lawyers, policymakers, and interested citizens to examine, discuss, and debate the effect of non-salient factors around and within us on law, policy, politics, policy theory, and our social, political, and economic institutions.
  • The Thoughtful Animal - A USC developmental psychology graduate student explores the psychological intersection between the environmental and the biological.
  • Thoughts of a Neo-Academic - Discussing technology, education and training research from the perspective of an academic industrial/organizational (I/O) psychologist.
  • World of Psychology - Blogging about all things mental health, psychology, psychiatry, behavior and emotions from the heart of Psych Central.
  • Your Morals Blog - A collaboration among seven social psychologists who study morality and politics.

 

Pulled from Best Colleges Website

Research news websites are also good sources for the latest information in research. This is a great way to keep up with current research, learn about potentially interesting topics, and understand where the research in a particular field is heading.

Podcasts can help direct you to interesting subjects:

Psych Crunch

Where to listen: https://digest.bps.org.uk/podcast/ or iTunes

While research studies and psychologies most recent findings are always intriguing, it’s not always clear what the practical applications are for those conclusions. But Dr. Christian Jarrett from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest wants to help change that by presenting you with the newest data in digestible, 10-minute episodes.

Hidden Brain

Where to listen: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510308/hidden-brain, iTunes, or the NPR One App

Shankar Vendanta will captivate you with ideas about the underlying patterns, bias’, and triggers that shape who we think we are, who we actually are, and who we are becoming. This podcast explores the things we don’t see that shape everything we do see and challenges you to think harder about the choices you make and what’s really driving them.

The Mental Illness Happy Hour

Where to listen: http://mentalpod.com/ or iTunes

With input from comedians, artists, friends and (some) doctors, Paul Gilmartin is on a mission to normalize what has for too long been stigmatized. He and his guests talk openly and honestly about the things that don’t get talked about in public, the struggles and pains and trauma of their own lives in order to bring to light the truth that the world is much more than black and white stories.

Popular news sources and magazines can also be useful for finding out about the latest trends or research.