Purpose:
The purpose of this assignment is to critique the research methodology of a research thesis or journal article or conference paper in order to develop awareness of best practice research in your discipline. A research thesis can be obtained by perusing the Australasian Digital Thesis Program. Journals articles and conference papers are generally available online through the UC library catalogue. Your supervisors may be able to offer suggestions.
Task:
Your critique of the research strategy must answer the following questions. You must support your answers with evidence from the thesis/article/paper and relevant literature.
| Problem: | What is the research problem addressed by the paper? |
| Theories: | What theory/theories/framework/ model or development methodology have been used in the research project? How have theory/theories/framework, model or development methodology been used to guide the research in the paper? e.g. theory is being tested, theory is being developed, etc.? |
| Methods: | What research design has been adopted in the paper? What methods have the researcher(s) adopted to conduct the research project? Has the researcher(s) clearly explained and justified the chosen design and methods? Do you think that the researcher(s) has selected appropriate design and methods to their problem? Do you think the research in the paper is relevant to other researchers and/or practitioners e.g. IS, ICT, IT or Software Engineering professionals? How so? |
| Contribution: | What is the contribution of the study (e.g. to theory (knowledge) or practice)? How so? |
| Quality: | Has research quality been discussed? Explain. |
| Ethics | Are any ethical issues raised in the research strategy? What are they? Have they been addressed or resolved by the researcher(s)? How so? |