HSRV305-18S2 (C) Semester Two 2018

Quantitative Research Methods for the Human Services

15 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 16 July 2018
End Date: Sunday, 18 November 2018
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Friday, 27 July 2018
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Friday, 12 October 2018

Description

The course provides an introduction to quantitative research activities in a variety of contexts and provides students with a comparative framework for understanding and evaluating quantitative research methods and outcomes. The course is designed to provide students with the skills necessary to undertake research projects in social service agencies, and in global contexts. In particular, students will explore survey research, experimental designs, single case designs, and evaluation research approaches as quantitative research methods.

The development of a research culture in social work is an important challenge for educators, managers, practitioners and students of social work.  The creative tension between research, theory and practice is a necessary aspect of social work training, and contributes significantly to the development of a social work research culture.  Standards of social work research and practice grow and develop in conjunction with field development.  Research informs practice, practice hopefully informs teaching as the various functions within the social work enterprise become part of a cyclical response to competent practice.  

This course aims to provide a basis from which students can begin to develop a research culture within their practice.  By introducing a range of quantitative research methods and enabling students to experience manageable research assignments, students will become increasingly familiar with the business of research and how it fits within a theory/practice/research framework. Within the course, there is a particular focus on survey design, administration, and the development of survey research frameworks.


Course Aims

1.   To establish a practice research culture by promoting an integrated understanding of the links
     between social work theory, practice and research.

2.   To facilitate a beginning level of competence in students as research producers in a range of
     research methods.

3.   To provide an overview of quantitative research methodologies.

4.   To promote an action-based process of learning whereby students can directly experience a
     range of research activities that build toward completion of a research proposal.

Learning Outcomes

  • At the end of the course students should be able to:
  • Confidently identify a range of quantitative research methods
  • Possess basic research skills
  • Understand theoretical frameworks driving the research enterprise
  • Develop a research proposal on an identified topic
  • Design a questionnaire for use in social science research
  • Identify skills they have developed as emerging social science researchers
    • University Graduate Attributes

      This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:

      Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award

      Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.

Prerequisites

Any 30 points of Human Services at 200 level including HSRV204. Students without this prerequisite but with at least 60 points at 200 level or above in appropriate courses may enter the course with the permission of the Programme Coordinator.

Restrictions

SOWK305; SOWK310

Course Coordinator

Lee Hooper

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage 
Literature Review 24 Aug 2018 30%
Online Test 28 Sep 2018 20%
Research Proposal 19 Oct 2018 50%

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $746.00

International fee $3,038.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

For further information see Language, Social and Political Sciences .

All HSRV305 Occurrences

  • HSRV305-18S2 (C) Semester Two 2018