Summer Course for Research Design in the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SCRD)

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This project runs a three-year series of summer courses called "Summer Course for Research Design in the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SCRD). The SCRD brings together social science area experts and post-graduate participants from across the social, behavioral and economic sciences (SBE) for 1 week of intensive study of issues in research design in SBE disciplines with an emphasis on scientific proposal development. Participants, approximately 12 who already hold a PhD in any of the SBE disciplines, are selected from a competitive pool of applicants. Criteria for selection are based primarily on a participant's genuine interest in issues of research design in SBE research, demonstrated interest in research relevant to under-served populations and interests in advancing their proposal writing skills. Potential participants from under-represented groups are particularly encouraged to apply. This course should be of particular interest to individuals interested in the SPRF postdoctoral research fellowship initiative at NSF. Course content covers a broad spectrum of research design issues, but with a heavy emphasis on the link between theory and methods and its importance in writing well-conceived research proposals. This summer course provides PhDs in any of the SBE disciplines with the knowledge and tools to produce well-conceived research projects and proposals. In turn, participants will use the course to fashion fundable research agendas that could directly benefit under-served communities. Moreover, the knowledge and skills learned in the course can be used in the teaching of research design and proposal writing in their home institutions. This program accomplishes a number of goals: 1) provides participants with a basic understanding of the link between theory and scientific methodology in the social sciences, 2) enhances a participant's ability to produce a well-conceived and written research proposal, and 3) provides participants with basic scientific research knowledge and skills for solving a variety of research design problems in the future. Topics include the link between theory and development of research designs (e.g., experimental, quasi-experimental, observational), research objectives, concepts, definitions, variables, measures, and hypotheses; the relationship between quantitative and qualitative approaches within the social sciences; the development of research plans in proposals including content on data collection procedures; probability and non-probability sampling; statistical analysis and models; human subjects concerns; introduction to data structures and management in both a qualitative and quantitative context; narrative and text analysis; and hypothesis testing to name a few.