POLI2104

Research Methods in Politics and

Public Administration (2022/2023)

Tutorial 1 – Housekeeping and Introduction

Mr. Adrian LAM Man-Ho (u3519028@connect.hku.hk)
Office Hour: By appointment
Get to Know
Each Other
 1. Add to the body of knowledge
2. Solve a problem
3. Find out what happens
4. Find the evidence to inform practice
5. Develop a greater understanding of the world
Reasons for 6. Predict, plan, and control
Doing
7. Contribute to other people’s well-being
Research
8. Contribute to personal needs
9. Test or disprove a theory
10.Come up with a better way
11. Understand another person’s point of view
12.Create more interest in the researcher
 1. A new or improved product
2. A new theory
3. A re-interpretation of an existing theory
4. New or improved research tool or technique
Outcomes of 5. A new or improved model or perspective
Research
6. An in-depth study of a specific situation
7. An exploration of a topic, an area, or a field
8. A critical analysis
9. Unanticipated outcomes
  Understand the principles of research methods
 Explain key research ideas
 Identify a research problem
Simplified  Develop appropriate research questions
Learning  Synthesise and evaluate relevant literature
Outcomes for  Develop and refine research instruments
POLI2104
 Communicate research cogently and clearly
 Understand how to collect and analyse data
 Write a proper research proposal
 Personal Growth

Critical Reflection
Major Features Lifelong Values
for POLI2104
Thinking Mindsets
Tutorials
Academic Skills

Scholarly Knowledge
Course
Logistics
 Group Weekday Start Time End Time Classroom
Group 1 MON 14:30 15:20 CPD-2.40
Group 2 MON 15:30 16:20 CPD-2.46
Group 3 MON 16:30 17:20 CPD-2.38
POLI2104 Group 4 MON 17:30 18:20 CPD-2.41
Tutorial Group 5 MON 18:30 19:20 CPD-2.40
Session and Group 6
Group 7
TUE
TUE
14:30
15:30
15:20
16:20
CPD-3.25
CPD-1.43
Time Group 8 TUE 16:30 17:20 CPD-1.45
Group 9 TUE 17:30 18:20 CPD-1.19
Group 10 TUE 18:30 19:20 CPD-2.41

NOTE: Please check your respective Moodle group forum regularly!

 Tutorial Weeks Dates Tutorial Topics
First Week of the Semester – NO TUTORIAL
Chinese New Year – NO TUTORIAL
Tutorial 1 Week 3 January 30 or 31 Introduction and Housekeeping
*Part 1: Research Topic and Questions*
Tutorial 2 Week 4 February 6 or 7 Field Research & Case Research
*Part 2: Background, Context, and Significance*
Tutorial 3 Week 5 February 13 or 14 Measurement and Causal Inference
*Part 3: Hypothesis, Variables, and Definitions*
Tutorial 4 Week 6 February 20 or 21 Survey Research
*Part 4: Literature Review*
POLI2104 Tutorial 5 Week 7 February 27 or 28 Project Blueprint
*Part 5: Research Methodology*
Tutorial Tutorial 6 Week 9
Reading Week – NO TUTORIAL
March 13 or 14 Survey-Experimental Research

Schedule
*Part 6: Data Analysis*
Laboratory Sessions (Dates: To be Announced) – NO TUTORIAL
Tutorial 7 Week 11 March 27 or 28 Statistics I: Description
*Part 7: Discussion and Implications*
Tutorial 8 Week 12 April 3 or 4 Project Presentations
*Part 8: Conclusion and Recommendations*
Easter Holiday – NO TUTORIAL
Tutorial 9 Week 14 April 17 or 18 Statistics II: Inference & Statistics III: Regression
Tutorial 10 Week 15 April 24 or 25 Conclusion and Reflection
 1. Attendance is very important
 Tell me in advance if you are going to miss your
tutorial for whatever reasons
 Go to other sessions if you cannot make it
Very General (except when you are doing the presentations)
Expectations 2. NO tutorial participation grade, but still…
for the Tutorial  Complete (or at least download and open) the
Participation readings before attending tutorials
 Try your best to participate (discuss what you
can if you really cannot complete the readings)
 Quality of the contribution matters (e.g., fact,
argument, concepts, and examples, etc.)
POLI2104
Course
Grading and
HKU GPA
  Weekly diary entries (20%)
 10 entries in total (including 4 Special Assignments)
 Group research proposal (40%)
 Tutorial presentation (10%)
POLI2104  Around 7 minutes for each group
Course  Final written report (30%)
Assessment  Around 15 to 20 pages
 Double-spaced text in 12-point font
 End-of-term test (40%)
 Around 1 hours 45 minutes
 Around 8 Short Questions and 1 Application Section
Requirements
for the Weekly
Diary Entries
 1. Try to relate the concepts learned from the
weekly lecture or reading(s) to your wider life
experience outside the university
2. The summary and explanation of the key
General Tips concept are simply for setting the context
for Writing the 3. What matters the most is articulating your
Weekly Diary personal opinions and feelings
Entries 4. Always focus and write about what is really
vital and leave out the less relevant parts
5. Feel free to use graphics, pictures, comics,
and tables to illustrate what you write about
 1. Some parts of your end-of-term test require
you to connect research concepts with your
everyday experience and encounters
Warnings for 2. Be aware of Turnitin submission when you are
taking reference from various “A-range”
Writing the sources from your seniors and friends
Weekly Diary 3. Do not treat it as an assignment to be
Entries completed a few days before the deadline
4. Once you start writing, you will realise that
these entries require you far more effort and
thoughts than what you imagine
  Write your CV for your likely job at graduation
 You can use back your existing one if you have one
 If you really do not have a CV currently, just create one first based on
those relevant information available on your hand
 Do research on what are the “Best CVs”
Guidelines for  You do NOT need to include the original copies of all those outstanding
CVs you have searched and collected from the Internet
Completing  But you can consider those written in relation to your field and
interests, or even those prepared by famous people
Special  Give a concise summary of your research results
 Provide the citations in the form of a reference list at the end
Assignment 1  Rewrite your CV, underlining the changes you made after
your detailed research
 Offer both your original and revised version of your CV
 State clearly and explicitly the series of detailed changes you have
made and in relation to the research you have done
 Not just describe the changes but explain and justify them
  List 3 possible jobs you might do at Age 30
 Offer some brief descriptions on the 3 jobs you have chosen
 Give some explanations of why these jobs engage you the most in
particular by connecting with your own feelings
Guidelines for  Research what AI technology is expected to be
Completing capable of doing within the next 10 years
 Give a concise summary and make some sensible predictions
Special  Again, citations are needed if you are going to make some references

Assignment 1  Consider the unique features of AI technology, as well as the volatile,

uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) global future
 Which of your 3 jobs can survive AI?
 Do not just state the characters, skills, knowledge, and experience
required for these jobs but also explain in what sense they can survive
Time to Find
Groupmates
for the Coming
Semester
Requirements
for the Group
Research
Proposal
Typical
Structure for a
Research
Proposal
 Tutorial Dates Research Proposal
Alignment Tutorial 1 January 30 or 31 Research Topics and Questions
between Tutorial 2 February 6 or 7 Background, Context, and Significance

Tutorials and Tutorial 3

Tutorial 4
February 13 or 14
February 20 or 21
Hypothesis, Variables, and Definitions
Literature Review
Group Tutorial 5 February 27 or 28 Research Methodology
Research Tutorial 6 March 13 or 14 Data Analysis

Proposal Tutorial 7
Tutorial 8
March 27 or 28
April 3 or 4
Discussion and Implications
Conclusion and Recommendations
Important
Milestones for
Group
Research
Proposal
  Week 7:
 Project blueprint (Tutorial 5, February 27 or 28)
 Week 10:
 Research presentation (Tutorial 8, April 3 or 4)
Important  Week 11:
Milestones for  Written research proposal (8pm, April 17, Monday)
POLI2104  Week 12:
 Applications diary (8pm, April 19, Wednesday)
 Week 14:
 End-of-term test (Last lecture, April 27, Thursday)
Time to Ask
Questions for
the Course
Arrangement
Start of the
Research
Journey
  Respect for persons
 Individuals should be treated as autonomous and
individuals with diminished autonomy should be
entitled to additional protections
Ethics of  Participants should be presented with relevant
information in a comprehensible format and then
Research from should voluntarily agree to participate
the Three  Beneficence
 Having the interests of research participants in mind
Principles in  Minimise risks to participants and maximise benefits to
the Belmont participants and society
Report  Justice
 Address the distribution of the burdens and benefits of
research in a shared and equitable manner
 Should not be one group bears the cost of research
while another group reaps its benefits
  If there is any possible harm, minimise it and make it
explicit and clear to the participants
 Must also be justified (e.g. potential side effect of a new
medicine that cannot be avoided)
No Harm to  Harm is not limited to physical dimension only
Participants  Can also be other aspects, including psychological
 Sensitive, private, and personal questions that
informants might be uncomfortable talking about
 Past memories, stress, and anxiety
 Difficult experiences
  More direct and easy in qualitative research (e.g. interviews),
as participants can ask for clarification at any time
 Consent on:
 Participating in the research (direct consent)
 Potential implications of participation (any unintended
consequences associated with the research?)
 Very largely depends on the ability of the researcher to
understand his/her own research work
Getting  Minimum:
Consent  Short description of the research
 Description of what is required of the informant
 Information about audio or videotaping procedures
 Assurance of confidentiality or anonymity
 Statement of the right of informant to stop at any time
 Right of informant to request data not to be used or destroyed
 Information about any potential risks
 Right of informant to ask any questions
  Adult Consent Forms
Sample  Parent/Guardian Consent Forms
Consent and  Principal Consent Form
Related Forms  Student Assent Forms
from HKU’s  Debriefing
Human  Confidentiality
Research  Other
Ethics
Committee Link: http://www.rss.hku.hk/integrity/ethics-compliance/hrec-forms
  Does he/she has the ability to make any informed
decision on the participation?
 Old enough?
 Any coercion?
Capacity of the  Any language barriers?
Participant  Illiterate?
 Other concerns: Can or should parents have the power
to do the decision for their children?
 What about those mentally handicapped?
  Who else will have access to this data other than you?
 What will happen to the data when the project is done?
Confidentiality  Destroyed? Archived?

of Data  If archived, who will have access?

 If archived, do consent procedures cover other
researchers’ use of the data?
  Anonymity (data without your name) versus confidentiality
(data with name, but will not be disclosed)
 Based on necessity: consider whether your research needs to
collect personal information
 If no reason to collect personal information, no need to
collect (unless there is a follow-up study)
Anonymity  Confidentiality: more relevant in focus groups or interviews,
Versus as you need to establish contact with participants
 Unless the participants agree, confidentiality is the norm: do
Confidentiality not disclose their names; do not let others (people not
authorised by the participant) to see the raw data
 But provide enough information for the audience to know
the source of your information
 Strike an optimal balance between confidentiality and how
much information to give out
  Particularly an issue in psychology where respondents
often react very differently if they know everything
involved in the research
 Withholding information ≠ deliberate misleading
 Both deception in a sense; latter is more serious
 The research work often needs to be justified with very
Deception strong scientific or medical reasoning
 Alternatives not available
 Necessary to have debriefing
 Information is to be provided at earliest possible (i.e.
once the research is completed)
 Discuss their experiences and reveal the logic behind,
and follow-up to recover without lasting harm
  What will participants receive for their involvement?
 Encourage participation; as a token of thanks
 Money or gifts or favours
 Coercion?
 Not at such a level that will induce participants to take more
Benefits for risk than they would otherwise without the payment
Participation  Access to written report
 Publicity?
 Counselling or support
 Especially for vulnerable groups
 Personal satisfaction
  Openly disclose the methods (with all details)
 All results must be honestly reported
 No selection of “favourable” results
 Analysis must be neutral – for hypothesis testing, not
looking for a particular pattern

Post-Research  Acknowledge limitations of your research

 Any potential things that can make your findings not valid?
Ethics  Any irregularities in the research process?
 Any data pattern you cannot explain?
 These are actually good practices: There is no need to do
the perfect research, and everyone knows it is not possible
 So if you do not point out your own limitations, others will
think your research is less trustworthy
  Will your own role as researcher cast cause complications
in the research process or validity?
 Probably not as an undergraduate student, but for senior
researchers with particular affiliations, e.g. a local political
Potential party hiring “researcher”; does not adhere to scientific
standards and research neutrality
Conflict of
 How about funding?
Interest  Increasingly crucial for scientific and social science research
 Source of funding: does it affect your “findings”?
 At the bare minimum, disclose the specific source of
funding for any publications
  For researchers affiliated with any research institutions
Obtain Ethical  Necessary to write up full research proposal
Approval  Detail description of research methodology
BEFORE  If research involves human subjects, it is a must to obtain
ethical approval through “Institutional Review Board”
Research  Cannot commence research before approval
Case Study (1):
The Milgram
Shock
Experiment
  The participants were led to believe that they were
administering shocks to real people
 The participants endured severe circumstances that
could have attributed to psychological impairment (e.g.
the potential harms they were bringing)
 The experimenter gave four verbal prods which mostly
Research discouraged withdrawal from the experiment:
Ethics? 1. Please continue
2. The experiment requires that you continue
3. It is absolutely essential that you continue, and
4. You have no other choice, you must go on
 Lack of debriefing as the researcher never completely
revealed the purpose of the study to the participants
Case Study (2):
Stanford
Prison
Experiment
  The prisoners at the hands of the guards suffered from
a series of physical and mental consequences
 The experimenter does not try to alleviate the harm
that was being done as the experiment progressed
 The guards were not given instructions on how to be
Research guards and they were not given specific boundaries as
Ethics? to the extent of punishment they could inflict
 The prisoner’s privacy, dignity, and worth were
diminished as they were stripped and searched upon
arrival and made to perform menial tasks
 Some of the prisoners’ and guards’ names were known
and released to the public
Case Study (3):
The Little
Albert
Experiment
  Little Albert was classically conditioned to fear white
rats, and such fear did not exist earlier in baby Albert.
This could have resulted in suffering for his entire life
 No such prior informed consent was taken from
Research Albert’s mother before the start of the experiment
Ethics?  Both little Albert and his mother having no right to
withdraw from the experiment
 The experiment was not conducted in a controlled
environment. Likewise, only one subject was used to
draw the ultimate conclusions
Main Pillars of
Research
Research
Paradigms
Types of
Research
Questions
Framing of a
Research
Question
Characteristics
of a Strong
Research
Question
 1. Building new knowledge
2. Using original processes or approaches
Meanings of 3. Making new syntheses
Originality in 4. Charting or mapping new territory
Conducting 5. Drawing out new implications
Research 6. Revisiting a recurrent issue or debate
7. Replicating or reproducing existing work
8. Delivering new presentation
Brainstorming
Topics for
POLI2104
Research
Proposal
 1. What is the impact of being politically outspoken on
the economic performance of business enterprises?
2. What is the relationship between liberal democratic
orientation and support towards animal rights?
3. How does political news appearing on Instagram
Comment on influence the perception of undergraduate students
the F0llowing towards the Hong Kong government?
Research 4. How does the framing of language affect the
effectiveness of political campaign strategy?
Questions…
5. How effective are district recycling stores under the
GREEN@COMMUNITY network in promoting
recycling culture in Hong Kong?
6. How effective is child tax credit in boosting prospective
parents’ intentions to have children in Hong Kong?
See You Next
Week!