Editing Internet Research Methods (Spring 2016) (section)

=== Research Project ===

As a demonstration of your learning in this course, you will design a plan for an internet research project and will, if possible, also collect (at least) an initial sample of a dataset that you will use to complete the project.

The genre of the paper you can produce can one of the following three things:

# A draft of a manuscript for submission to a conference or journal.
# A proposal for funding (e.g., for submission for the NSF for a graduate student fellowship).
# A draft of the methods chapter of your dissertation.

In any the three paths, I expect you take this opportunity to produce a document that will further your to academic career outside of the class.

==== Project Identification ====

;Due Date: April 10
;Maximum paper length: 500 words (~1-2 page)
;Deliverables: Turn in in Canvas

Early on, I want you to identify your final project. Your proposal should be short and can be either paragraphs or bullets. It should include the following things:

* The genre of the project and a short description of how it fits into your career trajectory.
* A one paragraph abstract of the proposed study and research question, theory, community, and/or groups you plan to study.
* A short description of the type of data you plan to collect as part of your final project.

==== Final Project ====

;Outline Due Date: May 8
;Maximum outline length: 2 pages
;Paper Due Date: June 12
;Maximum outline length: 6000 words (~20 pages)
;Presentation Date: June 2
;All Deliverables: Turn in in Canvas

Because the emphasis in this class is on methods and because I'm not an expert in each of your areas or fields, I'm happy to assume that your paper, proposal, or thesis chapter has already established the relevance and significance of your study and has a comprehensive literature review, well-grounded conceptual approach, and compelling reason why this research is so important. Instead of providing all of this details, instead feel free to start with a brief summary of the purpose and importance of this research, and an introduction of your research questions or hypotheses. If your provide more detail, that's fine, but I won't give you detailed feedback on this parts.

The final paper should include:

* a statement of the purpose, central focus, relevance and significance of this research;
* a description of the specific Internet application(s) and/or environment(s) and/or objects to be studied and employed in the research;
* key research questions or hypotheses;
* operationalization of key concepts;
* a description and rationale of the specific method(s), (if more than one method will be used, explain how the methods will produce complementary findings);
* a description of the step-by-step plan for data collection;
* description and rationale of the level(s), unit(s) and process of analysis (if more than one kind of data are generated, explain how each kind will be analyzed individually and/or comparatively);
* an explanation of how these analyses will enable you to answer the RQs
* a sample instrument (as appropriate);
* a sample dataset and description of a formative analysis you have completed;
* a description of actual or anticipated results and any potential problems with their interpretation;
* a plan for publishing/disseminating the findings from this research
* a summary of technical, ethical, human subjects and legal issues that may be encountered in this research, and how you will address them;
* a schedule (using specific dates) and proposed budget.

I also expect each student to begin data for your project (i.e., using the technical skills you learn in the class) and describe your progress in this regard this in your paper. If collecting data for a proposed project is impractical (e.g., because of IRB applications, funding, etc) I would love for you to engage in the collection of public dataset as part of a pilot or formative study. If this is not feasible or useful, we can discuss other options.

I have a strong preference for you to write this paper individually but I'm open to the idea that you may want to work with others in the class.