Examining arguments against quantitative research: “Case studies” illustrating the challenge of finding a sound philosophical basis for a human sciences approach to psychology

This article offers a close examination of critiques of quantitative research by Michell, 2011, Marecek, 2011, and Morawski (2011). One goal is to show that these three critics actually share with most mainstream quantitative researchers commitments to the Cartesian framework, even though this is not obvious because Cartesianism can appear in different guises. As a result of these commitments, the three theorists advance criticisms of mainstream quantitative research that fail to identify its key failings, put forward flawed views about how we should conduct research, and offer misguided criticisms of an approach I advocate called explicitly interpretive quantitative research. Another goal is to use the examination of the three critiques as a vehicle for clarifying the participatory perspective, a philosophical viewpoint that departs from the Cartesian framework. With regard to research methodology, the participatory perspective provides the basis for explicitly interpretive quantitative research, leads to ideas about changes we should make in how we conduct qualitative research, and treats quantitative and qualitative research as fundamentally similar because both should be pursued as interpretive modes of inquiry. I suggest that my analyses of the three critiques of quantitative research – or “case studies,” as I call these analyses – also may prove useful to researchers and theorists who want to develop a human sciences approach to other issues besides research methodology by helping them (1) recognize when lines of thinking that seem to depart from the mainstream actually represent variants of Cartesianism, and (2) consider what the participatory perspective might have to offer if they were to use it as the philosophical basis for their efforts.     

Formal assessment of reliability specifications in embedded cyber-physical systems

Reliability has become an integral component of the design intent of embedded cyber-physical systems. Safety-critical embedded systems are designed with specific reliability targets, and design practices include the appropriate allocation of both spatial and temporal redundancies in the implementation to meet such requirements. With increasing complexity of such systems and considering the large number of components in such systems, redundancy allocation requires a formal scientific basis. In this work, we profess the analysis of the redundancy requirement upfront with the objective of making it an integral part of the specification. The underlying problem is one of synthesizing a formal specification with built-in redundancy artifacts, from the formal properties of the error-free system, the error probabilities of the control components, and the reliability target. We believe that upfront formal analysis of redundancy requirements is important in budgeting the resource requirements from a cost versus reliability perspective. Several case-studies from the automotive domain highlight the efficacy of our proposal.     

On computing time-to-collision for automation scenarios

Time to collision (TTC) has been a key vehicle safety metric for decades. With the increasing prevalence of advanced driver assistance systems and vehicle automation, TTC and many related metrics are being applied to the analysis of more complicated scenarios, as well as being integrated into automation algorithms. While the TTC metric was originally conceived to be inclusive of generic two-dimensional situations, its applications has been mostly limited to one-dimensional scenarios. This paper derives general equations and algorithms using two-dimensional information. Additionally, methods from computational geometry, a field that didn’t exist when TTC was first used, are employed for the general case of computing TTC between bounding boxes. Parametric equations for lines play a prominent role and offer an elegant way to express the geometry of the scenarios described in this paper. Throughout, the approach is not to derive specific algebraic conditions as in previous efforts. Rather, the focus in on developing general algorithms for computation. The techniques presented are not necessary for traditional car following scenarios; but offer options for more complex situations that trade off analytic solutions for computational flexibility.     

Well‐being and pressures of daily life in two West Bank villages—Exploring context and history

Interest in the well‐being of people exposed to long‐term violence and conflict has tended to focus on measurable effects of acute traumatic events, while attention to the pressures of their daily living context is relatively new. Using qualitative and quantitative data from a 2005 survey of all female family caretakers in 2 neighbouring Israeli‐occupied West Bank villages (n = 820), we explored the associations of demographic, health‐related and contextual factors with reported pressures and WHO‐5 well‐being index scores. The final model explained 17.8% of the variance with negative associations between health‐related factors (“back‐aches,” “stomach aches” “psychological illness in the family”) and family‐related factors (“male head of household aggressive”, “male head of household physically violent”) and the WHO‐5 well‐being index scores. We found positive associations between socio‐economic factors (“standard of living”; “number of rooms”) and village‐related factors (“residency in village A/B”) and the WHO‐5 well‐being index score. Exploring the daily living context of villages A and B illuminated how the impact of historical and political events differed, even in villages that are geographically close. The paper lends support to calls for including politics and history in research on well‐being in contexts of long‐term violence and conflict.     

Parent and Staff Uncertainties Regarding the Philosophy of Early Intervention in a Preschool Autism Program

This study investigated the influences of dominant paradigms in the field of autism on the attitudes and beliefs of stakeholders in an early intervention (EI) program for children with autism. This EI program is based on a developmental approach with the premise that intensive intervention in young children (ages 2–6 years) can change their developmental trajectory given the brain's plasticity. This study was based on 48 interviews with parents and staff, as well as three focus groups with stakeholders at a program serving young children with autism. Qualitative data analysis revealed that parents and staff were most influenced by the curative aspect of the medical model while they did not commonly demonstrate adherence to the principles of EI. Parents also revealed conflicting attitudes simultaneously, as many of them expressed wishes for their children to be cured of autism while at the same time wanting that interventions would continue indefinitely.     

Reflective practice and work-based research: a description of micro- and macro-reflective cycles

The role and importance of reflective practice have been thoroughly documented and its benefits are well established. When coupled with research in a higher education context, a similar importance for reflection can be extended to professional development, leadership, and work-based learning. However, the relation of reflective practice to work-based research, specifically when defined as an element of methodology in higher degree research awards, has yet to be fully examined. In this paper, we explore the basic principles of reflective practice as they relate to work-based learning and highlight the interfaces or ‘bridges’ between reflective cycles, showing their centrality to work-based research. As an example of how these principles might be applied, we also introduce the role of each micro- and macro-reflective cycle in the Professional Studies program at University of Southern Queensland, a relatively new academic approach which utilises both work-based learning and work-based research.     

Practicing Community Psychology Through Mixed Methods Participatory Research Designs

Community psychologists address social inequalities and problems by employing ecological principles, multiple methodologies, and participatory approaches to empower individuals, organizations, and communities to organize action and systems change. This article aims to contribute to mixed methods literature by presenting three models of mixed methods participatory research across a variety of geographic and sociocultural contexts. The models outline participatory processes and points of qualitative and quantitative data integration. Challenges related to the interplay between participatory approaches and mixed methods studies as well as implications on social science research are discussed.     

Visualizing homelessness: a study in photography and estrangement

This article reports a qualitative study of how homeless people visualize their life in hostels and on the streets of London. Using a photo‐production technique, the research enabled participants to show their situation as well as to tell about their experiences. Participants were given cameras and asked to take photographs typical of their day as homeless people, this material being the subject of a subsequent interview. This provided both visual and text data that were analysed together so as to establish different engagements of the participants with the city and with domiciled people. Presenting the material from six of the participants, these different engagements are described with reference to issues of estrangement, exclusion and visualization employed as explanatory concepts. The article identifies and compares the different ways in which homeless people attempt not only to survive but also to [make their home] in the city. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

语篇阅读研究方法综述

语篇阅读已成为心理语言学的一个热点研究领域,本文在将语篇阅读研究方法分为延时测量法和即时测量法（启动技术、眼动分析法、按健反应法、探测技术与出声思考法等）两类的基础上,对语篇阅读的研究方法进行了分析与总结。