What is e-research? Enhancing research practice e-Research Methods, Strategies, and Issues Tips For Finding Useful Information Some Search Tools for doing e-research Research Design Quantitative Research Qualitative Research Ethics & The e-Researcher How The Net Complicates Ethics? Privacy, Confidentiality, Autonomy, And The Respect For Persons Tips For Ethical e-Research Collaboration Tools Why Consensus? Net-based dissemination of E-research results Dissemination through peer-reviewed articles Advantages of a peer-reviewed article Dissemination through email lists or Usenet groups Dissemination through a virtual conference

1. Prof. Dr. Md. Nazrul Islam
Former Director, IQAC, SAU, Sylhet
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2. What is e-research?
The term ‘e-Research’ encapsulates
research activities that use a spectrum of
advanced ICT capabilities and embraces
new research methodologies emerging
from increasing access to:
 Broadband communications networks, research
instruments and facilities, sensor networks and data
repositories;
 Software and infrastructure services that enable secure
connectivity and interoperability;
 Application tools that encompass discipline-specific
tools and interaction tools.
Rhys Francis (at right)
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3. CONCEPT
 Application of advanced digital methods and tools
in all parts of research lifecycle:
 Locate and access research resources.
 Discover, access, integrate and analyse digital data on a
hitherto unrealisable scale.
 Facilitate sharing and collaboration.
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4. e-Research: enhancing research practice
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5. e-Research Methods, Strategies, and
Issues
Introduction
 Our anxiety is, in great part, the result of
trying to do today’s job with yesterday’s tool
 The Net changes everything
 Research
 Detailed study of a subject, especially in order
to discover (new) information or reach a (new)
understanding. (Cambridge International Dictionary of
English) 5

6. What Does The e Mean?
 A few years ago e meant a tool
 Primarily text based
 Operated on a relatively unsecure communication
link
 A wide variation in performance and quality of
service
 E-applications in education
 Students and faculty could access the contents
easily
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7. What Does The e Mean? (cont’d)
 Audio, video and multimedia channels in
Net-based platforms
 Also changed our connotations of the Net or the e-
world
 Generally: the activity takes place on a high-
speed, digital network, available
“anytime/anywhere”
 Today that network is the internet
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8. Tips For Finding Useful
Information
 Begin the search by analyzing your needs
 Isolate your keywords
 Select a search tool that matches your needs
 Experiment with a variety of search engines
 Most researchers’ favorite engine,
http://www.google.com , general, fast and
effective
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9. Some Search Tools
 http://www.mednet.com
 devoted to medical information
 http://www.searchenginecolossus.com
 Focused on particular regions and countries
 http://www.noodlequest.com/noodlequest
/
 To find appropriate search engines, or what engines
are available
 Generates a list of engines, based on your Internet
skills and your search needs 9

10. Research Design
 Encompasses the procedures a researcher
use to study a (set of) question(s) or
hypothesis
 e-research design is almost like the design
process for non-Net-based research
 Purpose of developing a research design
 clearly express a solvable, important problem
 Structure the research by illustrating how the major
parts of the project (measures, treatments, programs,
etc.) address the objective of the research
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11. Research Design (cont’d)
 Typically includes:
 A research methodology paradigm
 The use of related and relevant literature
 The purpose and/or objectives of the study
 A problem statement (research questions)
 An acknowledgment of limitations
 A statement of the significance of the study
 A plan for data collection and analysis
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12. Research Methods
 Different ways of arriving at the knowledge
 Literature review
 Involves a synthesis of existing researches
 A search which results in a list of references to
books, other materials on the topic
 Action research
 Involves a partnership between the researcher and
those in a situation
 Focuses on solutions to real problems in daily life
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13. Research Methods (cont’d)
 Critical theory
 Involves the deconstruction of systems, unfold
hidden agendas
 Historical research
 Attempts to detail the objective reconstruction of
historical events
 Mixed method
 Combines a number of methods
 Provides views from different perspectives on a
problem
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14. Quantitative Research
 Associated with study of natural phenomena
 Concerned with the tabulation or numeric
relevance of various kinds of behavior
 Oriented towards the quantity of facts, what
the statistical evidence tells us
 Laboratory experiments
 Formal methods (e.g. econometrics)
 Numerical methods such as mathematical modeling
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15. Qualitative Research
 Associated with study of social phenomena
 Concerned with understanding the processes,
which underlie various behavioral patterns
 Focuses on quality of the subject under study
 Qualitative data sources
 Observation and participant observation (fieldwork)
 Interviews and questionnaires
 Documents and texts
 The researcher’s impressions and reactions 15

16. Ethics & The e-Researcher
 Necessary to build certain rule
 Virtual word
 Lack of referee
 Important item in e-research
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17. How The Net Complicates Ethics
 Virtual world & too many culture
 Chat room
 E-Shopping
 E-banking
 E-government
 Network security
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18. Privacy, Confidentiality, Autonomy, And
The Respect For Persons
 Limitation for others to reach the research
 Securing the information for others & for
researchers
 Important data out of reach of members
 Using of privation program
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19. Obtaining Consent From Online
Participant
 Give consent to gain the trust of researcher &
other members
 Research must have identity, targets, rolls
 Obtaining explicit permission
 Seeking ways to connect between participant
Obtaining Consent Electronically
 Verify by public keys infrastructure firms
such as verisign.com 19

20. Tips For Ethical e-Research
 Understand & interpret ethics principle to
developed for offline word
 Make new rules by ethics base
 Research to improve ethic rules
 Recognize any possible risk before during
& after research
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21. Collaborative e-Research
 Big project
 Disbursed & long-time project
 net' strengths for communications &
sharing data to improve the project
 peer to peer networks can increase & help
e-research
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22. Collaboration Tools
 Communication tools
 Data & document tools
 Application tools
 Project management tools
 Community management tools
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23. Methods Of Research
 Interviews
 Structured
 Semi-structured
 Unstructured interviews
 Focus groups
 Surveys
 Consensus
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24. Why Consensus?
 Creates useful results on a consensus by
experts in the field
 Arrive at a agreed upon statement
 Achieving a single best answer
 Reveal the extent of disagreement
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25. Net-based dissemination of E-research
results
 Why it is important?
 What network tools is best?
 Tips for effectively & efficiently
dissemination
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26. Why publish your results?
 Because I have to .
 Because I want to get ahead .
 Because I need to learn from others .
 Because I need to clarify my own thoughts .
 Because I can be satisfying .
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27. Network tools for dissemination of E-
research results
1. Peer-reviewed articles .
2. Popular press .
3. Email lists of UseNet groups .
4. Virtual conference .
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28. Dissemination through peer-
reviewed articles
 First filter : the editor of the selected peer-
review journal .
 Journal’s editorial review committee :
review the research .
• Usually the reviewers send their publishing
recommendation and ideas for improvement to the
author and … .
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29. Advantages of peer-reviewed article
 Increased accessibility .
 Improved capacity for search and retrieval .
 Capacity to link to additional content including
source data .
 Capacity to publish whenever the review is
finished , rather than waiting for a publication
data .
 Increase speed of distribution .
 The ability to insert hyperlinks and multimedia
into the publication .
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30. Dissemination through the popular
press
 It does not have the academic prestige of peer-
reviewed publication .
 The review process is generally faster and often
consist of only proofreading for grammatical
errors by an editor.
 Your production may get much wider distribution
.
 You may be paid for your efforts !
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31. Dissemination through email lists or
UseNet groups
 Message must consist of a short abstract
of result and at least one method for
further information .
 The subject of message must be short &
must grab the attention of potential readers
.
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32. Dissemination through virtual
conference
 Availability : anytime ,anyplace or both .
 Interactive .
 Structured .
 Limited in time .
 Cost saving .
 More accessible .
 Self-documenting .
 Networked .
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33. References
 E-research strategies, methods , issues
terry Anderson, heather kanuka
www.e-research.ca
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34. Where to find out more
http://www.eresearchsouth.ac.uk/uk-e-
social-science
http://www.methods.manchester.ac.uk/
methods/eresearch/index.shtml
Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21st
Century Discovery
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2007/nsf0728
/index.jsp
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