A Step-by-Step Guide to Propensity Score Matching in R

Propensity score matching is a statistical technique in which a treatment case is matched with one or more control cases based on each case’s propensity score. This matching can help strengthen causal arguments in quasi-experimental and observational studies by reducing selection bias. In this article we concentrate on how to conduct propensity score matching using an example from the field of education. Our goal is to provide information that will bring propensity score matching within the reach of research and evaluation practitioners. Accessed 57,198 times on https://pareonline.net from November 19, 2014 to December 31, 2019. For downloads from January 1, 2020 forward, please click on the PlumX Metrics link to the right

A Quantitative Content Analysis of Mercer University Theses

Quantitative content analysis of a body of research not only helps budding researchers understand the culture, language, and expectations of scholarship, it helps identify deficiencies and inform policy and practice. Because of these benefits, an analysis of a census of 980 Mercer University M.Ed., Ed.S., and doctoral theses was conducted. Each thesis was coded on 10 variables. The descriptive characteristics of the theses, the predictors of the length of the theses, and the predictors of the type of research method used were investigated. The main results were that: (a) the vast majority of thesis authors was female, (b) the number of qualitative theses was on the rise, (c) there were slight variations in research method and length based on location of publication, (d) the page length of M.Ed. theses had been slightly decreasing over time, (e) mathematics instruction was the most frequent subject descriptor of theses, and (f) the proportion of male authors increased over time

A Methodological Review of the Articles Publishes in Georgia Educational Researcher from 2003-2010

Methodological reviews, reviews that concentrate on research methods rather than research outcomes, have been used in a variety of fields to improve research practice, inform debate, and identify islands of practice. In this article, we report on the results of a methodological review of all of the articles published in Georgia Educational Researcher from 2003-2010. We examined the methodological characteristics, authorial characteristics, and methodological quality of those articles using quantitative content analysis. The major findings were that (a) the proportions of the type and traditions of articles published in Georgia Educational Researcher were similar to the proportions in education research articles in general, (b) case study research and correlational research were most prominent, (c) a few universities accounted for most of the articles published, (d) male and female authors’ articles were published in equitable proportions, and (e) there were no statistically significant differences in methodological quality between genders, university affiliations, types of research, or years of publication. We end with a few suggestions for improving the quality of qualitative research articles in the Georgia Educational Researcher

Generate FAIR Literature Surveys with Scholarly Knowledge Graphs

Reviewing scientific literature is a cumbersome, time consuming but crucial activity in research. Leveraging a scholarly knowledge graph, we present a methodology and a system for comparing scholarly literature, in particular research contributions describing the addressed problem, utilized materials, employed methods and yielded results. The system can be used by researchers to quickly get familiar with existing work in a specific research domain (e.g., a concrete research question or hypothesis). Additionally, it can be used to publish literature surveys following the FAIR Data Principles. The methodology to create a research contribution comparison consists of multiple tasks, specifically: (a) finding similar contributions, (b) aligning contribution descriptions, (c) visualizing and finally (d) publishing the comparison. The methodology is implemented within the Open Research Knowledge Graph (ORKG), a scholarly infrastructure that enables researchers to collaboratively describe, find and compare research contributions. We evaluate the implementation using data extracted from published review articles. The evaluation also addresses the FAIRness of comparisons published with the ORKG

A guide to writing the dissertation literature review

Writing a faulty literature review is one of many ways to derail a dissertation. This article summarizes some pivotal information on how to write a high-quality dissertation literature review. It begins with a discussion of the purposes of a review, presents taxonomy of literature reviews, and then discusses the steps in conducting a quantitative or qualitative literature review. The article concludes with a discussion of common mistakes and a framework for the self-evaluation of a literature review

A Guide to Writing the Dissertation Literature Review

Kusurlu bir alanyazın çalışması, bir tezi rayından çıkarmanın yollarından biridir. Bu makale yüksek kalitede bir bilimsel tez alanyazınının nasıl yazılacağına dair bazı temel bilgileri özetlemektedir. Bu çalışma öncelikle alanyazın taramasının amaçlarını ve sınıflandırmasını belirterek sonrasında nicel ve nitel bir alanyazın incelemesinin yürütüldüğü adımları tartışmaktadır. Bu makale, yaygın hataların tartışılması ve bir alanyazın taramasının öz-değerlendirmesini içeren çerçeve ile son bulmaktadır.Writing a faulty literature review is one of many ways to derail a dissertation. This article summarizes some pivotal information on how to write a high-quality dissertation literature review. It begins with a discussion of the purposes of a review, presents taxonomy of literature reviews, and then discusses the steps in conducting a quantitative or qualitative literature review. The article concludes with a discussion of common mistakes and a framework for the self-evaluation of a literature review