Research Methods and Statistics for Public and Nonprofit Administrators - A Practical Guide

Description

Research Methods and Statistics for Public and Nonprofit Administrators: A Practical Guide is a comprehensive, easy-to-read, core text that thoroughly prepares readers to apply research methods and data analysis to the professional environments of public and non-profit administration. The authors expertly incorporate original case examples to demonstrate concepts using “real actors,” facing specific scenarios, in which research methods must be applied. This unique approach—presented in language accessible to both students new to research as well as current practitioners—guides the reader in fully understanding the research options detailed throughout the text. RESEARCH METHODS AND STATISTICS FOR PUBLIC AND NONPROFIT ADMINISTRATORS-FRONT COVER......Page 1 RESEARCH METHODS AND STATISTICS FOR PUBLIC AND NONPROFIT ADMINISTRATORS......Page 2 BRIEF CONTENTS......Page 6 CONTENTS......Page 8 PREFACE......Page 17 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......Page 21 SECTION I: RESEARCH DESIGN AND DATA COLLECTION......Page 24 CHAPTER 1: WHEN A PRACTITIONER BECOMES A RESEARCHER......Page 25 CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH ALIGNMENT......Page 36 CHAPTER 3: IDENTIFYING THE FOCUS OF THE RESEARCH: RESEARCH OBJECTIVE AND RESEARCH QUESTION......Page 49 CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH DESIGN......Page 70 CHAPTER 5: SAMPLE SELECTION......Page 95 CHAPTER 6: DATA COLLECTION......Page 110 SECTION II: DATA ANALYSIS......Page 138 CHAPTER 7: QUANTITATIVE DATA PREPARATION AND DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS......Page 139 CHAPTER 8: HYPOTHESIS TESTING AND STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE: LOGIC OF INFERENTIAL STATISTICS......Page 174 CHAPTER 9: COMPARING MEANS BETWEEN TWO GROUPS......Page 194 CHAPTER 10: COMPARING MEANS OF MORE THAN TWO GROUPS: ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE (ANOVA)......Page 216 CHAPTER 11: BIVARIATE CORRELATION......Page 245 CHAPTER 12: CHI-SQUARE ANALYSIS......Page 262 CHAPTER 13: REGRESSION ANALYSIS......Page 276 CHAPTER 14: QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS......Page 304 SECTION III: SUMMING UP: PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER......Page 320 CHAPTER 15: WRITING REPORTS......Page 321 CHAPTER 16: USING RESEARCH METHODS FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT: PROGRAM EVALUATION AND PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT......Page 336 APPENDIX A: ADDITIONAL SPSS AND EXCEL INSTRUCTIONS......Page 356 APPENDIX B: EMILY’S SURVEY FORM......Page 362 GLOSSARY......Page 365 INDEX......Page 379 ABOUT THE AUTHORS......Page 389