Using the below feedback that has been given throughout the term, please write a concept paper. The concept paper is similar to a mini-proposal that one would do for a dissertation/project proposal. The paper should include the following elements: general and specific problem statement, a research question, a selected design, and an appropriate method.
The total submission must be at least 500 words to accurately reflect the problem and the proposed research question. Remember, there must be context, so these items should not be listed merely in bullet form. This assignment requires a title page and a reference page (abstract not required). There should be a minimum of four references, but will likely contain more.
The 5 Key Factors That I Noticed in The
Keller, T., & Alsdorf, K. L. Text Were:
1. The Dignity that Work Provides:
As Keller and Alsdorf discuss, it is agreeable that the purpose of work is a result of God’s instructions. I agree with this text because the word of God requires Christians to adhere to His callings, and in this case, the calling is our work (Keller, 2016).
2. Work as a Service:
I disagree with Keller and Alsdorf concept that people should focus on making great qualities of income to serve God. Although money and other belongings can be powerful to distribute great causes, they cannot be the only benefits that one can receive from work.
3. Work Sometimes Makes us Selfish:
As indicated by (Keller 2016), I agree that work becomes selfish in some cases, and it can only be used to make a name for people instead of God. Besides, people should choose God’s will instead of their own.
4. Work Reveals our Idols:
I agree with Keller and Alsdorf on the opinion that when we work towards success and earthly satisfaction without considering our partnership with God, it is a form of idol-worshipping (Keller & Alsdorf, 2016).
5. The Design of Work:
As indicated by Keller and Alsdorf, work is supposed to be significant because it is a part of God’s divine plan. Additionally, God rested on the seventh day to show limits to work.
Agreement and Disagreement:
I agree with Keller and Alsdorf that the results of theorizing and practicing work have born fruits for leadership services. However, I can’t entirely agree with some aspects of Keller and Alsdorf’s text, especially in the concept that people should focus on making great qualities of income to serve God (Keller, 2016).
Biblical Worldview Component:
In the case that a biblical worldview component was incorporated into my research design, my research approach would change. My research would have a qualitative view of the Bible’s influence on employees’ productivity and morale (Hah, 2019).
References
Keller, T., & Alsdorf, K. L. (2016). Every Profitable Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Creation. Penguin Books.
McGhee, P. (2019, July 16). Integrating Christian Spirituality at Work: Combining Top-Down and Bottom-Up Approaches. Mdpi. https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/10/7/433/htm.
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What makes a good problem if it is for a case study?
With the increase in online marketing, one will conduct “a case study” at least once before deciding the best product or vendor to use. In other words, a case study is a research method mostly applied in the life and social sciences to examine a smaller unit and later using the results to generalize on a larger unit. Roberta Heale and Alison Twycross define case study as an intensive research methodology about a unit, group of people, or persons to generalize over several other units (Twycross, 2018, p. 7). These units, as mentioned, could be a particular unit of products, a person, a group of people such as men, women, males, females, leaders, organization CEO, among others. Now that we understand what a case study is, what makes a problem suitable to use a case study?
There several characteristics of a problem that make it a perfect fit for using a case study. The problem affects a larger unit of the targeted company. For example, an issue affecting college students in the United States is most likely involving students in Europe and Asia. Another characteristic is that the problem is a specific phenomenon arising from a particular entity (Gerring, 2004, p. 342). The problem or research question should present several forms in which they can be answered. In other words, it has multiple variables, which can be used to find the solution (LANE, 2018, p. 1504). Lastly, the problem presents multiple dimensions or cases to consider. For instance, using the given example above, the research could instead focus on how course complexity affects college students’ performance.
What makes a good problem if it is for consulting?
Consulting is the act of providing external advice to a person, a group, an organization, or institution or a range of topics such as operations, management, strategy, technology to help the advised party make a better and more profound decision based on the problem at hand (DropOutClub LLC, 2016). The first characteristic is that the existing problem has existed before, or at least there has been an attempt to address the issue. The problem presents sufficient scientific merit to answer (LANE, 2018, p. 1504). For example, for most Startup companies, capital is a major issue often requiring consultation. In other words, there is a known solution to the problem. Secondly, the question presents conflicting issues, and the whole purpose of the consultation is to decide on the best course of action (Keller & Alsdorf, 2012). For instance, a company wanting to purchase a new machine may consult with a financial expert to help in making the decision. In this case, the problem could be production and thus, acquiring the new machine will increase production on the one hand and is also likely to incur additional operation costs on the other hand.
Annotated Bibliography
DropOutClub LLC. (2016). Consulting 101. Retrieved from. https://s3.amazonaws.com/dropoutclub-prod/resources/DOC_Resources_Career_Consulting101.pdf
The source is a presentation that focuses on various elements in business consultation. The source provide the definition, key roles of a consultant and various strategies that can be applied in diverse projects.
Gerring, J. (2004). What is a Case Study and What is it Good for? American Political Science Review, 98(2), 341-354. Retrieved from 10.1017/S0003055404001182
The source defines what a case study is, provide characteristics of a case study, the two most used types, as well as the advantages and limitations of using a case study for political science research.
Keller, T., & Alsdorf, K. L. (2012). Every good endeavor: connecting your work to God’s work. Every good endeavor: connecting your work to God’s work: Dutton.
The book provide concrete information, examples, and illustrations which define and demonstrate the key elements of consultation, it application and value from a faith-based perspective.
LANE, S. (2018). The best evidence comes from the right study design, not just randomised trials. BJOG : an International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 125(12), 1504. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.15197
The source provides several references and examples illustrating how, when, and why one should choose to use a case study. The source also provide rich information on defining and structuring a research problem to fit within the boundaries of the chosen research method.
Twycross, R. H. (2018). What is a case study? Evidence-Based Nursing, 7-8.
The source defines what a case study is, provide characteristics of a case study, the two most used types, as well as the advantages and limitations of using a case study in nursing practice.
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Describe the three designs and when is it appropriate to use each design?
In order to properly conduct research one must understand the different methodologies. There are a variety of designs that can be used. The researcher must understand and determine which method is appropriate for the type of research being conducted. Three prominent types of designs are fixed, flexible, and mixed. One way to determine which method to use is design thinking. Design thinking requires a little creativity, fosters innovation, and provides new approaches in the area of research. Design thinking contains distinct characteristics and practices. These characteristics when pooled with current methods create a unique research method (Micheli, et al., 2019). Research design is the framework that has been created to seek answers to research questions. Fixed designs would be appropriate to use in collecting quantitative data. One such method for this would be when conducting a survey. Surveys have a fixed set of response categories and such would need a fixed method to determine the outcome. Flexible designs would be appropriate to use in collecting qualitative data, such as, conducting inductive research. Inductive research requires the researcher to collect data, observe it, and formulate a hypothesis on what the data is telling them. Flexible designs are best utilized in real life situations. Mixed designs are appropriate to use when the need for research cannot be put into either of the fixed or flexible design categories or when the research requires the integration of both qualitative data and quantitative data.
Fixed design
Fixed designs focus primarily on aggregate results and have properties that relate to a group setting and have basic tendencies. The design does not focus on the individual accomplishments of the research but rather on the averages of the group being researched. Fixed designs are used to collect quantitative data (Robson and McCartan, 2016). In a fixed design the intent of the research is rigid and can’t be changed. Fixed designs also take time to set up and can be part of a pilot research set. Fixed design research is carefully pre-planned and focuses mainly on variables that can be measured and compared.
Flexible design
Flexible designs focus on qualitative data Flexible design is developed to get researchers to think outside the box and practice critical thinking skills. In flexible designs direct observation is used to collect data. The researcher collects the data through either field visits or direct witnessing of the event or activities of the research subject along with the participants behaviors. The researcher then records the observations through note taking. From here the researcher analyzes the data gathered and comes up with a hypothesis or theory to determine the results of that data. The researcher then presents their findings to the appropriate parties. Flexible designs allow for more freedom during the data collection process. It can be used in the research of culture and other scenarios that the variable being researched is not able to be measured using a quantitative method. One example of flexible research is grounded theory. Grounded theory is a systematic process that works to develop a process to interpret and action about a substantive topic. Flexible designs have no predetermined variables and can evolve over time.
Mixed design
The mixed methods design is a method of conducting research that involves collecting, analyzing and integrating quantitative data such as experiments and qualitative data such as focus groups to use in research. The purpose statements of mixed methods contain the overall intent of the study, information about both the quantitative and qualitative strands of the study, and a rationale of incorporating both strands to study the research problem. This design is established to get researchers to think completely outside the box. The trademark of mixed methods is the combination (i.e., mixing) of quantitative and qualitative data to produce research conclusions significantly better than using either a fixed or flexible design approach could unaccompanied. An essential characteristic of the mixed design is the arduous use of both quantitative and qualitative methods (Guetterman, et al., 2019).
How are the designs similar?
The three designs are similar in that they share the common feature of having one or more points in the research process. Data is collected in each design, such as, numbers, words, and/or gestures. This is done in different ways and for different purposes but the objective remains the same across all designs. Researchers can use all three designs to have an impact on the modification of professional norms by the research they conduct in order to allow a greater range of studies and findings to be supported.
How are the designs different?
A major difference between quantitative and qualitative research methods is that quantitative methods take more effort during the beginning research phase while qualitative methods take more effort during the final phase. Quantitative methods call for survey preparation, testing, validation, sample identification, and a myriad of procedures. In contrast, qualitative methods allow more flexibility during the beginning phase of the process.
What specific methods are related to each of these designs?
Fixed designs incorporate quantitative research methods. This can be anything from survey interviewing with the testing of a hypothesis across a variety of variables in a deductive manner, using standardized procedures for questions and answers in an objective manner, and can apply the results to a wider range of people or settings to experimental interventions, which creates a preplanned change if needed and test results. Experimental interventions rely on procedures that are easily replicated by other researchers and concentrates on key variables by controlling other factors.
Flexible designs incorporate qualitative research methods. This can be anything from participant observation, which starts with a base of observations in order to generate a theory. It also concentrates on the meaning of observations and studies events as they occur to qualitative interviewing, which allows interview topics to emerge during a conversation, listens to the perspectives and interpretations of others, and can collect detail and depth on a range of factors related to the topic being studied.
Mixed designs incorporate and combine the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Mixed methods pursue the combinations of purposes that do not fit within the boundaries of traditional qualitative or quantitative research and requires more detail on why this type of research design was chosen. Mixed method design is used when more explicit arguments are required to convince other researchers that the goals of the research are worth it and that this design produces good sound results.
Annotated Bibliography
Guetterman, T. C., Babchuk, W. A., Howell Smith, M. C., & Stevens, J. (2019). Contemporary approaches to mixed Methods–Grounded theory research: A field-based analysis. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 13(2), 179-195. doi:10.1177/1558689817710877
The authors of this article aim to systematically examine how mixed Methods–Grounded theory applies to research and attempt to procedural guidelines. The authors noted that during their literature review they discovered that most publications provide little methodological detail regarding grounded theory, mixed methods, and their integration. They also found that most literature neglected to incorporate theoretical development in their research and that most followed a convergent mixed methods design. The authors contribute to discussions with regards to the implementation of MM-GT and how it can or should be used to more fully realize the potential of this approach. This article is of value because it provides an analysis of mixed methods-ground theory that has not been explored before. The limitations of this article is that it was written from one perspective and could potentially bias future research using this method. There should be another analysis done in this area from a different perspective. This article is somewhat effective in its investigation of research and the methods used to conduct research. This article only studied literature that was written on this method and did not actually conduct an experiment or the research method in a real world setting. The evidence in this article lacked effectiveness as it is a simple review of published material on the subject and can’t be proven or disproven as no real research was actually conducted. I would be able to utilize this article as a reference of the understanding of MM-GT but not be able to properly utilize it as a source to conduct actual research.
Micheli, P., Wilner, S. J. S., Bhatti, S. H., Mura, M., & Beverland, M. B. (2019). Doing design thinking: Conceptual review, synthesis, and research agenda: Doing design thinking. The Journal of Product Innovation Management, 36(2), 124-148. doi:10.1111/jpim.12466
The authors of this article attempt to shed light on existing knowledge of design thinking and the concept of it. They conducted a systematic review of literature that has been written about design thinking to identify methods of research. Their research contributes three principals to design and innovation management theory and practice. Based on their review of literature the authors were able to recommend topics of relevance that would benefit from further study and research. They conducted their analysis in order to advance and promote a theoretical understanding of design thinking and test its applications. The authors provided suggestions in order to advance the ability of scholars and managers by laying out the advantages of design thinking. This article is of value because it provides an in depth analysis of design thinking literature and expands on it. The limitations of this article is that it was written from one perspective and could potentially bias future research using this method. There should be another analysis done in this area from a different perspective. This article is somewhat effective in its investigation of research and the methods used to conduct research. This article only studied literature that was written on this method and did not actually conduct an experiment or the research method in a real world setting. The evidence in this article lacked effectiveness as it is a simple review of published material on the subject and can’t be proven or disproven as no real research was actually conducted. I would be able to utilize this article as a reference of the understanding of design thinking but not be able to properly utilize it as a source to conduct actual research.
Robson, C. & McCartan, K. (2016). Real world research (4th ed.) Hoboken: New Jersey
The author of this book discusses how to conduct real world research and what industries would benefit from it. The author attempts to provide guidance to researchers and helps them find ways to fund their research. The author focuses mainly on projects in this book and what social methods of research can be used in them. He provides the foundation of what good research questions are and instructs that working out how you get answers to these questions shapes the design of the research. These answers are the key part of the findings. This book is of value because it provides researchers guidance on how to formulate research properly in order to get the best value out of it. The limitations of this book are that with ever changing technology some of the material has become obsolete and although it can be used as a guide it is lacking in up to date research methods that are now being utilized in the field. This book is very effective in its investigation of research and the methods used to conduct research. The evidence in this book has been proven very effective as many researchers have cited it as a source used in creating their own research criteria and methods. I would be able to utilize this book as a basis for the design of research that I would conduct if needed.
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Description of Data Collection Methods
There are four primary data collection methods, with each having unique characteristics, hence being suitable for different research designs. Surveys, where questions in the form of questionnaires are posed to respondents requiring them to respond, are examples of data collection methods (Ponto, 2015).
Interviews, where one on one questions are asked to the respondent face-to-face, telephone calls, or e-mails is another data collection method (DeJonckheere & Vaughn, 2019). Interviews seek to get personal opinions from respondents by engaging them in detailed conversations while recording their responses and views.
Test and scales, where quantitative data is subjected to various measures to obtain results, is another example (Boateng et al., 2018). Numerical data is collected and measured by tests to get the required results that are not biased. This method deals only with just numbers.
Observation, where the researcher conducts a keen study on a participant so obtain detailed descriptive data, is also another example (Gilmartin-Thomas et al., 2018). Observations are done so that detailed information is captured by critical studying of the subject of the study.
Appropriateness
Surveys are preferable in research studies that require large amounts of data and studies that cover a large geographical area. Experimental research designs prefer using surveys (Robson& McCartan, 2016).
Interviews are appropriate in studies that require detailed information from people and personal thoughts. Experimental research designs that require detailed data prefer interviews. Interviews often result in deep conversations that result in understanding deep thoughts and personal feelings (Robson& McCartan, 2016).
Tests and scales are commonly utilized in numerical studies. Quantitative research designs use this method as most of the findings are relatively numerical and not qualitative (Robson& McCartan, 2016).
Observations are used in studies that require watching of participants and then recording the features seen by just looking. Research designs geared towards explaining a phenomenon the way it is often use this method as it primarily relies on the physical examination of the subject under study (Robson& McCartan, 2016).
Annotated Bibliography
Boateng, G. O., Neilands, T. B., Frongillo, E. A., Melgar-Quiñonez, H. R., & Young, S. L. (2018). Best Practices for Developing and Validating Scales for Health, Social, and Behavioral Research: A Primer. Frontiers in Public Health, 6.
This article discusses about test and scale data collection method. It in summary states that this method is suitable in quantitative studies.
DeJonckheere, M., & Vaughn, L. M. (2019). Semistructured interviewing in primary care research: a balance of relationship and rigour. Family Medicine and Community Health, 7(2), e000057.
This article discusses interviews at length. It states that interviews are best suited in researches that require deeper connection to participants and collection of large voluminous data.
Gilmartin-Thomas, J. F., Liew, D., & Hopper, I. (2018). Observational studies and their utility for practice. Australian Prescriber, 41(3), 82–85.
This article focuses on observational studies. It states that observation is appropriate in studies that are qualitative in nature.
Ponto, J. (2015). Understanding and Evaluating Survey Research. Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology, 6(2), 168–171.
This article illustrates the importance of using surveys. It discusses the efficiency of surveys as a data collection method.
Robson, C., & McCartan, K. (2016). Real world research. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons.
Authors of this book conduct a detailed discussion on real world research. They discuss the various research methods and how they are used in different research studies.

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