U7D1-60 - Qualitative Research Design - See Details
SCIENTIFIC MERIT
INTRODUCTION
Scientific merit is the degree of quality of a research study. When the scientific merit of a research study is
high, this means that the research has contributed valuable, meaningful, and valid information to a scientific
discipline. This presentation will explain the basic components of scientific merit so that you so that you can
evaluate the work of others as well as your own.
WHAT IS SCIENTIFIC MERIT
There are three dimensions to scientific merit, and each will be discussed in turn. The three dimensions include
advancing the current knowledge base, contributing to theory, and meeting the hallmarks of good research.
ADVANCE KNOWLEDGE BASE
The first requirement for research to have scientific merit, is that is must advance the knowledge base in the
field of study. That is to say that for us to value the research, it must contribute new knowledge to one's
discipline, such as psychology. In order to determine whether research advances the knowledge base, we
should ask, "Does the study address something that is not known or has not been studied before?" If the study
only replicates previous findings, then it does not advance the knowledge base. In order to know whether or
not research addresses something that has been studied before, you need to read and have an understanding
of the literature, meaning the primary research articles on the topic. Knowledge represented in a literature
review tells us what IS known. Once we understand what IS known, then we are in a position to see what is
NOT known. The gap in the literature is also called the research problem. Research that is published in journal
articles will present a pertinent literature review in the Introduction section of the article so that the reader can
understand the current knowledge in the field.
We should also ask, "How does the research study make new contributions to the empirical knowledge base
about the specific topic?" The manner in which information is gained in order for it to contribute to the
knowledge base is important. Research in psychology must be empirical, which means the data collected is
based upon observations that can be made and measured by anyone under the same conditions. We should
also ask, "How is the research study extending the information to what is known in the literature already?" That
is, we need to know how the research study connects to, relates to, or fits in, with other research findings. By
extending information, we increase our depth of understanding about a phenomenon.
To evaluate how well the research advances the knowledge base, we might ask questions in layman's terms
such as: So what? Why is this research important? Who cares? Seriously, who is interested in the results of
the study? Who is the intended audience, and how might they use the results? What change or new
understanding do the findings bring? What does this study offer that is new and fresh? As an analogy, think of
research findings as individual pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, how and where will this research finding—this
piece—fit in? Will it help bridge a large gap, a small one? Is it a piece that will pull together several areas of the puzzle? Is it a piece that might go in a certain area of the puzzle, but not really connect to anything that's
already there? As the French scientific philosopher Henri Poincare noted, "Science is facts; just as houses are
made of stones, so is science made of facts; but a pile of stones is not a house and a collection of facts is not
necessarily science." Therefore, part of understanding how well a research finding advances knowledge in the
field depends on how it fits in with other findings.
CONTRIBUTION TO THEORY
Theories are the foundation of a researcher's toolkit. Theories provide the theoretical framework that underlies
research and organize the observations that have been made regarding a particular phenomenon. We all have
theories. For example, you might have a theory about effective parenting. Whether you are a parent or not, you
have made observations of people parenting their children, seen movies or TV shows of the same, heard
about others' experience, and read books. If you are a parent, you have direct experience with parenting. As
we make observations, we think about what is being observed. We organize our thoughts in such a way that
beliefs, attitudes, and opinions are formed about phenomenon. These beliefs, attitudes and opinions that are
formed from our thoughts about observations can be used to formulate theories about how and why things
occur. Researchers use theories as the basis of their research studies; testing, advancing, extending, and
even creating new theories that provide insight into a particular phenomenon.
The second dimension used to evaluate scientific merit is the degree to which the research contributes to
theory. There are various ways in which research can do this. We might ask if the research provides evidence
that generates a brand new theory. We might also ask, does the research finding refine or add to an existing
theory? Theories are never perfect, and they are always open to verification. So we might also ask, does the
research test to confirm or refute current theory? And last, we could ask, "Does the research expand theory by
telling us something new about how it can be applies?" Some theories lend themselves well to practical
applications, such as therapy or education. Research might contribute to theory by showing how the theory
might be applied in a certain context.
HALLMARKS OF GOOD RESEARCH
Like most other human endeavors, research can be well done, or poorly done. Obviously, research that is
done well has more scientific merit than research that is done poorly. But how can we evaluate whether
research is good? Simply put, research is good when it is based upon sound methodology. Specifically, we can
look at whether the research meets certain hallmarks of good research. The first question is, "Can the study
answer the research questions with the design and method proposed?" That is to say, the research Questions
must address the research problem (the gap in the literature). Furthermore, the research questions must help
solve the research problem. The methodology should logically follow the research questions. You might think
of the research questions as a direct bridge between the research problem, the gap in the literature, and the
actual research study.
The second question is, "Are the research questions aligned with the selection of the design, method,
instruments/measures, and data analysis?" In other words, does everything match up? Do the research
questions logically correspond to the design and method? Are the instruments used to collect the data
appropriate to the methodology and design, and do the instruments generate data that can be used to answer
the research questions? Is the data analysis appropriate? Will the data analysis give the researcher an answer
to the research question? Notice that what makes research good is not the results that were generated by the
study but how the study was conducted, more specifically the methodology, and how well the methodology
answers the research questions, which in turn helps solve the research problem. The third question asks, "Is the study ethically sound?" All research must meet the ethical standards put in
place by a researcher's Institutional Review Board, or IRB, guidelines and regulation required by the American
Psychological Association, and federal law. As part of your training as a Capella graduate student, you are
required to undergo special training through the CITI program to help ensure you understand the ethical
standards required when performing research. How is scientific merit related to ethics?
SCIENTIFIC MERIT AND ETHICS
Besides the requirements regarding the ethical treatment of research participants, such as giving informed
consent, there is the additional requirement that the research be scientifically valid. If research does not
advance the knowledge base, does not contribute to theory, and does not meet the hallmark of utilizing sound
scientific methodology, then it is unethical to do the research. Stated another way, it is unethical to do bad or
unnecessary research. As Pilkington wrote in 2002, "If a study does not hold substantial promise of answering
a significant question, thereby generating valuable knowledge, then there is no justification for exposing
persons to the actual or potential risks and inconvenience of participation."
SUMMARY
To summarize, there are the three dimensions of scientific merit. First, the research must advance the
knowledge base of the field by contributing new, meaningful information that connects to other findings in the
field. Second, the research must make a contribution to theory by providing research evidence that forms the
basis of a new theory, or adds to, extends, tests, or demonstrates the applicability of current theory. Third,
research must meet certain hallmarks of good research. The hallmarks include the degree to which the
research methods are appropriate for answering the research question, and whether the research is ethically
sound.
Whether you plan to do your own research or not in the future, it is imperative that as a professional in
psychology, you understand as much as possible about the research process. As a professional, you will make
use of research findings as part of your work. In order to use them correctly, it is your responsibility to learn
about the processes involved in conducting research and how to evaluate scientific merit. You are encouraged
to visit these Capella sites to enhance your understanding of research.
• Learn about doing research at Capella:
https://campus.capella.edu/web/library/library-research-skills
• Learn about doing research in your school:
https://campus.capella.edu/web/dissertation-research/research-in-your-school
• Learn about the Capella Research Center and research ethics:
https://campus.capella.edu/web/library/more-services-and-tools
CREDITS Subject Matter Expert:
Interactive Designer:
Instructional Designer:
Project Manager:Tsuey-Hwa Chen, Carlos Contreras, Rosanne Roberts
Jay Austin, Marc Ashmore
Laura Badaracco Amend
Alan Campbell Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.