In this article, the authors address some of the scientific challenges associated with using observation as a research method. The authors ask how researchers contextualise and understand observation in terms of its theoretical underpinnings and how it is conducted. Using a vignette in the kindergarten context, the authors explore how observation…

Discrete-time survival analysis (DTSA) models are a popular way of modeling events in the social sciences. However, the analysis of discrete-time survival data is challenged by missing data in one or more covariates. Negative consequences of missing covariate data include efficiency losses and possible bias. A popular approach to circumventing…

In sparse data meta-analyses (with few trials or zero events), conventional methods may distort results. Although better-performing one-stage methods have become available in recent years, their implementation remains limited in practice. This study examines the impact of using conventional methods compared to one-stage models by re-analysing…

Despite their many benefits, longitudinal studies are much less common than one-time data collection or pre-post intervention designs. One reason for their scarcity is that longitudinal studies introduce requirements and challenges that non-longitudinal studies do not. One of the biggest challenges is participant attrition. In order to help…

Purpose: This paper contends that data generated by research on supervision are often taken as authentic data. Through an examination of studies that use audio/visual recordings to investigate supervision, the paper both promotes and problematises the recording of supervision meetings as a useful technique for doctoral supervision research. This…

Previous research extensively studied reasons for and ways to avoid low response rates, but it largely ignored the primary research issue of the degree to which response rates matter, which we address. Methodological survey research on response rates has been concerned with how to increase responsiveness and with the effects of response rates on…

Purpose: The lack of a definite standard for determining the sample size in qualitative research leaves the research process to the initiative of the researcher, and this situation overshadows the scientificity of the research. The primary purpose of this research is to propose a model by questioning the problem of determining the sample size,…

Imputation or likelihood-based approaches to handle missing data assume the data are missing completely at random (MCAR) or missing at random (MAR). However, little research has examined the missingness pattern before using these imputation/likelihood methods. Three missingness mechanisms -- MCAR, MAR, and not missing at random (NMAR) -- can be…

Purpose: Critical realism is an increasingly popular "lens" through which complex events, entities and phenomena can be studied. Yet detailed operationalisations of critical realism are at present relatively scarce. This study's objective here is built on existing debates by developing an open systems model of reality, a basis for…

This paper puts forward a research agenda in the area of explicit and implicit knowledge and learning of second or additional languages. Based on a brief overview of reliable findings as well as open questions in the field, three agenda items are highlighted. First, valid and reliable measures of explicit and, in particular, implicit knowledge and…

Research is about an individual's intellectual acumen and rationality, and inter-researcher collaboration capability magnifies the outcomes. Despite common belief, there exist fundamental asymmetries in the goals, orientations and expectations among the research collaborators. Seldom studied in-depth and empirically validated, the challenges and…

The transgender community is rich with wisdom about how to live authentically, embrace duality, and embody intersecting identities, but our stories have been widely missing from or misrepresented in research. "Insider" community-engaged research offers a framework for boundary-spanning researchers to blend their "insider" and…

Research designs that include planned missing data are gaining popularity in applied education research. These methods have traditionally relied on introducing missingness into data collections using the missing completely at random (MCAR) mechanism. This study assesses whether planned missingness can also be implemented when data are instead…

Thematic analysis is a methodology with wide use in content analysis and field work through interviews, observations, and focus groups. Despite popularity with researchers, there are several questions and problems with the methodology. There was an absence in exploration and explanation of the methods and hidden steps in thematic analysis. Using a…

Sport officials are crucial members of sport. Researchers have studied their roles numerous times, with results often informing sport procedures (e.g., athlete order in artistic sports). As the research on sport officiating spans five decades and several topics of interest, it is important that researchers periodically synthesize the literature.…