All research endeavors must, by necessity, progress through a series of logical and meaningful steps. These steps allow a researcher to be confident that the inferences and conclusions reached at the culmination of a project are valid, unbiased, representative, and generalizable.
In Chapter 8 of the text, Creswell identifies six steps critical to the construction of a quantitative research proposal (pp. 162-166). After reading this chapter, discuss the six steps of the critical aspects of data analysis and interpretation identified by Creswell:
What are the six steps and why are they essential?
How do these steps assist us when evaluating criminal justice data?
How do these steps contribute to successfully interpreting published research findings?
How would you apply these steps to answer a criminal justice research question?