Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
who have hired technical consultants to help them with their research projects,
most often being asked to get involved after a consultant left the project or
something had gone seriously wrong.
My suggestion to Jill was to find someone with technical skill who also had
some research experience or suitable educational background, so that he or she
would understand what she was trying to accomplish with her research. The
ideal candidate for her, I surmised, would be someone with technical skill,
research experience and academic credentials. This typically would mean a
graduate student or intern who has programming or other technical experi-
ence. I cautioned, however, that this type of person is usually difficult to find,
may already be employed, and/or is likely to be transient. This last point of
being transient, meaning only available for a limited period of time, I noted,
should not be considered lightly. A project can run into considerable snags
when the main technical architect is no longer available. Replacement staff
may not understand what was initially developed, source files may not be well
organized or, worse, files may be missing. Ultimately, everything ends up on
hold until the project can be put back on track.
It is very common for researchers to find themselves in a quandary about
how to proceed with an online research project. They may be clear that their
research population is best reached online. They may have colleagues encour-
aging them and making it all look so easy. They may have pressure to use tech-
nical tools to keep down project costs, for example by limiting the need for data
entry. So they now face the question of what to do next. Who can help? What
resources are available to them? Like this friend of a friend, they want to
develop an online study, but need assistance thinking through the various chal-
lenges related to their particular needs, before they start developing the study.
About this book
It is out of the preceding type of experience that this book was developed. Our
focus and purpose is to provide you, the reader, with a research consultant.
Using our consulting experience and knowledge of best practices, we have
developed a guide to help answer your questions. This book isn't meant to be
read cover to cover like a novel or a textbook. It is more like a manual, though
not your typical manual. Hopefully, you'll find a section that meets your
particular needs. In some cases, you will discover practical step-by-step advice
that is useful when embarking on a research study. When coverage is limited,
either due to space or the depth of the issue, we'll also offer advice and direct
you to resources that we hope will address your questions.
Inshort,thefocusofthisbookistosupporttheuseoftechnologiesforresearch
purposes
. Our goal is to offer a collection of resource material to get the
researcher started. We hope you'll think of it as an inexpensive consultant. As
