Real World Research reflections by Phương Tú Nguyễn

Design style

tunguyentcmftu — 2022-08-07 13:31:33 UTC

I think we need to have a general understanding of the topic before designing and conducting the research. For example, I did some research and found out that sexual orientation can be changed and there are many factors that could affect that, so I chose it as the research topic and designed the research based on the missing information. If so, is the flexible design applied in most of the cases? When should fixed design be applied?

The balance between ‘research’ and ‘evaluation’ in real-world research

tunguyentcmftu — 2023-10-28 22:56:43 UTC

The chapter mentioned that “Much research with a real-world focus” is essentially some form of evaluation. It also suggested that “researcher’s responsibility stops with achieving some understanding of what is going on” and “An alternative is to say that it is part of the researcher’s job to use this understanding to suggest ways in which desirable changes might take place or perharps to monitor the effectiveness of these attempts”

In consulting, we usually say that defining the right problem is 50% of getting the right answer, yet i think it might be different in the academic world. How much should the division between ‘research’ and ‘evaluation’ be in a standard research and this course assignment?

Language style

tunguyentcmftu — 2023-10-28 22:57:18 UTC

I wonder which language style we should target. The style used in “Real World research – Introduction chapter” seems good but there are some research papers I found on Google Scholar using much more complex language

Research idea 1: Fluidity of Sexual orientation

tunguyentcmftu — 2023-10-28 22:58:08 UTC

Can sexual orientation change? How frequently and at which stages of life we can expect those changes to happen? Which factors lead to or affect those changes? And so, what are the implications for our identities and relationships?

I am interested in this topic because I am on the journey of exploring my own sexual orientation. Up till now it is quite a confusing journey, I found myself having feelings with both men, women and non-binary, with stronger feelings towards different genders at different stages of my life. I now identify myself as pansexual, but still collecting more “data points” to confirm. Besides that, there are people around me (and on TV series) who experienced sexual orientation changes over time. I would love to understand more about its drivers, and patterns as well as how to navigate throughout our life with all those changes. (I only came out with my close friends, but I find it comfortable and safe to share and discuss this with you)

Research idea 2: the Development of education in Vietnam

tunguyentcmftu — 2023-10-28 22:58:43 UTC

since Vietnam gained independence, how has our education system developed? Where is our development stage now compared to other countries in the world and what is our outlook in the next 5-10 years? What are the unique factors that characterize the success of education development in Vietnam? – I know that Vietnam's education is lagging behind compared with developed countries, feel a bit sad when seeing so many outstanding intellectuals who are unsatisfied with the domestic education quality and went abroad for better opportunities. I wonder if we can do anything about it, how and when it can be changed.

What factors influence young adults' (22-30) realization of their sexual orientation?

tunguyentcmftu — 2023-10-29 11:10:52 UTC

a question for now