choosing a research question and the initial search

What was the process by which you narrowed down potential topics to two appropriate ones? And how were these decisions made on the basis of either class discussion, or our required, course textbook (Aveyard 2014), or both?

Foucault
Social theory
"healthification" 

What research question did you choose, and how are I can be sure you're making a reasoned, academic judgement on the basis of chapters 1-3 (Aveyard 2014)?

My research question is: What are the homeless' attitudes towards their own homelessness, specifically in terms of personal responsibility? Do they view their own homelessness as primarily socially determined? Or do they understand their homelessness to result from their own personal choices? Or some mixture of both?

What article (or articles) are you basing this question on, and what type of article is it (research, theory, policy, practice) (citation[s] in APA, please)? 

Alexander-Eitzman, B. (2006). Examining the course of homelessness: right direction, wrong approach. American Journal of Public Health. 96(5), 796. 

Potvin L, Gendron S, Bilodeau A, Chabot P. (2005). Integrating social theory into public health practice. American Journal of Public Health. 95(4), 591-595.

Viehbeck SM, Petticrew M, Cummins S. (2015). Old myths, new myths: challenging myths in public health. American Journal of Public Health. 105(4), 665-9. 

How can I be sure that the key vocabulary of the question corresponds not only to literature in the field, but also to chapter 1-3 (Aveyard 2014)?

I encountered much difficulty with this one, with my initial search to determine if the type of research my research question calls for actually exists in the form of reliable, peer-reviewed research.

Based on what your question is, what kind of literature are you going to need? Again, please explicitly reference the text (Aveyard 2014). What is your hierarchy of evidence?

In the order of importance going downward (those are the top are the most important) (cf. pg. 69 Aveyard):
Systematic reviews of qualitative studies of homeless perceptions
Quantitative and qualitative studies of homeless perceptions
Expert opinion
Anecdotal evidence

 

How exactly did you research question arise out of "practice"?

How do you define your key terms, and how do these definitions link to key journals in the field?

social determinants
personal responsibility
Deborah Holtzman
homeless* "personal responsibility" "public health"
homeless* "individual responsibility" "community health"
individual responsi* homeless
social determin* responsi* homeless*
homeless* AND phenomeno*
homeless* AND qualitative
homeless* AND perception*
homelessness AND experience* AND qualitative

Did anything unexpected happen? From you initial search, does it appear as though your research question will work? Or does the vocabulary and/or type of research sought need to be changed?

optimism
getting worried
cardboard, very excited
very worried
surprised
"structural"
theor* "public health" complexity 

  

"Evidence-Based" "Public Health" complexity 

 

 

 

Any final thoughts?

New research question, perhaps: What are the theoretical limits of evidence-based practice, and how do public health professionals attempt to surpass them?

time spent=3hrs