Introduction to Research Methods

The course introduces qualitative and quantitative research methods and reviews that provide students with a basis to read and evaluate research and professional literature within medicine and health science.

Knowledge:

The student

• has knowledge on basic characteristics and methodological concepts within qualitative and quantitative research
• has knowledge on basic methods for data collection in qualitative and quantitative studies, including their strengths and weaknesses
• has basic knowledge of criteria for evaluating data quality, such as reliability and validity,
• knows how results from qualitative and quantitative studies can be presented and interpreted
• knows the principles for systematic reviews
• has knowledge of ethical guidelines, privacy protection, and approvals in health-related studies

Skills:

The student

• can conduct literature searches
• can evaluate which research design is suitable for different research questions within medicine and health science
• can describe the research methods that are used in qualitative and quantitative studies.

General competence:

The student

• can summarize and evaluate methods and results from research and professional literature within medicine and health science
• can assess appropriateness of qualitative and quantitative research methods approaches in medicine and health science
• can describe the purpose, requirements and content in research protocols.

The learning activities consist of lectures with student interaction and group work with other students from own study program. One of the group works is compulsory. The lectures are concentrated to the start of the semester, meaning that there is better time for other study activities after this. The reason is that many students taking this subject proceed to other methods subjects later in the semester. Therefore they need to have the teaching in this subject first. Students who do not have previous knowledge in research methods must expect a steep learning curve in the beginning.