Scientific Method and Mixed Methods in Human Services Research
This paper examines the scientific method as a systematic framework for hypothesis-driven inquiry and explores the challenges of applying it to research involving human subjects. Using a proposed study on obesity interventions among low-income African-American teenage girls as a central example, the paper walks through each step of the scientific method and discusses the ethical and logistical limitations researchers face when studying human behavior. It then compares quantitative and qualitative research paradigms, arguing that a mixed-method approach offers the most comprehensive understanding of complex human phenomena. The paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of rigorous, well-designed research in developing effective human services programs.
- The Four Steps of the Scientific Method: Defines and explains each step of systematic inquiry
- Challenges of Applying the Scientific Method to Human Research: Ethical and logistical limits of human subjects research
- A Proposed Obesity Intervention Study: Four-group study design on adolescent obesity interventions
- Quantitative vs. Qualitative Approaches: Comparing numerical and experiential research paradigms
- The Case for Mixed-Method Research: Benefits of combining qualitative and quantitative methods
- Conclusion: Why Sound Research Matters in Human Services: Research rigor supports effective human services programs
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What makes this paper effective
- Uses a concrete, well-developed case study — a proposed obesity intervention — to ground abstract methodological concepts in a real-world scenario.
- Moves logically from defining the scientific method to exposing its limitations with human subjects, then resolves the tension by advocating for mixed methods.
- Integrates cited evidence (Healey 2012) to support the rationale for the proposed study design, giving the argument an empirical foundation.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates how to build a hypothetical study design from existing literature. Rather than simply describing research concepts, the author operationalizes the scientific method by constructing a four-group experimental design — dietary intervention, exercise intervention, combined intervention, and control — showing how each step of the method maps onto a real research plan.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens by defining the scientific method's four steps with cited definitions, then narrows to the special constraints of human subjects research. A detailed proposed study on adolescent obesity occupies the center, followed by a comparison of quantitative and qualitative paradigms. The paper closes by arguing for mixed methods as the most appropriate tool for capturing the complexity of human behavior in human services contexts.
The Four Steps of the Scientific Method
The scientific method is a systematic approach to testing hypotheses in research. Its four steps are as follows:
Step 1: "Observation and description of a phenomenon or group of phenomena" (Introduction to the scientific method, 2012). The scientific method begins with existing research and builds upon the work of other individuals in the field and/or observation of a particular phenomenon.
Step 2: "Formulation of a hypothesis to explain the phenomena" (Introduction to the scientific method, 2012). The hypothesis is what is tested over the course of the experiment. It must be specific — not merely descriptive — and sufficiently limited so that other variables that could cause the phenomenon can be eliminated.
Step 3: "Use of the hypothesis to predict the existence of other phenomena, or to predict quantitatively the results of new observations" (Introduction to the scientific method, 2012).
Step 4: "Performance of experimental tests of the predictions by several independent experimenters and properly performed experiments" (Introduction to the scientific method, 2012). A hypothesis is not confirmed by a single experiment alone, given that experiments can be affected by unaccounted-for variables, random chance events (especially in small samples), and observer bias. After drawing conclusions from an initial experiment, the researcher must retest the results and, if necessary, further isolate the conditions under scrutiny.
Challenges of Applying the Scientific Method to Human Research
When conducting research on human beings, it can be more difficult to formulate hypotheses that eliminate other influencing phenomena or to create a perfectly representative control group that mirrors the experimental group in all respects except the variable under study. When studying human beings, researchers are limited — both ethically and logistically — in how much they can control variables, compared with studying the laws of nature.
References
Healey, M. (2012). Exercise benefits black girls less than whites. Los Angeles Times.
Introduction to the scientific method. (2012). [University].
The qualitative vs. quantitative debate. (2012). [University].
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