Article Analysis Through the Research Cycle
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The research cycle involves seven important steps: questioning, planning, gathering, sorting and sifting, synthesizing, evaluating, and reporting (Burns & Groove, 2014). Every step entails a different approach to the problem meant to develop an insight into the topic being examined. The article chosen for analysis using the research cycle is the Perceptions of Racial Profiling: Race, Class, and Personal Experience. In the research cycle, the questioning part encompasses determining the problem to be handled through questions that query it and get it solved. The article begins by defining the problem to be researched, which is racial profiling. Through the definition, an insight into the problem at hand is gained.
Consequently, the article states that racial profiling has become an increasingly controversial issue, implying the need to conduct research. The author poses a question in the literature where, for instance, the queries whether reported personal experience with racial profiling has a wider effect on some races’ attitudes than others. The article also seeks to find racial profiling based on race and personal experiences; thus, the researcher uses the questioning part of the research cycle.
The second parts of the research cycle involve planning. In the section, the researcher decides where to seek information and how it is to be stored. The data is collected from a random-digit-dialing telephone survey made by the Gallup Organization in 1999 of 2,006 respondents (WEITZER & TUCH, 2002). Gathering in the research cycle involves planning and collecting sources wherein the article the data was collected from the Gallup organization. Consequently, data was sorted and sifted, which encompasses the reduction of the gathered information leaving the relevant and insightful data. It is observed that the initial survey consisted of 2,006 respondents, but the article was restricted to the analysis of 961 African Americans ad 903 whites.
Synthesizing is the third step in the research cycle, where the researcher reshapes the information into a new whole to gain focus. In the article, three measures were designed as separate indicators, which involved three questions. For instance, the second question posed was whether the respondent approves or disapproves of ‘racial profiling’ by the law enforcement officers (WEITZER & TUCH, 2002). additional questions were also posed to the respondents to determine their attitudes towards the police. Also, an evaluation was performed in the article where the determination to move to the next stage was made. At this stage, the researcher concluded that the literature regarding the impact of neighborhood crime rates, personal victimization, and citizens’ fear of crime was inconclusive. The decision was based on the fact that some studies concluded that these aspects were predictors, while others did not. Thus, based on the determination of attitude towards the police, the article is evaluated.
The last part of the research cycle is reporting, where the final work is produced. Through tables, a report is made. Table 1 consists of the three questions posed in data collection wherein every question there is a representation of the total number of respondents who approved or disapproved of the query posed to them. From the distribution in the tables, the findings on perceptions of racial profiling are made. Additionally, reporting analysis is made based on the data with a discussion that explains the findings. Also, a conclusion is made where a recommendation is made based on literature and the analysis made. However, in the article, a recommendation is not made since it goes beyond its scope. Therefore, the scholarly article makes use of the research cycle methodology.
References
Burns, E., & Groove, W. (2014). Research method. Ergonomics, 32(3), 237-248.
WEITZER, R., & TUCH, S. A. (2002). Perceptions of racial profiling: Race, class, and personal experience*. Criminology, 40(2), 435-456. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-9125.2002.tb00962.x