812018 Methodology of empirical research

Type
Seminar
Semester hours
1
Lecturer (assistant)
Lautsch, Erwin , Leitner, Patrick
Organisation
Offered in
Sommersemester 2025
Languages of instruction
Deutsch
Content

• Purpose of empirical research (on the dialectic of quality and quantity - epistemological fundamentals - positions in biological sciences vs. others);
• Phases / stages of the empirical research work - standards and specific modifications depending on the scientific problem;
• derivation of research questions and hypotheses (taking into account scientific, empirical and statistical findings);
• Consequences for the concrete design of the empirical research design;
• Operationalization of scientific facts (quantification / scaling / measurement of characteristics, attributes, characteristics);
• data collection (data collection mask & creation of the data matrix) and data processing;
• hypothesis-driven statistical data analysis (rule case vs. hypothesis-generating);
• presentation of statistical results (numerical and graphical);
• Interpretation of the statistical findings with the aim of maintaining, rejecting or modifying the scientific hypotheses;
• Recommendations for the planning and implementation of research (complementary to current courses at IHG - for example, LV 812303 Research proposal).
Previous knowledge expected

Basal conceptions/knowledge of empirical principles, in particular computer-assisted data collection and analysis (BSc level).
Objective (expected results of study and acquired competences)

After successful completion of the course, the participants are able to:
• design the sequence of steps for empirical research;
• plan phases or stages in a specific and detailed manner, depending on the scientific problems and given framework conditions;
• implement principles of cost-benefit analysis and
• recognize team dynamics and design targeted processes.
You can find more details like the schedule or information about exams on the course-page in BOKUonline.