Data Collection Research Methods in Applied Linguistics [Hardcover]

The successful collection of data is a key challenge to obtaining reliable and valid results in applied linguistics research.Data Collection Research Methods in Applied Linguisticsinvestigates how research is conducted in the field, encompassing the challenges and obstacles applied linguists face in collecting good data. The book explores frequently used data collection techniques, including:

* interviews and focus groups
* observations
* stimulated recall and think aloud protocols
* data elicitation tasks
* corpus methods
* questionnaires
* validated tests and measures

Each chapter focuses on one type of data collection, outlining key concepts, threats to reliability and validity, procedures for good data collection, and implications for researchers. The chapters also include exemplary research projects, showcasing and explaining for readers how the technique was used to collect data in a successfully published study. This book is an essential resource for both novice and experienced applied linguists tackling data collection techniques for the first time.

Heath Roseis Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of Oxford, UK.

Jim McKinleyis Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and TESOL at IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society, University College London, UK.

Jessica Briggs Baffoe-Djanis Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition at the University of Oxford, UK.

This book is a nicely balanced account of approaches to collecting data in applied linguistics research. The reading activities make the text interactive, fostering engagement with the content of the book as do the sample studies chosen to illustrate the points being made. An extremely useful book for students starting out on research as well as people teaching courses on research methods in applied linguistics. Brian Paltridge, Professor of TESOL, Univel£+