Preparing Undergraduates for Success in Research: An Analysis of Experiential Pedagogy in Research Methods Courses

Background:Introductory research methods and statistics courses are widely disliked by students, as they often have negative expectations and experiences (see Manning, Zachar, Ray, & LoBello, 2006; Capshew, 2005; Onwuegbuzie, 2004; Forte, 1995).  These experiences likely function as barriers to learning course material, using new research skills, being successful in the course, and developing an interest in research.  Given the possibility that negative experiences discourage students from pursuing graduate degrees and professional positions in social work and other social science fields, a perennial challenge for research methods instructors is to energize student learning.  Despite the importance of preparing undergraduate students to conduct and utilize rigorous research in their futures, instructors have limited understanding of the influence of pedagogical techniques on achieving or undermining these goals.  A pedagogical shift away from teacher-centered transmission of knowledge to student-centered, experience-based learning may have advantages for deepening student interest in research activities.  This paper explores whether an experiential approach used in a multidisciplinary research methods course reduces students' psychological barriers to learning and fosters student success.

Methods: 222 students enrolled in Human Development and Psychology lecture-based research methods and statistics courses and 122 students enrolled in Family Science experiential research methods courses completed retrospective pre and post surveys.  The course evaluation was divided into six subscales: anxiety (16 items, pre α = .922, post α =.949), confidence (4 items, pre α = .744, post α =.833), attitude towards research (3 items, pre α = .631, post α =.807), perception of the relevance of research (3 items, pre α = .773, post α =.755), extent of professional socialization in disciplines (4 items, pre α = .837, post α =.903), and perception of a supportive learning environment (6 items, pre α = .837, post α =.899).  T-tests and ANCOVA's were used to determine differences between students in the experiential and traditional courses.

Results: Analyses of course evaluation data from this course reveals that students in the experiential course experienced statistically significant improvements in anxiety, confidence, positive attitude, perceptions of relevance, a sense of professional membership, and perceptions of a supportive learning environment throughout the semester (Grutzmacher & Liechty, 2006).  Students in lecture-based courses experienced statistically significant improvements in attitude and discipline socialization, although the size of these gains were smaller than those observed among students in the experiential courses.

Conclusions: Evaluation findings suggest that the experiential approach is a promising pedagogical practice in decreasing student anxiety and improving students' confidence and interest in research. These courses included many students entering graduate programs in social work, psychology, counseling, and other human services and social science fields.  Beginning the process of professional socialization in research early in students' academic lives is critical to ensuring that future social work practitioners, researchers, instructors, and evaluators are competent and comfortable with understanding, generating, using, and evaluating research findings.  The study of this approach serves as a call for social work professionals to utilize pedagogical techniques that support the success of all students, especially those who are traditionally underrepresented, in research methods courses.