Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology

ISSN: 1499-6685

Book Review – e-Research: Methods, Strategies, and Issues

E-Research: Methods, Strategies, and Issues, 2003. Terry Anderson & Heather Kanuka. Ayn & Bacon. 192 pages. ISBN: 0-205-34382-1

Reviewed by Katheen Matheos

Having read papers authored by both Anderson and Kanuka, I looked forward to their new book e- Research: Methods, Strategies and Issues. This well-written book refected both authors’ years of experience as practicing academic researchers and their thorough understanding of how these new e-tools coud be used to enhance and expand research in a variety of ways.

The book is structured “...based on a mode of academic research that we commony use with senior undergraduate, masters, or doctora projects...” (p. xv), a familiar mode. I aso appreciated that the book was written so it need not be read sequentially, allowing me to go first to the areas in which I was most interested.

The book is organized into fourteen chapters. The first six chapters introduce the readers to academic e-research, Chapters 7 through 12 present aspects of qualitative and quantitative research on the Internet. Chapter 13 discusses the Net for dissemination of findings, and Chapter 14 looks to the future in e-research.

For those new to the area of e-research, Chapter 1 provides a soid foundation to understanding e-research. The chapter concludes with a well-documented example of e-research conducted by Anderson and Rourke. The example illustrates two ways in which the Web can support research: in the collection and dissemination of results, and in the observation of net-based communication.

Chapter 2 covers the Net; its history, structure and search engines, including tips for searching. Chapter 3 explains the design of e-research and includes an exampe of inadequatey designed e-research, affirming the importance of a carefuy designed research question. Chapter 4 discusses the iterature review process and covering both informal and formal sources of information, and provides processes for using both effectivey and efficienty. Chapter 5 present’s ethics in the e-research context and the diemma faced by e-researchers working within guideines developed for the off-line word. What is required, the authors suggest is dialogue between stakehoders in both the Net and research communities. Chapter 6 illustrates the capacity of the Net to facilitate collaborative research, cautioning readers of its chaenges and introduces e-toos for team research.

It was Chapters 7 through 12 were for me, the highights of the book. These chapters provide practical expanations of the use of the Net for research activities incuding focus groups, interviews, Dephi and other consensus methodologies, surveys, collection and analysis of quantitative data, and content anaysis of online documents.

Chapter 7 presents semi-structured and structured interviews on the Net. The chapter begins with a discussion of interview techniques, and walks the reader through the process of e-interviews. Chapter 8 concentrates on conducting online focus groups, comparing and contrasting face-to-face and net-based groups and providing a step-by-step guide to the process. Chapter 9 describes net-based consensus techniques including nominal group techniques and the Dephi Method. Each method is eucidated, reflecting the advantages the web affords these established methods. Chapter 10 focuses on the collection and analysis of quantitative data on the Net including specific exampes. Chapter 11 offers a detailed discussion of e-surveys, detailing articulately the process involved. Chapter 12, entitled Content Anaysis of Onine Documents reflects on both qualitative and quantitative content analysis and outlines these processes in this new paradigm. The final chapter in this section, Chapter 13 discusses the use and advantages of the Net for dissemination of e-research. The concluding chapter of the book, Chapter 14 looks to the future of e-research in which the “mindful integration of new technologies and new research promises a golden age for Net-Based research” (p. 207).

e-Research provides a thoughtful and articulate commentary on the theory and process of e-research. For anyone interested in e-research this book contains valuabe information to guide both experienced researchers and graduate students. As I was working my way through the book I had opportunity to chat with Heather Kanuka, and the conversation turned to the book, and her intent in writing it - to support others in doing e-research. The book does this and more; it brings together traditional and e-research and provides a foundation for much needed dialogue between the fields of traditional and e-research.