Research Critique – Qualitative

Research Critique – Qualitative

Schools have received attention in recent years because of misbehavior and violence. The chosen qualitative study focused on the definitions of law enforcement officials’ duties and how those positions are perceived in an educational context. The study by McKenna et al. (2016) is reviewed and summarized in the research below.

Summary

Purpose

There has been an increased focus on the rise in misbehavior and violence in schools in recent years. The penalties for this disorderly conduct were the reason for the surge in responsiveness. The purpose of McKenna et al.’s (2016) research was to explore the perceived responsibilities of law enforcement personnel in educational settings and how those positions are characterized. The authors examined how officers’ roles are determined within the educational environment.

Participants/Sample

The study’s participants were twenty-six sworn law enforcement officers who took part in an extensive interview through phone calls. Each officer’s interview was transcribed into NVivo, where it was then encoded to identify repeated themes, subjects, and terms.

Research Design

The qualitative design helped identify the secondary responsibilities in the triad model. Teachers’ duties and their descriptions varied from traditional models. The questions aimed to determine the actual tasks officers currently perform and the expected roles. The study highlights that the best way to understand work obligations and functions is to have the individuals performing these duties provide detailed descriptions.

Method of Data Collection

Each interview was transcribed and entered into NVivo, a software application that helped the authors organize and analyze non-numerical data. Questions were organized by theme identification, achieved by a list of often-used phrases provided by the officers as the basis for a predetermined set of questions. The underlined data was collected on what the participating officers thought the duties they assumed were and those in the school environment, and thus, such data aimed to analyze their roles.

Method of Analysis

A qualitative approach was utilized to provide a more in-depth examination and understanding of the officers’ roles, which the authors believed had been overlooked in previous research. This research method was intended to offer a more comprehensive experience that could contextualize earlier quantitative findings. Qualitative research allowed for collecting more detailed information from respondents, deemed necessary and appropriate. McKenna et al. (2016) primarily relied on open-ended questions to gather data from administrators. The primary survey used by the School Crime and Safety Survey asked principals about the responsibilities of school safety professionals, encompassing various aspects. Initially, two researchers transcribed the interviews, and the study ensured consistent interpretations by employing inter-rater or intra-rater reliability measures in coding.

Results           

Only two interviewees had Cohen’s kappa values below.85 throughout the interview process; the remaining interviewees’ values were reexamined and found to have a percentage of 85% or above. The two raters achieved an agreement of 85% in the remaining 24 tests for inter-rater reliability, showing a Cohen’s kappa of 0.85. After analyzing the responses, four categories were identified: law enforcement, mentor/role model, educator, and surrogate parent. These categories represent the roles that officers reported fulfilling on their campuses. According to the officers’ views, they should act as law enforcement officials, mentors or role models, social workers, and educators per their specified duties. When asked about the formation of their positions, officers cited responses such as police chiefs’ guidance, officer discretion, and coordination between police and school administration.

Critical Analysis

Further Research

The study’s discussion centered on the distinctions between its findings and those of previous studies on the topic and the areas that require further attention in future research (Tenny et al., 2022). The study that was done would turn out to be crucial in identifying areas that require more investigation. Future research regarding officers in schools ought to assess the correlation, or absence thereof, between the officers’ duties and particular disciplinary outcomes. Additionally, it should examine the training provided to officers for their designated roles.

Threats to Validity/Undocumented Bias

Validity refers to either a state of being or a characteristic of work. Like any other research, this study has limitations. The study recognizes a limited external validity, as is typical in qualitative research. Data was gathered from 26 officers spanning 11 school districts, limiting the generalizability of the findings to other states or districts (McKenna et al., 2016). The authors of the research article have confirmed that they do not have any conflicts of interest concerning the research, writing, or publication of the article.

Original Insight/Criticism

McKenna et al.’s (2016) qualitative research study provides a robust and theoretical evaluation of how individuals perceive school resource officers. It is guided by open-ended questions designed to clarify the officers’ responsibilities. The research delves into the officers’ perspectives on their roles and the specific duties associated with those roles.

Implications of Findings

The study illuminated the roles that School Resource Officers (SROs) perform within educational institutions, focusing on their responsibilities to ensure the safety of staff and students while providing guidance and instruction. The results showed that giving employees greater direct responsibilities can affect schools—further investigation of the earlier literature results in further studies being carried out.

Discussion

Unlike studies employing quantitative approaches, this research utilized a qualitative method. The qualitative approach provided a more profound and comprehensive understanding of a specific area by utilizing tools such as interviews instead of relying solely on numerical data. Interviewing the officers offered a deeper understanding of the reasons behind their positions and their roles, which is typically achievable (Tenny et al., 2022). Indeed, police use in schools is here to stay, so teachers should embrace the benefits of their increased safety and security. Besides, Proverbs 11:14 says, “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers” (New International Version, 2011, Prov. 11:14). The statement emphasizes the importance of seeking advice and wisdom from others to ensure stability and safety.

References

McKenna, J. M., Martinez-Prather, K., & Bowman, S. W. (2016). The roles of school-based law enforcement officers and how these roles are established: A qualitative study. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 27(4), 420-443.

Tenny, S., Brannan, J. M., & Brannan, G. D. (2022). Qualitative study. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470395/

The Holy Bible: New International Version (NIV). (2011). Biblica, Inc. (Original work published 1973).

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

We’ll write everything from scratch

During this course, you will complete three research critiques: quantitative, qualitative, and applied, mixed methods, or program evaluation. The focus is on the word research, not the article. For each critique, you will select an article reporting research in some area of the field of education. This assignment helps you learn how to evaluate research, identify the main components of good research, and start building your literature review.

Research Critique – Qualitative

Instructions

Select one qualitative peer-reviewed research study published in an article related to your topic of interest. All articles must be from educational studies conducted and published in the United States or Canada within the past five years. You may not use meta-analyses or meta-syntheses; all research evaluated must be original.