Posted: May 15th, 2023
The Ministry of Health is faced with the problem of low uptake of covid-19 vaccines
. The Ministry of Health is faced with the problem of low uptake of covid-19 vaccines. Suppose you are hired to offer research consultancy on this phenomenon, which is translated into a research problem: “Analyzing the determinants of the uptake of COVID 19 vaccines: a case study of Lusaka- Zambia”,and using the Health Belief Model which explains the failure of people to adopt disease prevention strategies or screening tests for early detection of disease.
The Health Belief Model derives from psychological and behavioral theory, and it offers six constructs to explain the phenomenon:
§ Perceived susceptibility: Person’s subjective perception of the risk of acquiring an illness or disease.
§ Perceived severity: Person’s feelings on the seriousness of contracting an illness or disease.
§ Perceived benefits: person’s perception of the effectiveness of various actions available to reduce the threat of illness or disease.
§ Perceived barriers: person’s feelings on obstacles to performing a recommended health action.
§ Cue action: Stimulus needed to trigger the decision making process to accept the recommended health action.
§ Self-efficacy: The level of a person’s confidence in their ability to successfully perform the desired and/or recommended behavior.
Part I:Questions:
i. State any two research objectives for the phenomenon highlighted above ii. State any two research questions based on the objectives mentioned above iii. State any hypothesis for this study
iv.Develop a conceptual framework based on the variables highlighted above to demonstrate the relationship between the dependent variable [uptake of COVID-19 vaccines] and the independent [Predictor] variables listed above.
2. Research Philosophy: Whether you are consciously aware of them or not, at every stage in your research you will make a number of ontological, epistemological and axiological assumptions (Burrell and Morgan, 1979). Briefly show the application of research philosophy in natural and social sciences by clearly stating the ontological, epistemological and axiological assumptions under each science.
Assumption Types
Positivism: Objectivism [Natural Science]
Interpretivism: Subjectivism [Social Science]
Ontology
What is the nature of reality?
Ontological philosophical position?
What is the world like?
Epistemology
What is considered acceptable legitimate knowledge?
What constitutes good quality data?
What kinds of contribution to knowledge can be made?
Axiology
What is the role of values in research?
Typical Methods
3. Research Designs:
Identify and briefly explain the appropriate sampling design for each of the following social research phenomena and show their implementation respectively. Provide practical explanations and make valid assumptions in order to support your answer.
A. Qualitative research:
i. To study community traditional child birth practices causing infant mortality
ii. To study the cholera situation in a given well defined location
iii. To study cultural practices or a way of life of an ethnic group
iv. To study a new phenomenon emerging in a population
v. To build a theory explaining the suicide phenomenon
B. Quantitative research-Experiments and Surveys:
i. To study a proposed vaccine for COVID19 in clinical research ii. To study the association of smoking and lung cancer using a chi-squared test iii. To study the effectiveness of a Malaria drug in a given community
iv. To study the effects of population growth on agricultural productivity within a rural agro-based population
v. To study the prevalence of STIs in a population
4.Sampling designs:
Identify and briefly explain the appropriate sampling design for each of the following social research phenomena and show their implementation respectively. Provide practical explanations and make valid assumptions in order to support your answer.
i. To randomly study the prevalence of malaria in households in a given territory ii. To study the hunger situation in a systematic pattern within a given territory iii. To study poverty in a heterogeneous high, medium and low density population iv. To study farming practices implemented in different villages in a given region
v. To study farming practices used in villages by randomly selecting respondents
1. The Ministry of Health is faced with the problem of low uptake of covid-19 vaccines. Suppose you are hired to offer research consultancy on this phenomenon, which is translated into a research problem: “Analyzing the determinants of the uptake of COVID 19 vaccines: a case study of Lusaka- Zambia”, and using the Health Belief Model which explains the failure of people to adopt disease prevention strategies or screening tests for early detection of disease.
The Health Belief Model derives from psychological and behavioral theory, and it offers six constructs to explain the phenomenon:
Perceived susceptibility: Person’s subjective perception of the risk of acquiring an illness or disease.
Perceived severity: Person’s feelings on the seriousness of contracting an illness or disease.
Perceived benefits: person’s perception of the effectiveness of various actions available to reduce the threat of illness or disease.
Perceived barriers: person’s feelings on obstacles to performing a recommended health action.
Cue action: Stimulus needed to trigger the decision making process to accept the recommended health action.
Self-efficacy: The level of a person’s confidence in their ability to successfully perform the desired and/or recommended behavior.
Part I: Questions:
i. State any two research objectives for the phenomenon highlighted above ii. State any two research questions based on the objectives mentioned above iii. State any hypothesis for this study
iv. Develop a conceptual framework based on the variables highlighted above to demonstrate the relationship between the dependent variable [uptake of COVID-19 vaccines] and the independent [Predictor] variables listed above.
2. Research Philosophy: Whether you are consciously aware of them or not, at every stage in your research you will make a number of ontological, epistemological and axiological assumptions (Burrell and Morgan, 1979). Briefly show the application of research philosophy in natural and social sciences by clearly stating the ontological, epistemological and axiological assumptions under each science.
Assumption Types Positivism: Objectivism [Natural Science] Interpretivism: Subjectivism [Social Science]
Ontology
What is the nature of reality?
Ontological philosophical position?
What is the world like?
Epistemology
What is considered acceptable legitimate knowledge?
What constitutes good quality data?
What kinds of contribution to knowledge can be made?
Axiology
What is the role of values in research?
Typical Methods
3. Research Designs:
Identify and briefly explain the appropriate sampling design for each of the following social research phenomena and show their implementation respectively. Provide practical explanations and make valid assumptions in order to support your answer.
A. Qualitative research:
i. To study community traditional child birth practices causing infant mortality
ii. To study the cholera situation in a given well defined location
iii. To study cultural practices or a way of life of an ethnic group
iv. To study a new phenomenon emerging in a population
v. To build a theory explaining the suicide phenomenon
B. Quantitative research-Experiments and Surveys:
i. To study a proposed vaccine for COVID19 in clinical research ii. To study the association of smoking and lung cancer using a chi-squared test iii. To study the effectiveness of a Malaria drug in a given community
iv. To study the effects of population growth on agricultural productivity within a rural agro-based population
v. To study the prevalence of STIs in a population
4. Sampling designs:
Identify and briefly explain the appropriate sampling design for each of the following social research phenomena and show their implementation respectively. Provide practical explanations and make valid assumptions in order to support your answer.
i. To randomly study the prevalence of malaria in households in a given territory ii. To study the hunger situation in a systematic pattern within a given territory iii. To study poverty in a heterogeneous high, medium and low density population iv. To study farming practices implemented in different villages in a given region
v. To study farming practices used in villages by randomly selecting respondents
_____________________________
Research objectives:
To identify the factors that influence the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines in Lusaka, Zambia.
To develop a model that can be used to predict the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines in Lusaka, Zambia.
Research questions:
What are the perceived benefits of getting a COVID-19 vaccine?
What are the perceived barriers to getting a COVID-19 vaccine?
What are the personal characteristics of people who are more likely to get a COVID-19 vaccine?
What are the social and environmental factors that influence the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines?
Hypothesis:
People who perceive the benefits of getting a COVID-19 vaccine to be greater than the barriers are more likely to get vaccinated.
Here is a conceptual framework that demonstrates the relationship between the independent and dependent variables:
Code snippet
Independent variables:
* Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19
* Perceived severity of COVID-19
* Perceived benefits of getting a COVID-19 vaccine
* Perceived barriers to getting a COVID-19 vaccine
* Cues to action
* Self-efficacy
Dependent variable:
* Uptake of COVID-19 vaccines
Use code with caution. Learn more
The independent variables are factors that influence a person’s decision to get a COVID-19 vaccine. The dependent variable is the person’s actual decision to get a vaccine. The conceptual framework shows how the independent variables are related to the dependent variable.
Research philosophy:
In natural sciences, researchers often adopt a positivist philosophy. This means that they believe that the world is objective and that knowledge can be gained through objective methods, such as experiments and surveys. In social sciences, researchers often adopt an interpretive philosophy. This means that they believe that the world is subjective and that knowledge can be gained through subjective methods, such as interviews and focus groups.
Research designs:
Qualitative research is a research approach that seeks to understand the meaning of people’s experiences and actions. It is often used in social sciences, where the researcher is interested in understanding the subjective experiences of people. Qualitative research methods include interviews, focus groups, and participant observation.
Quantitative research is a research approach that seeks to measure and quantify the relationships between variables. It is often used in natural sciences, where the researcher is interested in understanding the objective reality of the world. Quantitative research methods include experiments, surveys, and statistical analysis.
The appropriate sampling design for a research study will depend on the research philosophy, research design, and the research questions. For example, a qualitative study that uses interviews would likely use a convenience sample, while a quantitative study that uses a survey would likely use a random sample.
Sampling designs:
The appropriate sampling design for a research study will depend on the research philosophy, research design, and the research questions. For example, a qualitative study that uses interviews would likely use a convenience sample, while a quantitative study that uses a survey would likely use a random sample.
Here are some examples of appropriate sampling designs for the research phenomena listed in your question:
Qualitative research:
To study community traditional child birth practices causing infant mortality: A convenience sample of women who have recently given birth in the community could be interviewed.
To study the cholera situation in a given well defined location: A convenience sample of people living in the location could be interviewed.
To study cultural practices or a way of life of an ethnic group: A convenience sample of people from the ethnic group could be interviewed.
To study a new phenomenon emerging in a population: A convenience sample of people from the population could be interviewed.
To build a theory explaining the suicide phenomenon: A convenience sample of people who have attempted suicide or who have lost someone to suicide could be interviewed.
Quantitative research:
To study a proposed vaccine for COVID19 in clinical research: A random sample of people could be recruited to participate in a clinical trial.
To study the association of smoking and lung cancer using a chi-squared test: A cross-sectional survey could be conducted to collect data on smoking and lung cancer.
To study the effectiveness of a Malaria drug in a given community: A randomized controlled trial could be conducted to compare the effectiveness of the drug to a placebo.
To study the effects of population growth on agricultural productivity within a rural agro-based population: A longitudinal study could be conducted to collect data on population growth, agricultural productivity, and other factors over time.
To study the prevalence of STIs in a population: A cross-sectional survey could be conducted to collect data on STIs.