We are delighted to relaunch the LAB Research Training Seminars yet again this term.

This is an upgraded series from 2024/25, and features a sequence of 9 interactive sessions designed for early doctoral researchers (senior PhD candidates, Postdoctoral Researchers, Assistants, and Academic staff are welcome too!). 

Through these seminars, you will have the opportunity to learn, share, and discuss approaches to research design, data collection, and analysis in architecture and planning.

PHASE 1: SETTING THE FOUNDATIONS

Session 01: An Introduction to Research (Friday 16/01)
The first session of this series will introduce the concept of Research as a structured and purposeful process. Students will explore different research types/phases: exploratory, descriptive, and explanatory, and understand how each of these shapes how their research questions are framed (and approached). This session will help students evolve (or understand the process) their research -- from open-ended exploration approach, to one involving a structured explanation.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Distinguish between exploratory, descriptive, and explanatory research
• ituate their own research questions within these categories
• Reflect on how the type of research they pursue influences data, methods, and outcomes
• Before Session 2: Students should send-in their initial RQs that they would pursue through this series of seminars

Session 02: Research Variables and Key Terminology (Monday 19/01)
This session will draw upon the initial RQs contributed by the students in the first session, and will focus on the conceptual blocks of research design. Students will learn how RQs are translated into variables, including predictors (independent variables), outcomes (dependent variables), mediators, moderators, covariates, and confounders -- and their relationships. This session will also introduce the formal structure of research purpose statements, objectives, formal research questions, and hypotheses, and how these elements must align coherently.
By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Identify and categorize key- and intervening variables within their research topic
• Understand how predictors influence outcomes through mediators and under moderators
• Frame research purpose statements, objectives, research questions, and hypotheses using appropriate terminology
• Before Session 3: Students should send-in one article connected to their research theme, which they would also go through in parallel 

Session 03: Conducting a Systematic Literature Review (Friday 23/01)
This session will follow up on the article individually shared by each student, and introduce the logic (and practice) of systematic literature review. Students will learn to use PICOC (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome, Context) to translate RQs into structured search strings (and formulate their inclusion/exclusion criteria). This session will also introduce PRISMA framework for documenting their search, screening, and selection processes. Hands-on will be given for using SCOPUS for lit-search and of ENDNOTE for managing literature.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Understand what makes their lit-review systematic & reproducible
• Apply PICOC to strategically frame their search strings aligned to their RQs
• Learn to use PRISMA as structure for documenting literature selection
• Learn how to use SCOPUS hierarchical search, and ENDNOTE for managing their literature (and develop a draft plan for organizing literature for their PhD topic)
• Before Session 4: Students should go through min. 3 relevant papers identified through their systematic search, and ideate on what data to collect corresponding to their key variables (and how)

PHASE 2: DATA COLLECTION STEPS

Session 04: Philosophical Foundations of Research (Monday 02/02)
After a short break, this session will resume the series by introducing foundations of research, focusing on ontology (i.e. what exists), epistemology (i.e. how we know), and methodology (i.e. how we study). Students will explore few main research paradigms such as positivism, critical realism, constructivism, and interpretivism, and understand how philosophical positions shape research design, methods, and claims of knowledge.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Distinguish between ontological, epistemological, and methodological assumptions
• Recognize different philosophical positions underlying research approaches
• eflect on how their own research implicitly aligns with particular paradigms
• Understand why philosophical coherence matters in doctoral research
• Before Session 5: Students should finalize on what data to collect, corresponding to their key variables (and how)

Session 05: Data Collection Methodologies (Friday 06/02)
This session will build upon the students’ inputs based on their identified variables, and on the foundations in S4, and provide an overview of various methods for data collection, ranging from one-way communication techniques (surveys, experiments, observations, documents, databases) to two-way and interactive approaches (interviews, focus groups, Delphi studies, participant observation). In this session, each method is discussed in relation to its philosophical grounding, strengths, limitations, and suitability for different research questions, and students are encouraged to provide their inputs based on their prior experiences with individual data collection method.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Match data collection methods to their individual research questions and their philosophical positions
• Distinguish between qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method data collection
• Before S6, students should start with drafting their strategies for collecting data (individually collecting predictors, outcomes, and perhaps also mediators, moderators, and other intervening variables), appropriate to their own research

Session 06: Discussing Your Data Collection Campaigns (Monday 09/02)
This session is entirely student-centered, and will focuse on presenting, discussing, and refining proposed data collection campaigns. Students will receive feedback on the feasibility, ethics, variables, and alignment between research questions, methods, and analysis plans.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Clearly explain their planned data collection strategy
• Identify weaknesses, risks, and practical constraints in their designs
• Refine instruments such as questionnaires, experiments, or protocols
• Understand the process for ethical clearance/approvals
• Prepare for the upcoming data collection phase

PHASE 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND DRAWING INFERENCES/TESTING HYPOTHESES

Session 07: Qualitative Data Analysis: Introduction and Hands-On (Friday 20/02)
This session will follow the short break for data collection, and will introduce qualitative data analysis, with focus on coding, categorization, and developing themes. Using example transcripts, students will practice how to identify meaning units, develop codes, and group these into higher-level themes.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Understand the logic of qualitative coding and thematic analysis
• Practice coding qualitative data manually, and Identify themes and patterns in textual data
• Appreciate how qualitative analysis supports exploratory and explanatory research
• If time permits: basics of JAMOVI
• Prior to S8: students must finalize and organize their quantitative datasets into clean, organized CSV formats.

Session 08: Quantitative Data Analysis: Introduction and Hands-On (Monday 23/02)
This session will introduce quantitative data analysis, starting with types of data (nominal, ordinal, continuous), descriptive statistics, and data exploration. Students will then be guided through hypothesis testing using JAMOVI, including non-parametric tests such as Wilcoxon, Mann-Whitney, and Friedman tests.

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Identify data types and choose appropriate statistical tests
• Perform descriptive + inferential stats in JAMOVI, test hypotheses and interpret p-values and effect sizes
• Understand the link between research design and statistical analysis
• Prior to S9: student must design their presentations following the template guidelines shared with them.

Session 09: Final Presentations and Course Reflection (Friday 27/02)
In the final session, students will present their research journeys, reflecting on how their research questions evolved, how literature was structured, how data was collected and analyzed, and how methods align with theory. 

By the end of this session, students will be able to:

• Clearly communicate their research design and methodological choices
• Reflect critically on their learning and research development

The session will conclude with collective feedback, discussion, and reflection on the research process.