Multi-Method Research: An Introduction to Its Application in PopulationGeography

This paper sets the context for four papers on multi-method research inpopulation geography. It begins by outlining the various ends to which multi-method research may be employed. The focus then shifts to the broader plane of method, epistemology, and research design. It is argued that epistemological position only determines how methods can be used: it does not preclude the use of particular methods. The possibilities for multi-method research are therefore considerable. Finally, some issues pertaining to multi-method research thathave not yet been resolved are raised for future debate.     

Breaking Out: The Opportunities and Challenges of Multi-Method Research inPopulation Geography

Research traditions exert a powerful influence over the thinking of academic researchers. In population geography an entrenched empiricism and a reluctance to engage in wider debates on theory and method within human geography have resulted in a degree of separate development. Such methodological complacency has, until recently, threatened to undermine population geography's role within the discipline as a whole. Thus the discussion of multi-method research designs is of particular significance because it offers population geographers an opportunity to break out from the confines of a dominant research tradition and participate with other human geographers in an important methodological debate. This paper seeks not only to provide a critical overview of the current debate within population geography (as represented in the preceding papers in this Focus section) but also to extend that debate by raising issues of much more general concern. I argue that there are dangers in drawing the terms of the debate too narrowly. If we are to understand the nature and potential of multi-method research, we must first pose fundamental questions about the interrelationships among methods, data, and research problems. Pragmatic views on the choice of research method are inadequate because they fail to recognise the theory-driven nature of research. Only once we have achieved a better understanding of the philosophical grounding of research strategies will the opportunities afforded by multi-method research be fully realised.     

Breaking Out: The Opportunities and Challenges of Multi-Method Research inPopulation Geography

Research traditions exert a powerful influence over the thinking of academic researchers. In population geography an entrenched empiricism and a reluctance to engage in wider debates on theory and method within human geography have resulted in a degree of separate development. Such methodological complacency has, until recently, threatened to undermine population geography's role within the discipline as a whole. Thus the discussion of multi-method research designs is of particular significance because it offers population geographers an opportunity to break out from the confines of a dominant research tradition and participate with other human geographers in an important methodological debate. This paper seeks not only to provide a critical overview of the current debate within population geography (as represented in the preceding papers in this Focus section) but also to extend that debate by raising issues of much more general concern. I argue that there are dangers in drawing the terms of the debate too narrowly. If we are to understand the nature and potential of multi-method research, we must first pose fundamental questions about the interrelationships among methods, data, and research problems. Pragmatic views on the choice of research method are inadequate because they fail to recognise the theory-driven nature of research. Only once we have achieved a better understanding of the philosophical grounding of research strategies will the opportunities afforded by multi-method research be fully realised.     

Historical and pooled flood frequency analysis for the River Tay at Perth, Scotland

Improved estimates of UK flood risk during a period of increased climatic variability place challenges on existing methods that rely on short instrumental records. This paper examines the value of using historical data (both documentary and epigraphic) to augment existing gauged records for the River Tay at Perth as part of a multi-method approach to assessing flood risk. Single station and pooled methods are compared with flood risk estimates based on an augmented historical series (1815–2000) using the Generalized Logistic and Generalized Pareto distributions. The value of using an even longer, but less reliable, extended historical series (1210–2000) is also examined. It is recommended that modelling flood risk for return periods >100 years should incorporate historical data, where available, and that a multi-method approach using a high threshold Generalized Pareto distribution can also add confidence in flood risk estimates for return periods <100 years based on standard methods.     

中资企业研发国际化研究述评

中资跨国公司研发国际化服务于中国"全面提高开放型经济水平"和"创新驱动发展战略"两大政策方针,是重要的地理学研究前沿。本文系统评述了中资企业研发国际化的定义、理论基础、研究内容、数据和方法,发现基于发达国家跨国公司实践建立起的经典理论还不足以解释中资企业行为。相比于快速发展的中资企业跨国研发活动行为,现有的实证研究存在着研究视角、内容和方法的局限,未来应发扬地理学多尺度研究的优势,综合分析企业研发国际化与区域发展的互动机制;发扬地理学重视区域差异的优势,开展在"一带一路"国家中资企业研发国际化的异质性研究;发扬地理学重视实地调研的优势,综合多种方法和数据的相互印证。     

区域尺度陆地生态系统碳收支评估方法及其不确定性

定量评估区域和不同类型生态系统的碳收支,可以为科学预测气候变化、服务于减缓和适应气候变化的区域碳管理提供科学依据,是生态系统与全球变化科学研究的重要科技问题.虽然区域碳收支的定量评估和认证还很难用当前的各种直接观测和评估方法来精确实现,但是,近年来这方面做了很多研究工作,也取得了一定进展.为此,本文综述了陆地生态系统碳...     

三维地质建模若干基本问题探讨

由于地质数据及其应用本身所具有的复杂性、不确定性、信息不完备等特点,使得三维地质建模成为制约三维GIS研究及其应用的主要瓶颈之一。讨论三维空间数据模型的设计,提出“多元数据—多方法集成—多层次干预”的“三多”建模思路;从建模尺度、数据源、建模工具等方面对建模方法进行分类;分析三维地质建模的关键技术,包括三维地质模型构建、海量模型数据操作和多元数据一体化耦合显示;针对三维地质建模系统的开发提出6项建议,分析近期三维地质建模的研究热点。     

Growing up with rivers? Rivers in London children's worlds

This paper presents the results from exploratory research which set out to investigate London children's perceptions and uses of river environments. Mainly qualitative, multi-method research was carried out in four primary schools with children aged 9–11, focusing on two rivers near to the schools. Rivers were found to be marginal to the children's everyday lives and outdoor play, being perceived as polluted, neglected, and initially dangerous places. However, when experienced on visits observed as part of the research, some of these perceptions changed and rivers were also found to afford many special activities and experiences for the children. The visits were generally seen to have a positive effect on the children's perceptions of rivers, at least in the short term. This suggests that, if managed appropriately, rivers could be potentially rewarding play areas for children. Moreover, children could provide valuable input for river managers in suggesting ways of improving suitable local rivers for increased recreational uses.     

基于站点观测数据的气温空间化方法评述

基于统计学的插值方法是地理学、生态学领域研究气温空间化的主要方法之一,对获取精细化气温数据进行生态模拟具有重要意义。结合国内外气温空间插值的主要研究成果,对常用气温空间化方法进行了归纳、对比,探讨各种方法的适用性和不足之处,从而为涉及气温空间化的具体研究提供一定的参考,并探讨了各类方法优化的方向。不同方法的对比分析结果表明:各种气温空间化方法各有所长,在具体的应用中都取得过较好的效果,但并不存在普适性的方法,在实际应用时必须针对研究区域具体的地理特征进行方法适用性验证或对各类方法中的具体参数进行改进,才能实现区域气温的空间最优化模拟。根据气温场的物理分布特征,结合GIS技术,考虑地形等更多的相关因子以提高气温分布微观细节的模拟精度是未来重要的发展趋势。     

African Refugee Communities in Southeast Queensland: forces of concentration and dispersion

Black African refugee communities are a relatively recent addition to the Australia landscape. Between 2001 and 2007, over 5000 refugees from various African nations resettled in Queensland. There are very few data about African refugee settlement geography in Australia and no previous study delineating African refugee settlement within the State of Queensland. This research addresses the knowledge gap by examining the geographic distribution and secondary migration patterns of eight African refugee communities in Southeast Queensland. The research adopted a multi-method approach, mapping quantitative data from an existing secondary database and comparing these to qualitative primary data to determine geographical distribution. Additional qualitative data were used to establish secondary migration patterns of the case study communities. Results show noticeable discrepancies between existing secondary datasets and primary data collected from the communities. These inconsistencies are significant because settlement service providers who use the secondary data to budget, plan and deliver essential settlement services might be underestimating the size of the African communities and missing some settlement locations altogether. The results also reveal a tension between the main socio-cultural forces of concentration and housing forces of dispersion that are driving secondary migration in the communities. A policy recommendation to mitigate the potentially negative effects of residential dispersion on settlement outcomes includes the strategic location of service hubs in key suburbs, such as Moorooka, to which the communities are already drawn.     

在学科发展的演变中理解和把握地缘政治及地缘政治学——兼论对地缘环境研究的启示

通过对地缘政治学发展演变的系统梳理,将“地缘政治”理解为解析国际政治或国际秩序特有的空间视角和多要素、跨领域和跨尺度的综合分析方法,而地缘政治学则是其特有空间视角和综合分析方法以及基于其视角和方法形成的理论学说的集合。这种特有视角集中体现在对国家层面空间范围内的自然要素和人文要素的优化组合分析,在系统层面的比较和关联分析以及跨领域和跨尺度的相互作用研究。研究方法主要有时空分析法、历史分析法和系统分析法等。但是,整体而言,地缘政治学是一门发展极不完善的学科,这不是源于其思想不够深邃,而是源于分析方法和分析技术无法跟上复杂现实的需求。这为开启真正的中国地缘政治研究提供了绝佳的机遇,中国学者不应该仅仅成为西方地缘政治学说的跟随者和推广者,而应成为原创理论和方法的贡献者。这或许就是国内在复兴地缘政治研究中确立以地缘环境解析的理论与方法为研究主要方向的根本原因。     

新兴的环境地貌学

随着人类改造自然能力的增长,人类与环境地貌之间的相互作用加剧,地球表层的地貌系统在自然地域分异的基础上,出现的新的内容和特征。地貌演化不再是纯自然的过程,而且,人工地貌、人工—自然混合地貌占的比重增加了。因此,有必要对人、环境与地貌的作用机制,地貌的环境意义等问题进行研究,于是,环境地貌学应运而生。与传统地貌学不同的是,环境地貌学从人类活动与环境地貌相互作用的角度,运用系统论、综合分析方法,厚今薄古,研究现存地貌特征及后效,做出环境地貌的经济评价,探讨环境地貌的社会文化效应。本文拟对环境地貌学的产生、学科性质、研究内容和方法进行探讨,希望有助于促进环境地貌学的研究。     

流域生态健康评价理论与方法研究进展

对流域进行生态健康评价,将为流域的规划、管理和保护以及流域综合治理提供决策依据。本文回顾了国 内外流域生态健康评价的历史和现状,着重阐述了流域生态系统健康评价的尺度与方法。流域生态系统健康评价 主要有两种方法：一是生物监测法,二是指标体系法。对流域进行生态健康评价,重点在于建立评价指标体系。流域 生态健康评价的指标体系应该包括生物、水质、水文、栖息地、社会经济和人类健康等六方面指标。最后,明确指标 选取的基本原则,并指出了目前流域生态健康评价存在的问题及今后的研究趋势。     

旅游废弃物研究进展与启示

通过综述国内外有关研究文献,结果表明,旅游废弃物问题已经得到广泛关注,研究内容涉及到旅游开发、旅游活动和旅游产业的各个组成部门,研究范围遍及人类旅游和游憩活动的所有空间。目前国内研究正处于起步阶段,研究内容主要以描述性为主,研究方法和措施大多还处于理论探讨之中,对实践指导性不强。真正适合于我国旅游景区、景点废弃物处理的方法体系还没有建立。因此,重视生态脆弱旅游景区的废弃物研究,完善研究方法,提高废弃物处理的技术水平,加强废弃物管理,是我国旅游业可持续发展的重要基础。     

南京市交通网络的分形特征

以分形理论为基础,借助于地理信息系统软件,对南京市区交通网络进行了长度-半径维数和分枝维数的测算,结果表明南京市区的交通网络具有分形特征,长度-半径维数为1.574,而分枝维数为1.3934,两者之间存在一定差异。通过进一步对主城区各行政区交通网络的盒子维数的测算,揭示出各行政区的交通网络也具有分形特征,分维值介于1.3568与1.4991之间,其大小与经济发展状况并没有很好的对应关系。如何以经济状况为基础数据指导城市各行政区的交通发展,以及两者之间是否在其他区域尺度上存在相关关系等,仍是需要有更多研究基础才能深入探讨的问题。     

基于特征的时间序列聚类方法研究进展

时间序列聚类可以根据相似性将对象集分为不同的组, 从而反映出同组对象的相似性特征和不同组对象之间的差异特征。当序列维度较高时, 传统的时间序列聚类方法容易受噪声影响, 难以定义合适的相似性度量, 聚类结果往往意义不明确。当数据有缺失或不等长时, 聚类方法也难以实施。基于上述问题, 一些学者提出了基于特征的时间序列聚类方法, 不仅可以解决上述问题, 还可以发现序列本质特征的相似性。本文根据时间序列的不同特征, 综述了基于特征的时间序列聚类方法的研究进展, 并进行了分析和评述;最后对未来研究进行了展望。     

DMSP/OLS数据应用研究综述

DMSP/OLS夜间灯光数据主要包括稳定灯光数据、辐射标定夜间灯光强度数据、非辐射标定夜间灯光强度数据3种产品。该数据产品具有获取容易、能够探测低强度灯光、不受光线阴影影响、方便为城市化强度及其时空分异分析提供条件等优点。目前,关于DMSP/OLS数据的研究成果已有很多,主要集中于城市发展研究、人类活动及效应研究、生态...     

基于蚁群规则挖掘算法的多特征遥感数据分类

蚁群算法作为一种新型的智能优化算法,已经成功应用在许多领域,然而应用蚁群优化算法进行遥感数据处理则是一个新的研究热点。蚁群规则挖掘算法是基于分类规则挖掘进行分类,能够处理多特征的数据。因此,论文将蚁群规则挖掘算法应用到多特征遥感数据分类处理中,并采用北京地区的Landsat TM和 Envisat ASAR数据作为实验数据,对选择的遥感数据进行了多特征分类实验。实验结果分别与最大似然分类法、C4.5方法进行对比,分析表明:1)蚁群规则挖掘算法是一种无参数分类的智能方法,具有很好的鲁棒性,2)能够挖掘较简单的分类规则;3)能够充分利用多源遥感数据等。它可以充分利用多特征数据进行土地覆盖分类,从而能够提高分类的效率。     

Research Methods of Water Resources Carrying Capacity: Progress and Prospects

The study of water resources carrying capacity (WRCC), a major component of resources and environment carrying capacity (RECC), began relatively recently. However, WRCC has witnessed a rapid development in terms of concept, calculation methods, and empirical research in recent years. WRCC has become an important criterion for rational development and utilization of regional water resources. This paper first briefly reviews the development process of WRCC. It then evaluates and contrasts the representative research methods of conventional trend (CT), system dynamics (SD), multi-objective model analysis (MOMA), comprehensive evaluation (CE), and dynamic simulation recursive (DSR). The results show that although there are various methods of WRCC, the major methods used have become out-of-date and stagnant, and new more sophisticated methods and technologies are lacking. Specifically, our analysis found that the index system, scientific robustness and comprehensiveness of evaluation criteria of current research methods are insufficient and need to be improved. In addition, the dynamic research of WRCC should receive more attention, and it requires further study to make it more applicable to real-world uses. Finally, a set of monitoring and early warning systems should be established and applied in demonstration areas to meet the urgent needs of water resource management in the new era.     

An event-based methodology for climate change and human–environment research

Abductive causal eventism (ACE) is an analytical methodology based on a pragmatic view of research methods and explanation that places at the center of research inquiry the answering of ‘why’ questions about events, including human actions or environmental changes of interest. When used in human–environment research, the methodology entails constructing causal histories of interrelated social and/or biophysical events backward in time through a process of eliminative inference and reasoning from effects to causes, called abduction. ACE encourages an eclectic use of methods, models, and theoretical ideas. It fosters integrative, interdisciplinary analysis without being committed either to systems as ontological entities or to holistic analytical frameworks. By not privileging particular theories or explanatory factors in advance, ACE enables researchers to interrogate the plausibility of different causal influences, including local environmental changes that may be related to much wider changes in climate. Likewise, behaviors or practices that may be of value in light of anticipated environmental changes can be studied without their presuming to be caused by these changes or by changes in climate per se. Research on coastal mangrove planting for storm protection in the Philippines and upland tree planting in St. Lucia are used to illustrate these arguments.