Research Methods Test 2
Basic rules of APA style
-Author's names are always inverted -Reference list should be alphabetized by author's last name -If you have more than one work by a particular author, order them according to publication date -Use "&" instead of "and" when listing multiple authors of a single work
Typically contains 2 primary elements in an introduction
-Background information Acquaints reader with foundation and rationale for conducting study -Statement of problem May also include the research hypothesis, although less common today
Factors to consider when Selecting the Data Collection Method
-Demands on the research participant -Costs in terms of money, energy, and time -Ability of the researcher to handle the selected technique, including the data analysis
Focus Group Interview
-Essentially an interview with groups of people -Designed to stimulate participants free expression of feelings, beliefs, etc. -Requires a skilled facilitator to guide discussion
Interviews
-Essentially an oral questionnaire -May be personal or telephone interviews -Structured interview -Unstructured interview
Discussion Section
-Explanation of the results -Interpretation of the findings, culminating with the conclusions -Conclusions should relate back to research problem -Provides implications for professional practice and recommendations for future research
Hypotheses
-Important to most research studies -Tentative explanation of the outcome of a research problem
Rating Scale
-Individual items are judged on a single dimension and scored on a linear scale or continuum by selecting a numerical or verbal point on the scale that corresponds to their impression of the item -Numerical RPE scale -Verbal
Nominal
-Numbers represent categories. Numbers do not reflect differences in magnitude. -Numbers serve to distinguish groups. -Student R number
Ratio
-Numbers represent equal units from absolute zero. -Observations can be compared as ratios or percentages. -Earth's are is composed of approximately 70% water and 30% land, you express the ratio scale of water and land as 70:30
what are required within the citation?
Year (2012), Volume/Issue 25(10) & pg. #s (1729-1736)
The nature of the study will determine what type of
data are required to answer the question and the method of collecting these data
Capitalize only the
first letter of the first word of the Title of the work.
All lines after the first line of each entry should be
indented and all citations should be double- spaced
a scale provides an _____ ______ of the concept of interest
indirect measure
If the intervals between score points are presumed to be equal, thus resulting in
interval data, the responses can be analyzed statistically
Cognitive measures
knowledge on innumerable topics Example: attention, memory, executive function
The number of items to be ranked should be
less than 10, to avoid making the task too difficult
Almost anything can be
measured
Accessible Population
members of the pop. that you can reach
If an instrument is found, but it is not quite acceptable for the current research situation, it may be
modified or revised
Children with a high IQ are _____ _____ motivated than children with a low IQ (Directional Hypothesis _
more easily
Survey research is the
most common type of descriptive research
Physical measures
muscular strength, blood pressure, physiological responses to exercise . . . common in HHP
If changes are major, then it may be necessary to determine
new indices of reliability and validity of the revised instrument
Only undertake if there is
no existing instrument that will suffice
Italicize and capatalize titles
of books and journals
Sampling Unit
one member of your population
Items are ranked, usually in terms of preference or importance, relative to each other. This forced ranking results in
ordinal scores, thus limiting the statistical treatment of the scores
Appendices are rare in?
published articles
Population
refers to an entire group of people or elements having one or more common characteristics
If the null hypothesis is rejected, then the
research hypothesis is affirmed and the researcher concludes there is a significant difference between the groups
If the null hypothesis is accepted, then the
researcher rejects the research hypothesis and concludes there is no difference between the groups
Permission should be obtained before
revising copyrighted instrument developed by someone else
Multiple techniques may be used in a
single study
The purpose of the statistical test is to evaluate the null hypothesis at a
specified level of probability
The Research Hypothesis is transformed into a Statistical or Null Hypothesis (Ho) This is done so that...
statistical tests can be employed that will determine whether the findings are statistically significant or can be attributed to chance
Target Population
the group that is the focus of your research
Sampling
the process of selecting a subgroup or sample of the population
Questioning
the researcher may ask the research participants questions to obtain information
Measurement
the researcher may test the research participants or apply a device to measure certain qualities
Observation
the researcher may watch the research participants perform and record relevant information about them
Nondirectional Hypothesis
when the researcher has no reason to believe a particular relationship or difference exists in any direction
Directional Hypothesis
when the researcher has reason to believe a particular relationship or difference exists
Null or Statistical Hypothesis
A hypothesis of "no difference or no relationship"
Semantic Differential Scale
-A scaling method designed for measuring ones "image" of a selected topic or concept. Subjects will choose a relative position between pairs of bipolar adjectives which describe the topic along a single dimension -No more than about 20 items should be used. Responses are converted to numeric values and treated statistically
Likert Scale
-A very popular scaling technique which measures the respondent's degree of agreement or disagreement on an issue, opinion, or particular belief -The continuum of response typically runs from SA , A, U, D, to SD -Responses to a Likert scale can be considered to be interval level scores, thus allowing scores to be summed and treated statistically
Indirect Observation
-Research participants are filmed or videotaped -Researcher views tape
Direct Observation
-Researcher directly observes research participants -Research participants usually know they are being observed
Results Section
-Researcher reports the results of the data collection efforts the outcomes of the data analysis -Usually includes consideration information from the various statistical techniques -Indicate whether H0 was rejected or not -Normally would not include discussion or interpretation of results
Participant Observation
-The observer participates in the research setting with the research participants, often spending considerable time in the natural setting developing field notes -Qualitative research methodology
Why do statistical testing?
-We want to be as sure as possible that our theories are as correct as possible. -We want to avoid a fluke! -If we give out a new drug and by chance people get better (when the researcher knows it is inactive), then it is a fluke -So, statistical testing tests the probability that your null hypothesis is true or not.
Affective measures
-opinion, attitude, interest, personality traits, motivation, self-concept -affective factors are often more difficult to capture quantitatively and are typically measured through the use of pencil and paper self-report scales
Three basic questions to consider:
1. Are the research participants appropriate for the research question? 2. Are the research participants representative of the population of interest? 3. How many research participants should be used?
Basic steps include the following:
1. Review the literature 2. Develop tentative instrument 3. Obtain opinions of experts concerning the instrument 4. Revise the instrument as needed 5. Pilot test the instrument 6. Further revise the instrument as needed 7. Finalize instrument
Title length should be
15 words or less
Research Hypothesis
An "educated guess" or tentative proposition regarding the possible solution or explanation to the problem being studied
Critiquing a Research Article
Astute readers should be able to critically read research reports and make informed judgments about the quality of the research
examples of indirect observation
Children observed while they interact in a jungle gym alone, with same gender, with group of children, with adults.
Semantic Differential Scale (bipolar scale) ex
Clean - - - - - - - Dirty
Disclosure of Research Findings
Culmination of research process is the public disclosure of results that can be found in Article in professional journal Presentation at a conference Contractual research report Thesis or dissertation
3 types of Observation Techniques
Direct observation Indirect observation Participant observation
2 types of Research Hypothesis
Directional Non-directional
Introduction Section
Helps the reader understand why the study is being proposed/conducted
In-text citation rules for More than two authors, less than six
Include all authors names the first time you reference the source, then in subsequent references use the first author's last name followed by "et al." and publication date First reference: Henig, Holyoke, Brown and Paquet (1998) challenged the research... Following references: Henig et al. (1998) discussed...
In-text citation rules for 2 authors...
Include both names each time you cite their work in text and use "and" in sentence, (&) end sentence Kloiber and Summers (2013) examine the rationale... (Kloiber & Summers, 2013)
In-text citation rules for Six or more authors
Include only the last name of the first author followed by "et al." and publication date Belfield et al. (2002) provide a relatively simple... Same rules apply to end of sentence: Researchers provided a relatively simple analysis of the strength gains (Belfield et al., 2002).
Example of Research Hypothesis
It is hypothesized that children taught by teaching method A will perform better on a reading achievement test than children taught by method B
References & Appendix
Listing of all books, articles, or other sources cited by the author Format varies according to specific journal Astute readers should carefully peruse the list of references
Data Collection Instruments
May include any mechanical or electronic equipment, physical performance task, paper-and-pencil test or scale, as well as a questionnaire designed to collect data on the variable of interest
Ordinal
Numbers indicate rank order of observations. Sequential Ordering. 1st, 2nd, 3rd place
Interval
Numbers represent equal units or intervals from an Arbitrary Zero Point. Example: Celsius scale (can be zero, and can be negative)
example of participant observation
Observe the daily physical activity in a specific population and taking field notes
example of direct observation
Observing subjects as they run a mile; many say the pressure can increase/decrease motivation and performance
Major categories of measures include
Physical Cognitive Affective
Typical Contents of Research Report
Preliminary information (Abstract) Introduction Methods Results Discussion References Appendix (if appropriate)
Wide variety of methods that involve questioning the research participant some of the ways are through
Questionnaires Structured Unstructured Checklist Interviews
Rank Order Scale ex
Rank the products in order of perceived quality
problem of direct observation
Researcher's presence might change the way the research participants act
Rating Scale ex
Selected a score from 1-10
Likert Scale ex
Strongly agree-agree-neutral-disagree, strongly disagree
Functions of Discussion Section
Summarize the results Interpret the results Offer conclusions Theorize Provide recommendations Suggest future research
example of a Research Hypothesis
THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN ANXIETY LEVELS OF CHILDREN WITH HIGH IQ AND THOSE WITH LOW IQ
example of Null or Statistical Hypothesis
THERE IS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN ANXIETY LEVELS OF CHILDREN WITH HIGH IQ AND THOSE WITH LOW IQ
Your study results need to have statistically significant results, and not have results that occur by
chance
Example of Null Hypothesis
There will be no significant difference in reading performance between students taught by method A and students taught by method B or Teaching method has no effect on the reading performance of students
Measurement Techniques
This broad category of techniques involves actively testing the research participants on the characteristics of interest
Subject Selection and Sampling
This is considered highly important in social and behavioral research
Preliminary Information
Title Author information Acknowledgments Abstract May be as short as 150 to 200 words Brief but clear summary of research study Not required by all journals
In-text citation rules for One author....
Use the last name of the author and the publication year of the work only (Kloiber, 2013). Kloiber (2013) argues that...
Methods Section
Usually contains information about: Research participants Instrumentation Procedures -Methodology and procedures are usually described in detail
There is _ ________ in the motivational level of children with a high IQ and children with a low IQ (Nondirectional Hypothesis)
a difference
Sample
a small subgroup of a population of interest thought to be representative of that population
Observation Techniques
a study in which a researcher simply observes behavior in a systematic manner without influencing or interfering with the behavior
The results of the statistical test will enable the researcher to
accept or reject the null hypothesis
Scales can be used to obtain information on
almost any topic, object, or subject
Your results (p value)must surpass the ____ _____ to earn statistical significance.
alpha level
For you to "rule out" chance, you implement a
alpha level to get true statistical analysis
Some controversy exists among researchers and statisticians regarding the
appropriate statistical treatment of scaled responses
Scaling is the process of
assigning numbers to the various levels of a particular concept that we wish to measure