Research Methods: Exam 1 Topics 14-24 Dr. Hancock
A sample of adults was asked their level of agreement with the statement, "The President of the United States is doing a good job handling foreign relations." They were permitted to respond with either "strongly agree" "agree" "Disagree", or "strongly disagree." How many variables are being studied?
1, the level of agreement
What can be placed at the end of a review to help readers grasp the whole of the literature review?
A brief summary
What is plagiarism?
A form of theft, not giving credit where it is due or claiming ideas that are original to the author
4. Which of the following definitions of being computer literate is more operational? a. Having taken at least two formal courses of instruction in an accredited school on the use of computers. b. Having knowledge of the origins and uses of computers in modern society and their implications
A. Having taken at least two formal courses of instruction in an accredited school on the use of computers
What portion of research reports typically consist of literature review?
About 20%
What are the two most common style guides in the social sciences?
American Sociological Association's ASA American Psychological Association APA
Are these two tasks completed in a specific order?
An outline is first.
What types of information needs to be citied?
Anything that is used: words, phrases, and ideas
What are the different types or articles or reports that include literature review?
Article, theses, dissertations and sometimes student papers
All experiments have at least how many dependent variables?
At least 1
What two tasks are necessary to connect the literature to your study?
Come up with an outline of topics, the second is to scrutinize elements of the research question and the research plan taking shape
What does physically manipulate mean in an experimental context?
Control that one group gets a variable and the other group does not
Why is defining a sample important to developing a quantitative research question?
Creating well-defined boundaries around the unit of analysis and sample also helps define the concepts being used and how they will be measured
This topic suggests two elements that writers almost always use to begin a literature review. What are those two elements?
Define key terms and establish importance of this topic
A researcher looked for the causes of social unrest by examining economic variables including poverty and income. Is social unrest an independent or dependent variable?
Dependent Variable
Studies try to explain the variation in which type of variable- the dependent variable or the independent variable?
Dependent Variable
Most quantitative research used what to study a population?
Descriptive or observational studies
What are the two ways that claims are anchored to evidence in academic writing?
Direct quotes and paraphrasing
"It is hypothesized that college students who have firm career goals achieve higher GPAs than who do not have firm career goals." Is this a "directional" or a "nondirectional" hypothesis?
Directional
When researchers are willing to predict the outcome of the study, should they state a directional or nondirectional hypothesis?
Directional Hypothesis
What are the two types of quantitative research design?
Experimental or nonexperimental
"When paraphrasing, it is acceptable to simply list the source in the bibliography." True or False?
False
4. "it is safe to assume that flawed measurements are rare in research." According to this topic, is this statement true or false?
False
An effective literature review should consist solely of a set of critical summaries of the individual studies. True or False.
False. It should be a synthesis.
What are the two parts to citing a source?
First, in-text mention of the source followed by parenthesis as a footnote for the source Second, the bibliography (authors name, publishing name, publisher information)
How is a style guide different from a grammar handbook?
Grammar handbooks determines rules of languages, a style guide created consistency on how special elements, special words, numbers and abbreviations are treated
Every other customer entering a shoe store was given one of two different coupons. One coupon offered a second pair of shoes for 50% off. The other coupon offered to reduce the total price by 25% if two pairs of shoes were purchased. The purpose was to determine which coupon was more effective In getting individuals to buy two pairs of shoes. In this experiment, what is the dependent variable?
How many pairs of shoes are bought
What is the first useful thing to review in research articles and literature reviews to see what topics are important?
How to structure the review, researchers must filter through their sources
Which type of statement (hypothesis, purpose, or question) predicts the outcome of a study?
Hypothesis
In an experiment, what is the name of a stimulus or input variable?
Independent variable
Why should direct quotations be used sparingly?
It disrupts the flow of a presentation
What quality does a concept need to have when it is defined in a research question?
It needs to be directly observable.
What is one way to collect research notes from articles to ensure that you have captured the right information and can compare it when composing a literature review?
Keep a spreadsheet of studies and their main topics, sample sizes, methodological details and main findings
Instead of writing a series of abstracts, what should the writer do?
Lump together findings on a theme and link information together
What is a good way to remember the four types of variables?
NOIR- Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, Ratio
Do all major style guides agree on punctuation for academic degree?
No
In practice, are operational definitions ever fully operationalized?
No because there are infinite variables that questions the physical arrangement
"Are children of alcoholics different from children of nonalcoholics in their social adjustment?" Is this stated appropriately? Why or Why not?
No, because the question can be answered with a "yes" or a "no."
Are dependent variables physically manipulated?
No, only independent variables are physically manipulated
Should the methodology employed in each of the studies cited in a review be described in detail?
No, writers should avoid giving extensive descriptions of research methodology.
Is there one style for academic citation?
No. Different academic disciplines use different styles.
"It is hypothesized that children of immigrants and children of native-born citizens differ in their attitudes towards school." Is this a directional or nondirectional hypothesis?
Nondirectional
In the above question, which variable is continuous?
Number of years of formal education. It is a ratio variable.
What are some of the uses of a research proposal?
Obtain funding from other scientists, instructor approval, and the IRB requires it
When would it be appropriate to devote one or more paragraphs to describing a author's written book?
Only if that book is one of the main citations
To replicate the research of others, do researchers need "operational" or "conceptual" definitions?
Operational
Which type of definition indicated physical steps?
Operational definitions
What are some additional strategies that begin a literature review?
Provide a key statistic or define major terms that will follow
What are two alternatives to stating a nondirectional hypothesis?
Research question and research purpose
What is the second useful thing to review in research articles and literature reviews to see what topics are important?
Review major and minor subheadings and look at trends in the research
A teacher shoes an educational film on daily nutritional needs to one group of students and gave a handout on the same material to another group. The purpose was to determine which method of instruction was more effective on increasing students' knowledge of daily nutritional needs. In this experiment, what is the dependent variable?
Students' knowledge of daily nutritional needs
What is a citation?
System of academic writing that is used to acknowledge sources
When a writer presents a finding or statement from the literature without qualification, readers are likely to assume what?
That the writer believed the underlying methodology and logic are reasonably sound.
Adults who were taking a course to learn English as a second language were asked to name their country of birth and their number of years of formal education. In this example, what is the categorical variable? What type of categorical variable is it?
The country from which they are from, it is nominal
What is a target population?
The population to which the researcher wants to be able to generalize the results
A teacher shoes an educational film on daily nutritional needs to one group of students and gave a handout on the same material to another group. The purpose was to determine which method of instruction was more effective on increasing students' knowledge of daily nutritional needs. In this experiment, what is the independent variable?
The presence of the film, or the handout
Every other customer entering a shoe store was given one of two different coupons. One coupon offered a second pair of shoes for 50% off. The other coupon offered to reduce the total price by 25% if two pairs of shoes were purchased. The purpose was to determine which coupon was more effective In getting individuals to buy two pairs of shoes. In this experiment, what is the independent variable?
The type of coupon that is being used
Consider nondirectional hypothesis, research purposes, and research questions. Are all three acceptable in the scientific community or is one type preferred over the others?
They are all acceptable when using a nondirectional hypothesis
According to the topic, novice writers often make two common mistakes. What is the second one mentioned in the topic?
They discuss all studies as though they were equal in quality
According to the topic, novice writers often make two common mistakes. What is the first one mentioned in the topic?
They take every report and treat it as if it is a fact
What is the purpose of the literature review?
To summarize an existing scholarship
"More often than not, researchers work with samples that are less than ideal". According to this topic, is this statement true or false?
True
2. "A key to creating a synthesis is to write a review that moves from subtopic to subtopic". Is this statement true or false?
True
Adults who were taking a course to learn English as a second language were asked to name their country of birth and their number of years of formal education. In this example, how many variables are being studied?
Two
What is the minimum number of categories that any variable must have?
Two
What elements foes a reference manager format for you? What does it not format for you?
What it does for you: can help implement style guidelines properly What it doesn't do: Capitalization, abbreviations rules for a specific style
What is the best rule of thumb for citations?
When in doubt, cite.
What is a unit of analysis?
Who or what constitutes one "unit" from which data has been collected in a study
Do facts and data need to have sources listed?
Yes
Do style guides specify the contents and organization of manuscripts?
Yes
Is it desirable to point out gaps in literature?
Yes
Is it desirable to point out major trends and commonalities in the results of previous research?
Yes
Are there similarities between APA and ASA styles?
Yes, both use parenthetical citation styles (author's last name, date of publication, page number for direct quote)
Do researchers often discuss the limitations of their own studies?
Yes, in the last section of the research report
Is it possible for a definition to be highly operational, yet inadequate in other responses?
Yes, the definition may be too narrow and not multidimensional.
Can an experiment have more than one independent variable?
Yes, there may be
3. Which of the following definitions gregarious is more operational? a. Talking on the phone with friends at least two hours each week b. Being open and friendly when in social gatherings with others.
a. Talking on the phone with friends at least two hours a week
Which of the following definitions of administering nonverbal praise is more operational? a. Using various gestures involving various body parts without speaking b. Nodding the head slightly up and down directions while smiling lightly with your lips closed.
b. Nodding the head slightly up and down directions while smiling lightly with your lips closed.oT
If a researcher administers a basic math test to the middle school children to see if its scores predict grades in high school algebra, what is the criterion variable?
grades in high school algebra
What is a "reference manager" or "citation manager"?
software programs that automate citation and bibliography formatting