Chapter 5: Finding Answers Flashcards
descriptive hypothesis
x has a, b, c characteristics or behaves in a,b,c way
explanatory hypothesis
x exists as a result of a, b, c
predictive hypothesis
if x, y is true, z is likely to occur
prescriptive hypothesis
in order to achieve x, do or don’t do a, b, c
normative hypothesis
x is preferable to y,z and therefore a,b,c should/not be done
theory is (5)
- skeletal version of reality
- hypothesis that withstood repeated tests and was found to have explanatory power
- identifies small no. of variables that must be taken into consideration in addressing a question
- good theory is parsimonious (attempts to explain as much as possible with as little as possible)
- good theory is generalizable (can be applied to a variety of contexts and settings)
types of theory
grand, middle theories = generalizability theory; inductive/deductive theory; empirical, normative, grounded
empirical theory can
be answered through DATA
grounded theory uses
inductive research strategy, theory produced thru data using emergent process which allows theory to emerge from data
inductive theory
theory is outcome of research
deductive theory
THEORY GUIDES RESEARCH
normative theory
right vs wrong
induction
observation - tentative hypothesis - theory - hypothesis
deduction
theory - hypothesis - obs - confirmation
a hypothesis consists of (3)
independent variable, dependent variable, statement about the relationship between the variables
variables are
factors that can change
constants
factors not ought to vary
variables have at least
2 mutually exclusive characteristics
examples of variables
resources abundant or scare, democracy stable/unstable
independent variable
a factor thought to influence affect or cause variation in the second type of variable
comes before in time and space
independent varibale
comes before in time and space
independent variable
the outcome we wish to understand is
the dependent variable
things that affect relationships between 2 variables
intervening variable