Intro to Quantitative Research

Question 1

Research Types

Answer 1

• Exploratory: seems to create a hypothesis, rather than test them, research question has not been studied, why
• Descriptive: describe characteristics of a population, situation, or phenomenon
• Casual: examined if there is a cause and effect relationship between two separate event

Question 2

What is the design purpose?

Answer 2

To plan control

• control: strategies used by researcher to control for bias and extraneous variables
• bias: distortion of the results that isn’t a true reflection of what’s being investigated
• extraneous variables: mediating variable, intervenes between the IV and DV, not being investigated and can effect IV and DV if not controlled

Question 3

Considerations that affect a study

Answer 3

OAFCV

Objectivity
Accuracy
Feasibility
Control
Internal Validity
External Validity

Question 4

Objectivity

Answer 4

Use of facts without distortion by personal feelings or bias.

Conceptualizing the problem isn’t based on just a hunch and intuition, one has gone to the literature, identifier gap, and then creates research

Question 5

Accuracy

Answer 5

All aspects of a study systematically and logically follow from the research problem.

The research problem is the driving factor of research design

The researcher chose a design that was consistent with the research problem

Question 6

Feasibility

Answer 6

Ability for the study to be successfully carried out, practicality, timing, cost, analysis.

Participant Recruitment

Question 7

Control

Answer 7

Researcher used the design to maximize the degree of control over the tested variables

Involves constant conditions of the study and establishing specific sampling criteria

Question 8

Strategies to Control for Extraneous Variables

Answer 8

Homogenous Sampling: based on inclusion and exclusion criteria

Consistency in Data collection: same environmental conditions, timing, tools used, procedures, for all subjects

Manipulation of Independent Variable:
intervention is administered to one group only (experimental group) , ensure othered aren’t exposed (control group)

Randomization:
subjects of a population have an equal chance of being assigned to experimental group

Question 9

Internal Validity

Answer 9

Is it the independent variable (or something else) that caused or resulted in the change of the dependent variable

need to rule out rival factors that contribute to change

need high internal validity

Question 10

Threats to Internal Validity

Answer 10

History
Maturation
Testing
Instrumentation
Morality

Question 11

History

Answer 11

A specific even that has an effect on dependent variable
occurring inside or outside experimental setting

Question 12

Maturation

Answer 12

development, biological or psychological processes that happens to an individual, external to events of the study

Question 13

Testing

Answer 13

taking a test repeatedly, pre test influencing post test, some score higher when they take a test the second time

Question 14

Instrumentation

Answer 14

changes in the measurement of the variables or observational techniques

Question 15

Mortality

Answer 15

loss of study subjects from first-data collection to second data collection

Question 16

External Validity

Answer 16

generalizability of findings of one study to additional population and other environmental conditions

under what conditions and types of subjects can the same results be expected to occur

Question 17

Threats to External Validity

Answer 17

Selection Effects
Reactive Effects (Hawthorne effect)
Measurement Effect

Question 18

Selection Effect

Answer 18

the generalizability of results to the other population, sampling bias, not representative of population

Question 19

Reactive Effects (Hawthorne Effect)

Answer 19

people can change their behaviours because they knew they were being studied

Question 20

Measurement Effect

Answer 20

administration of pretext affecting the generalizability of results to other populations.

testing effects performances, makes them different than general populations

Question 21

Use designs that:

Answer 21

• Is appropriate to the research question
• Maximizes control
• Holds constant conditions for the study
• Establishes specific sampling criteria
• Maximizes the level of evidence