Lec 6+7

Question 1

Are hunches necessary in a research?

Answer 1

No the researcher can conduct a perfectly valid study without hunches

Question 2

What is the verification process of a hypothesis and what are its results?

Answer 2

It is the process where you check the validity of your assumption and it is necessary, and it would have three outcomes right, false or partially right

Question 3

How does hypothesis contribute in epidemiology?

Answer 3

It help in narrowing the field of investigation

Question 4

Definitions of hypothesis

Answer 4

-A hypothesis is a hunch, assumption, suspicion, assertion or an idea about a phenomenon, relationship or situation, the reality or truth of which “you do not know”.
-Kerlinger, ‘A hypothesis is a conjectural statement of the relationship between two or more variables’
-Webster’s defines a hypothesis as: a proposition, condition, or principle which is assumed, perhaps without belief, in order to draw out its logical consequences and by this method to test its accord with facts which are known or may be determined.
-Black and Champion define a hypothesis as ‘a tentative statement about something, the validity of which is usually unknown’
-Bailey: a proposition that is stated in a testable form and that predicts a particular relationship between two (or more) variables. In other words, if we think that a relationship exists, we first state it as a hypothesis and then test the hypothesis in the field.
-Grinnell: A hypothesis is written in such a way that it can be proven or disproven by valid and reliable
data – it is in order to obtain these data that we perform our study.

Question 5

How hypothesis is generated?

Answer 5

either based on previous study or on self observations

Question 6

What is the importance of hypothesis?

Answer 6

• bring direction
• specificity, tells you what specific information to collect
• focus on the study

Question 7

Some CCC of the hypothesis

Answer 7

• validity is unknown
• tentative proposition
• it specifies the relationship between two or more variables

Question 8

What is the function of the hypothesis?

Answer 8

• provides focus to the study as it tells you what specific aspects to investigate
• it tells which data to collect which also provides focus
• as it provide focus the construction of hypothesis enhances the objectivity of the study
• enables you to add to the formulation of the theory and conclude specifically what is true and what is false .

Question 9

What is the process of testing the hypothesis?

Answer 9

Firstly constructing a hypothesis
Secondly gathering appropriate evidence
The way you collect your evidence has a central importance so it is important that each step of it is valid, appropriate and free from bias.
Thirdly analyzing evidence to give conclusion of its validity and make a statement of correctness if it true or false.
It is imperative that you form a hypothesis Cleary and precisely and testable

Question 10

What are the main CCC of the hypotheses?

Answer 10

1.simple, specific, conceptually clear
-Unambiguity, because being ambiguate would make it impossible to verify the hypothesis
-Unidimensional , should have only one relationship or hunch at a time.
-Must be familiar with the subject area
2. Capable for verification
By using methods and techniques for data collecting and analysis
If the hypotheses is non verifiable so there is no point from formulating it , except if you are going to develop new method while formulating it
3. Related to the existing body of knowledge, it is important that is emerges from existing body of knowledge.
4. Operationalizable
Able to be expressed in terms that can be measured , if it not measurable so there is not tested and no conclusion.

Question 11

What are the types of the hypothesis and the function?

Answer 11

1. Research hypotheses
2. Alternate hypotheses and its function is to explicitly specify the relationship that is considered to be true in the Cas the research hypotheses in false. It is the opposite of the research hypotheses.

Question 12

Very important note: The null hypothesis or the hypothesis of no difference are formulated as the alternate hypotheses

Question 13

What are the types of hypotheses in details?

Answer 13

• null hypotheses: It is when you construct a hypotheses that stipulates that there is no difference between two situations, groups, prevalence, or between sample mean and proportion or a population mean and proportion. The difference equals zero.
  _ hypotheses of difference: When the researcher build a hypotheses that stipulates that there is a difference but does not specify the magnitude of it.
• alternative hypotheses: It is claim about a population that is contradictory to H0 and it is what we conclude when we reject H0
  -hypotheses of association: It stipulates the extent of the relationship in terms of the effect of different treatment groups on the dependent variable or the prevalence of a phenomenon.
  -hypotheses of point prevalence: The researcher has enough knowledge about the community’s behavior and the treatment program and its likely outcome and speculate the outcome in quantitative units.

Question 14

How to decide which hypotheses in right the alternative or the null?

Answer 14

Since both are contradictory so you should examine evidence to decide and it should be in the form of sample data, after you determine which hypotheses the evidence support you take the decision.

Question 15

Error occur in testing the hypothesis, which leads to incorrect conclusions of the validity of the hypotheses?

Answer 15

1- The study design selected is faulty
2- The sampling procedure adopted is faulty
3- The method of data collection is inaccurate
4- The analysis is wrong
5- The statistical procedures applied are inappropriate
6- The conclusions drawn are incorrect.

Question 16

What are the type 1 and type 2 error in testing the hypotheses?

Answer 16

• type 1, rejection of the null hypotheses when it is true.

- type 2, acceptance of the null hypotheses when it is true

Question 17

What is the difference between qualitative and quantitative study from the hypothesis constructing aspect?

Answer 17

They differ in the importance attached to the hypotheses and the extent of use of it.
As in qualitative studies the hypothesis is neither advocated nor studied because of its non specificity of the problem as well as of the methods and procedure, it makes the building of a hypotheses less practical

Even within the quantitative study the importance of attachment to the hypothesis and the formulation of it vary markedly from one academic disciple to another.

Question 18

Hypotheses are most prevalent in epidemiological research and research relating to the establishment of causality of a phenomenon, where it becomes important to narrow the list of probable causes so
that a specific cause-and-effect relationship can be studied.

Question 19

What are the research design and the plan?

Answer 19

The research design: A plan( blueprint ) , structure or strategy of investigation to obtain answers to research question.

The plan : Is a complete scheme or program of the research. And it will include the outline from the writing of the hypothesis to the operational implication to the final analysis of data.
According to Selltiz, Deutsch and Cook, ‘A research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection
and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in
procedure’.

Question 20

What is the function of study research?

Answer 20

1. Conceptualize an operational plan to undertake procedure to complete the research
2. Ensure that the procedures are adequate to obtain valid, accurate and objective answers, kerlings call this function the control of variance.

Question 21

Important requirements of a research design:

Answer 21

specify everything clearly so a reader will understand what procedures to follow.
-Name the study design per se – that is, ‘cross-sectional’, ‘before-and-after’, ‘comparative’, ‘control
experiment’ or ‘random control’.
Provide detailed information about the following aspects of the study:
- Who will constitute the study population?
- How will the study population be identified?
- Will a sample or the whole population be selected?
- If a sample is selected, how will it be contacted?
- How will consent be sought?
- What method of data collection will be used and why?
- In the case of a questionnaire, where will the responses be returned?
- How should respondents contact you if they have queries?
- In the case of interviews, where will they be conducted?
- How will ethical issues be taken care of?

Question 22

what are the random or chance variables?

Answer 22

It is the change in the dependent variable because of the responders state of mood or ambiguity in the research instrument .

Question 23

What is the function of the control group and how can we determine the attributable impact of the extraneous and chance variables?

Answer 23

The only function of control groups is to quantify the impact of extraneous and chance variables.

Question 24

What variables contribute in the change of the dependent variable?

Answer 24

1. The independent variable
2. Chance , random
3. Extraneous

Question 25

**you need to design your study to ensure that the independent variable has the maximum opportunity to have its
full effect on the dependent variable, while the effects that are attributed to extraneous and chance variables are
minimized (if possible) or quantified or eliminated.

Question 26

How to minimize the effect of chance and extraneous variables?

Answer 26

1. We cannot in most situations , it can be quantified
2. Ensure that extraneous factors have equal impact on control and experimental group by randomization and matching
3. Eliminate the extraneous factor
   By building up the affecting variable into the study design or by eliminating the variable

Question 27

The chance variation sources: respondents and the research instrument.
-if some respondents are extremely positive in their attitude towards an issue, there are bound to be others who are extremely negative . Hence, they tend to cancel each other out so the net effect is assumed to be zero.
-if in a study population most individuals are either negatively or positively biased, a systematic error in
the findings will be introduced.
-If a research instrument is not reliable , a systematic bias may be introduced into the study.

Question 28

What is the function of randomization and matching

Answer 28

They make sure that the groups are comparable in respect to the variables which leads to that the extent to which the extraneous variables are going to affect the dependent variables is similar in both groups.