Quantiative Methods

Question 1

Quantitative research is ..

Answer 1

process of collecting and analysing numerical data. It can be used to find patterns and averages, make predictions, test causal relationships, and generalise results to wider populations.
-opp of qual

Question 2

Experiment

Answer 2

Control or manipulate an independent variable to measure its effect on a dependent variable.

Question 3

Survey

Answer 3

Ask questions of a group of people in-person, over-the-phone or online.
-like questionnaire

Question 4

Systematic observation

Answer 4

Identify a behavior or occurrence of interest and monitor it in its natural setting.

Question 5

Secondary research

Answer 5

Collect data that has been gathered for other purposes e.g., national surveys or historical records.

Question 6

Once data is collected you need to ..

Answer 6

Process before analysed .. then use statistical analysis to answer research questions

Question 7

Descriptive statistics

Answer 7

give you a summary of your data and include measures of averages and variability.
You can also use graphs, scatter plots and frequency tables to visualise your data and check for any trends or outliers.

Question 8

Inferential statistics

Answer 8

you can make predictions or generalisations based on your data. You can test your hypothesis or use your sample data to estimate the population parameter.

Question 9

You can also assess reliability and validity on data collections. -what would this do?

Answer 9

indicate how consistently and accurately your methods actually measured what you wanted them to.

Question 10

Advantages of quantitative methods

Answer 10

Replication, directed comparisons of results, large samples, hypothesis testing

Question 11

Disadvantages of quantitative research

Answer 11

Superficiality, narrow focus, structural focus, structural bias, lack of context

Question 12

3 main types of descriptive statistics

Answer 12

The distribution concerns the frequency of each value.
The central tendency concerns the averages of the values.
The variability or dispersion concerns how spread out the values are.

Question 13

While descriptive statistics summarise the characteristics of a data set, inferential statistics..

Answer 13

..help you come to conclusions and make predictions based on your data.

Question 14

So why use inferential statistics on collected data sample?

Answer 14

you can use inferential statistics to understand the larger population from which the sample is taken.

Question 15

2 main uses of inferential statistics?

Answer 15

making estimates about populations (for example, the mean SAT score of all 11th graders in the US).
testing hypotheses to draw conclusions about populations (for example, the relationship between SAT scores and family income).