Research Methods - Mathematical Content Flashcards
Quantitative data
Involves numbers and can be measured objectively. It is immediately quantifiable.
Qualitative data
Involves words and the data is based on the subjective interpretation of language. It is only quantifiable if the data is put into categories and the frequency is counted.
Primary data
Collected directly by the researcher for the purpose of the investigation
Secondary data
Information collected for a purpose other than the current use.
Meta-analysis
The process of combining results from a number of studies on a particular topic (secondary data) to provide an overall view.
Allows us to view data with more confidence, results can be generalised across larger populations.
May be prone to publication bias.
Presentation of quantitative data
- tables
- scattergrams
- bar charts
- distributions
Descriptive statistics
Analyse data to help describe, show or summarise it in a meaningful way.
E.g. Measures of central tendency and measures of dispersion.
When to use a sign test
When a particular inferential statistic can be used.
Can only be used when there is one group of participants and when the data is numerical.
How to do a sign test
- State the hypothesis. Identify test : direction = one tailed, non-direction = two tailed.
- Record the data and work out the sign
- Find calculated value S.
- Find critical value N.
Look up in table
How to find S value
Add up all plus and minus signs, select smaller value
How to find N value
Total number of scores ignoring any zero values
