Overview (Ch 1 & 2)
•What are the two Research Process Models (or “directions” for conducting research)?
Inductive & Deductive (p. 20-22 in the 5th edition book)
•What is the difference between a “concept” and a “variable”?
Concept - abstract thinking/brainstorming about thing you want to study (e.g. public speaking anxiety)
Variable - the label given to the concept (e.g. the "name".
Also review construct & operationalization (p. 61)
•According to the Belmont report, participants must be protected from harm, and their identities should generally be kept confidential and anonymous. Which principle is this?
•A. Beneficence
•B. Respect for Persons
•C. Justice
A. Beneficence p. 41-42
•Identify the following type of data:
•
•Please select how many years of school you have completed:
–A. High School
–B. Some College
–C. 2 year Degree
–D. 4 Year Degree
Nominal p. 78-79
Alejandro poses the following hypothesis:
Coworkers are more likely than bosses to communicate praise in the workplace.
Is this a directional or nondirectional hypothesis?
Directional. p. 63
•Alan notices that while he is pretty sure he got the “right” answer with his research study, none of his fellow researchers seem to be able to repeat his findings. Alan’s study must lack _________.
Reliability (p.72)
•Artie poses the following hypothesis:
Men are more likely than women to control conversational topics in interpersonal communication.
What is Artie’s dependent variable?
"Control of Conversational Topics" is the EFFECT or the thing the researchers are trying to explain, which makes it the DV. p. 67-68
•According to the Belmont report, participants should be selected fairly, and should not be targeted because they are particularly susceptible to saying “yes”. Which principle is this?
•A. Beneficence
•B. Respect for Persons
•C. Justice
•C. Justice p. 39-40
•Identify the following type of data:
I believe that my doctor clearly communicated the treatment plan to me.
Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree
Interval (Scale). Specifically Likert Scale p. 81-83
The following is NOT currently a ratio question. How could you make this following question into a ratio question?
How long have you been employed at your current job?
A.0-1 Years
B.2-5 Years
C.6-10 Years
See definition of ratio data, p. 83-84
•The steps of the _____ research process are identifying the research problem, reviewing existing theory, formulating a hypothesis based on existing theory, designing the methods and procedures, gathering data, and analyzing and interpreting data.
Deductive (p. 20-21)
•Alana poses the following hypothesis:
Superiors (bosses) are more likely than peer coworkers to communicate praise to workers in the workplace.
What is Alana’s independent variable?
Workplace role (bosses vs. coworkers) are the CAUSE of the difference in this hypothesis. Therefore they are the IV. p. 66-67
•According to the Belmont report, participants should be treated as if they are capable of making their own decisions, and should always be asked to give their informed consent. Which principle is this?
•A. Beneficence
•B. Respect for Persons
•C. Justice
B. Respect for Persons p. 38-39
•Identify the following type of data:
•
•How many minutes, on average, did the nurse spend speaking with you each time she entered your hospital room?
Ratio p. 83-84
A ___________ can be described as an educated guess about the relationship between at least two variables based on a review of relevant academic literature & experience.
Hypothesis see p. 63
•What are the four basic outcomes (goals) of scholarly research?
Describe the behavior, determine causes of behavior, predict behavior & explain behavior (p. -5-6)
•How might you Operationalize the variable “public speaking anxiety”?
Remember Operationalize means "measure" and then there are many correct answers. p. 68-70
•Mary wants to collect data on the ways people nonverbally communicate when they are out on dates. She goes to a popular “date” restaurant, and watches couples as they interact with each other.
•She plans to write her findings up into a research study. Does she need their informed consent? Why or why not?
No, see discussion on how public observation (where the researcher is not involved in any way) does not require informed consent. p. 45-46
Of course, any observation in a private space OR any situation where the researcher engages with participants OR collects identifying information DOES require informed consent.
•Identify the following type of data:
•After watching the Democratic Presidential Debate, please rank the following candidates from best speaker to worst speaker: Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.
Ordinal (rank order) p. 81
Why might GPA not be a valid indicator of intelligence?
Make it clear what validity is (and possibly reliability). p. 72
Explain how scholarly communication research differs from “lay” research or common sense.
See p. 2-3. Some notes
Social science research is:
systematic and scientific methods
empirical data
based on the assumption that research can uncover patterns/used to build theory
•Megan poses the following hypothesis:
The type of product being sold will affect the persuasive message tactic picked to sell it.
Is this a directional or nondirectional hypothesis?
Nondirectional. It says the IV will affect the DV, but doesn't specify how (in what direction). p. 63
•On most college campuses and in many other organizations, a board has been established to ensure that research is ethical and participants are protected. At Weber State (and most other schools), this board is called the ________________________.
Institutional Review Board (p. 40-41)
•Identify the following type of data:
•Would you characterize your communication with your boss as:
Open 1 2 3 4 5 Closed
Interval (Scale). Semantic Differential Scale p. 81-83
Describe the difference between inductive and deductive research.
See discussion p. 20-21