Time Dimension (Cross-sectional or Longitudinal)
You are studying the impact of stress over the lifespan of goldfish. What is the time dimension of this study?
Longitudinal
What is the research purpose of the following question?:
What are the experiences of students in the School of Social Work?
You are studying the impact of eating cupcakes on the happiness of social work interns. What is the unit of analysis?
The social work interns.
Write a null and alternative hypothesis for the following research question:
How does using a computer during class impact attentiveness?
Null: Using a computer does not impact attentiveness.
Alternative: Using a computer does impact attentiveness.
Bonus 50: Is this directional or non-directional?
The school of social work is interested in whether or not MSW students pack a lunch when they go to their field placements. All of the field faculty ask their students this week about their patterns of packing a lunch. What is the time dimension of this study?
Cross-sectional
What is the research purpose of the following question?:
How does moving to a new city impact people's sense of belonging?
Predictive/Causal
You are studying the quality of custard at Culver's restaurants across the US by sampling one scoop of the flavor of the day at a random samply of restaurants. What is the unit of analysis?
The Culver's restaurant
Write a null and alternative hypothesis for the following research question:
Do emotional support animals decrease mental health symptoms in their owners?
Null: Emotional support animals are unrelated to mental health symptoms in their owners.
Alternative: Emotional support animals decrease mental health symptoms in their owners.
Bonus 50: Is this directional or non-directional?
You are a school social worker interested in the experiences of students who participate in self-care club in your school district. If you collect data about all the students who come through your club over ten years, is this a trend study, a panel study that is not a cohort study, OR a cohort study?
Trend study
What is the research purpose of the following question?:
What mental health conditions are the most prevalent among social workers?
Descriptive/Correlational
You are interested in the availability of jobs for school social workers. You ask a random sampling of school districts across the nation how many social work jobs they had open for the 2023-2024 school year. What is the unit of analysis?
The school districts
Write a null and alternative hypothesis for the following research question:
Does getting your dog a kitten make him happier?
Null: Getting your dog a kitten does not impact his happiness.
Alternative: Getting your dog a kitten does make him happier.
Bonus 50: Is this directional or non-directional?
You are a dog lover in Wisconsin interested in if rescue dogs from the South act differently in the snow than other dogs. You take a random sample of rescue dogs at the Humane Society and monitor how they act in the snow over the next ten years comparing the behavior between dogs from the South to the other dogs. is this a trend study, a panel study that is not a cohort study, OR a cohort study?
A cohort study
What is the research purpose of the following question?:
Does take a research methods course improve social work practice among new social workers?
You are studying the number of shoes in the average college student's closet by counting the shoes in random dorm rooms. What is the unit of analysis?
The dorm rooms
Write a null and alternative hypothesis for the following research question:
How does cost of gas impact attendance for commuting students?
Null: Cost of gas does not impact attendance for commuting students.
Alternative: Cost of gas does impact attendance for commuting students.
Bonus 50: Is this directional or non-directional?
You want to know about the progression of mental health diagnoses throughout the lifespan. You select a random sample of infants and track them throughout their entire lives. is this a trend study, a panel study that is not a cohort study, OR a cohort study?
a panel study that is not a cohort study
What is the relationship between the consumption of carbs and performance running?
You are interested in how length of waitlists for medically-assisted treatment for opiate users impact continued use and consequences of use. You access publicly available data about overdoses in various counties in the US and the average wait time for the treatment centers in that county. What is the unit of analysis?
Counties
Write a null and alternative hypothesis for the following research question:
Does coming to lab each week improve student's performance in SW650?
Null: Coming to lab is unrelated to student performance.
Alternative: Coming to lab does improve student performance
Bonus 50: Is this directional or non-directional?