Audience Insights

For Final

What is the difference between independent and dependent variables?

Independent variables are systematically varied by the researcher (the cause), while dependent variables are observed and depend on the independent variable (the effect).

What is an operational definition?

An operational definition specifies patterns of behavior and procedures used to experience or measure a concept.

What are the advantages of qualitative research?

Advantages include natural settings, depth of understanding, flexibility, and the potential for additional discovery.

What are the disadvantages of quantitative research?

Disadvantages include the need for a larger sample size and the requirement for statistical techniques.

What is triangulation design in research?

Triangulation design is the use of multiple methods or data sources to enhance the credibility and validity of research findings.

Define reliability in the context of measurement.

Reliability is the property of a measure that consistently gives the same answer at different times.

What is face validity?

Face validity refers to the degree to which experts believe that each measurement item belongs to a certain concept.

List the types of validity in measurement.

Types of validity include face validity, predictive validity, concurrent validity, and construct validity.

What is the distinction between qualitative and quantitative research methods?

Qualitative research focuses on depth of understanding in natural settings, while quantitative research emphasizes precise results and generalizability.

How do you define a construct in research?

A construct is a combination of concepts created to describe specific situations, often not directly observable.

Scientific Research

An organized, objective, controlled, qualitative or quantitative empirical analysis of one or more variables.

Internal Validity

The degree to which the results of a research study are based on expected conditions rather than on extraneous variables.

External Validity

The degree to which the results of a research study are generalizable to other situations.

Hypothesis

A formal statement regarding the relationship between variables that is tested directly.

Research Question

A formally stated question intended to gather information about something.

Sampling Error

The error in a statistical analysis arising from the unrepresentativeness of the sample taken.

Qualitative Research

Research that seeks to understand human behavior from the informant's perspective.

Quantitative Research

Research that focuses on quantifying relationships and phenomena.

Parsimony Principle

Given two equally accurate theories, choose the one that is less complex.

Causal Time Order

The requirement that a cause must precede its effect.

Reliability vs Validity

Reliability refers to the consistency of a measure, while validity refers to whether a test measures what it claims to measure.

Empirical Analysis

The use of observational evidence to analyze an event, behavior, or phenomenon.

Content Analysis

A research technique used to systematically analyze media content.

Double-blind Experiment

An experiment in which neither the participants nor the experimenters know who is receiving a particular treatment.

Artifact

Any extraneous variable that creates a possible but incorrect explanation of result.

Demand Characteristics

Cues in an experiment that suggest to participants how they should behave.

Maturation

The process of a subject's changing naturally over time, which can confound results.

Statistical Regression

The tendency of extreme scores to return to a mean over time.

Field Services

Data collection services usually provided by specialized firms or organizations.

Incidence

The percent of a population that possesses the desired characteristics for a particular research study.