Breastfeeding has become popular in the US during the past decade. Today nearly

Question

Breastfeeding has become popular in the US during the past decade. Today nearly 77% of American mothers breastfeed for some length of time. Some studies indicate that children who are breastfed become more intelligent than those who are bottle-fed. One study examined 5000 men and women born in Japan, the United States and Sweden between the years 1970 and 1980. The subjects were divided into breast fed and non-breast-fed groups, the groups were controlled for socioeconomic status and their IQ scores were measured when each subject reached 30 years of age. The results indicated that the group of subjects who were breastfed had significantly higher IQ scores than those who were not. The researchers believe that the contents of breast milk account for brain growth and thus intelligence. For this study: 1. Identify the independent and dependent variables in this study. 2. Tell what type of study this is. 3. Why can't the researchers draw a causal relationship between type of food and later intelligence? 4. What might be an alternate explanation for these results? 5. How could researchers design a study to make a casual connection?

Explanation / Answer

1. The independent variable in the study is breastfeeding and the dependent variable is intelligence.
2. This is a quasi-experimental study.
3. In order to reach "cause and effect" conclusions about the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable, researchers must use a true experiment. This is because the participant characteristics are predetermined in quasi-experimental studies and cannot be manipulated by the researcher.
4. An alternative explanation might be that women who breast feed there babies are more nurturing mothers, and their involvement in their children's lives may explain why the children may have greater IQ scores.
Please post the other questions separately as we are supposed to answer just one question or four sub parts of the same question.

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