Writing Instructions Assignment: Identifying the research method In order to eva
ID: 456978 • Letter: W
Question
Writing Instructions
Assignment: Identifying the research method
In order to evaluate research projects, and understand their strengths and limitations, it is necessary to first understand which type of research method is being used. Your task in this assignment is to classify each of the following research studies as experimental, correlational, or observational/qualitative. Simply type an E, C, or O in the space below each study to indicate type of study. Then type a brief explanation of your classification of the study (e.g., for E: “because the researcher controlled an IV and compared its effects in a treatment and control group”).
Cheryl Vance, an actuary at ValueLife Insurance Co., aims to determine whether the accident rate differs for two-door versus four-door versions of the same car model. She gathers National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data on eight car models, each of which has both two- and four-door versions, and compares the accident rate for both versions. She finds that overall, the two-door versions have an accident rate that is 136% of that of the four-door versions.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
2. Gerald Mims wants to test the hypothesis that companies with larger advertising budgets will have larger market shares. He gathers data on the size of advertising budget and the market share for 142 medium-sized companies. He finds that companies with larger advertising budgets do in fact have larger market shares.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
Melinda Feltner wants to test the hypothesis that small and medium-sized companies have higher turnover rates than do larger companies. She gathers 10 years of turnover data in three groups of companies: small, medium, and large (defined according to the number of employees). Feltner finds that turnover rate is highest in small companies, much lower in large companies, and in-between in medium companies.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
Mike Thomas hypothesizes that taller men will have higher incomes than will shorter men. He measures the height of 1200 men who have just obtained their business degrees at the University of Pittsburgh. Over the next five years, he tracks their incomes. Thomas finds that on average, taller men have higher incomes than do shorter men.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
Ron Fuller wants to test the hypothesis that storeowners will be more likely to scrutinize black customers who are exhibiting behavior that suggests shoplifting, compared to white customers who are exhibiting the same behavior. He trains five black and five white high school students to exhibit the same types of suspicious behavior, and sends them into 12 stores to act as trained. With hidden cameras, the storeowners’ scrutinizing behaviors are recorded. Fuller found that the storeowners were 1.72 times more likely to scrutinize the black customers as compared to the white customers who were exhibiting the same suspicious behaviors.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
6. Organization development consultant David Nadler was interested in developing a model of how large companies cope with restructuring in a competitive business environment. With a team of consultants, he followed the restructuring process of Xerox Corporation for two years. He interviewed the CEO and the top managers at Xerox. He observed the behavior and analyzed the speeches of the CEO and the top managers. Nadler and his team collated and interpreted the information they had collected, and wrote up a detailed account of Xerox’ restructuring process, along with a suggested model of the restructuring process in large companies.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
Yogesh Gupta wanted to test the hypothesis that sitting toward the front of large university classrooms can help students get better grades in courses. He randomly assigned the 400 students in the two sections of his astronomy course to seating positions in a large lecture hall. At the end of the semester, he compared students’ grades according to their assigned seating position, in terms of how close they were to the front of the lecture hall. Gupta found that grade in course did not vary according to seating position.
Research method: _________________
Explanation:
Explanation / Answer
1) Research method - Correlational (C)
Explanation - This is a corelational method because, the researcher (Cheryl Vance) does not have the control over the variables in the study. Here the two variables are - Type of car door and accident rate. out of which, type of car door is an independent variable and accident is the dependent variable.
Accident is depended on the type of the car door model the user is using. It is found that, two door car models accident rate is much higher than the four door car model.
Here, the researcher has no control over either of the variables. Hence, it is called Correlational research study.
2) Research method - Correlational (C)
Explanation - It is correlational because, the researcher has no control over the variables. The two variables are : marketing budget and market share. where, the marketing budget is an independent variable and market share is a dependent.
Market share is dependent on the amount of marketing budget. Higher the marketing budget, higher will be the market share. Here since the researcher has no control over any of the two variables, it is called correlational research study
3) Research method - Correlational (C)
Explanation - this is again a correlational method of research. The two variables are: size of company and turnover rate. The size of the company is an independent variable and turnover rate is the dependent. Here the researcher has no control over the variables.
The turnover rate of the company is depended in the size of the company. Smaller the size of the company, higher will be the turover rate and bigger the size of the company, lower will be the turnover rate. Hence the researcher has no control of either of the variables.
4) Research method - Qualitative/Observation (O)
Explanation - This is a qualitative research method because the researcher is actually researching whether the height of the person depends on the income he is drawing. This is not a controlled research. Researcher collects the data over a span of 5 years and then comes to a conclusion.
Here the variables are height and income. Height is an independent variable and income is dependent.
The researcher observes the relationship between the two variables over a period of time.
5) Research method - experimental (E)
Explanation - Here the researcher is observing the behaviour that the store owners exhibit when the black customers and the white customers arrive their shop. This is a controlled experiement where atleast one attribute can be changed by the researcher.
This experiemental research mainly used in the psychological research, to observe the cause and effect. Here the researcher is experimenting with the behaviour of the store owner when blacks or whites come to their store.
6) Research Method - Qualitative/Observatory (O)
Expalnation - the researcher is actually researching by the field method. There is no control group here. The researcher is using inductive reasoning, which means the reasoning from particular instances. Like it starts from observed data, developing generalizations which observes the relationship between the objects observed.
7) Research method - Experimental (E)
Explanation - The researcher is experimenting in a control group. he can change the independent variables. The placement of the students, the seating positions etc are all controlled. And the researcher can make a conclusion about whether the independent variable really effects the dependent variable.
Here, his comparision between the seating positions of the students and better grades are proved to be wrong
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