Deck 5: Purpose Statements, Research Questions, and Hypotheses: Identifying the Intent of a Study

Question 1

Which of the following best represents a central phenomenon in qualitative research?

A) The age of the participant
B) A single concept
C) Stages in adolescent development
D) Measures of self-esteem

Answer 1

B

Question 2

What is the dependent variable?

A) Social interaction
B) Self-esteem
C) Metropolitan school district
D) Junior high students

Answer 2

A

Question 3

What is the central phenomenon being studied?

A) Difficulties in elementary classrooms
B) Science teaching
C) Novice teachers
D) Science concepts

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Who are the participants in the study?

A) Social interaction
B) Metropolitan school district
C) Junior high students
D) Self-esteem

Question 5

Identify the central phenomenon in this qualitative purpose statement. "What meaning do boys in junior high ascribe to being overweight?"

A) Boys
B) Junior high
C) Meaning
D) Being overweight

Question 6

What is the independent variable?

A) Amount of information retained
B) Type of testing situation
C) Number of words spelled correctly
D) Grade level

Question 7

When qualitative researchers refer to the intent of the study as "emerging" they are referring to

A) The new participants they will seek to interview
B) The changing nature of the central phenomenon
C) The gradual focusing of the research questions
D) The uncertain characteristic of what they are studying

Question 8

What is the dependent variable?

A) Type of testing situation
B) Number of words spelled correctly
C) Amount of information retained
D) Grade level

Question 9

Which is the central question that this study addresses?

A) How does Jane teach science?
B) What concepts of science does Jane bring to the classroom?
C) What is the process of activities in Jane's room?
D) All of the above

Question 10

Types of leadership styles, such as autocratic, consensus-building, and transformational, are examples of what type of scores on a variable?

A) Categorical scores
B) Continuous scores
C) Leadership scores
D) Central scores

Question 11

The difference between a hypothesis and a research question is that the hypothesis:

A) Predicts what the researcher will expect to find
B) Is only used to compare groups on a variable
C) Is a statement of fact rather than a question
D) Requires statistical testing in a research study

Question 12

What characteristic below distinguishes a quantitative research question from a research hypothesis?

A) One is a purpose of the study and the other is a question
B) One is a question and the other is a prediction
C) One is a question and the other is an exclamation
D) One is objective and the other is subjective

Question 13

What is another name for an outcome variable?

A) Dependent variable
B) Independent variable
C) Predictor variable
D) Treatment variable

Question 14

Which one of the following is NOT a variable?

A) Self-concept
B) Age
C) U.S. citizen
D) Gender

Question 15

What is the independent variable?

A) Metropolitan school district
B) Self-esteem
C) Social interaction
D) Junior high students

Question 16

What is a confounding variable?

A) A variable that cannot be easily explained
B) A variable that cannot be directly measured
C) A variable that contradicts what one expects to find
D) A variable that describes an outcome

Question 17

Indicate whether the characteristic of the research question indicates a central question or a sub-question or both). Place an "X" in the appropriate columns).

Indicate whether the research purpose indicates a quantitative or qualitative or both) approach. Place an "X" in the appropriate columns).

Question 18

Why do researchers use theories in quantitative research?

A) They prove which variables influence an outcome
B) They eliminate confounding variables
C) They indicate the probable relationships among variables
D) They indicate the study's overall purpose