Deck 14: Communicating Quantitative Research

Question 1

What does "prose" refer to, in the context of research writing?

A) text placed in a nonfictional document
B) sentences in the body, footnote, and appendix of a document
C) footnotes to charts that provide more information on the chart
D) the introduction or summary section of a research document

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following types of presentations is not ideal for organizing a lot of numbers?

A) prose
B) chart
C) table
D) visuals

Answer 2

A

Question 3

A research website was created to store data on specifications and quality measures of cell phones of different brands. The site was developed primarily to be a data source for research. Which type of presentation is best suited for the website?

A) visualizations
B) prose
C) tables
D) charts and graphs

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which presentation type is best suited to showing a trend or pattern, rather than precise values of numbers?

A) prose
B) graphs
C) bulleted text
D) tables

Question 5

Which presentation tool is best suited to present research results to the general public?

A) 3D visualizations
B) prose with appendix
C) multiaxis graphs
D) simple tables and charts

Question 6

What should be always included in the title, label, or footnote of every table and chart?

A) the year the study was done
B) the W's of the research study
C) the table or chart sequence
D) the reference to external sources

Question 7

What is the function of a "topic sentence" in quantitative research?

A) state the title of the primary topic of the study
B) provide an introduction to the context of a research study
C) introduce the 'W' or issue that is discussed in a paragraph
D) declare the purpose of the study in a summary section

Question 8

"The gross domestic product of Ukraine rose from $112 billion in 2017 to $154 billion in 2019, a growth rate of 37.5% in 2 years (Table 9.1)". What type of sentence is this called in quantitative research?

A) evidentiary sentence
B) topic sentence
C) introductory sentence
D) referential sentence

Question 9

What is a transition sentence in expository writing?

A) sentence that begins the conclusion section of a paper
B) sentence to steer the reader from one topic to another
C) sentence that transitions from one value to another
D) sentence to end the body of a research paper

Question 10

What are the three factors essential to reporting on numbers?

A) give the appropriate "W", context, and values
B) have an introduction, body, and conclusion
C) specify context, procedure, and units
D) state the objective; report, and interpret numbers

Question 11

The power and precision of research writing can be enhanced by appropriate vocabulary and which of the following?

A) synonyms
B) analogies
C) adverbs
D) antonyms

Question 12

When reporting a percentage or proportion, which phrase should be included after the value being reported?

A) "of" which item
B) "that is" which category
C) "o" number of decimals
D) "rounded to" which integer

Question 13

Which fact must be specified in reporting a rate of occurrence?

A) ratio value
B) the rate
C) time period
D) units of ratio

Question 14

When reporting rank order of values, which factor is not captured in the ranking?

A) direction
B) magnitude
C) external comparison
D) max and min

Question 15

Which of the following words, used in reporting a subtraction between two numbers, indicate the direction of the calculation?

A) margin
B) gap
C) absolute value
D) surplus

Question 16

In 2019, drivers between the ages of 18-25 years had three road incidents times more incidents than drivers aged 50 years or more. What is wrong with this statement?

A) Ratio should be stated without units.
B) Ratio should be stated with decimals.
C) Ratio should be given as a fraction.
D) Ratio should be given as 1:3.

Question 17

The mean height of students in college A was 72% as high as students in college B. How would this statement be interpreted as?

A) College B had lower mean height.
B) College A had higher mean height.
C) College A had lower mean height.
D) College B height was 72% larger.

Question 18

What is a key requirement in describing the distribution of a nominal variable?

A) data table or chart
B) a reference category
C) variable composition
D) a pie chart with % of whole

Question 19

In reporting on a quantitative distribution, what component enables a better description of the distribution?

A) data shown in bar charts
B) ratio variables rounded to integer
C) data shown in numeric order
D) a 3-D visual of the data

Question 20

Other than describing the general pattern or shape of a continuous variable distribution, what other components of the distribution are usually presented? Choose the best answer.

A) measures of central tendency and spread
B) R-square statistic of the variable
C) outlier values of the variable distribution
D) standard error of the variable

Question 21

What is a cross-sectional comparison?

A) comparison of categories of a variable
B) comparison of groups against a reference group
C) comparison of two nominal variables
D) comparison of outcome value across categories

Question 22

What is the definition of a trend?

A) positive increase in values of a variable
B) relative change over time in a variable
C) absolute differences in a variable over time
D) decrease in variable value over fixed time points

Question 23

A telecommunications company had defined the minimum signal strength required for mobile phones in decibels (dB), for each of the geographical regions of its network. What is this minimum signal strength termed as in research studies?

A) minimum value
B) modal unit
C) threshold
D) reference

Question 24

What is the approach, developed by the author, to describe complex patterns in data known as?

A) normalization, shape, example
B) generalization, visualization, outlier
C) association, min, max
D) generalization, example, exception

Question 25

When is a value considered an anomaly in the context of describing a complex pattern in data?

A) direction, magnitude, significance is different from general pattern
B) size is inversely proportional to defined shape of the data
C) value exceeds the 75th quantile of the variable distribution
D) association measures between variables are very weak

Question 26

When describing a data pattern involving multiple variables, the researcher should address the individual "trees" or research questions, rather than the overall 'forest'.

Question 27

When describing a complex pattern using the "generalization, example, exception" approach, each major research question should be addressed by a topic sentence, and organized into separate paragraphs.

Question 28

A research article for a research audience could be in the format of an infographic document.

Question 29

A document presenting the results of a research study for a lay audience needs to include topic sentences, but may or may not have evidentiary sentences in its prose.

Question 30

A research study was conducted on the effects of changes in make/model factors on vehicle insurance premiums. The findings of this study was presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Actuaries. The audience at this presentation could be termed as an applied audience.

Question 31

A document for applied audiences is generally formatted to place the research process and technical details in sidebars or appendixes.

Question 32

A document prepared for an academic audience, could also be used for an applied audience.

Question 33

Prose, tables, and visualizations should complement each other in a research document, and not be used in supplementary ways.

Question 34

The results of a regression analysis with a dependent variable and two independent variables were presented in line charts showing each independent variable on the x-axis and the dependent variable on the y-axis. The two charts were a good representation of the analysis results.

Question 35

Each paragraph in a research paper should present and interpret information on one topic of the overall research question.

Question 36

Explain what "setting the context" means in writing a research paper? Provide an example.

Question 37

Give an example of a topic sentence that you would write in a research paper. Explain the components and purpose of such a sentence.

Question 38

Explain the relationship between a topic sentence and an evidentiary sentence. Illustrate with the help of an example.

Question 39

What type of sentence is the following: "Is driving distance to work related to probability of a road incident?" Explain your answer.

Question 40

What does the phrase "interpreting numbers" mean in the context of quantitative research?

Question 41

In interpreting univariate statistics or an association between variables, what are the differences in interpretation between nominal and quantitative variables? Explain with an example.

Question 42

Discuss the importance of a reference group or value when interpreting numbers. Give an example.

Question 43

In what context is it appropriate to use percentages or proportions as a measurement level? Give an example.

Question 44

Discuss situations where it is appropriate to use measures of rank in reporting and interpreting numbers. Illustrate with an example.

Question 45

What are the key factors to keep in mind when describing the distribution of a nominal variable? Explain your answer.

Question 46

Refer to the research article you chose in answering the essay questions for chapter 13. Comment on the prose, tables and charts given by the authors in presenting their research results. Were these tools used effectively in presenting the findings of the study? Give an example of where they were appropriately used, and where their usage could be improved upon.

Question 47

Refer to the research article you used in Question 1. Identify and comment on the topic sentences used to explain the hypothesis of the study. Would you revise any of these topic sentences for better clarity? Explain your answer.

Question 48

Refer to the research article you used in Question 1. Discuss the extent to which the "generalization, example, exception" technique was used in the article to describe the patterns and associations in the data used in the study. How would you improve on implementing the technique for this study?