Research Question Development

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Research Question Development
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Instructions for the Assignment

• 100 Points 1 full letter grade
• Due Wednesday, September 11th at 100
• Instructions and sample on class website
• Develop two research questionsone qualitative
  and one quantitativeusing the formulas presented
  in class.
• For one of these questions, find at least three
  relevant peer-reviewed scientific articles. Cite
  all three following APA guidelines. For each
  article, list the three key elements and write
  out the question using our formula.

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Purpose of the Assignment

• Practice formulating clear, concise, and
  unambiguous research questions.
• Practice searching for scholarly articles.
• Practice formatting citations according to APA
  6th Edition guidelines
• Practice identifying key elements in other
  researchers workso you can specify the research
  question even if they cant.

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3 Key Elements for Quant. Qual.

• Quantitative Research Questions
• 1. Variables
• 2. Relationship between them (type of study)
• 3. Subjects
• Qualitative Research Questions
• Central phenomenon
• Participants
• Setting

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Examples of Quantitative Questions

• What is the median household income for
  residents of Nashville?
• What is the relationship between final grade
  and overall course evaluation for Vanderbilt
  students in 2011?
• What is the effect of consuming Airborne
  Effervescent Health Formula on the incidence of
  colds and flu among UCLA undergraduates?

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Examples of Quantitative Questions

• What is the median household income for
  residents of Nashville?
• What is the relationship between final grade
  and overall course evaluation for Vanderbilt
  students in 2011?
• What is the effect of consuming Airborne
  Effervescent Health Formula on the incidence of
  colds and flu among UCLA undergraduates?

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Examples of Qualitative Questions

• What knowledge, skills, and dispositions do
  U.S. employers value most in recent graduates?
• How is the HOD major perceived by Vanderbilt
  undergraduate students in Arts Sciences?
• Why do teachers with less than three years
  teaching experience choose to leave the field?

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Examples of Qualitative Questions

• What knowledge, skills, and dispositions do
  U.S. employers value most in recent graduates?
• How is the HOD major perceived by Vanderbilt
  undergraduate students in Arts Sciences?
• Why do teachers with less than three years
  teaching experience choose to leave the field?

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Quantitative Example 1

• This experiment evaluated effects of calorie
  information on college students fast food
  choices. Women chose lower calorie meals, lower
  calorie items, and lower priced meals when
  calorie information was provided than when it was
  not. Mens selections were unaffected. Providing
  calorie information at point of purchase could
  have positive implications for public health.

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Quantitative Example 1

• This experiment evaluated effects of calorie
  information on college students fast food
  choices.
• Quantitative Research
• Calorie information and fast food choices
• Causal
• Male and female college students in U.S.

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Quantitative Example 2

• Faculty members are frequently unaware of their
  students' perceptions of their teaching. Data
  collection consisted of handing out index cards
  to students on which they were to write
  anonymously five annoying teaching habits that
  they noticed in their professors. Undergraduate
  data from three different institutions were
  compared. Results indicated that students
  perceived disorganized teaching, talking too fast
  for students to process information, lecturing in
  a monotone voice, and degrading students were
  professors' most annoying habits. No specific
  patterns of annoyance were discerned.

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Quantitative Example 2

• Faculty members are frequently unaware of their
  students' perceptions of their teaching
• Quantitative Research
• Annoying teaching habits of faculty members
• Descriptive
• Undergraduate students at three U.S. colleges

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Quantitative Example 3

• Two hundred fifty-two male female students
  (mean age 19.9 yrs) completed the Parental
  Attachment Questionnaire, the Multigroup Ethnic
  Identity Measure, the Multigenerational
  Interconnectedness Scales, and the Student
  Adaptation to College Questionnaire. Results from
  Asian, Asian Indian, Black, Hispanic, and White
  participants revealed sex differences in
  predicting college adjustment. Implications for
  college counselors are discussed.

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Quantitative Example 3

• Two hundred fifty-two male female students
  (mean age 19.9 yrs) completed the Parental
  Attachment
• Quantitative Research
• Parental attachment, multigroup ethnic
  identity, multigenerational interconnectedness,
  student adaptation to college, and college
  adjustment
• Correlational
• 252 Asian, Asian Indian, Black, Hispanic, and
  White male and female students in the U.S.

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Qualitative Example 1

• The Internet is increasingly being used as a tool
  for communicating and learning in primary schools
  across many developed and developing countries.
  The place of social chat as part of online
  interactions has as yet not been fully recognized
  as an important component of learning. In this
  paper, the interactions of students in a Sydney
  primary school are examined focusing on the role
  that social chat plays as part of the online
  learning process. Here it is found that social
  chat allows for the development of related skills
  and knowledge and is an important precursor to
  more formal learning.

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Qualitative Example 1

• The Internet is increasingly being used as a tool
  for communicating and learning in primary
  schools
• Qualitative Research
• The role social chat plays in online learning
• Australian primary school students
• Sydney primary school and home?

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Qualitative Example 2

• This study examines the factors influencing
  consumption of local food and beverages in
  destinations. The study used grounded theory to
  obtain insight into the local food experiences
  though interviews with 20 individuals and used
  these data to propose a model of local food
  consumption. The model constitutes three
  categories motivational factors (i.e. exciting
  experience, escape from routine) demographic
  factors (i.e. gender, age, and education) and
  physiological factors (i.e. food neophilia and
  food neophobia). This study established an
  in-depth understanding of food consumption of in
  destinations.

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Qualitative Example 2

• This study examines the factors influencing
  consumption of local food and beverages in
  destinations.
• Qualitative Research
• Factors influencing consumption of local food
  and beverages in destinations
• 20 individuals of various nationalities
• United Kingdom