Credible Research Made Easy: A Step by Step Path to Formulating Testable Hypotheses

CREDIBLE

RESEARCH

MADE EASY

A Step by Step Path to Formulating Testable Hypotheses

DORCAS MLADENKA

iUniverse, Inc.

Bloomington

Credible Research Made Easy

A Step by Step Path to Formulating Testable Hypotheses

Copyright © 2012 by Dorcas Mladenka.

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ISBN: 978-1-4759-2030-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-2031-4 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 04/28/2012

Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Part 1 A Sample Project; Defining and Measuring Variables

PART 2 Formulating Hypotheses

PART 3 Collecting the Data

PART 4 Theoretical Distributions and Looking for Significance

PART 5 Completing Your Own Research Project

Appendix Outline and Notes for a Research Report

Acknowledgements

Here’s to my many students who have toiled through the course during my classroom career. Thanks for helping me keep my presentations (both written and spoken) clear and on task. I hope that your journey has taken you to a good place.

I owe a deep gratitude to Leslie (f.t.) and Marilyn. I hated you both for cutting me loose, but I guess it was time to get back on my own journey.

Thanks to Wikipedia and Stat Trek for the distribution images.

Finally, I could not have completed this new version without the strong and unfailing encouragement of my friend Chris.

Introduction

This workbook is designed to aid you in developing a total research project: from having in mind a specific subject to research (this is your dependent variable—DV) to the various influencing factors (your independent variables--IV) to determining the relationships among them. Your research will be credible to the extent that you determine significance of the influencing factors.

The workbook will take you through the steps of designing and completing a research project. This workbook illustrates, by way of a sample pretend research project, a step-by-step progression in determining the variables that may be influencing a specific subject of research, the gathering of data, and what it means to test the significance of that influence. To complete your own project you can use this sample to guide you through the steps. If you have