2022 Introduction to Statistics in Research Mitchell 2nd ed

I N T R O T O R E S E A R C H : D A T A V I S U A L I Z A T I O N & C O M M O N S T A T T E S T S

Refine topic, frame a problem, develop a hypothesis As you refine your topic and evaluate your research, consider your construct and your operational definition. A construct can’t be “ directly observed or measured ” (Ibid, 2022, p. 64). A person’s weight is precise and objective, but how would you operationally define personality, self-esteem, shyness, or plagiarism? There is no one right answer; there are lots of ways to measure these constructs. As a researcher, we use a construct as an abstract concept to help explain a “phenomenon.” Constructs can be simple or complex. But what a research must do is determine an operational definition. According to Adams & McGuire, an operational definition is “ the explicit explanation of a variable in terms of how it is measured or manipulated” (2023, p. 64). It is how a researcher determines data collection. It should be a clear, concise definition of a measure. DePoy & Gitlin (2020), add “Construct validity addresses the fit between the constructs that are the focus of the study and the way in which these constructs are operationali zed” (p. 125). 2) What about this topic… is relevant to my practice? 3) What about this topic … is unresolved in literature? 4) What is my preferred way of… coming to know about the topic? Do you know the common database used in your discipline? 5) What link to societal or professional purposes does this topic serve? 6) What resources do I have to investigate this topic? (p. 62). A hypothesis for Clifton Strengths Scenario: Lots of work needs to be done before we develop a hypothesis since research questions should be guided by a hypothesis. For example in the Clifton Strengths scenario, we want to know if teams perform better if employees are added intentionally (presumably using the strengths of each team member) instead of employees randomly assigned to teams. We have several things to consider here. If management takes the time to know the strengths of each employee, this might impact performance as much as the new team interaction! So, does intentional formulating teams using CliftonStrengths leads to better performance? And how would we test or measure better performance. Clearly, we need to evaluate lots of literature before we get to a working hypothesis. And remember a hypothesis is stated as a relationship between variables. Just as a hypothesis alerts a reader to a quantitative approach, it should prompt the writer to include a discussion of the theory, the assumptions underlying the theory, and a bridge to how the hypothesis is grounded in a theoretical framework. DePoy & Gitlin (2020) suggest six guiding questions to help you refine a topic: 1) What about this topic… interests me?

Question 1: Which phrase best represents an operational definition of plagiarism?

A) Including a phrase of more than 3 words from another source without citing the source. B. Making a higher grade than expected. C. Not paraphrasing properly. D. Copying work. Answer: D (Adams & McGuire, 2022, p. 21)

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