A researcher is interested in measuring how many hours Penn State students study on an average night. So she sends a survey by email to randomly selected students (equal numbers of males and female) on a Saturday afternoon. The survey asks the students to report how many hours they spent on coursework the previous evening (Friday). Based on this information, what should the researcher be most concerned about?

A researcher needs to think about what needs to be measured or observed in order to obtain data relevant to their research question and hypothesis. This occurs during which phase of the research cycle?

What is a representative sample? Explain why it is important that researchers strive to obtain representative samples.

Your response needs to consist of three parts. Make sure you answer all three of the following: Part I. First, indicate whether it is an example of a “good” or “bad” research question. Part II. Second, provide a brief explanation as to why you chose your response “good” or “bad.” Part III. Third, if you determined the question was a “bad” research question, rewrite it as a “good” research question. If you determined the question was a “good” research question, rewrite it and attempt to make it even better. SAMPLE RESEARCH QUESTION: “Is number of same sex friends related to social competency?”

To be scientific, a hypothesis needs to be _________________ and ____________________.

According to Penn State’s policies: Plagiarism is the act of stating or implying that another person’s work is your own. You commit plagiarism if you:

Instructions: Read the research question presented below.Your response needs to consist of three parts. Make sure you answer all three of the following: Part I. First, indicate whether it is an example of a “good” or “bad” research question. Part II. Second, provide a brief explanation as to why you chose your response “good” or “bad.” Part III. Third, if you determined the question was a “bad” research question, rewrite it as a “good” research question. If you determined the question was a “good” research question, rewrite it and attempt to make it even better. SAMPLE RESEARCH QUESTION: “What causes depression?”

A researcher uses a method whereby every individual in the population of interest has an equal chance of being included in the sample. This sampling process is best described as __________________________.

You are designing an observational research study. First, provide your initial idea in the form of a research question. Next, translate that idea into a research hypothesis. Finally, identify your variables of interest and label what type of variable each is.

During what phase of the research cycle do researchers translate their ideas into testable research questions?