The Report 1 assignment provides you with an opportunity to
conduct data analysis to test a health-related hypothesis of the relationship
between two variables from the class survey data and present your results as a
scientific write-up following the IMRaD format.
In this assignment, you will practice descriptive and
inferential analysis and graphing using variables of your choice from the Class
Survey data. You will write about your methods, results, and interpretation in
the IMRaD format. The overall goal is to convey scientific findings clearly and
accurately to a professional audience.
Report 1 requires the
following sections:
title
and author,
abstract,
introduction,
methods,
results
discussion,
and a
reference
list.
Section 1: Title and Author
Descriptive
Title: Brief descriptive title related to the hypothesized
relationship between the predictor and outcome. The title may imply
results or simply identify the topic area.
Author:
List your First and Last Name
Course: List
the Course Title and Semester (i.e. BBH 411 Spring 2020)
Section 2: Abstract
Write
a 4-5 sentence summary of the whole paper, briefly touching on the main
sections including the introduction, methods, results, and discussion.
Section 3: Introduction
The introduction should be one (1) to two (2) paragraphs
that provide background and context for the research question and corresponding
health-related hypothesis you developed to examine using class survey data.
This section must clearly state the hypothesis, the predictor variable, and the
outcome variable, as well as the anticipated direction of the relationship.
Specifically, include:
A
discussion of at least two supporting references that are cited
appropriately and included in the full reference list. You may draw upon
sources and articles that you have discussed in prior class assignments
and discussions or you may use new sources.
A
statement describing the research question.
The
precise hypothesis.
A
description of the predictor variable (name and concept, no data).
A
description of the outcome variable (name and concept, no data).
The
anticipated direction of the relationship between the variables. Remember
that in a direct relationship, if one variable increases, so does the
other or vice versa. In an inverse relationship, the variables will
increase or decrease in the opposite direction, or as one goes up the
other will go down.
A
discussion of the major reason(s) why the hypothesis might be true. In
other words, discuss the supporting evidence or prior research, related to
the hypothesis. Explain the reasoning.
Conclude
this introduction section with a statement explaining how the hypothesis
will be tested using survey data from a group of college students.
Section 4: Methods
The methods section should be approximately two (2) to three
(3) paragraphs and should address the following items:
Describe
the participants who provided data and the population from which they were
drawn.
Describe
how the survey was distributed to participants.
Describe
the survey measures. Specifically, state the survey question details for
how each question was asked, what was cleaned (if anything), and how it
was coded, if necessary.
Describe
the statistical analysis chosen for your hypothesis test(s). Justify each
choice of correlation, T-Test, ANOVA, or Chi-Squared based on the variable
scales of measurement. State whether variables were treated as categorical
or quantitative after coding. Provide the alpha level set as the threshold
for significance (i.e. p < .05). REMINDER: Do
not give results in this section; only describe the methods.
Section 5: Results
The results section describes the results of statistical
analyses and may include a graphical representation of the data. This section
will be approximately two (2) to three (3) paragraphs in length.
Provide
the overall sample size for the survey
Give
the statistics describing the typical responses for all
variables in your analysis.
Typical responses: These are descriptive
statistics and/or frequencies, as appropriate, based on the scale of
measurement of the variables.
Nominal and ordinal scale variables: Report
the valid percentage of responses for each response category.
Remember that the valid percent represents the percentage of people who
responded in each of the categories, not the entire sample.
Quantitative (numeric) variables: Report the
average (mean), the standard of deviation, and the units of the measure.
Hypothesis
Test(s)
Explain
the result of the test(s) of association between your predictor and
outcome variables. Be sure to note the predictor, outcome, and
significance. Provide the statistical details, including the test
statistic and its value, degrees of freedom and the significance level as
evidence to support the result you explained. Place these in parentheses
at the end of the sentence describing the results of the tests of
association.
Graphs/Figures
Create
histograms for each of your variables. Include simple captions to state
that the histogram shows a frequency distribution of that variable.
Make
a graph for your main hypothesis test, the primary focus of the study,
showing the relationship between predictor and outcome. Just like the
statistical test depends on the scales of your variables, the type of
graph does too. Include a caption describing the finding, similar to the
hypothesis test sentence, so include whether the effect was significant,
but also mention how many students provided data for that analysis and
remind the reader of who participated in the study.
Section 6: Discussion
The discussion section provides context to and an
interpretation of the study results. It also connects the study results to the
broader literature on the health topic. It will be between two (2) and three
(3) paragraphs in length. It must include a discussion of at least two relevant
scholarly sources. It should address these items:
State
the main results of the study.
Provide
context for the results.
If
the results were significant and consistent with the original hypothesis,
state that and make a connection to the original reason you thought the
predictor influences the outcome. Describe at least one alternative
interpretation for any relationship observed. In other words, suggest a
different but reasonable explanation for the results.
If
the original hypothesis isn’t supported, discuss possible reasons why.
Consider issues such as the effect was too small to be detected, or the
measures were not sensitive/specific enough, or there is too much
variability in the population, or other issues specific to the survey sample.
Thoughtfully
describe important limitations of examining the proposed relationship
according to the methods used for this report.
Conclude
with a sentence stating the bottom-line result of this study.
Section 7: Reference List
Write
proper references for the peer-reviewed scientific articles you used in
APA format.
Ensure
proper placement and the required information for parenthetical in-text
citations in APA format throughout the submission.
Written Response and Paper Format Directions
Prepare
your response in a word-processing document.
Your
complete essay should be a minimum of around 2
single-spaced pages (1-inch page margins and 12-point font), excluding
your reference list, name, and title; there is no maximum page
requirement.
Your
Report should include the following sections. You should present the
sections in the order below. Graph placement may vary for the best flow:
Title
and Author
An
abstract
Introduction
that provides background about the topic and data
Methods
Results
Graphs
with descriptive labels and/or sentences
Discussion
Reference
list
Cite
ALL references as appropriate using in-text citations as appropriate and
include a reference list at the end of your written summary. This includes
any of the instructional material included in this lesson or the course.
All answers and conclusions must be supported, as appropriate, with
evidence and resources/citations using APA. Reference the Writing
and Citation Resources for assistance, which can be found in
the Student Resources module.
Use a
professional writing style.
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