a. Identify two variables to study – one independent variable and one dependent variable.
b. Explain why you picked these variables as the independent variable and dependent variable.
c. Provide a STRONG hypothesis that clearly explains the relationship between these two variables.
Research Proposals
Monica is an avid twitter user and follows several political activists. She starts to wonder about the relationship between people who use twitter and their involvement with political activism. What variables should she use to study this relationship? What should her independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Monica to test.
Rachel wants to know the recent rise in mass shootings can shape the public’s view on gun control. What variables should she use to study this relationship? What should her independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Rachel to test.
Phoebe wants to know if “money can buy you happiness.” What variables should she use to study this relationship [hint: you will need to help Phoebe define/operationalize the concept of happiness]? What should her independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Phoebe to test.
Ross wants to know if commuting to campus impacts how students perform in their classes. What variables should he use to study this relationship? What should his independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Ross to test.
Joey has decided to stop eating meat and animal byproducts and has embraced a vegan diet. He starts to wonder about the relationship between income levels of neighborhoods and people’s access to organic or fresh vegetables. What variables should he use to study this relationship? What should his independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Joey to test.
While Chandler sits in traffic on the 57 freeway, he starts to wonder if weather impacts whether or not drivers exhibit road rage. What variables should he use to study this relationship? What should his independent and dependent variables be and why? Provide a possible hypothesis for Chandler to test.
Sample Solution
Independent variable and one dependent variable
A variable is any factor, trait, or condition that can exist in differing amounts or types. An experiment usually has three kinds of variables: independent, dependent, and controlled. Two examples of common independent variables are age and time. There`s nothing you or anything else can do to speed up or slow down time or increase or increase or decrease age. An example of a dependent variable is height. If you want to see which type of fertilizer helps plants grow fastest, add a different brand of fertilizer to each plant and see how tall they grow. Independent variable will be the type of fertilizer given to the plant and the dependent variable will be the height of the plant.
Two children were both in a Teaching Family Model group home and both have been institutionalized there for a little over seven years (McGee et al., 1983). One of the participants was fifteen years old, and the other participant was twelve years old (McGee et al., 1983). Incidental teaching occurred daily in the kitchen for a 45-minute session in the kitchen during preparation for lunches (McGee et al., 1983). The teacher would ask the student, “Are you ready to make sandwiches?” or a similar question to inquire readiness (McGee et al., 1983). When the child looked at the teacher without any off task or self-stimulatory behavior, the teaching procedure was initiated and the incidental teaching began (McGee et al., 1983). There was also generalization in the study across settings, just as standard incidental teaching, but only modified to aid the severe deficits in the children. The results yielded benefits that are similar to that of standard incidental teaching procedures because if the rapid acquisition and the promotion of generalization (McGee et al., 1983).
At times it is difficult to use prompts when teaching children with ASD new skills because they can be prompt dependent; however, it is difficult to not use any prompts because they are needed to teach the skill. Incidental teaching is a procedure, which aids the children to learn the skills in a natural environment, but there also isn’t a need for continual prompts (Hart and Risley, 1975). McGee et al. (1999) showed that incidental teaching generates less prompt dependency because the teacher prompts them to elaborate on that initiation, rather than starting with a word that was chosen randomly by the teacher that does not hold the child’s interest. It is important to have at least a prompt level system in placed in order to maintain a procedure that is not prompt dependent (McGee et al., 1986). Incidental teaching also generalizes across different settings and people without prompt dependence. The study completed b