The Vocabulary of Research

What is Credibility?

• A researcher’s ability to demonstrate that the study is accurate based on the way the study was conducted.

What is the Data?

• Recorded observations, usually in numeric or textual form.

What is a Focus Group?

• A research tool where a small group of people are interviewed as a group for data collection.

What is Generalizability?

• The extent to which research findings and conclusions from a study can be applied to the population at large.

What is a Hypothesis?

A tentative explanation (educated guess) to predict an answer to research question.

What is an Interview?

• A research tool in which a researcher asks questions of participants; interview are often audio- or video-taped for later transcription and analysis.

What is a Likert scale?

• A scale used to assess attitude or opinion; subjects respond by indicating how strongly they agree or disagree with a statement provided.

What are Limitations?

• Natural conditions that restrict the scope of a study and may affect its outcome.

What are Mean, Median, and Mode?

• Mean- is the averaging of values.

• Median- is the center score in a distribution.

• Mode- The most frequent score in a distribution.

• All are basic forms of statistics.

What is Measurement?

• The operation that turns data into numbers.

What is the Population

• The target group under investigation.

What is a Problem?

• The topic being investigated once it has been refined.

What is a Range?

• The difference between the highest and the lowest scores in a distribution.

What is a Research Question?

• A sentence or paragraph that explains the purpose of a given investigation.

The purpose of this research was to study ………….

The purpose of this research was to study ………….

What is Random Sampling?

• Process used in research to draw a sample of the population strictly by change to be participants in a research.

What is Reliability?

• An index of the consistency of data or test results; results should very nearly be the same, time after time.

What is a Sample?

• A group selected from a much larger population.

What is a Standard Deviation?

• A term used in statistical analysis. A measure of variation between the scores of a distribution and the mean.

What is a Survey?

• A research tool that includes questions.

• It’s goal is to gain specific information.

What is a Theory?

• A set of propositions that explain the data.

What is Validity?

• The degree to which a measurement instrument measures what it is intended to measure (instrument)

• The degree to which a research study has true and accurate findings (research)

What is Internal Validity?

• The degree to which the effects of extraneous variables have been controlled in a study.

What is External Validity?

• The extent to which findings of a particular study can be generalized elsewhere.

What is a Variable?

• .Observable characteristics that vary among individuals.

Summary of Vocabulary

• Credibility Problem

• Data Range

• Focus Group Research Question

• Generalizability Random Sampling

• Hypothesis Reliability

• Interview Sample

• Likert Scale Standard Deviation

• Limitations Survey

• Mean, Median, & Mode Theory

• Measurement Validity

• Population Variable