Aims and Hypotheses
Aims in psychology refer to the specific goals or purposes of a research study, outlining what the researcher hopes to achieve. Hypotheses, on the other hand, are specific, testable predictions about the relationship between variables in a study. Aims guide the overall direction of the research, while hypotheses provide a framework for testing specific predictions.
5 Key excerpts on "Aims and Hypotheses"
eBook - ePubIntroducing Research and Data in Psychology
A Guide to Methods and Analysis
- Ann Searle(Author)
- 2002(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...This means deciding two things: • the precise area of the study; • what the study is actually trying to achieve. First in your report the aim should be stated reasonably precisely. ‘The aim of this project is to look at gender differences’ is too vague: what area of gender differences? what does ‘look at’ mean? Second you should explain the purpose of the study. Is it to extend or replicate someone else’s work? to test a hypothesis based on a certain theory? to test an idea of your own? This has to be explained. Hypotheses A hypothesis is a prediction or testable statement which a researcher aims to test to see if it is supported or rejected. You will come across different types of hypotheses: • the research hypothesis; • the alternative hypothesis (also called the experimental hypothesis); • the null hypothesis. The research hypothesis is a general prediction made at the beginning of the study as to what you expect will happen. It is usually written at the end of the introduction. An example might be ‘Short term memory declines with age’. The alternative (or experimental) hypothesis is the operational statement of the research hypothesis. That means that it actually states the precise behaviours or responses that are going to be used to measure the variable under investigation. An example for the above research hypothesis might be ‘Digit span for numbers in people over seventy years of age is shorter than digit span for numbers in people under twenty years of age’. The alternative or experimental hypothesis is what we hope we will find to be correct. It is a precise statement in terms of the measurements that will actually be made. The null hypothesis is the hypothesis that a statistical test actually tests. Siegel (1956) calls it ‘a hypothesis of no differences’. An example might be ‘There is no difference in the digit span for numbers in people over seventy years of age and in people under twenty years of age’...
eBook - ePub- Pam Denicolo, Lucinda Becker(Authors)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- SAGE Publications Ltd(Publisher)
...The aims and objectives provide the terms of reference for your project, the aims stating the purpose or intent of the research. The aim derives from the problem/s noted in the literature review and may address a: disputed area (theoretical or philosophical) within the literature, seeking to resolve it; neglected area, seeking to identify characteristics and their relationships; topic previously accepted as understood but now identified as having flaws in logic or analysis, to rectify understanding; gap in knowledge, to bridge or fill the void; gap between an observed state and some preferred or normative state (for example, one that meets legal requirements or professional standards), to identify how a change from one to another might be effected. The aim should ostensibly be feasible and also should take into account any specialist knowledge and/or skill and/or available opportunity (such as access to a particular data source) that you, the researcher, has, in order to reach the defined solution or answer to the research problem. Most importantly, the aim should focus on a research problem that is worthwhile addressing. As we said previously, there are many ‘interesting’ questions but the focus for any proposal that requires the use of scarce resources (including your time) should be constructive and productive. In particular, during a period of austerity in the UK at the time of writing, research councils and other funders want to be convinced of the potential of the research to make a ‘significant impact’ of some kind before they will part with money. Objectives specify outcomes that contribute to and are necessary for the attainment of the aim. These outcomes need to be specific (precise), clearly defined (identifiable) and tangible (observable and preferably measurable in some way)...
eBook - ePubEducation, Ethics and Experience
Essays in honour of Richard Pring
- Michael Hand, Richard Davies, Michael Hand, Richard Davies(Authors)
- 2015(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...In some reports, aims are stated only generically (‘to gain knowledge about x ’, ‘to explore y ’). Others set out research procedures (‘to survey’, ‘to test hypothesis h through intervention i ’) but stop short of anticipating the outcomes and the nature of the claims to be made on the basis of the evidence so gathered. A lack of clarity about aims and claims in research reports hinders the ability of readers to judge their quality and relevance. An intention of this chapter is to remind readers not only that the pursuit of any kind of research aim is fraught with philosophical and practical difficulties, but also that the articulation and discussion of these difficulties are far from common practice in the reporting of empirical educational research. This may be one source of the disputes about its quality, trustworthiness and relevance. Another intention is to suggest that these difficulties need not discourage researchers from aspiring towards coherence of their aims, warrants and claims. The discussion will engage with arguments from recent work by Richard Pring (Pring, 2015, 2012, 2007 ; Oancea and Pring, 2008). Aims, research questions and claims of research Oancea and Pring, following Stenhouse, define research as ‘the systematic gathering of evidence … or indeed (as in philosophical research) the systematic analysis of the conceptual framework within which that evidence is gathered, with a view to answering certain questions’ (Oancea and Pring, 2008, p.23; Stenhouse, 1975). Any answers generated are subject to constant challenge and refinement. Empirical research questions arise from initial states of epistemic perplexity, puzzlement, doubt or wonder, but also from practical problems and normative conflicts, as well as from existential experiences such as repression, despair or anxiety...
eBook - ePub- S Alexander Haslam, Craig McGarty(Authors)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- SAGE Publications Ltd(Publisher)
...First, it should be capable of accounting for multiple facts. Second, it should allow researchers to generate predictions about what will happen in novel situations. The purpose of most psychological research is to test these predictions using scientific methods. These predictions are often presented in the form of hypotheses. Hypotheses are statements about the causal relationship between particular phenomena (although, as we will see in Chapter 8, the term ‘hypothesis’ has a slightly different meaning when it relates to certain aspects of statistical tests). In other words, they are statements of cause and effect that say how one thing affects another. Broadly speaking, almost all psychological research is conducted in order to establish whether particular hypotheses are true or false. Often these hypotheses are derived from (or used to develop) psychological theory, but they do not necessarily have to be. They will often be tentative statements, too, particularly in the early stages of theory development. Research Bite 2.2 The rise of big data One of the major consequences of the rise in digital technologies in recent decades has been the accumulation of so-called ‘big data’ associated with the complex digital footprint that people create through various forms of activity and behaviour (e.g., shopping, using social media, carrying mobile phones). As Gandomi and Haider (2015) observe, these data can be characterized in terms of six Vs: its volume, variety and velocity, as well as its veracity, variability (i.e., complexity) and value. They make the point, though, that without appropriate tools to analyse and make sense of such data it is largely worthless. Alongside advanced statistical techniques, psychological theory has a significant role to play in this process. Reference: Gandomi, A., & Haider, M. (2015)...
eBook - ePubConducting a Survey
Techniques for a Term Project
- Lawrence T. Orcher(Author)
- 2016(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...However, it is not necessary to formulate a hypothesis before undertaking a survey. Hypotheses should be formulated only if the researcher believes he or she can predict the outcome of the survey. Practical versus Theoretical Underpinnings The underpinnings of the purpose for a survey may be of a purely practical, applied nature. For instance, a survey on the hours of operation of the college cafeteria might be conducted for the practical purpose of determining which hours will best suit the needs of students. On the other hand, the underpinnings of the purpose for a survey may be of a theoretical nature. A scientific theory 3 is a unified explanation of how variables relate to each other and why they do so. A survey that contributes to the understanding of a theory makes a contribution to a broader understanding of an issue than a survey that is conducted only for practical decision-making purposes. In addition, the explanations provided by theories can serve as the underpinnings for a research hypothesis (i.e., a hypothesis that, if confirmed, would support the theory). Issues in formulating research purposes and research hypotheses and their practical and theoretical bases are explored and illustrated in more detail in Chapter 3. Locating Related Literature and Writing a Literature Review On almost any broad problem area, there is a large volume of related literature, often published in academic journals. This literature should be examined at the same time that the problem area is being narrowed and the research purposes or hypotheses are being formulated because interesting ideas for a term-project survey can often be found in such literature. In addition to getting topic ideas by surveying literature, ideas can be obtained for methods to use in conducting a survey on a particular topic...
