For each of the following scenarios, first identify and state the correct statistical test which should be used for the scenario, and then briefly explain why you chose this test or analysis in a few sentences. Do not include the scenario in your responses. present your answer using 4 APA reference.
- Scenario #1: A medical researcher was studying stress. The researcher collected the number of recent stressful life events from a randomly selected group of cardiac patients and another group of orthopedic patients from the same hospital. Since research has shown that stressful life events (marriage, new job, death of spouse, etc.) are associated with illness, the researcher proposed the following study question: Do cardiac patients experience more stressful life events than orthopedic patients? In this study the researcher used an instrument which measured stress from 0 to 100 points.
- Scenario #2: A political psychologist was interested in whether the community a person lives in is related to that person’s opinion on an upcoming water conservation ballot initiative. The psychologist surveyed 90 people by phone in three different communities, asking them if they are for, against, or have no opinion about the upcoming ballot. The research question was: Is opinion associated with community of residence? The researcher listed the name of the community and the answer to the question was recorded as for, against, or no opinion.
- Scenario #3: A hospital randomly contacts patients after their hospital stay in order to find out how the hospital is doing. Patients are asked such questions as how satisfied they were with the nursing staff, doctors, food, and facilities. Patients are also asked if they plan to recommend the hospital to family and friends. For this study the research question is: Is there a relationship between satisfaction and plans to recommend the hospital? For this project the hospitals satisfaction survey summarizes patient responses as: Very Satisfied, Satisfied, No Opinion, Dissatisfied, and Very Satisfied. For plans to recommend the hospital, the survey collects data using these possible responses: Will Definitely Recommend, Will Recommend, Unsure, Will Probably Not Recommend, and Will Definitely Not Recommend.
- Scenario #4: A dietician wanted to help her patients be more successful in losing weight. To that end, she developed a new diet plan. She advertised her study and was able to find 80 participants who fit the study requirements. She randomly assigned those participants to either follow her new diet for two months or to follow her standard meal plans. After two months, the participants returned, and she assessed the percentage of weight lost. Her research question was: Were the participants who followed the new diet program more successful in losing weight than those who followed the standard plan? The researcher collected the actual weight loss in pounds to the nearest 0.1 pound.
- Scenario #5: A researcher assessed the level of a particular hormone in the blood of five patients before and after they begin taking a hormone treatment program. The research question was: Was there a significant change in the level of this (named) hormone following the treatment program? This hormone is measured in nanograms per deciliter (ng/dl).
- Scenario #6: A nurse researcher noted that job satisfaction in registered nurses seems to decrease with longevity of experience working as a staff nurse on a medical-surgical floor. The researcher studied 250 nurses working their entire career on a medical-surgical floor. Their terms of service ranged from at least one full year to 35 years of full time employment. The researcher collected data on the number of months of full-time work and job satisfaction on an instrument which measures satisfaction on a scale of 0100, with 100 being the highest, very satisfied. The research question was: For full-time medical-surgical staff RNs, does the number of months of full-time employment predict job satisfaction level?
- Scenario #7: A researcher tested 10 individuals who had seen TV ads for a particular medication and another 9 individuals who had read an ad for the same medication in a magazine. All of these individuals took a multiple-choice test about the medication, which was scored as a percentage of correct answers. The researchers question was: Do people who see the ads on TV do better on this test compared to those who read the ads in a magazine?
- Scenario #8: A researcher was interested in determining the effects of different types of drugs on problem solving. The researcher randomly assigned 50 participants to take a depressant, 50 participants to take a stimulant, and 50 participants to take a placebo (i.e., sugar pill). All of the participants were given an hour to complete a set of simple arithmetic problems. Higher scores (scored as a percentage of correct answers) on the test indicated that more answers were correct. The researchers question was: Is there a difference between these groups in how many questions were answered correctly?
- Scenario #9: Sports rehabilitation specialists and physical therapists were interested in research on patient compliance with rehabilitation plans. Each patient was scored on compliance on a scale (having validity and reliability) from 0100 (as in percentage of compliance). The researchers collected information from patients in terms of their level of support, the severity of their injury, time frame for return to sports, and motivation to play sports again. These four different variables were collected using all types of data, nominal, ordinal, and scale data. The research question was: Can these variables predict the likelihood that patients will comply with rehabilitation plans?
- Scenario #10: A study compared felt intensity for unrequited love among three groups of people: 50 individuals who were currently experiencing unrequited love; 50 who had previously experienced unrequited love and described their experiences retrospectively; and 50 who had never experienced unrequited love but described how they thought they would feel if they were to experience it. Participants rated their feelings or how they think they would feel using the following scale: Extremely Sad, Very Sad, Sad, Indifferent, and Okay. The researchers question was: Is there a significant difference in felt intensity among these groups?