POS 3703 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Null Hypothesis, Circular Reasoning, Truism

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14 Oct 2016
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Dependent variable: something that varies in a sample; outcome of interest. Independent variable: cause variations; do not try to explain why it varies. Dependent variable is always on the y-axis. You (cid:373)ust keep this straight; the (cid:272)o(cid:373)puter (cid:449)o(cid:374)"t sa(cid:448)e you. Specify the unit of analysis: who/what are you studying. Explains why something interesting varies (we care about the dv) Assert the direction or tendency of the difference. Avoid circular logic or truism (a defining characteristic is not a cause) Can help us answer more than one question. A testable statement that explains why a dependent variable varies based on the independent variable. Derived from our explanation of how things work. In a comparison of [unit of analysis], those having [one value on the independent variable] will be more likely to have [one value on the dependent variable] than will those having [a different value on the independent variable]. You can vary form, but maintain function.

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