Building Blocks of Research Process

Chapter 2:Alan Monroe

Theories, Hypotheses, and Operational Definitions (17)

Theory: Concept 1 is related to Concept 2

Hypothesis: Variable 1 is related to Variable 2

Operational Definition: How variables are measured

Theories, Hypotheses, and Operational Definitions (17)

Example: Modernization Theory

Theory: economic development is related to political development

Hypothesis: The more industrialized a nation, the greater the level of mass political participation.

Operational Definition: The higher percentage of manufacturing jobs, as measured by United Nations Yearbook, the higher the percentage of people who voted in the last national election, according to the Stateman’s Yearbook.

Theories, Hypotheses, and Operational Definitions (17)

Theory It is a set of empirical generalizations about a topic. It

is too general to test since it makes statements about the relationship between abstract concepts.

To test a theory, it has to be brought down to more specific terms. (17)

Theories, Hypotheses, and Operational Definitions (17)

HypothesesThis is done by testing hypotheses, which is an empirical

statement derived from a theory. They are statements about variables.

Variables:They are empirical properties that can take on two or more different values.

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Theories, Hypotheses, and Operational Definitions (17)

Operational DefinitionBut even variables are not specific enough. Each variable

in a hypothesis must have an operational definition, that is, a set of directions as to how the variable is to be observed and measured.

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Types of Hypotheses (19)

Univariate: making a statement about only one property or variable. (19)

Multivariate: a statement about how two or more variables are related.

Most hypotheses are multivariate and Directional, that is, they suggest not only how the variables are related but what the direction of the relationship is. (19)

Types of Hypotheses (19)

Types of Directional Relationships: Positive/Negative

Positive: variables move in the same direction: as income rises, so does voting

Negative (or Inverse): Variables move in opposite directions: as income rises, homelessness drops.

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Theoretical Role (20)

In most multivariate hypotheses, each variable takes on a particular theoretical role.

Independent Variable: the cause of something

Dependent Variable: the effect

It is not always easy to determine the IV and DV.

Control Variables: when they are used the intent is to ensure their effects are excluded.

Variables are property of the unit of analysis: the objects that the hypothesis describes.

Units of Analysis (22)

Two common Units of Analysis:

Individuals: Indicates either people in general, or a specific type of

person (elected official, union member, etc). It can also refer to institutions, such as interest groups, corporations, political parties. What you are doing is looking at how an “individual” unit, a person, a party is behaving.

Groups: Analyze group behavior, such as performance on some

test. You don’t go down to the individual. How did Democratic state legislators vote on a particular issue, as

a group? …

Ecological Fallacy: (22-23)

Ecological Fallacy erroneously drawing conclusions about individuals from groups. Solution: only draw conclusion about the units of analysis from which the data is actually drawn.

Example of Ecological Fallacy: Student found a strong positive (directional) relationship

between proportion of a county that was Afro-American and those that voted for George Wallace and assumed Afro-Americans voted for Wallace.

In fact, virtually no minorities supported Wallace. All the student really could say is that counties with a high number of Afro-Americans voted for Wallace. The county, not Afro-Americans was the unit of analysis.

Operational Definitions (25)

Testing a hypothesis requires precise operational definitions specifying how each Variable will be measured. If a variable cannot be operationally defined, it cannot be measured.

Operational Definitions: Two Requirements: 1) It must specify what we want to know2) And where (or how) we will get that information.

EXAMPLES: Levels of Research: (18)

Theory: Concept 1 is related to Concept 2 Hypothesis: Variable 1 is related to Variable 2Operational Definition:

Theory: economic development is related to political development

Hypothesis: The more industrialized a nation, the greater the level of mass political participation.

Operational Definition: The higher percentage of manufacturing jobs, as measured by United Nations Yearbook, the higher the percentage of people who voted in the last national election, according to the Stateman’s Yearbook.

EXAMPLES: Levels of Research: (18)

Theory: Economic status effects political participation Hypothesis: The higher a person’s income, the more likely

they are to voteOperational Definition: The higher someone’s income is,

as determined by a poll, the more likely they are to say they vote, on the same poll.

Examples of Units of Analysis and IV and DV:

Hypothesis: The better the state of the economy, the greater the proportion of votes received by the party of the president.

Independent Variable: State of the EconomyDependent Variable: proportion of votes Unit of Analysis: Elections Hypothesis: The more negative the advertising in a

Senatorial campaign, the lower the turnout rate. Independent Variable: negativity of ads Dependent Variable: turnoutUnit of Analysis: US states (elections)…

Examples

Hypothesis: Media attention is necessary for a candidate to succeed in a primary election.

Independent Variable: media attentionDependent Variable: electoral successUnit of Analysis: elections

Hypothesis: Southern states have less party competition than Northern states.

Independent Variable: regionDependent Variable: party competitionUnit of Analysis: states

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