Research Questions

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Research Questions

  • Research Questions

  • Building Research Questions

When are Research Questions Used?

Why Research Questions Matter

  • Research questions guide what data you collect
  • They determine which statistical methods you can use
  • Good questions lead to clear, interpretable results
  • Weak questions lead to confusion, bias, or unusable data

What Is a Research Question?

A research question is a clear, focused, and answerable question about a population or process that can be addressed using data.

In statistics, research questions usually involve:

  • Variables
  • Populations or samples
  • Comparisons, relationships, or patterns

Research Questions vs. Topics

Topic:

  • Social media use

Research Question:

  • Is there a relationship between daily social media use (hours) and GPA among college students?

Key Components

A strong research question clearly specifies:

  1. Population (Who or what?)
  2. Variables (What is measured?)
  3. Type of relationship (Comparison, association, trend)
  4. Context (Where, when, under what conditions?)

Identifying the Population

Ask:

  • Who am I studying?
  • Is this a group I can realistically collect data from?

Examples:

  • College students at a university
  • Registered voters in a county
  • Products manufactured on a given day

Identifying Variables

Variables must be:

  • Observable
  • Measurable

Common types:

  • Quantitative (height, income, test scores)
  • Categorical (gender, major, treatment group)

Example:

  • Sleep duration (hours)
  • Exam score (percentage)

Statistical Research Questions

Most intro statistics questions fall into one of these categories:

  • Descriptive
  • Comparative
  • Relational (associational)

Building Research Questions

  • Research Questions

  • Building Research Questions

Identify Topics

First identify topics you are interested in learning more about.

Construct Research Questions

Based on your topic, construct 2-3 research questions related to your topic.

Key Components

Does your research question meet these components:

  1. Population (Who or what?)
  2. Variables (What is measured?)
  3. Type of relationship (Comparison, association, trend)
  4. Context (Where, when, under what conditions?)