The problem of assessing whether experimental results can be replicated is becoming increasingly important in many areas of science. It is often assumed that assessing replication is straightforward: All one needs to do is repeat the study and see whether the results of the original and replication studies agree. This article shows that the…

The problem of assessing whether experimental results can be replicated is becoming increasingly important in many areas of science. It is often assumed that assessing replication is straightforward: All one needs to do is repeat the study and see whether the results of the original and replication studies agree. This article shows that the…

Reproducibility crises have arisen in psychology and other behavioral sciences, spurring efforts to ensure research findings are credible and replicable. Although reforms are occurring at professional levels in terms of new publication parameters and open science initiatives, the credibility and reproducibility of undergraduate research deserves…

Structured means analysis is a very useful approach for testing hypotheses about population means on latent constructs. In such models, a z test is most commonly used for testing the statistical significance of the relevant parameter estimates or of the differences between parameter estimates, where a z value is computed based on the asymptotic…

Could the research you read be fundamentally flawed? Could critical defects in methodology slip by you undetected? To become informed consumers of research, students need to thoughtfully evaluate the research they read rather than accept it without question. This second edition of a classic text gives students the tools they need to apply critical…

Learning about statistics is a lot like learning about science: the learning is more meaningful if you can actively explore. This eighth installment of "Explorations in Statistics" explores permutation methods, empiric procedures we can use to assess an experimental result--to test a null hypothesis--when we are reluctant to trust statistical…

This case study describes the research carried out in partial fulfilment of the degree of doctor of education. The study was qualitative in nature with a phenomenological interpretive paradigm. My primary objective is to share my experience of combining life story and grounded theory research. My main objectives for undertaking the research were…

Formal inference, which makes theoretical assumptions about distributions and applies hypothesis testing procedures with null and alternative hypotheses, is notoriously difficult for tertiary students to master. The debate about whether this content should appear in Years 11 and 12 of the "Australian Curriculum: Mathematics" has gone on…

We surveyed researchers in the health and exercise sciences to explore different areas and magnitudes of bias in researchers' decision making. Participants were presented with scenarios (testing a central hypothesis with p = 0.06 or p = 0.04) in a random order and surveyed about what they would do in each scenario. Participants showed significant…

A field-based, soil methods, and instrumentation course was developed to expose graduate students to numerous strategies for measuring soil parameters. Given the northern latitude of North Dakota State University and the rapid onset of winter, this course met once per week for the first 8 weeks of the fall semester and centered on the field as a…

In cluster-randomized trials (CRTs) of social work interventions, groups are assigned to treatment conditions. Conducting a power analysis ensures that enough groups are sampled for testing hypotheses. The power analysis method and inputs must be informed by the hypotheses, effects to be tested, and the data analysis plans. The authors present a…

This report examines the differences in impact estimates and standard errors that arise when these are derived using state achievement tests only (as pre-tests and post-tests), study-administered tests only, or some combination of state- and study-administered tests. State tests may yield different evaluation results relative to a test that is…

In 4 studies, the authors examined the hypothesis that the structure of the informational environment makes small samples more informative than large ones for drawing inferences about population correlations. The specific purpose of the studies was to test predictions arising from the signal detection simulations of R. B. Anderson, M. E. Doherty,…

This article builds on an earlier discussion of the importance of the Type II error (beta) and power to the hypothesis testing process (CE 511 484), and illustrates the methods by which sample size calculations should be employed so as to improve the research process. (Author/CT)

Behavioral scientists often wish to determine if a sample has been taken from a symmetric population. Similarly, classroom teachers are interested in symmetry if they wish to grade on a "curve." Previously, the sign test, the Wilcoxon test and the t-test have been used to test a hypothesis concerning the symmetry of a distribution of…