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Pages:
1 page/≈275 words
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APA
Subject:
Health, Medicine, Nursing
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Essay
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English (U.S.)
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Week 6: Quantitative Research Designs—Part 2 Health, Medicine Essay

Essay Instructions:

Week 6: Quantitative Research Designs—Part 2
Reflect on the following scenarios:
Wanda has been involved in a research study of the causes of tooth decay in elementary school children. Twenty-five percent of the students in the free breakfast program at a local school have been screened by a local dental hygienist. The dental hygienist finds an average of 3.5 cavities per student. The same dental hygienist recently screened 25% of the students in a school with no free breakfast program, and found an average of only 1.5 cavities per student. Wanda concludes that the breakfast served to students is the cause of higher tooth decay. Do you agree with Wanda? Can you think of other causes for the higher number of cavities among the students from the school with free breakfast?
Jerry is conducting a phone survey to determine public opinions on Medicaid reform. In order to get a random sample, Jerry decides to call the tenth number on the second column of every fifth page of the phone book. He also decides to stop sampling when he has completed 50 surveys. After reaching the target number, Jerry begins to analyze the data he has gathered and is surprised to find that opposition to reform is running about 18% higher than the national average. He is at a quandary to explain this significant difference in numbers. What are some reasons you can think of for the higher rate of opposition?
As you consider these scenarios, you may note issues or problems related to the validity of the research and conclusions. This week, you assess validity in quantitative research. You are introduced to the different types of validity and why they are important to consider when evaluating evidence and research studies. You also examine common threats to validity and consider how to minimize those threats.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
Evaluate the internal validity of quantitative research studies
Assess the consequences of failing to analyze validity in quantitative research studies

Essay Sample Content Preview:

Qualitative Research Designs
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Wanda is correct about the free breakfast being the cause in the high number of students with cavities. The breakfast was the main variable in her research, and therefore, given that other factors are constant, the difference in the number of cavities in both school is caused by the free breakfast. Otherwise, the number would have been the same. In addition, other factors such as the kind of foodstuffs that the students use at home could be a reason as to why they have cavities. This is evident by the fact that despite one school lacking a free breakfast program, there are still cases of cavities. Hence, the breakfast is not the only cause. The validity of this research could have increased by adding more variable to help in the explanation of the outcome (Noble & Smith, 2015). It faces the threat of bias because three are other factors making the students from both schools different from one another.
Regarding Jerry's research, the high number of opposition to Medicaid reforms could have...
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