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Research Questions, Hypotheses and Variables Revised October 2, 2008 11:40 pm
Patrick Dunlea-Jones MSc Environmental Planning & MSc Urban Renewal Page 1
Research Questions, Hypotheses,
代写essay Variables, Methodology and Structure
1 Definition:
1. [n] a tentative theory about the natural world; a concept that is not yet verified but that if true would
explain certain facts or phenomena; “a scientific hypothesis that survives experimental testing becomes
a scientific theory”; “he proposed a fresh theory of alkalis that later was accepted in chemical
practices”
2. [n] a message expressing an opinion based on incomplete evidence
3. [n] a proposal intended to explain certain facts or observations
2 Overview
⇒ Topics:
→ Sources of Research questions
→ Example questions
→ Hypotheses
→ Statement Hypotheses
→ Criteria for evaluating hypotheses
→ Operational definitions
→ Types of variables
→ Methodology
→ Structure
3 Sources of research questions in Environmental Planning and
Urban Renewal
In general terms the research questions may originate from the following:
⇒ Personal experience
⇒ Social concerns
⇒ Program or policy issues
⇒ Test predictions from theories
⇒ Conflicting results in research literature
Specifically the questions may:
⇒ Identify some element of theory (e.g. some aspect of planning theory or design theory) that is
interesting or controversial and to devise a research programme to test this theory, perhaps in a
different context from the one in which it was originally devised.
⇒ Identify some phenomenon (e.g. some social economic or environmental problem) and to devise a
research programme that seeks to find a satisfactory theoretical explanation for the phenomenon.
Research Questions, Hypotheses and Variables Revised October 2, 2008 11:40 pm
Patrick Dunlea-Jones MSc Environmental Planning & MSc Urban Renewal Page 2
⇒ Refer to aspects of policy (e.g. some facet of planning policy or local economic development
policy) and to devise a research programme that evaluates the policy and leads to
recommendations for change.
⇒ Focus on an historical event and to explore the implications of that on future developments.
4 Example questions
⇒ Does airport expansion encourage urban and economic growth at the expense of environmental
degradation?
⇒ Is group study for a university planning theory course more effective for learning than studying
individually?
⇒ How have lecturers assessment practices in Environmental Planning changed since the
implementation of distance learning?
5 Hypotheses
⇒ A hypothesis is a prediction about how something works or why things happen the way they do.
⇒ They represent predictions or tentative answers to your research questions.
What Is a Real Hypothesis?
A hypothesis is a tentative statement that proposes a possible explanation to some phenomenon or
event. A useful hypothesis is a testable statement which may include a prediction. A hypotheses should
not be confused with a theory.
Theories are general explanations based on a large amount of data. For example, the theory of evolution
applies to all living things and is based on wide range of observations. However, there are many
things about evolution that are not fully understood such as gaps in