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The
following pages provide an outline for presenting the results of your research. Regardless of the specific format you or others
use, the key points to consider in reporting the results of research are:
1) Clearly state the research question up front
2) Completely explain your assumptions and method
of inquiry so that others may duplicate the study
3) Objectively and accurately report the results
of your analysis
4) Present data in tables that are
a) Accurate
b) Complete
c) Titled and documented so that they could stand
on their own without a report
5) Correctly reference sources of information and
related research
6) Openly discuss weaknesses/biases of your
research
7) Develop a defensible conclusion based on your
analysis, not personal opinion
The
following outline may be a useful guide in formatting your research report. It incorporates elements of the research design and
steps for hypothesis testing (in italics). You
may wish to refer back to this outline after you have developed an understanding of
hypothesis testing.
I.
Introduction: A definition of the central research question
(purpose of the paper), why it is of interest, and a review of the literature related to
the subject and how it relates to your hypotheses.
Elements:
Purpose
statement
Theory
Abstract
concepts
II.
Method: Describe the source of the data, sample
characteristics, statistical technique(s) applied, level of significance necessary to
reject your null hypotheses, and how you operationalized abstract concepts.
Elements: Independent
variable(s)
and level of measurement
Dependent
variable(s)
and level of measurement
Assumptions
Random
sampling
Independent
subgroups
Population
normally distributed
Hypotheses
Identify
statistical technique(s)
State
null hypothesis or alternative hypothesis
Rejection
criteria
Indicate
alpha
(amount of error you are willing to except)
Specify
one or two-tailed tests
III. Results:
Describe the results of your data analysis and the implications for your hypotheses. It should include such elements as univariate,
bivariate, and multivariate analyses; significance test statistics, the probability of
error and related status of your hypotheses tests.
Elements: Describe sample
statistics
Compute
test statistics
Decide
results
IV.
Conclusion: Summarize and evaluate your results. Put in plain
words what your research found concerning your central research question. Identify alternative variables, implications for
further study, and at least one paragraph on the weaknesses of your research and findings.
Elements: Interpretation
(What do the results mean?)
Weaknesses
V.
References: Only include literature you cite in your report.
VI. Appendix: Additional tables and information not included in
the body of the report.
In
the professional world, presentation is almost everything.
As a result, you should develop the ability to create a one-page summary of
your research that contains one or more tables representing your key findings. An example is given below:
Survey
of Customers |
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Customer
Characteristics |
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Sex |
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Age |
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Total
(1) |
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Female |
Male |
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18-29 |
30-39 |
40-49 |
50-59 |
60+ |
Sample
Size -> |
3686 |
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1466 |
2081 |
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1024 |
1197 |
769 |
493 |
98 |
%
of Total (1) -> |
100% |
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41% |
59% |
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29% |
33% |
22% |
14% |
3% |
Margin
of Error
-> |
1.6% |
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2.6% |
2.2% |
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3.1% |
2.8% |
3.5% |
4.4% |
9.9% |
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Staff
Professional? |
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Yes |
89.4% |
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89.6% |
89.5% |
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89.5% |
89.4% |
89.5% |
89.6% |
90.0% |
No |
10.6% |
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10.4% |
10.5% |
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10.5% |
10.6% |
10.5% |
10.4% |
10.0% |
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Treated
Fairly? |
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Yes |
83.1% |
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82.8% |
83.8% |
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82.6% |
83.0% |
83.5% |
84.3% |
87.9% |
No |
16.9% |
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17.2% |
16.2% |
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17.4% |
17.0% |
16.5% |
15.7% |
12.1% |
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Served
Quickly? |
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Yes |
71.7% |
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69.3% |
74.1% |
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73.3% |
69.3% |
72.1% |
74.2% |
78.0% |
No |
28.3% |
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30.7% |
25.9% |
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26.7% |
30.7% |
27.9% |
25.8% |
22.0% |
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(1)
Total number of cases is based on responses to the question concerning being served
quickly. Non-responses to survey items cause the sample sizes to vary. |
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