1. Describe the type of research used in this study (Exploratory or Descriptive or Explanatory). What type of research was used? Provide the reference.
The type of research used in this article was exploratory. The authors wanted to explore what was causing preschoolers to behave a certain way. What contributed to internalizing behavior problems? Was it familial factors or academic factors? In their article, Internalizing Problems in At Risk Preschoolers: Associations with Child and Mother Risk Factors, Burlaka, Bermann, & Graham-Bermann (2015) outlined an quantitative research design involving 183 preschoolers from 15 Head Start school programs which were recruited …show more content…
To get an accurate analysis of the data, they studied the correlation between internalizing behavior problems and possible risk factors. The researchers used the standard deviation, reliability and mean from their study which provided them with numerical data to be analyzed statistically. This methodology was appropriate because it allowed the researchers to examine the possible cause and effect of internalizing behaviors problems. Therefore, using numbers allow researchers to make generalizations about their findings.
5.Was the population studied clearly identified? Who were they? What sampling method was used? Was the sampling appropriate? Why or why not?
Yes, the population was clearly identified. They included 183 children (including parents): 90 males and 93 females from 15 Head Start programs in the Midwest. They interviewed the parents in home, the teachers completed TRF forms, and confined in the social workers that was knowledgeable about the services received from the preschoolers’ family. The methodology used was appropriate because each person involved may be able to observe a behavior in a child that the other person might have not noticed. The sampling method used was a cross sectional and non-experimental design. Using a cross sectional, non-experimental design was appropriate because it allowed the researchers to examine the correlation between both variables without manipulations, …show more content…
What concerns related to validity and reliability (measurement) faced the researcher? In the article, the researchers stated that one concern of validity and reliability was the cross sectional design. This was a concern because there were limitations to the study and causal connections could not be made. For example, the researchers could have compared Head start and non- Head start children to eliminate implications. On the other hand, the TRF demonstrated high reliability and validity because they included compound variables of clinical and non-clinical children.
7. What concerns related to validity (internal and external) may have faced the researcher?
One concern related to internal and external validity the researchers faced was, according to the article, previous studies reported that internalizing behavior was higher in females. However, Burlaka et al (2015) found that this type of behavior was higher in males. Additional measurement should be assessed to clarify whether symptoms are independently associated with male