Forming the Method Subjects Instruments or apparatus Procedures Design and analysis The Method section explains how the study was conducted and should allow a competent researcher to reproduce the study.

Planning the Method Used to eliminate any rival hypotheses Is shoe size related to math scores for grade-school children? Subjects-  Children in grades 1 to 5 Instrument  Standardized math test and shoe measuring device Procedure  Each subject foot was measured and every subject completed a standardized math exam Design and Analysis  Shoe size and math score were correlated to determine the relationship Figure 1. Relationship of academic performance and shoe size of children Grades 1-5.

Maximizing Results Maxicon Principle Maximize variance to increase the odds that a real relationship will be discovered Minimize error to reduced the mistakes that contaminate the data in your experiment Principles of Planning KISS – simple is better Less is More

Describing the Subjects Number tested Number of dropouts Males vs. females Age (mean and standard deviation) Height and Weight (mean and std. dev.) Any other important characteristics pertinent to the study

Describing Instruments What are the validity and reliability of the measures How difficult is it to obtain the measures Is the equipment available, does it work Do you have the skills to administer the tests Can you evaluate subject’s performance Will the tests yield a reasonable range of scores Will your subjects spend the time to take the tests

Describing Procedures When, where, how much time Do you have pilot data? How will you manage the data When, where, how much time Do you have pilot data? How will you manage the data How long, how intense, how often How will subject adherence to treatments be determined Do you have pilot data to show how subjects respond Are the treatments appropriate How long, how intense, how often How will subject adherence to treatments be determined Do you have pilot data to show how subjects respond Are the treatments appropriate Collecting the DataPlanning the Treatments

Avoiding Errors in Experiments Reduce the number of people involved in the experiment Minimize, standardize and randomize the contact the researchers have with the subjects Pilot all your procedures

Describing Design and Analysis A description of how the independent variables are varied in each treatment Good designs allow the dependent measure to change without bias A description of the variables tested Descriptive information about your groups (means and standard deviations) The statistical tests to establish group differences DesignAnalysis