1. OCR Nationals Level 3 Unit 3 – Problem Solving
A01 Define a statistical
problem to be
investigated
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

2. Defining the Problem
Needs to be something that you can easily test (think in terms of access to participants and data)
Have a look at current events for inspiration or….
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

3. Miss Garey’s Inspirations
Social issues
Moral trends
Usage of ICT across generations
Opinions regarding current affairs
What ICT is used for
Media, TV and music
Health topics
Careers and the future
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

4. Defining the Problem (2)
After deciding on a topic, theme or area you must research the field before posing a question to investigate
Start broad and general and then focus down to the specifics
Reference anything you use
Your opinion doesn’t count!
Explore both sides to any argument
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

5. Some Research Terms
Variable –characteristic/property of person, object or situation
Quantitative Variable –measurable i.e. height, weight, IQ
Qualitative Variable –categories such as sex, nationality, blood type
Independent variable (IV) –what is being manipulated by the experimenter
Dependent variable (DV) –what is being measured during the experiment, supposedly influenced by the IV
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

6. More Research Terms
Extraneous Variable –outside scope of control that could influence outcomes
Correlation –exploring affect of 2 variables in a statistical test DOES NOT IMPLY CAUSATION!
Between subjects factors –participant is tested under only 1 condition
Within Subjects –same participants perform under both conditions (also termed repeated measures)
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

7. Hypotheses By now you should have decided what you want to investigate
You need to make SPECIFIC predictions about what the outcome of your investigation will be
It has to be testable by the gathering of data
Directive Hypotheses (one tailed) state what the outcome with be
Two Tailed Hypotheses state 2 alternative outcomes (either, or)
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

8. Defining the Problem Continued…
You now need to identify your project objectives and set your own success criteria
Show awareness of the Data Protection Act when it comes to collecting, storing and reporting data
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

9. Types of Data
1) interval data –measurements on independent scale with units
2) ordinal data –ranks/sequencing of information
3)nominal/categorical data –qualitative categories
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

10. All investigations are either…
Quantitative –measurable statistically, countable, i.e. closed question surveys, multiple choice, test conditions, empirical, scientific
Qualitative –observation notes, open questioning, discourse analysis, transcript analysis
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010

11. To complete A01… You must cover all of these points:
identify the problem
• explain background to the problem
• set a hypothesis e.g. ‘Young people with Internet access at home do better at school’
• identify project objectives and success criteria
• identify data to be collected and the method(s) of processing
• demonstrate an awareness of the Data Protection Act 1998
D.Garey
Spring Term 2010