Application: Evaluation of Research Results
No research project or study is perfect. Studies that contain errors can produce unreliable or misleading results. As a consumer of research, you must be able to determine the quality of research and the credibility of the results. This might seem like a daunting task at first, but do not worry-the knowledge you have gained thus far in the course will help you. For example, you now know that it is incorrect to calculate the mean for an ordinal-level variable. So, if you read a study and note that the researcher calculated the mean for an ordinal-level variable, you should seriously question the quality of the research. Similarly, if sampling is conducted incorrectly, the results of the research will be relatively meaningless. To illustrate, suppose a researcher was interested in determining attitudes of American citizens toward the death penalty but sampled only 100 college students. If the researcher generalized the results to Americans instead of American college students, the study would lack external validity. In most studies, however, if you see that the research was conducted appropriately, you can have confidence in the results.
To prepare for this assignment:
• Review Chapter 14 of your course text, The Practice of Research in Criminology and Criminal Justice (5th ed.). Pay attention to the sections of a journal article. Think about the purpose of each section.
• Select and review one of the following three articles:
• "A Comparison of Latino and White Citizen Satisfaction With Police"
• "A Multilevel Analysis of School-Based Weapon Possession"
• "Convicting and Incarcerating Felony Offenders of Intimate Assault and the Odds of New Assault Charges"
• In the article you selected, pay attention to the degree to which the sample, sampling design, measures of central tendency, and variability were adequate. (Remember, there is no such thing as a perfect article-they all have limitations.)
The assignment (2-3 pages):
• Identify the article you selected.
• Explain the degree to which the sample and sampling design used in the article were adequate. Be specific.
• Explain whether or not the measures of central tendency in the article were appropriately used and why you arrived at this conclusion. Be specific.
• Explain whether or not the measures of variability in the article were appropriately used and why you arrived at this conclusion. Be specific.