RESEARCH STUDY 10.1
In previous studies, Dr. Schulenberg has established that finding meaning in one's everyday work activities can lead to greater success in the workplace (e.g., productivity, creativity). He is curious as to whether this can happen in the college classroom. Specifically, he is curious whether finding meaning in one's classroom experience can lead to greater academic performance. In the spring semester, he has his teaching assistant randomly assign half the class to write a paragraph each class period about how the material has meaning for their lives (meaning group). The other half writes a paragraph about what they did to prepare for class (preparation group). He does not know which of his students are writing which paragraph, and the students are not aware they are different writing assignments. To measure academic performance, he gives the students a midterm essay exam and a final exam.
-Refer to Research Study 10.1 above to answer the following question. Imagine that in Dr.Schulenberg's study,he notes that all of the students do extremely well on the midterm exam.When he looks at the results of the final exam,he notices that all the students' exam scores went down.Which of the following pattern of results would suggest that there is a threat to internal validity?
A) The final exam scores were lower in the preparation group than the meaning group.
B) The final exam scores were equally low in both groups.
C) The final exam scores were lower than those of students in his fall semester class.
D) The final exam scores were lower than the final exam scores of students of his colleague, Dr. Fao.
E) None of the above would suggest a threat to internal validity.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

If the final exam scores were equally low in both the meaning group and the preparation group, it would suggest a threat to internal validity because it would mean that the writing assignment did not have any effect on academic performance. This could be due to factors outside of the study such as the difficulty of the final exam or extraneous variables that were not controlled for. In contrast, if one group did better than the other, it would provide support for the idea that the writing assignment had an effect on academic performance. Therefore, the lack of difference between the groups would indicate a weaker study design. Choices A, C, D, and E do not necessarily suggest a threat to internal validity.

RESEARCH STUDY 10.1 In Previous Studies, Dr. Schulenberg Has Established That Finding Meaning