MA2 APPLIED LINGUISTICS 2016

Quantitative methods

Mohamed Jabeur

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LECTURE FOUR

Developing hypotheses

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OUTLINE
Introduction
1. Inspiration
2. Intuition
3. Wallas’s four stages
4. Definition
5. Hypothesis checklist
6. Research question or hypothesis
7. Research question
8. Hypothesis types
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INTRODUCTION
Inspiration
Reasoning & hypothesis
Writing a hypothesis
Testing a hypothesis

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1. INSPIRATION
Genuine interest
Emotional engagement
Exploration
Reading
Discussion
Critical thinking
Play
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2. INTUITION

Instinct vs. Intuition

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INSTINCT
‘Instinct as an innate
inclination toward a particular
behavior (as opposed to a
learned response)’.

Francis P. Cholle The Intuitive Compass 2011)

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INTUITION
‘Intuition as a process that gives us
the ability to know something
directly without analytic reasoning,
bridging the gap between the
conscious and nonconscious parts of
our mind, and also between instinct
and reason.’
Francis P. Cholle The Intuitive Compass 2011

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Louis Pasteur Doctor, Inventor, Chemist, Scientist 
(1822–1895)

Pasteurization. Vaccination for anthrax and rabies.

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‘Dans les champs de
l'observation le hasard
ne favorise que les
esprits préparés.’
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3. WALLAS’S FOUR STAGES
 Preparation: Interest &
assembling available
information on the topic
 Incubation: meditation
 Illumination: Emerging idea
into consciousness
 Verification
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4. DEFINITION
Tentative statement about the
relationship between two or
more variables.

Logical, specific, testable

prediction.
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 5. HYPOTHESIS CHECKLIST

 Hypothesis based on your

research?

 Can Hypothesis be tested?

 Hypothesis with independent &

dependent variables? 14
 HYPOTHESIS (= plural hypotheses)
A plausible explanation to be tested

LAW
Widely accepted, true & predictive

THEORY

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THREE COMPONENTS
 
Variables

Population

Relationship between
the variables
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6. RESEARCH QUESTION OR HYPOTHESIS
Hypothesis if:
Quantitative
Experimental
Prediction
YES Quantitative hypothesis
NO Qualitative question

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7. RESEARCH QUESTION
oAbout one issue.
oClear and concise.
oAddresses an important

controversial and/or an
unresolved issue.
o Feasible to undertake within a
specific timeframe.
o Adequately resourced. 18
UMBRELLA QUESTION

How effective are the adult

care services in Tunis in
meeting the needs of adult
patients with cancer and
their families?

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RELATED QUESTIONS
 What are the patients’ needs and do they
think that they are being met by the
specialist care team?
 What are the needs of the families/carers
&do they think that they are being met?
 If these needs are not being met, what
are the interventions needed to give the
patient and their carers/families a
satisfactory quality of life?
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8. TYPES

H1: ALTERNATIVE HYPOTHESIS

H0: NULL HYPOTHESIS

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9. HYPOTHETICO-DEDUCTIVE METHOD
 Identify the hypothesis to be tested.
 Generate predictions from the
hypothesis.
 Use experiments to check whether
predictions are correct.
 If the predictions are correct, then
the hypothesis is confirmed. If not,
then the hypothesis is disconfirmed.

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10. HYPOTHETICO-INDUCTIVE METHOD
Specific observations

Data analysis

General principle
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11. EXAMPLES

H1: Tomato plants exhibit

a higher rate of growth
when planted in compost
rather than in soil.

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H0: Tomato plants do not
exhibit a higher rate of
growth when planted in
compost rather than soil.

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Worker satisfaction
increases worker
productivity.

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Childhood obesity is tied to
the amount of sugary drinks
injested daily

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There is a positive
correlation between the
availability of hours for work
and the productivity of
employees

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Amount of sun exposure will
increase the growth of a
tomato plant.

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12. OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS

Scientific experimentaion as the intersection

between ideas (psychological world) &
behaviour (physical world).

‘It redefines the concept in terms of clearly

observable operations that anyone can see and
repeat.’

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13. MEASUREMENT

Validity
(Accuracy)

Reliability
(Consistency) 33
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