Assignment: Working With Data

Statistical analysis software is a valuable tool that helps researchers perform the complex calculations. However, to use such a tool effectively, the study must be well designed. The social worker must understand all the relationships involved in the study. He or she must understand the study’s purpose and select the most appropriate design. The social worker must correctly represent the relationship being examined and the variables involved. Finally, he or she must enter those variables correctly into the software package. This assignment will allow you to analyze in detail the decisions made in the “Social Work Research: Chi Square” case study and the relationship between study design and statistical analysis. Assume that the data has been entered into SPSS and you’ve been given the output of the chi-square results. (See Week 4 Handout: Chi-Square findings).

To prepare for this Assignment, review the Week 4 Handout: Chi-Square Findings and follow the instructions.

BY DAY 7

Week 4 Handout: Chi-Square Findings
The chi square test for independence is used to determine whether there is a relationship between
the two variables that are categorical in the level of measurement. In this case, the variables are:
employment level and treatment condition. It tests whether there is a difference between groups.
The research question for the study is: Is there a relationship between the independent variable,
treatment, and the dependent variable, employment level? In other words, is there a difference in
the number of participants who are not employed, employed part-time and employed full-time in
the program and the control group (i.e., waitlist group)?
The hypotheses are:
H0 (The null hypothesis): There is no difference in the proportions of individuals in the three
employment categories between the treatment group and the waitlist group. In other words, the
frequency distribution for variable 2 (employment) has the same proportions for both categories
of variable 1 (program participation).
** It is the null hypothesis that is actually tested by the statistic. A chi square statistic
that is found to be statistically significant, (e.g. p< .05) indicates that we can reject the
null hypothesis (understanding that there is less than a 5% chance that the relationship
between the variables is due to chance).
H1 (The alternative hypothesis): There is a difference in the proportions of individuals in the
three employment categories between the treatment group and the waitlist group.
** The alternative hypothesis states that there is a difference. It would allow us to say
that it appears that the treatment (voc rehab program) is effective in increasing the
employment status of participants.
Assume that the data has been collected to answer the above research question. Someone has
entered the data into SPSS. A chi-square test was conducted, and you were given the following
SPSS output data: