Research Methodology into Ratio Analysis of HSBC Bank

Research Methodology into Ratio Analysis of HSBC Bank In this project my aim is to analysis the Ratio Analysis to find financial position of the HSBC bank by using the financial tools and also to know the functions of Internet Banking System in HSBC Bank. This study based on financial statement such as Ratio analysis and financial performance. This project helps to identify and give suggestion the area of weaker position of business transaction in HSBC. This study is made to evaluate the Ratio analysis as per trend analysis. Here I have given the Title, Aim, Objectives of the project, Introduction and background of the company chosen. It also gives the summary regarding the literature review, methodology using for the research, data collection methods and data analyzing procedures. Introduction: Finance is very essential for every business to run successfully. To run the business every organization will need financial support. In our present economy finance is defined as the provision of money at the time when it is required. Every enterprise whether big or small needs finance to carry on its target. In fact finance is so indispensable today. It can be said as blood of an enterprise. Without adequate finance no enterprise can possible accomplish its objectives. In the early years of its evolution it was treated synonymously with the rising of funds. In the current literature pertaining to financial management a broader scope so as to include in addition to procurement of funds efficient use of resources is universally recognized. Nowadays internet is widely used by all sectors of people. Today bank has introduced various facilities through internet. E-Banking is a revolution that changes the banking system around the world. E-Banking is more comfortable for the customers and bank. Title: Critically analyzing the ratios of HSBC bank to study the financial performance of bank during 2010-2011 and also study the functions of internet banking system in HSBC bank. Aim: To study the financial performance of HSBC bank by analyzing the financial ratios from the past five years financial data and also study the role of internet banking system in HSBC bank. Objective of the study: To analyze and evaluate the financial performance of HSBC Bank To study the growth of HSBC in terms of comparative analysis and trend analysis of financial statements for the past five years, from 2006 to 2010. To study the roles of Internet Banking in HSBC To review the benefits of internet banking to customer and bank To make suggestions recommendations for improving the financial position Rationale: Personal Rationale: As I am a finance student, am very much interested in doing the ratio analysis of the company because of that we can able to know the financial performance of any company. I am very eager to know the financial status of the HSBC bank always. Because this bank is globalized bank, it is in every part of the world. Now it has introduced the lot of facility in Internet banking that benefits the customers. I have the relationship with the bank for the past five years. So, I personally interest in doing with HSBC Bank financial performance and internet banking sector. Organizational Rationale: As it is bank, we have wide range of information available in website, articles, journals, magazines and newspapers. HSBC employees are very friendly to their customers. They are always ready to explain their roles of internet banking system. For the financial data, we will able to get the financial statement from their website so there is no lack of information availability. Policy Rationale: The system and the procedures followed by the HSBC bank is also one of my interests to choose the HSBC bank. This bank follows the banking rules and regulations given by the government and fair trade practice. Thats make the customer safety banking. In internet banking system, there are many options for doing the transaction easily and safely. Academic Rationale: There are more resources available for doing this work. There are many financial books available to elaborate the ratio analysis. We have studied in deep about the ratio analysis and Internet banking system. IMPORTANCE OF THIS STUDY The subject matter of financial management is of immense interest for every financial analyzer. It needs special attention because of the complexities involve in managing cash in present day banking function. The important aspect is the estimation of how much of finance. The business organization requires and for what purpose. The most important area of financial management is the working capital management. Here the study tries to reveal the banks position and performance by evaluating the relationship between various components parts of financial statements. Ration analysis has been taken as a tool in assessing the performance of the company in respect of the following aspects. Liquidity Position .Long-term solvency. Profitability. Activity. This study helps to know the usage and the benefits of internet banking system This study helps to study the functions of internet banking in UK HSBC bank Literature Review: 1 RATIO ANALYSIS Ratio analysis is one of the techniques of financial analysis where ratios are used as a yardstick for evaluating the relationship between component parts of financial statements to obtain a better understanding of the firms position and performance. It is used as tool by the company or individual to analysis the quantitative performance of the company financial statement. Meaning Ratio is relationships expressed in mathematical terms between figures which are connected with each other in some manner. Ratio will be calculated from current year figures and it is compared with previous year in order to know the financial performance of the company. It is defined as the systematic use of ratio to interpret the financial statements so that the strengths and weaknesses of a firm as well as its historical performance and current financial condition can be determined. The importance of ratio analysis relies in the fact that it presents facts on a comparative basis Conclusions can be drawn regarding the liquidity position of a firm. It is useful for assessing the long-term financial viability of a firm. It throws light on the degree of efficiency in the management and utilization of its assets. It helps in inter-firm comparison and also with industry averages. Liquidity Ratios: It is the ratio which is used to determine the companys capacity to pay its short- period debt obligations. If the value of the ratio is high, then the margin of safety will become high so that the company able to cover its short term debts. Liquidity ratio includes Current ratio, Quick/Acid ratio and Operating cash flow ratio. Current Ratio It is a quantitative relationship between current assets and current liabilities and indicates and enterprises ability to meet the current obligation. Current assets refer to liquid resources and must be sufficient enough to pay current liabilities when they mature. A relatively high current ratio is an Indication that the firm has ability to pay its current obligations in time as and on the other hand a relatively low current ratio represents that the firm shall not be able to pay its current liabilities in time without facing difficulties. An increase in the current ratio represents improvement in the liquidity position of a firm while a decrease in the current ratio indicates that there has been deterioration in the liquid assets of the firm. The ratio equal to the rule of thumb is 2:1. Quick/Acid Test Ratio: The ratio is ascertained by companys liquid assets and current liabilities. Here liquid assets are those assets which are immediately convertible in to cash without much loss. It is also known as liquidity ratio. It shows the ability of the enterprise to meet its short term obligation without sale and collection of inventories. LeverageRatios: It is the ratio which is used to calculate the financial leverage of the company inorder to know the methods of financing using by the company and to measure the ability of the company to meet its financial obligations. Debt-equity Ratio This ratio indicates the relative proportions of debt and equity in financing the assets of a firm. One approach is to express the debt-equity ratio in terms of the relative proportion of long-term debt and shareholders equity. The debt considered here is exclusive of current liabilities. It is an important tool of financial analysis to appraise the financial structure of a firm. A high ratio shows a large share of financing by the creditors of the firm, a low ratio implies a smaller claim of creditors. Interest Coverage Ratio : These ratios are computed from information available in the profit and loss account. It is also known as time-interest earned ratio. This ratio measures the debt servicing capacity of a firm insofar as fixed interest on long-term loan is concerned. It is determined by dividing the operating profits or earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) by the fixed interest charges on loans. Proprietary Ratio: This ratio indicates whether the firm is employing a reasonable proportion of debt or if heavily loaded with debt in which case its solvency is exposed to serious strain. This ratio relates the owners/proprietors funds with total assets. The ratio indicates the proportion of total assets financed by owners. PROFITABILITY RATIOS: This ratio helps to access the ability of business in order to generate the earnings of the business by comparing the expenses and relevant costs during the specific period of time. Net profit Ratio: This measures the relationship between net profits and sales of a firm. Depending on the concept of net profit employed. A high net profit margin would ensure adequate return as well as enable a firm to with stand adverse economic conditions when selling price is declining cost of production is rising and demand for the product is failing. A low net profit merging would have the opposite implications. Return on Assets: Thus profitability ratio is measured in terms of this relationship between net profit and assets. This may also be called profit-to-asset ratio. The concept of net profit may be net profits after taxes net profits after taxes plus interest and net profits after taxes plus interest minus tax savings. Assets may be defined as total assets fixed assets and tangible assets. Return on capital Employed: The term capital employed refers to long-term funds supplied by the creditors and owners of the firm. Here the profits are related to the total capital employed. It can be computed as The capital employed provides a test of profitability related to the sources of long-term funds. The higher the ratio the more efficient is the use of capital employed. A comparison of this ratio with similar firms with the industry average and over time would provide sufficient insight into how efficiently the long-term funds of owners and creditors are being used. Debtor turnover ratio: Debtor turnover ratio indicates the number of times the debtors are turned over during the year. Generally if the value of debtor turnover is high, then there is more efficient in the management of debts and sales. OTHER RATIOS Fixed Assets Ratio This ratio relates the net assets and the long-term funds. Here the ratio should be high. That is the handling of fixed asset should be greater than the long-term funds at an appropriate level. E-Banking: Electronic banking system is the system that allows the individual to do the banking activities by sitting in one place. Electronic funds transfer means doing the financial transactions electronically. This is used for the number of different activities like electronic payments and card transactions where the holder makes payment by using their credit or debit cards.[Brain Dixon and Mary Dixon 2006] Internet banking is also called as online banking, it is an outgrowth of PC banking. Internet banking uses the internet as the delivery channel for conducting banking activity, it is used for the purpose of transferring funds, paying bills, helps to checking and saving account balances, paying mortgages and also help to purchase financial instruments.[Benton E Gup 2005] According to Richard H Baker, advancement in technology helps to develop the system of internet banking. According to industry analysts, internet banking provides many facilitiies Able to access the banking at any time World wide connectivity Very easy to access the information by transacting data Direct customer control of international movement of funds without intermediation of financial institutions in customers jurisdiction According to the report of Global Market for Internet Banking, more than 172 banks in Europe are running the internet banking system and they are very successful in running online banking. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY RESEARCH Research is a process in which the researcher wishes to find out the end result for a given problem and thus the solution helps in future course of action. The research has been defined as A careful investigation or enquiry especially through search for new facts in branch of knowledge RESEARCH DESIGN Redman and Mory (1923) defined research as a systematic effort to gain new knowledge According to Clifford Woody research comprises defining or redefining problems, formulating hypothesis or giving solutions, collecting, organizing, evaluating the data, making deductions and reaching conclusions and at carefully testing the conclusion to determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis The research design used in this project is Analytical in nature the procedure using, which researcher has to use facts or information already available, and analyze these to make a critical evaluation of the performance. With particular reference to working capital management, for the prosecution of the study, both the primary and secondary data. DATA COLLECTION METHOD: Primary Data: Primary data is the information collected by the researcher in first hand. This data is collected by the researcher inorder to analysis the research. Primary data is collected from the field organization selected that is from the employees, customers and observing the real life situations. The main benefit of the primary data is collected only for the specific study so it is more relevant to the study. But there is disadvantage for the collection of primary data it involves more cost and time. It is not suitable for short term study. Primary data for this proposal will be collected from the employees and customers of HSBC bank inorder to know how they run the internet banking system and the functions and benefits of internet banking system in HSBC bank. Primary research may be quantitative and qualitative research. Qualitative research is the method where the researcher set the questionnaire which will give to large number of respondents (Hair, Wolfinbarger, Ortinau, and Bush, 2008, p81). Based on the responses the data will be analysed. In this study, questionnaire will be given to the customers and employees of HSBC bank to analyse the data regarding the functions of Internet Banking. Secondary Data Secondary data is the information which is collected already and it is used for some other studies by different researcher. This data not only used for the current study. The sources of secondary data are books, journals, articles, newspapers, internet, government, corporate reports and library. The advantage of this data it is easily available and also very cheap compared to primary data. In this study we are using secondary data for the analyses of ratio in order to know the financial performance of HSBC bank. From the annual reports maintained by the company. Data are collected from the companys website. Books and journals pertaining to the topic. Research Approach: There are two types of research approaches Inductive and Deductive approaches. Inductive approach is the approach that starts with specific objectives and become generalized. It begins by identifying the issue by observation or being informed. Deductive approach is the approaches where the conclusions derived from the situation. It begins with general situation and ends by identifying the specific issue. Arguments based on the rules, laws and regulation will be using deductive approaches and the argument based on the observations will be using the inductive approaches. SAMPLING PROGRESS Sampling: It is the process of choosing small number of people for doing the research from the large population. That sample group will be tested, analyzed by assuming that sample group represents the entire group (Crouch, S. and Housden, M., 1996, p116). Sampling Unit In this research the target populations are the customers of HSBC Bank Alperton Branch. The sizes of the sampling will be 100 customers. Sampling type will be random choosen among the large population group. From the total sample size the study will be done for the 10 customers and 5 employees of HSBC bank. Ethnography procedure will be used for analyzing the data based on the data collection method. In this method it takes account of words, context and non-verbals. STATISTICAL TOOLS Tool for Data Collection Questionnaire will be used as a tool for data collection as it provides the advantages of allowing the respondents to answer at their convenience and faster data collection. The questionnaire explicitly stated the purpose of study as academic and assured confidentiality of information solicited from the respondent. Percentage method This method is used in making comparison between two are more series of data. Percentages are used to describe relationship. Percentages can also be used to compare the relative terms, the distribution of two or more series of data. The data collected through questionnaire response method was analyzed in the following manner: Raw data will be coded and tabulated and the tabulated data will be converted into percentages, to show the percentage of opinion among respondents. Percentage analysis thus involves the simple interpretation / analysis of the various items taken up in the questionnaire on a percentage basis from the data collected. Interpretations of the graphs also include mean scores obtained by the organization on every aspect / item as calculated. Number of respondent Percentage of Respondents =  ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­___________________________________ * 100 Total number of people questioned Weighted average method Weighted average method is defined as an average whose component items are multiplied by certain value (weights) and the aggregate of the products are divided by the total of weights In the Weighted Average Method, the weighted average can be calculated by the following formula K XW = ÃŽÂ µ WX/ ÃŽÂ µX Here XW represents the weighted average X1, X 2, X3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.Xn represents the value for variable values W1, W2, W3 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Wn represents the weight age given to the variable. Steps:- Multiply the weights(W) by the variables(X) to obtain WX Add all WX to obtain ÃŽÂ µWX Divide ÃŽÂ µWX by sum of the weights (ÃŽÂ µX) to get weighted average. Correlation: Correlation is the techniques of determining the degree of correlation between two variables in case of ordinal data where ranks are given to the different values of the variables. Spearmans coefficient of correlation (or) 1 6 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœdi  ² r = _____________ n (n ² 1) TOOLS OF ANALYSIS Ratio Analysis. Comparative Balance Sheet. Trend Analysis Conclusion: This dissertation proposal starts with the introduction of finance, and helps to know the importance of finance for banking sector. The researcher will work towards the financial ratios of HSBC bank from the sources of annual reports, financial statements like balance sheet in orer to know the financial position of HSBC bank and analyze the role of internet banking in HSBC by getting the data from the bank customer and employees.

Free Process Essays - How to Organize a Paintball Event :: Expository Process Essays

How to Organize a Paintball Event Ever dream of shooting your boss or coworkers? Perhaps you will get the chance if you offer to organize a company paintball event. It is a great way to promote teamwork and relieve aggression. Even if the coworker from hell is on the same team as you, keep in mind there is such a thing as â€Å"friendly fire† (â€Å"accidentally† shooting someone on your team). The first step is to check out local fields. Some things to look for are, the ratio of referees to players, goggle signs, barrel plugs and personality of the staff. Typically, playing fields are crowded on the weekend. Most fields will open during the week for a group of twenty or more, but do ask. Price is also a consideration; this is an expensive hobby. Expect to pay at least $85 for a case of paint, goggle rental and a paintball marker (gun) rental for a four-hour session. Preferably, try to plan the outing when the weather is comfortable. Playing in the 100 degree Texas heat would be rough on most corporate types. On the day of the event, it is best to dress in layers. Being hit with a paintball does sting. I recommend wearing gloves and a hat as handshots and headshots seem to hurt the most. Wear comfortable shoes, cleats if possible, if not tennis shoes with good tread. Most often, the playing fields are on grass or dirt surfaces. Usually fields have food and drinks for sale but to be on the safe side bring water, as dehydration is common for rookie players. The first stop after arriving at the field is the â€Å"Staging Area†. This area typically has tables to set your equipment on. After picking up the equipment from the staff, the referee will discuss how the markers (guns) work, how to fill the hoppers (what holds the paintballs) and most importantly safety issues. The first is, everyone chronographs their guns to be certain no one is shooting â€Å"hot† over 300 fps (feet per second). Secondly, always wear goggles. Eye injuries are the biggest injury risk of playing paintball and wearing goggles faithfully will prevent it. Thirdly, keep the barrel plug in the gun until the game begins. That way if your finger accidentally pulls the trigger the barrel plug slows down the velocity of the paintball and likely will not cause an injury.

Resarch and Statistics Paper Psy 315

Research and Statistics Paper Psy 315 Define and explain research and define and explain the scientific method (include an explanation of all five steps). Proper Research is primarily an investigation. Researchers and scientists gather data, facts, and knowledge to help better understand phenomenon, events and people. Through research, analysis, investigations, and experimentation, we gain a better understanding of our world. As I skimmed the text to find a definition, I found the word research several times on several of the pages in the first chapter.Research is fundamental to any scientific enterprise and statistics is no exception. The scientific method is the set of procedures that enable scientists and researchers to conduct investigations and experiments. Scientists observe an event and then form a hypothesis. A hypothesis is an educated guess about how something works. These researchers then perform experiments that support the hypothesis or these experiments prove it wrong. A conclusions can be made from the investigations and experiments with the data collected and analyzed. The conclusion helps to prove or disprove validity of the hypothesis.There are several steps that are followed in the scientific method. The steps to this method can be followed by answering questions before and along the way of the investigation. The scientific method can have five steps. The researcher asks themselves these questions and tries o find the answers: 1. What event or phenomenon are we investigating? 2. How does this event occur? A guess as to how the event happens is formed. This is our hypothesis. 3. How can we test this hypothesis? The experimenter then tests the hypothesis through experiments. 4. Are the results looking valid?The researcher records the observations. Does the experiment need to be changed? Possibly, the researcher adjusts the experiment as the data helps to fine tune the investigation. 5. Does the data support the hypothesis? The researcher analyz es the data. The analysis will have statistical information that is crucial to the investigator. Without statistics, there can be no real scientific analysis of the investigation or experiment. The analysis will tell the researcher if the hypothesis is supported or if they are in essence incorrect. Authors: Cowens, John Source: Teaching Pre K-8, Aug/Sep2006, Vol. 7 Issue 1, p42-46, 3p, 6 Color Photographs, 1 Graph Informastion from: Cowens, J. (2006, August/September). The scientific method. Teaching PreK-8, 37(1), 42. Define and substantively compare and contrast the characteristics of primary and secondary data (not sources). There are two ways that researchers obtain data, primary and secondary. Primary data is collected by the person conducting the investigation. Secondary data is collected from other sources. Primary data is information collected that is specifically geared toward the investigation. This specificity is a plus for primary data.Primary data can be expensive to co llect due to the expense of experimentation and surveys. The man hours can be high and the cost can be high. The time it takes to collect original data can be long and grueling. Secondary data can be a good resource due to the ease of availability. Secondary data can be less expensive and less time consuming. However, secondary data may be information that is not as specific to the investigation or collected for a different specific purpose. Rabianski J. Primary and Secondary Data: Concepts, Concerns, Errors, and Issues. Appraisal Journal [serial online].January 2003;71(1):43. Available from: Business Source Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 11, 2013 Explain the role of statistics in research. (Keep the focus within the field of psychology). ————————————————- Statistics plays a very large role in the field of psychology. Statistics is vital to research in any field of science. Before statistics and even now, people want to know if there is a real cause and effect when they experience an event. Early man (let’s call him Grog) would step out of his drab cave in the early morning.Grog would perhaps spot an eagle soaring across a beautiful clear blue sky. Our early man, Grog may then have a great day of hunting. Later, Grog would reflect and think about his good day and remember the early morning eagle. Grog would tell and possibly re-tell the tale to his fellow cave people. The appearance of the early morning eagle would become a â€Å"clear† and significant sign or omen that the day’s hunt would be good. This would be especially true if the omen appeared and the hunt was good more than once. Is this statistically significant?Grog did not have the proper tools ( not paper or stone or computer) nor the brain power to do the statistical procedures on his observations. This appearance and the resulting good hunt could be a real sig nificant event with true cause and effect or it could be pure chance and be nothing more than flimsy anecdotal evidence. Unfortunately for Grog, he did not have statistics or the expertise to perform the required investigations of proper research. Often, psychologists want to know what a person will do when confronted with a certain situation or stimulus or event.With inferential statistics researchers/psychologists use the information/data to infer or to make a conclusion based on the data from the research. â€Å"Probability† is derived from inferential statistics. How probable is it that a person will act a certain way can be answered through inferential/probability studies. ————————————————- The Cult of Statistical Significance By Stephen T. Ziliak and Deirdre N. McCloskey1 ———————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Roosevelt University and University of Illinois-Chicago ————————————————- â€Å"The Cult of Statistical Significance† was presented at the Joint Statistical Meetings, Washington, DC, August 3rd, 2009, in a contributed session of the Section on Statistical Education. For comments Ziliak thanks many individuals, but especially Sharon Begley, Ronald Gauch, Rebecca Goldin, Danny Kaplan, Jacques Kibambe Ngoie, Sid Schwartz, Tom Siegfried, Arnold Zellner and above all Milo Schield for organizing an eyebrow-raising and standing-room only session. ————————————————- ————————————————- Psychological Research Methods and StatisticsEdited by Andrew M. Colman 1995, London and New York: Longman. Pp. xvi + 123. ISBN 0-582-27801-5 Research in psychology or in any other scientific field invariably begins with a question in search of an answer. The question may be purely factual — for example, is sleep-walking more likely to occur during the stage of sleep in which dreams occur, namely rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, than in dreamless (slow-wave) sleep? Alternatively, it may be a practical question — for example, can the use of hypnosis to recover long-forgottenexperiences increase the likelihood of false memories? According to current research findings, incidentally, the answers to these questions are no and yes respectively. ) A research question may arise from mere curiosity, from a theory that yields a prediction, or from previous research findings that raise a new question. Whatever its origin, provided that it concerns behaviour or mental experience and that it can be expressed in a suitable form for investigation by empirical methods — that is, by the collection of objective evidence — it is a legitimate question for psychological research. Psychological research relies on a wide range of methods.This is partly because it is such a diverse discipline, ranging from biological aspects of behaviour to social psychology and from basic research questions to problems that arise in such applied fields as clinical, educational, and industrial or occupational psychology. Most psychological research methods have the ultimate goal of answering empirical questions about behaviour or mental experience through controlled observation. But different questions call for different research methods, because the nature of a question often constrains the methods that can be used to answer it.This volume discusses a wide range of commonly used methods of research and statistical analysis. The most powerful research method is undoubtedly controlled experimentation. The reason for the unique importance of controlled experiments in psychology is not that they are necessarily any more objective or precise than other methods, but that they are capable of providing firm evidence regarding cause-and-effect relationships, which no other research method can provide. The defining features of the experimental method are manipulation and control.The experimenter manipulates the conjectured causal factor (called the independent variable because it is manipulated independently of other variables) and examines its effects on a suitable measure of the behaviour of interest, called the dependent variable. In multivariate research designs, the interactive effects of several independent variables on two or more dependent variables may be studied simultaneously. In addition to manipulating the independent variable(s) and observing the effects on the dependent variable(s), the experimenter controls all other extraneous variables that might influence the results.Cont rolled experimentation thus combines the twin features of manipulation (of independent variables) and control (of independent and extraneous variables). In psychological experiments, extraneous variables can seldom be controlled directly. One reason for this is that people differ from one another in ways that affect their behaviour. Even if these individual differences were all known and understood, they could not be suppressed or held constant while the effects of the independent variable was being examined.This seems to rule out the possibility of experimental control in most areas of psychology, but in the 1920s the British statistician Ronald Aylmer Fisher discovered a remarkable solution to this problem, called randomization. To understand the idea behind randomization, imagine that the experimenter wishes to test the hypothesis that the anti-depressive drug Prozac (fluoxetine hydrochloride) causes an increase in aggressiveness. The independent variable is ingestion of Prozac a nd the dependent variable is a score on some suitable test of aggressiveness.The experimenter could assign subjects to two treatment conditions strictly at random, by drawing their names out of a hat, for example, and could then treat the two groups identically apart from the manipulation of the independent variable. Before being tested for aggressiveness, the experimental group could be given a pill containing Prozac and the control group a placebo (an inactive dummy pill). The effect of the randomization would be to control, at a single stroke, for allextraneous variables, including ones of that the researcher had not even considered.For example, if two-thirds of the subjects were women, then each group would end up roughly two-thirds female, and if some of the subjects had criminal records for offences involving violence, then these people would probably be more or less even divided between the experimental and control groups, especially if the groups were large. Randomization wo uld not guarantee that the two groups would be identical but merely that they would tend to be roughly similar on all extraneous variables. More precisely, randomization would ensure that any differences between the groups were distributed strictly according to the laws of chance.Therefore, if the two groups turned out to differ on the test of aggressiveness, this difference would have to be due either to the independent variable (the effect of Prozac) or to chance. This explains the purpose and function of inferential statistics in psychology. For any specified difference, a statistical test enables a researcher to calculate the probability or odds of a difference as large as that arising by chance alone. In other words, a statistical test tells us the probability of such a large difference arising under the null hypothesisthat the independent variable has no effect.If a difference is observed in an experiment, and if the probability under the null hypothesis of such a large differ ence arising by chance alone is sufficiently small (by convention, usually less than 5 per cent, often written p < . 05), then the researcher is entitled to conclude with confidence that the observed difference is due to the independent variable. This conclusion can be drawn with confidence, because if the difference is not due to chance, then it must be due to the independent variable, provided that the experiment was properly controlled.The logical connection between randomized experimentation and inferential statistics is explained in greater depth in Colman (1988, chap. 4). A grasp of the elements of statistics is necessary for psychologists, because research findings are generally reported in numerical form and analysed statistically. In some areas of psychology, including naturalistic observations and case-studies (see below), qualitative research methods are occasionally used, and research of this kind requires quite different methods of data collection and analysis.For a sur vey of the relatively uncommon but none the less important qualitative research methods, including ethnography, personal construct approaches, discourse analysis, and action research, see the book by Banister, Burman, Parker, Taylor, and Tindall (1994). In chapter 1 of this volume, David D. Stretch introduces the fundamental ideas behind experimental design in psychology. He begins by explaining the appropriate form of a psychological research question and how incorrectly formulated questions can sometimes be transformed into questions suitable for experimental investigation.He then discusses experimental control, problems of sampling and randomization, issues of interpretability, plausibility, generalizability, and communicability, and proper planning of research. Stretch concludes his chapter with a discussion of the subtle and complex problems of measurement in psychology. He uses an extremely instructive example to show how two different though equally plausible measures of a de pendent variable can lead to completely different — in fact, mutually contradictory — conclusions.Chapter 2, by Brian S. Everitt, is devoted entirely to analysis of variance designs. These are by far the most common research designs in psychology. Everitt's discussion covers one-way designs, which involve the manipulation of only one independent variable; factorial designs, in which two or more independent variables are manipulated simultaneously; and within-subject repeated-measure designs, in which instead of being randomly assigned to treatment conditions, the same subjects are used in all conditions.Chapter 2 concludes with a discussion of analysis of covariance, a technique designed to increase the sensitivity of analysis of variance by controlling statistically for one or more extraneous variables called covariates. Analysis of covariance is sometimes used in the hope of compensating for the failure to control extraneous variables by randomization, but Everitt di scusses certain problems caused by such use. In chapter 3, A. W. MacRae provides a detailed discussion of the ideas behind statistics, both descriptive and inferential.Descriptive statistics include a variety of methods of summarizing numerical data in ways that make them more easily interpretable, including diagrams, graphs, and numerical summaries such as means (averages), standard deviations (measures of variability), correlations (measures of the degree to which two variables are related to each other), and so forth. Inferential statistical methods are devoted to interpreting data and enabling researchers to decide whether the results of their experiments are statistically significant or may be explained by mere chance.MacRae includes a brief discussion of Bayesian methods, which in contrast to classical statistical methods are designed to answer the more natural question: â€Å"How likely is it that such-and-such a conclusion is correct? † For more information on Bayesia n methods, the book by Lee (1989) is strongly recommended: it explains the main ideas lucidly without sidestepping difficulties Inferential Statistics For descriptive statistics such as correlation, the â€Å"mean,† or average, and some others that will be considered in context later in the book, the purpose is to describe or summarize aspects of behavior to understand them better.Inferential statistics start with descriptive ones and go further in allowing researchers to draw meaningful conclusions — especially in experiments. These procedures are beyond the scope of this book, but the basic logic is helpful in understanding how psychologists know what they know. Again recalling Bandura's experiment of observational learning of aggression, consider just the model-punished and model-rewarded groups. It was stated that the former children imitated few behaviors and the latter significantly more.What this really means is that, based on statistical analysis, the differenc e between the two groups was large enough and consistent enough to be unlikely to have occurred simply by â€Å"chance. † That is, it would have been a long shot to obtain the observed difference if what happened to the model wasn't a factor. Thus, Bandura and colleagues discounted the possibility of chance alone and concluded that what the children saw happen to the model was the cause of the difference in their behavior.Psychologists study what people tend to do in a given situation, recognizing that not all people will behave as predicted — just as the children in the model-rewarded group did not all imitate all the behaviors. In a nutshell, the question is simply whether a tendency is strong enough — as assessed by statistics — to warrant a conclusion about cause and effect. This logic may seem puzzling to you, and it isn't important that you grasp it to understand the many experiments that are noted throughout this book. Indeed, it isn't mentioned ag ain.The point of mentioning it at all is to underscore that people are far less predictable than chemical reactions and the like, and therefore have to be studied somewhat differently — usually without formulas. 1. 1 Determine appropriate measures based on an operational definition for research tools. Researchers utilize the method of operational definition to better tailor their research. They must know what all of the variables are, how to measure these variables and how they fit into the study. They must make sure that they are actually studying what they say they are studying.The definitions/parameters of the variables must be strictly defined. 1. 2 Select appropriate data collection methods to investigate psychological research problems. The research methods and the way all experimentations are collected must be done in a scientific, logical and ethical manner. Most research methods are either non-experimental, experimental, or quasi-experimental. These are separated by the number and extent of the of controls used. The controls help to account for the effect of variable use on the non-control or experiment group. 1. Examine the differences between descriptive and inferential statistics and their use in the social sciences. When a chart or graph (the shape of a distribution) is described in words, then one is using â€Å"descriptive statistics†. These descriptions can help to summarize and analyze a large amount of data. With inferential statistics researchers/psychologists use the information/data to infer or to make a conclusion based on the data from the research. â€Å"Probability† is derived from inferential statistics. How probable is it that a person will act a certain way can be answered through inferential/probability studies.REFERENCES: Aron, A. , Aron, E. , ; Coups, E. (2006). Statistics for psychology (4th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Allyn Bacon. Cowens, J. (2006). The scientific method. Teaching PreK-8, 37(1), 42. Hawthorne, G. (2003). The effect of different methods of collecting data: Mail, telephone and filter data collection issues in utility measurement. Quality of Life Research, 12(8), 1081. McPherson, G. R. (2001). Teaching ; learning the scientific method. The American Biology Teacher, 63(4), 242. .

Evolution Creationism - 2933 Words

Evolution and Creationism Outline: Thesis: Acceptance of Creation is growing in spite of overwhelming evidence proving Evolution. I. Acceptance of Creation is growing in spite of overwhelming evidence proving Evolution There is no easy resolution for whats true and evolution or creationism. It is a complex topic with profound scientific, religious, educational, and criticism. How can a student or parent come to grips with this issue? Evolution vs. Creationism provides a badly needed, comprehensive, and balanced introduction to the many facets of the current debates about what should be taught in a classroom or in reality itself. Evolution relies on scientific facts while creationism clings on biblical beliefs. But the legal and†¦show more content†¦People may lump all creationists together in one group, but it is important to understand where they differ and why. Creationism comes in many different shapes and sizes. Some creationists believe in a flat earth. Some believe in a young earth. Other creationists b elieve in an old earth. A few portray creationism as scientific and others hide or try to remove this idea that God had no part in creating the universe. A few admit that creationism is just a religious belief with no connection to science whatsoever. Criticism about Creationism The principle idea behind creationism is that the origin of natural objects is supernatural. As an example, the Christian tradition is that the land, sky, plants and animals were created by a supernatural or also known as God. As Young and Strode state, â€Å"Within this basic idea are themes are variations; some cultures believe that plants and animal species are unchanging, others believe that different species can arise from existing species but the original species were put into being in a supernatural way† (55). Some think the creation event happened very recently, within historical times thousands of millions of years before present day. It should be emphasized that amongst the scientific community it really is only a tiny potion who consider aShow MoreRelatedEvolution Of Creationism And Creationism907 Words   |  4 Pages Evolution and creationism The debate about whether evolution and creationism be taught in schools has existed for years. Some parents are allowing their religious beliefs hinder the education of their children. According to Phy-Olsen, â€Å"American students have lower scores in mathematics and the sciences than comparable students in other industrialized nations.†(9). Many people feel that science goes against religion and they don t want this taught in the schools. If you teach justRead MoreThe Evolution Of Creationism And Evolution1276 Words   |  6 PagesCreationism and Evolution is a heavily discussed topic all over the world, sparking controversy on every turn. Whether humanity evolved from monkeys over time or was created instantly by an almighty God; that has been the debate between creationist and scientist since Charles Darwin came forth with the evolution theory in the late eighteen-fifties. It’s hard to contest against the facts of science. Science tells us that the Earth wa s created relatively 4.5 billion years ago and life evolved fromRead MoreThe And Evolution Between Creationism And Creationism1023 Words   |  5 Pages So what is the answer to how to present our students with the opportunity to make their own decisions? According to the laws and court decisions as of today, it is highly unlikely that Creationism will be granted equal time in the biology classroom any time soon. The Ohio standards for science include evolution as a core component mandating that biology teachers incorporate natural selection and the history of life on earth as part of the curriculum. One strategy, presented by the National CenterRead MoreEvolution Creationism Vs. Creationism924 Words   |  4 PagesAny point of contact with the scientific world in the 21st century will eventually lead one to the one of the most hotly contested topic in American education, that of evolution versus creationism. While the creationist point of view, as well as the evolutionary perspec tive, hosts a great variation of opinion amongst its supporters, Christianity is brought to the center stage time after time (Vuletic, 1994). Literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis’ account of creation falls contrary to theRead MoreThe Theory Of Evolution Of Creationism977 Words   |  4 PagesThe theory of evolution is at odds with the views of many religions, and many people want to allow a religious view of creationism to be taught in the public school system. The foundation of evolution is based upon the belief that the origin of all ordered complex systems, including living creatures, can be explained by natural laws without the initiation or intervention of God. A person who believes in the biblical model of creation is viewed by some non- believers as a naive, narrow-minded religiousRead MoreCreationism And Evolution Of School1957 Words   |  8 Pages Creationism and Evolution in school Almost every child has to go to school at some point in his or her life. â€Å"The legal age is between six and fifteen years old. Whether it is home school, private school, public school, or any other way of being taught, it is a law that you have to attend school until you are sixteen.† (Queensland Para 1) That is, unless you can prove to the State Department of Education that you should not be in school. What is taught in school applies to almost all AmericansRead MoreCreationism Vs. Evolution1130 Words   |  5 Pages Where do we come from? The creation of the world has been told through many different stories, and from a variety of religions across the world. The argument between evolution and creation has been debated back and forth for years. So how do we know which claim is correct? Has all life evolved from simple bacteria to all the species that appear today, or did life on earth begin with Gods creation of Adam from dust and his partner Eve from adam’s rib bone. As a child I grew up attending church everyRead More Evolution Vs. Creationism Essay1323 Words   |  6 PagesEvolution vs. Creationism Abstract In the history of science vs. religion there have been no issues more intensely debated than evolution vs. creationism. The issue is passionately debated since the majority of evidence is in favor of evolution, but the creation point of view can never be proved wrong because of religious belief. Human creation breaks down into three simple beliefs; creation theory, naturalistic evolution theory, and theistic evolution theory. The complexities of all threeRead More Creationism vs. Evolution Essays1663 Words   |  7 PagesCreationism vs. Evolution This paper will focus on the huge controversy between Creationism and Evolution. I will provide two opposing viewpoints on this subject. First, the discussion will focus on the question of why many people believe that God created the universe and all living things. On the other end of the spectrum, scientific information will be presented that substantiates the evidence against the existence of God. This creationism counter-argument known as evolution has itsRead MoreCreationism vs. Evolution Essay1170 Words   |  5 Pagesassumptions with empirically deduced scientific theories. The Catholic Church had a nasty habit of persecuting such ideological dissent toward creationism, calling it heresy and thereby somewhat suppressing a complete upheaval of the Scriptures. For many centuries to come, the scientific research grew and developed into theories like the Big Bang and evolution, though primarily in places where such progress was tolerated. The state of Tennessee in 1925 was not such a place. In the town of Dayton