Week 6 Assignment: Understanding Pearson’s r in Public Health
You will define how Pearson’s r is used in biostatistics. This internet exercise assignment should be at least 450 words and no more than 1-1/2 pages long, You will need to cite within the text and have a reference section in APA format (current edition) as well as adhere to standard writing for graduate level. Provide SPSS code used to generate Pearson’s r results. You may use our Household Data to produce these results. You must include your SPSS code and output in your submission. Simply create an appendix in the paper and place the code there. Remember these same statistical models could be used for the final paper. For example, provide SPSS code (copy-paste) or share steps used to produce the correlation of variables of your choice. Use this website to learn more about how to use SPSS or refer to the Help section with your SPSS software. For example to find the correlation of a variable consider reviewing this step-by-step guide Pearson’s r.
You must attach a paper containing your submission to this assignment so it can be checked via Turnitin.
Step 1: You will define Pearson’s r from your textbook and/or various sources first. You are demonstrating that you understood the concept .You are going to define this in 2-3 sentences by using your textbook and/or other sources.
Step 2: You are going to pick an article that utilized the concept of Pearson’s r You want to take a look at the following sites to select your article:
Step 3: Thoroughly READ the article and TAKE notes.
Step 4: Complete the writing of your summary with a review of this article. In your assessment of this article, you MUST provide how the researchers used the statistical concept in their research by doing the following: 1) Explain the sample (i.e., population used), 2) Summarize the statistical analysis and what software or analysis package was used and 3) Evaluate and describe the results and conclusions in your own words. It is very important that you are able to paraphrase and apply critical thinking in each of these assignments. You MUST provide the statistics used in the research article and cannot simply state the researchers used the statistical concept. This can be done by providing the results or figures, graphs, tables, etc.
Sample Paper
Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient
Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) is a measure of the linear correlation between two data sets. Its value range is -1 to 1. Hence, it shows how closely the relationship between two data sets can be expressed using the equation of a straight line. The higher the value, the stronger the correlation. Furthermore, the negative sign denotes that the relationship is inverse, i.e., as one value increases, the other reduces. Thus, the current paper explores a public health article that utilizes Pearson’s correlation coefficient, highlighting its importance in research.
Sample
Hemati et al. (2020) sought to establish the relationship between parents’ communication patterns and their adolescent children’s self-efficacy where the parents were substance abusers. The researchers used random sampling to recruit 100 adolescents. Next, they obtained consent from the parents for their children’s participation (unless the respondent was at least eighteen years old). The researchers considered people between the ages of eleven and twenty-one. Also, at least one parent had undergone substance abuse withdrawal. Additionally, the respondents should be disease-free and mentally healthy. They should also not be dealing with any major stressors such as the recent death of a relative and living with their parents (not divorced). The study excluded those who wished not to participate.
Statistical Analysis
The researchers used SPSS version 20 to analyze data for linear regression and correlation coefficient tests. They also computed descriptive-analytical data, such as percentages of either gender, educational level, parents’ educational level, and employment status. However, since the primary focus was the relationships between the various variables, much of the analysis involved correlation and regression.
Results and Conclusion
Adolescents’ self-efficacy directly correlated with conversation orientation (0.402) and an inverse correlation with conformity orientation (-0.424). Thus, while conversation orientation promoted self-efficacy, conformity reduced it. Lastly, the linear regression equation for the two variables was y = 29 + 0.126x1 – 0.183x2, where y = self-efficacy, x1 = conversation orientation, and x2 = conformity orientation.
Therefore, the study utilized the concept of correlation to establish the linearity between the two variables. Self-efficacy is the dependent variable, whose value depends on the parents’ communication patterns. Thus, these patterns constitute the independent variables. The researchers identified two of them (conformity and conversation orientation). Conformity orientation measures a family’s expectation of uniformity of beliefs, attitudes, values, and behaviors (Horstman et al., 2017). Hence, the higher the parents’ expectations, the lower the adolescents’ self-efficacy. On the other hand, conversation orientation measures the extent to which a family discusses various issues (Ismail et al., 2020). The study results suggest a moderate positive correlation for this variable, implying that the more the parents engage their children in discussions, the more self-efficient they become.
References
Hemati, Z., Abbasi, S., Oujian, P., & Kiani, D. (2020). Relationship between parental communication patterns and self-efficacy in adolescents with parental substance abuse. Iranian Journal of child neurology, 14(1), 49–56. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6956959/
Horstman, H. K., Schrodt, P. Warner, B., Koerner, A., Maliski, R., Hays, A., Colaner, C. W. (2017). Expanding the conceptual and empirical boundaries of family communication patterns: The development and validation of an Expanded Conformity Orientation Scale. Communication Monographs, 85(2), 157-180. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637751.2018.1428354
Ismail, S., Rasit, R. M., & Aini, Z. (2020). Parental communication through conversation orientation in preacher families. International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24(8), 9231-9241. DOI: 10.37200/IJPR/V24I8/PR280912
