Aim VS Objectives & Variables types

Aim is general statement written in broad terms, explaining what is intended to achieve.

General characteristics of Aim:

a)      General or overall purpose.

b)     Has long range or no time bound.

c)      Has end point results. (endpoint means that in the final the research is beneficial or not).

Objectives are concrete targets needing to be fulfilled or what you need to do to attain desired result (aim).

General Characteristics of objectives: (SMART)

a)      Specific: means it must be clear what you are trying to achieve such as I want to increase my profits.

b)     Measurable: means it must include quantifiable elements such as I want to increase my profits by 30%.

c)      Agreed: means that targets need to be agreed by different people who are involved in process such as I want tpartners and it is agreed.   
o increase my profits so I discuss the target with my

d)     Realistic: means that target must be achievable so that people are motivated. 

e)     Time -bound: all targets must be stated when they will be achieved.

        Variables are any characteristic which is subject to change and has more than one value such as gender, age, intelligence.

Variables can be classified into many types:

1)     Quantitative variables:

Variables that are measured on a numeric or Quantitative scale. And they are classified into:
a) discrete variables without fraction such as number of cars, family members,
b) continuous variables with fraction such as person weight, blood pressure, age, income.

2)     Independent variables: variables presumed to influence other variables. They are presumed to be cause.

3)     Dependent variables: variables affected by independent ones. They are presumed to be effect.

Example:

You are interested in how stress affects mental health of human.

So: Independent variable: Stress.

      Dependent variable: Mental health of human.

4)     Constant or control variables: variables that aren’t allowed to be changed unpredictably during an experiment.

Example:

You are examining how electricity affects experimental items.

So, independent variables: electricity.

Dependent variables: Experimental items

Control variables: keep voltage constant otherwise energy supplied will be changed.

5)     Nominal / Categorical variables/Qualitative variables: variables that can be measured only in items whether it belongs to certain distinct categories and we can’t quantify or even rank categories.

Example:

Nominal data has nor order (is a type of data that is used to label variables without providing any quantitative value), so no arithmetic or logical operations can be performed.

Gender: male and female.

6)     Ordinal variables: nominal variable and they are ordered in meaningful sequence. Arithmetic operation (+/-) is impossible but logical operations (</>) can be done.

Example:

You know that upper middle is higher than middle buy we can’t say how much higher.

7)     Interval variables: variables have numerical variables and order with equal intervals. They allow not only to rank order items that are measured but also to quantify and compare magnitudes of difference between them. The difference between 2 variables are meaningful

Example:

Celsius and Fahrenheit scales are examples of an interval scale. In the Celsius system the starting point (considered as the freezing point) is 0°C and the terminating point (considered as the boiling point) is 100°C. The gap between the freezing and boiling points is divided into 100 equally spaced intervals, known as degrees. In the Fahrenheit system, the freezing point is 32°F and the boiling point is 212°F, and the gap between the two points is divided into 180 equally spaced intervals. Each degree or interval is a measurement of temperature – the higher the degree, the higher the temperature. As the starting and terminating points are arbitrary, they are not absolute; that is, you cannot say that 60°C is twice as hot as 30°C or 30°F is three times hotter than 10°F. This means that while no mathematical operation can be performed on the readings, it can be performed on the differences between readings. For example, if the difference in temperature between two objects, A and B, is 15°C and the difference in temperature between two other objects, C and D, is 45°C, you can say that the difference in temperature between C and D is three times greater than that between A and B.

8)     Ratio variables: contain interval properties + defined zero value means that for example height and weight cannot be zero or below zero.

Example:

The measurement of income, age, height and weight are examples of this scale. A person who is 40 years of age is twice as old as a 20-year-old. A person earning $60 000 per year earns three times the salary of a person earning $20 000.  

9)     Extraneous variables: undesirable variables that influence relationship between variables and experimenter is examining.

Example:

You study relationship between smoking and cancer.

So, independent variable: Smoking

Dependent variable: Cancer

Extraneous variable: age of person, extent of his smoking, duration of smoking, ……..

Link and sources:

Fundamentals of research methodology and data collection PDF

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