5 684 Discussion 22 Responses

I’ve already done my initial post. Please just type a one to two paragraph response to the two students posts below stating if you agree or disagree and why. Here is the topic:

Outline a research question and hypothesis that interests you, and describe the key variables. This could be the research question you plan to use for your final project, but it does not have to be. What are the key variables? How could these variables be operationalized? Are there any ethical issues that arise when studying this topic? Also, be sure to label the independent and dependent variables. When responding to your classmates, suggest other ways that the variables in their research question could be operationally defined.

Student One’s Post:

Music is one thing in life that can bring people together or tear them apart. Aside from the many genres that are out in today’s society, from country, to Latin to Kpop, people will listen to it. It can also have many effects on people, it can boost their mood, make them sad, encourage them to let someone know how they feel, etc. Music is a go-to for everyone in daily life, especially for students when it comes to doing homework and studying for exams. While most students are used to listening to music while they study and do homework, does listening to classical music actually help them stay focused compared to other genres of music?

The independent variable will be the type of music that students are listening to, more specifically classical music during their study sessions and the dependent variable will be the quality and amount of time that they are able to focus during their study sessions. “Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven can help students categorize information, which is an influential asset to studying” (Team, 2018). There would be no ethical issues with this since the evidence is simply based off of individual reporting, which could also have some complications due to individuals not reporting honestly. I am hypothesizing that listening to classical music will indeed help students stay focused as it is less distracting than if they were listening to music with lyrics or songs that they would suggest are their favorites, but, if a student is a fan of classical music, they may find that it is as distracting as if it were to have lyrics and upbeat. “However, some classical music fans find the opposite – that the music is too compelling to fade into the background and ends up distracting from the task at hand” (Goussy, 2018).

Goussy, T. (2018, March 29). Can Classical Music Help You Study? Retrieved from https://www.sphinxmusic.org/can-classical-music-he…

Team, M. (2018, November 26). The Benefits of Studying with Music. Retrieved from https://www.fnu.edu/benefits-studying-music/

Student Two’s Post:

Cell phones, tablets and laptops are incredible machines that have evolved throughout history. What was once a simple machine that was essentially a slave to man that would respond to commands. Today, technology such as Siri, Alexa, Bixby, Cortana, or Google take man made machines to a different level. The use of technology and how it affects one’s mental attitude can alter the sleep habits. People sleep better knowing Alexa will respond to “intruder alert” by turning on every light, blaring music for all to hear. However, young adults and adults are guilty of using technology prior to sleep for entertainment. Whether it is watching cat videos or uploading your final picture for the night to Instagram, the use of technology and how it affects one’s mental state can also change how long a person will sleep.

The independent variable will be limiting the exposure of technology in increments of 30 minutes prior to the desired sleep time. In addition to exposure, the content is also an important independent variable to consider for the study. Watching endless YouTube videos of happy animals, CNN reporting violence in a country, or receiving negative comments on one’s Instagram can also change one’s mental state and affect sleep. Without restricting content to everyone, results will just include details of what the person used their technology for, assuming it is appropriate of course. I understand this is not the replication that Rosnow and Rosenthal describe since I am not creating identical randomized experiments but I am also aware that people have different routine preferences prior to sleep (2013). I hypothesis that reducing the amount of exposure to technology in addition to what they use the technology for will change the sleep pattern. The independent variables will be technology limitation and content. The dependent variable will be the quality and duration of sleep. Since this is based on individual reporting, I do not foresee any ethical issues. Some flaws within this study will include weeknights when people are most active, family and work/school distractions.

References

Barber, L. K., & Cucalon, M. S. (2017). Modifying the Sleep Treatment Education Program for Students to include technology use (STEPS-TECH): Intervention effects on objective and subjective sleep outcomes. Stress & Health: Journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress, 33(5), 684–690. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=126685972&site=eds-live&scope=site

Ibrahim, N. K., Baharoon, B. S., Banjar, W. F., Jar, A. A., Ashor, R. M., Aman, A. A., & Al-Ahmadi, J. R. (2018). Mobile Phone Addiction and Its Relationship to Sleep Quality and Academic Achievement of Medical Students at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Journal of Research in Health Sciences, 18(3), 1–5. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=131316207&site=eds-live&scope=site

Rosnow, L. & Rosenthal, R. (2013). Beginning Behavioral Research: A Conceptual Primer (7th ed). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.