Question

Two methods of collecting data have been proposed. Method I: Recruit volunteers who are willing to participate. Randomly assign each participant to exercise with a training partner or to exercise alone. Method II: Select a random sample of people from all the people who exercise at a community fitness center. Ask each person in the sample whether they use a training partner, and use the response to create the two groups. For each method, the researchers will record the change in targeted exercise intensity for each person in the investigation. They will compare the mean change in intensity between those who exercise with a training partner and those who do not.

Describe the population of generalization if method I is used. Explain your answer.

Answer 1

The population of generalization for Method I includes volunteers participating in an exercise study, randomly assigned to train either with a partner or alone. The generalization applies to individuals similar to the volunteer participants.

Step-by-step explanation:

The population of generalization for Method I involves volunteers who are willing to participate in an exercise intervention study and are randomly assigned to exercise with a training partner or to exercise alone. The study's findings would generalize to individuals who are similar to the volunteers in terms of the willingness and ability to participate in such a study.

The randomness in assigning participants to each group aims to ensure that the two groups (those exercising with a partner and those exercising alone) are similar in all respects other than the presence of a training partner, therefore minimizing the influence of lurking variables. However, this method may still present challenges because the volunteer participants might not represent the broader population of individuals who exercise at a community fitness center.