Question

because of concerns about employee stress, a large company is conducting a study to compare two programs (tai chi or yoga) that may help employees reduce their stress levels. tai chi is a 1,200-year-old practice, originating in china, that consists of slow, fluid movements. yoga is a practice, originating in india, that consists of breathing exercises and movements designed to stretch and relax muscles. the company has assembled a group of volunteer employees to participate in the study during the first half of their lunch hour each day for a 10-week period. each volunteer will be assigned at random to one of the two programs. volunteers will have their stress levels measured just before beginning the program and 10 weeks later at the completion of it.a group of volunteers who work together ask to be assigned to the same program so that they can participate in that program together. give an example of a problem that might arise if this is permitted. explain to this volunteer group why random assignment to the two programs will address this problem.someone proposes that a control group be included in the design as well. the stress level would be measured for each volunteer assigned to the control group at the start of the study and again 10 weeks later. what additional information, if any, would this provide about the effectiveness of the two programs?is it reasonable to generalize the findings of this study to all employees of this company? explain.

Answer 1

If a group of volunteers who work together is assigned to the same program, bias may arise in the study. Random assignment to the two programs will address this problem, and including a control group would provide additional information about the effectiveness of the programs. Generalizing the findings of this study to all employees of the company is not reasonable.

Step-by-step explanation:

If the group of volunteers who work together is allowed to be assigned to the same program, a problem that might arise is the presence of bias in the study. Bias occurs when certain factors influence the results of the study, leading to inaccurate or skewed conclusions. For example, if a group of friends are assigned to the same program and they have a positive attitude towards that program, it may influence their stress levels and create a bias in favor of that program.

Random assignment to the two programs will address this problem because it ensures that each volunteer has an equal chance of being assigned to either tai chi or yoga. By randomly assigning volunteers, the researchers can minimize the influence of any potential confounding variables, such as pre-existing friendships or biases. This helps to ensure that the final results accurately reflect the impact of the programs on employee stress levels.

Including a control group in the study design would provide additional information about the effectiveness of the two programs. The control group would not participate in either tai chi or yoga and would serve as a comparison against which the effects of the programs can be measured. By comparing the stress levels of the control group to those of the volunteers in tai chi and yoga, researchers can determine the specific impact of each program on stress reduction.

It is not reasonable to generalize the findings of this study to all employees of the company. The study is being conducted on a group of volunteer employees, who may not be representative of all employees in terms of their stress levels or willingness to participate. Additionally, the study is only comparing two specific programs, tai chi and yoga, and the findings may not apply to other stress reduction techniques or interventions.