Question

Suppose we are planning to conduct a survey of U.S. adults to learn more about their views on education. We intend to include a variable measuring views on funding for public education (EDUCFUNDS). That variable will be measured using the following question, "Using the scale provided, please rate your level of agreement with the following statement: Current levels of funding for public education in the U.S. are adequate." Scale: strongly disagree, disagree, neither agree nor disagree, agree, strongly agree.

Thinking sociologically, answer the following questions about the EDUCFUNDS variable, potential sociodemographic variables to include on the survey, and analyses to conduct to assess relationships between various sociodemographic variables and the EDUCFUNDS variable.

a. What type of variable is EDUCFUNDS? (Be specific - don't just say categorical or quantitative - what TYPE of categorical or quantitative variable is it?)

b. What is one sociodemographic variable that you believe would affect U.S. adults views on the adequacy of current levels of funding for public education in the U.S.? Be specific about what the variable is/what it measures and include details on how responses would be recorded (i.e., would they report a specific value or would response options be provided?).

(For example, I might have reason to believe that age would affect U.S. adults' views on this issue since people who grew up during different historical periods likely have different views on education and also may differ in terms of their views on government spending (in general and for education, specifically). You cannot use age as your answer now that I have used it as an example!)

c. Write a hypothesis for the relationship you expect to find between these two variables. If you need a refresher on hypothesis writing, review Chapter 2 in the textbook. (Remember, hypotheses are statements of the expected relationship between two variables; they are NOT questions!)





SOC 316 Methods 2

Answer 1

a. EDUCFUNDS is a categorical variable, specifically an ordinal variable, as it measures levels of agreement on a scale.

b. One sociodemographic variable that may affect U.S. adults' views on the adequacy of current levels of funding for public education in the U.S. is income. Responses could be recorded as a range of income levels (e.g., less than $25,000, $25,000-$50,000, $50,000-$75,000, etc.) or as a continuous variable.

c. Hypothesis: U.S. adults with higher incomes will be more likely to agree or strongly agree that current levels of funding for public education in the U.S. are adequate compared to those with lower incomes.