Question

When studies have interaction effects, what do these effects tell us? What are the advantages of studies that create interaction effect? How is the issue of ‘qualification’ related to this issue? Make sure to define the term ‘qualification’ in your answer?

Answer 1

Interaction effect- It is the simultaneous effect of minimum of 2 independent variables on minimum one dependent variable which results in significantly greater/lesser than the sum of its parts.

Studied done by Robert Sigley on the importance of interaction effects found that Interaction effects involving linguistic factor groups are barely acknowledged, even though on the other hand, there is ample recognition given to the existence of interactions between social factors. The study emphasises interaction effects as an object of systematic variationist study and demonstrates the following benefits of including such effects in quantitative modeling

1. By outlining practical methods for investigation of interaction effects within variable-rule analysis;

2. By providing direct evidence for the incidence of interaction effects in linguistic data. By reanalyzing several pre-existing literature or work done on phonological variation (containing linguistic and extralinguistic factor groups)

3. by discussing their interpretation

The idea that multiple effects should be studied in research rather than the isolated effects of single variables was given by Pedhazur and Schmelkin. When interaction effects are present, it means that interpretation of the main effects is incomplete or misleading which leads to issue of qualification in relation to interaction effect as the interpretation of main effects is incomplete or misleading. therefore the researchers wouldn't know if the condition that was supposed be fulfilled before a relationship could be guaranteed (Qualification) until further statstical analysis carried out to conform the incomplee effects.