Question

Problem Set 2: (10 pts)

Research Scenario:Does distraction and/or amount of details affect the ability of people to make good decisions? In this fictitious scenario, researchers used a mixed design. Thirty participants were split into two groups – No Distraction or Distraction (n=15 per group). All participants were given TWO scenarios based on amount of details (4 or 12), and were asked to make an objective decision at the end of each scenario. Objective decision was the dependent variable and was quantified numerically using an interval scale of measurement.

Assume the data is parametric. Select and conduct the most appropriate statistical test to determine whether distraction and/or amount of details affect people’s ability to make good decisions. Hints:remember for a between subjects factor, there will be one column with arbitrary numbers to designate groups (e.g., 0 = no distraction; 1 = distraction and make sure you use the value labels in the Variable View!). For a within subjects factor, there will be a column per level (name these Detail4 and Detail12). Thus, you will have 3 columns of 30 rows of data in your SPSS data view. The order in which you input the data must match the table below, as it has a within-subjects component.

No Distraction			Distraction
4 details	12 details		4 details	12 details
5.5	0.8		2.5	4.7
5.2	1.2		2.1	5.8
5.3	1.5		2.3	5.3
4.7	1.2		2.4	4.9
4.9	1.3		2.7	4.8
4.8	1.1		2.9	5.7
5.1	0.5		3	5.5
5.2	0.3		2	5.1
5.4	1		2.1	5.3
5.7	0.7		2.4	5.1
5.3	1.4		1.7	5.6
5.1	1.1		2.5	5
5.9	0.9		2.7	4.3
6	1.3		2.3	4.8
5.7	1.2		2.1	4.9

1. Paste appropriate SPSS output. (5 pts)

2. Write an APA-style Results section based on your analysis. All homework “Results sections” should follow the examples provided in the presentations and textbooks for that particular statistical test. Don’t forget to include a decision about the null hypothesis. (REMINDER: you don’t need to conduct post hocs if df = 1 but you still have to look at the means to interpret it). (5 pts)

Answer 1

The SPSS output is:

There is a main effect of Distraction. (p < .05)

There is a main effect of the amount of details. (p < .05)

There is an interaction effect. (p < .05)