Experimental Research Design Report: 2×2 Study on Factors Affecting Polytechnic Student Well-Being, Singapore

Assignment Aim:

Experimental design in behavioural research is powerful as it allows us to make causal inferences due to its rigour and control. In this assignment, you (and your group members) will have to apply core concepts and best practices that you have learnt in experimental research design to address a problem scenario (see box below). You will have to conceptualize a research question, propose a valid and feasible implementable experimental design, and plan a pilot for your proposed study.

Problem Scenario: Factors Impacting Student Well-being

You are part of a student-led consultancy team working on a well-being project for Polytechnic Students. TP is concerned about the growing number of students reporting stress, poor sleep habits, and burnout. While students are generally aware of the importance of staying physically active and mentally well, many still struggle to maintain a healthy routine amidst academic, work, and social commitments.

Some students try to manage their stress through exercise or hobbies, while others turn to binge-watching, late-night gaming, or energy drinks to cope. Even with wellness resources available on campus and online, many students say they feel too tired, too busy, or too unmotivated to prioritise their well-being.

Your consultancy team has been asked to investigate how different factors may affect the physical and mental well-being of polytechnic students.

Please design and propose an experimental study using a 2×2 design to investigate how two variables (e.g., studying environment, study-break activity, accessibility to green spaces, study groups, post-task reflection) may influence student well-being. The proposed variables should be possible and feasible for the polytechnic to change, design, or affect. Your study can focus on either the physical or mental aspects of well-being and consider the daily realities of students at Polytechnic. Please provide insights that can inform campus initiatives or student support strategies aimed at promoting a healthier, more balanced student life.

For your designed experiment, the dependent variable should focus on either the physical well-being or the mental well-being of students at Polytechnic. Possible physical wellbeing measures may include self-reported frequency of exercise, sleep quality, and fatigue levels. For mental well-being, potential measures may include perceived stress, academic burnout, and satisfaction with life, etc.

Please note:

• Do not consider variables in which it is NEITHER POSSIBLE NOR FEASIBLE to change, design, or affect (e.g., Gender, Race, Age, Socioeconomic Status, Personality, Residential location/region, parental involvement/support)
• Please ensure that when designing the experimental methodology, ethics are considered, and the IVs are not intrusive.
  You are only required to conceptualize and design an experiment for two independent variables (with at least two levels), and dependent variables (at most two).
• The dependent variable must be a continuous variable.
• The proposed study is designed to be completed within one hour.

Final Report (20%)

For the Final Report component, you are required to submit a final report that includes the following sections:

Section 1. Conceptualization of the experimental study

Section 2. Proposed methodology of the experimental study

Section 3. Pilot proposal

3500 words (minimum) – 4000 words (maximum).

Section 1: Conceptualization of the experimental study

There are 5 key steps in conceptualizing an experiment:

1. Start with a broad research question based on the problem scenario and relevant literature.
   E.g., Do regular team meetings encourage teamwork?
2. Carry out a literature review on your topic of interest.
   A review of the current research and findings will provide you with an in-depth understanding of your topic and research question
3. Identify a research gap.
   Given what you already know from your literature review, identify a research gap that is still unexplored.

Propose a research question that aims to address this gap.

1. Identify and formally define the variables of interest in this research question, namely, the independent variables and dependent variables.
2. Develop a hypothesis that predicts the relationship between these variables.

E.g., People with free time are more likely to help in an emergency compared to people with no free time. Once the hypothesis is established, you will seek to test this hypothesis by designing an experiment.

To help you present the literature review more concisely and keep the focus of the assignment on experimental design, the literature review component is organized and presented in a table format.

Refer to the next page for the literature review table template.

Section 2: Proposed methodology of the experimental study

There are 6 key steps in the design and configuration of an experiment:

1. Identify the participant population for this experiment.
2. Operationally define all the independent and dependent variables.
3. Determine if you need a between-subjects design or a within-subjects design.
4. Determine the different levels of the independent variable, stating which level is the baseline or control if needed
5. Design and outline the procedure of the experiment (who are you collecting data from, timeline of the experiment, equipment, materials, and resources needed for the experiment (i.e., including manpower resources, consumables, etc). The experimental procedure should be implemented in a way that ensures internal and external validity are maintained.
6. State how the DV should be analyzed to answer your research question

To help you present the proposed experimental design methodology in a comprehensive manner, refer to the guidelines below on what you should include in this Section 2 write-up.

Guidelines

Participant Sample

Describe who will be recruited for this study (e.g., age group, gender, student status). Provide approximate sample size and explain why this size is appropriate.

Operational Definitions of Variables and Experimental Design

• Independent Variable(s) (IV):

i) Provide a clear operational definition (how it is manipulated or defined in your experiment).
ii) List and describe the different levels or conditions of the IV.
iii) Identify which level serves as the baseline or control group (if applicable).

• Dependent Variable(s) (DV):

Provide a clear operational definition (how it is measured).

• Experimental Design

State whether a between-subjects design or a within-subjects design is used.

Procedure

• Equipment, Materials, and Resources:

i) List the equipment, software, questionnaires, tests, or stimuli.
ii) Include manpower needs (e.g., number of people needed to run this experiment) and consumable materials.
iii)Provide a step-by-step description of what will happen during the experiment. When writing the procedure, include enough detail for another person to replicate this experiment.
iv) Describe how the experiment will be implemented to maximize internal validity (e.g., random assignment, control of confounding variables) and external validity (e.g., realistic setting, representative sample).

Data Analysis Plan

• Specify the statistical test(s) or analysis methods you will use to analyze the DV(s).

Explain how these analyses will help answer the research question or test the hypotheses.

Section 3: Pilot proposal

There are 5 key points you will need to consider when planning to conduct a pilot.

1. Explicate the purpose of the pilot
2. Describe the participants of your pilot
3. Describe the pilot procedure
4. Describe the stimuli and materials you will use in this pilot and what you want to evaluate about them.

To help you present the pilot proposal in a comprehensive manner, refer to the guidelines below for more details on what you should include in this Section 3 write-up.

Guidelines

In this section, you are required to propose a pilot plan to trial your experimental design, including the procedure, stimuli, and measures. The goal of the pilot is to test whether your experiment works as intended before you conduct the full study.

Purpose of the Pilot

• Briefly explain why you are conducting the pilot.
• Identify what you aim to check or improve (e.g., clarity of instructions, manipulation strength of your stimuli, participant understanding of the measures).

Participants for the Pilot

• Describe who will be included in the pilot (e.g., number of pilot participants, number of male/female participants)

Procedure

• Describe the step-by-step process of running the pilot:

i) How participants will be briefed.

ii) How the pilot will proceed

iii) What tasks or stimuli will they encounter?

iv) What questions will they answer

Stimuli and Materials

• List the stimuli or materials you will use in this pilot (e.g., images, videos, surveys, equipment).

• Explain what you want to evaluate about them.

Evaluation and Feedback Plan

• How will you collect participant feedback? How will you conduct data analysis on this pilot data to ensure the stimuli and procedure work as intended to?