Difference in Participants' Selfcare and Social Support - Research Paper

Why did the authors use this t-test?

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One of the aims of Mohebi et al.'s (2018) study was to investigate whether a difference in participants' selfcare and social support mean scores based on their gender and marital status. To address this aim of the study, the researchers utilized independent samples t-test.

Do you think it's the most appropriate choice? Why or why not?

Independent samples t-test is used to determine whether two independent categorical groups show differences on the same dependent variable, measured at the continuous level of measurement (Boswell & Cannon, 2018; Larson-Hall, 2015; Urdan, 2016; Woerfel, 2018)). Consequently, to determine whether independent samples t-test was appropriate for determining whether there was a statistically significant difference between the self-care and social support mean scores across gender and marital status, it is crucial to check the level of measurement of the variables.

One of the independent variables of this study was gender. Based on gender, the respondents were categorized as either male or female. Because gender is a nominal variable, independent t-test was appropriate for testing whether male and female participants showed differences in self-care and social support mean scores. The second independent variable is marital status. Mohebi et al. (2018) grouped respondents as either married or singled. This shows that marital status was a nominal independent variable, thus making independent samples t-test analysis the most appropriate choice.

It is also essential to examine whether the dependent variables used in Mohebi et al.'s (2018) study were appropriate for independent samples t-test analysis. One of these dependent variables is self-care. Mohebi et al. (2018) noted that self-care could be measured using the Diabetes SelfCare Activities (SDSCA) tool. The SDSCA is comprised of 12 questionnaire items, with each item scored on an 8-point scale ranging from 0 to 7. The first ten items on the SDSCA instrument are summed to give a composite score (Kamradt et al., 2014). Consequently, the SDSCA yields a score that can be measured at the continuous level of measured, thus making independent samples t-test analysis the most appropriate choice.

Lastly, the second dependent variable (social support) was assessed using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). The MSPSS tool consists of 12 questionnaire items, with each item scored on a 7-point scale that ranges from 0 to 7. The MPSPSS composite score is obtained by summing participant's score in each of the 12 items. This means that the total score on this scale is 84. Therefore, it can be concluded that the MSPSS yields a continuous score which is appropriate for independent t-test analysis.

Overall, both the independent variables (gender and marital status) and the dependent variables (self-care and social support) meet the requirements of independent t-test analysis. This is because the independent variables are assessed at the nominal level of measurement while the dependent variables are assessed at the interval level of measurement as required in independent samples t-test analysis.

Did the authors display the data?

Yes. The authors displayed the findings of the study using tables. It is worth noting that the author formatted the table based on the APA format. First, it can be seen that the title of the table was clear and concise. The title of the table enables the reader to easily understand what the results found in the table are all about. According to Gravetter and Forzano (2018), the title of the table should describe the information that is found in the table. A look at Mohebi et al.'s (2018) Table 2 reveals that the title adhered to APA style because explicitly stated that the information found on the table (social support and self-care).

Additionally, a well-formatted APA table should have consistency in the number of decimal places used to report numerical data (Perrin, 2014). In Mohebi et al.'s (2018) study, the numerals reported in Table 2 did not show consistency regarding the number of decimals. That is, some of the numerals were reported using three decimal places while others were reported using one decimal place. This inconsistency of reporting numerals violates APA format. Moreover, based on the APA format, the tables should be number using Arabic numerals (Foster, Diamond, & Banton, 2014; Perrin, 2016; Raimes & Miller-Cochran, 2015). In Mohebi et al.'s (2018) study, the title of the table was numbered using Arabic numerals as "Table 2."

Do the results stand alone? Why or why not?

The results of Mohebi et al.'s (2018) study stand alone. This is because the reader is capable of seeing all the information related to the results of the aims of the study in the tables provided. For instance, from Table 2, the reader can see that there is a statistically significant difference in social support across gender. This is because the p-value reported is less than .05. Also, it can be seen that self-care shows a statistically significant difference across gender (p = .018). Overall, the data displayed in the tables help the reader to understand the findings of the study easily. Consequently, the results of the study can stand alone.

References

Boswell, C., & Cannon, S. (2018). Introduction to nursing research. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Kamradt, M., Bozorgmehr, K., Krisam, J., Freund, T., Kiel, M., Qreini, M., ... Ose, D. (2014). Assessing self-management in patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 in Germany: validation of a German version of the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities measure (Sdsca-g). Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 12(1), 185.

Larson-Hall, J. (2015). A guide to doing statistics in second language research using spss and r. Abingdon, UK: Routledge.

Mohebi, S., Parham, M., Sharifirad, G., Gharlipour, Z., Mohammadbeigi, A., & Rajati, F. (2018). Relationship between perceived social support and self-care behavior in type 2 diabetics: A cross-sectional study. Journal of Education and Health Promotion, 7, 48. https://doi.org/10.4103/jehp.jehp_73_17

Patten, M. L., & Newhart, M. (2017). Understanding research methods: an overview of the essentials. Abingdon, UK: Taylor & Francis.

Perrin, R. (2014). Pocket guide to APA style. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Perrin, R. (2016). Pocket guide to APA style, spiral bound version. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Raimes, A., & Miller-Cochran, S. K. (2015). Keys for writers with assignment guides, spiral bound version. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Urdan, T. C. (2016). Statistics in plain English. Abingdon, UK: Taylor & Francis.

Woerfel, T. (2018). Encoding motion events: the impact of language-specific patterns and language dominance in bilingual children. Berlin, BE: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG.