Assignment 2: Practitioner Process Project: Evaluation of Product Research

Scenario:

The Slender-soda company marketed its soft drink on the basis that it would help reduce weight. A lawsuit followed, claiming that Slender-soda’s campaign was misleading because it was based on a single, short-term study that was funded by Slender-soda.

The study participants were relatively lean (average body mass index [BMI] of 22), while the majority of Americans are not (a body mass index [BMI] of 25 or more according to the lawsuit) and, thus, would not be likely to lose weight by drinking the product. Slender-soda representatives believe in their product and are eager for additional research to be done that will provide strong evidence that their product will help reduce weight. To that end, Slender-soda has issued a call for proposals to continue to empirically test the weight-loss efficacy of its product.

Directions:

Assume you are submitting a proposal to test the efficacy of Slender-soda’s weight-loss product. In your proposal, analyze the original study’s research design. Make sure your analysis includes a discussion of the original study’s reliability, validity, vulnerability to bias, and any additional ethical concerns you might have with the original research.

• Propose a new study to test the efficacy of Slender-soda’s weight-loss product. Include the following information in your proposal:
  • Explain whether your proposed study will be qualitative or quantitative in nature. Provide a justification for your choice.
  • State your research question.
  • If appropriate, develop your hypothesis statements (null and alternative). If hypothesis statements are not appropriate for your proposed study, explain why.
  • Discuss your target population and sampling plan.
  • Explain how you will seek to establish reliability for your research project.
  • Explain how you will seek to establish validity for your research project.
  • Explain how you will seek to minimize bias in your research project.
• Use the following headings to organize your proposal document:
  • Analysis of the original Slender-soda research project
  • Proposed research design
    • Problem statement
    • Proposed research question
    • Proposed hypothesis
  • Proposed target population and sample(s)
    • Delimitations
    • Definition of terms
    • Assumptions
  • Establishment of reliability and validity
    • Data
    • Data collection method
  • Minimization of bias

Your final product should be a Microsoft Word document approximately 6–8 pages in length, utilizing a minimum of six scholarly sources. Make sure you employ proper grammar and spelling and apply current APA standards for writing style to your work.

Submission Details:

• By Wednesday, January 27, 2016, save your report into a Microsoft Word document as M3_A2_LastName_FirstInitial.doc and submit it to the M3 Assignment 2 Dropbox.