What is causal
What is causal-comparative research?
Also known as “ex post facto” research. (Latin for “after the fact”).
In this type of research investigators attempt to determine the cause or consequences of differences that already exist between or among groups of individuals.Causal-comparative research is an attempt to identify a causative relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable. The relationship between the independent variable and dependent variable is usually a suggested relationship (not proven) because you (the researcher) do not have complete control over the independent variable.
EXAMPLE
You are a first year agricultural education teacher at the local high school. At the state CDE contest you run into a Billy Bob (a fellow agricultural education teacher). When Billy asks how your year is going, you tell them that you are discouraged because your students do not seem to like your teaching very much and complain about your style of testing.
Billy Bob tells you that they have been using e-moments and some of the concepts from the FFA Life Knowledge materials to teach their classes. They think that their students really enjoy their teaching and are learning more because of it.
You wonder if Billy Bob’s approach would work for you…
An appropriate way to approach this situation would be with a causal-comparative study.You (the researcher) observe that 2 groups differ on some variable (teaching style) and then attempt to find the reason for (or the results of) this difference.
TYPES
Types of Causal-Comparative Research Designs
There are two types of causal-comparative research designs:
Retrospective causal-comparative research
Prospective causal-comparative research Retrospective causal-comparative
Research requires that a researcher begins investigating a particular question when the effects have already occurred and the researcher attempts to determine whether one variable may have influenced another variable.
Prospective
Also known as “ex post facto” research. (Latin for “after the fact”).
In this type of research investigators attempt to determine the cause or consequences of differences that already exist between or among groups of individuals.Causal-comparative research is an attempt to identify a causative relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable. The relationship between the independent variable and dependent variable is usually a suggested relationship (not proven) because you (the researcher) do not have complete control over the independent variable.
EXAMPLE
You are a first year agricultural education teacher at the local high school. At the state CDE contest you run into a Billy Bob (a fellow agricultural education teacher). When Billy asks how your year is going, you tell them that you are discouraged because your students do not seem to like your teaching very much and complain about your style of testing.
Billy Bob tells you that they have been using e-moments and some of the concepts from the FFA Life Knowledge materials to teach their classes. They think that their students really enjoy their teaching and are learning more because of it.
You wonder if Billy Bob’s approach would work for you…
An appropriate way to approach this situation would be with a causal-comparative study.You (the researcher) observe that 2 groups differ on some variable (teaching style) and then attempt to find the reason for (or the results of) this difference.
TYPES
Types of Causal-Comparative Research Designs
There are two types of causal-comparative research designs:
Retrospective causal-comparative research
Prospective causal-comparative research Retrospective causal-comparative
Research requires that a researcher begins investigating a particular question when the effects have already occurred and the researcher attempts to determine whether one variable may have influenced another variable.
Prospective