Reference no: EM132496001

SGI is increasingly concerned about the number of people who text while driving, and the impact this may have on accidents. They have observed that more and more accidents seem to involve texting, but they want to conduct the proper research on the issue. They have hired you to conduct this research, and are asking you for a proposal for an experimental design to investigate this research problem. 

Your job is to test the hypothesis that texting while driving leads to accidents

Your proposed study should be conducted in a laboratory environment. To help you imagine that space, there is a waiting room and a large room with a driving simulator. You also have access to research assistants and money to develop computer programs and pay for any electronic equipment you might need. Your participants are first year university students participating for bonus points in their introductory psychology course. Your proposed study should be ethical and sensible.

Now answer the following questions as they relate to your research hypothesis:

• What are your independent and dependent variables? How will you manipulate your IV(s)? How will you operationalize/measure the DV(s)?
• Describe how you will make this study, making sure you demonstrate your understanding of what is required to conduct a true experiment. In particular, how will you manipulate your IV(s), and what exactly will your participants do (or experience) in the study? How will you collect the data? Identify any specific confounding variables that you need to attend to, and how you will do that. Be specific and detailed.
• How will you analyze the data in order to address your research hypothesis?
• Explain in detail how you propose to maximize the validity (internal, external, and construct validity) of this study.
• Discuss any specific ethical considerations relevant to this study.