Reference no: EM132218966

Please read the article Gaming Can Weaken moral maturity by Eddie Makuch (This study was published at a top journal)

[QUESTIONS FOR OBSERVATIONAL STUDIES]

1. What is the conceptual independent variable(IV) in this study? (Gaming can weaken moral maturity)

2. What is the conceptual dependent variable(DV) in this study?

3. An uninformed reader may assume that the IV causes the DV because they are correlated. Describe what this naïve causal storywould be. Be specific.

4. If the causal story was proved to be true using an experiment, come up with one potentialmoderating variable. Explain clearly what you mean: how would the relationship between the IV and DV be different under different levels of this moderator?

5. If the causal story was proved to be true using an experiment, come up with one mediating variablethat may explain why the IV causes the DV. Explain clearly why this might be a mediator and what that means.

6. The causal story is only one explanation as to why these variables are correlated. Come up with twopossible alternative explanationsabout why these variables are correlated, besides the causal story you illumined above. Be specific and describe clearly what you mean. (Hint: See notes about 3 types of alternative explanations.)

7. Assume you have kids and your friend reads this news article and calls you, worried. He says, “I know your kids play violent video games / you use red plates at home / your kids keep their desks very neat and clean, and I am worried about that.” Choose one point out of all the points you came up with above that you could use to reassure your friend. Below, explain this point in plain Englishto help him understand why he might not have to be worried.