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Example of an Interrupted Time-Series Design: Factory Shift Reduction
A classic example of an interrupted time-series design is a study analyzing a factory's reduction of work shifts from 10 hours to 8 hours. Researchers took a time series of weekly worker productivity measurements over an extended period. The change in shift length served as the experimental 'interruption'. Because productivity increased rapidly following the shift reduction and remained consistently elevated for many months afterward, the researchers could confidently conclude that the shortened shifts were the direct cause of the increased productivity.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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Example of an Interrupted Time-Series Design: Factory Shift Reduction
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Interrupted Time-Series Design with Nonequivalent Groups
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Advantage of Interrupted Time-Series Over Pretest-Posttest Designs
Which of the following procedures is the defining characteristic of an interrupted time-series design?
In an interrupted time-series design, researchers rely on a single measurement before and a single measurement after a treatment to distinguish the actual effect of an intervention from normal variation.
A clinical psychologist wants to evaluate the impact of a new mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program on patients' anxiety levels using an interrupted time-series design. Arrange the following steps of the study in the correct chronological order.
Researchers using an interrupted time-series design must analyze data patterns to determine the internal validity of an intervention. Match each hypothetical data pattern with the analytical conclusion it most strongly supports.
You are designing a quasi-experimental study to determine if a new 'Mandatory Recess' policy (implemented on October 1st) improves elementary students' focus. To create an interrupted time-series design that distinguishes the policy's effect from the natural 'mid-semester slump' in student engagement, which of the following data collection schedules should you propose?
In an interrupted time-series design, measurements of a dependent variable are taken at regular intervals both before and after the treatment is introduced.
A researcher critiquing a study that relies on a single 'before-and-after' measurement argues that this method is insufficient to judge an intervention's success. To accurately evaluate whether an observed change reflects a genuine intervention effect rather than _____, the researcher recommends using an interrupted time-series design with multiple measurements before and after the treatment.
A team of psychologists wants to choose the correct methodology for different studies. Match each research scenario or description with the most appropriate design term based on the interrupted time-series methodology.
An investigator is analyzing the source of fluctuations in a study on workplace productivity. They note that a simple pretest-posttest design makes it difficult to separate treatment effects from normal variation. To better distinguish the actual effect of the intervention from normal variation, the researcher should use an interrupted time-series design to incorporate _____ measurements of the dependent variable before and after the treatment.
A research methods class is evaluating the validity of a proposed study on student absences. Arrange the steps below in the correct chronological order to properly execute an interrupted time-series design.
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Example of an Interrupted Time-Series Design with Nonequivalent Groups: Factory Shift Reduction
In the study where a factory reduced worker shifts from 10 hours to 8 hours, why was it important for researchers to continue measuring productivity for several months after the change occurred?
In a study of factory productivity, researchers investigated how changing shift lengths affected worker output over time. Arrange the steps of their research design in the correct chronological order to show how they established that shortening shifts caused a sustained increase in productivity.
In the study of the factory that reduced work shifts from hours to hours, researchers used an interrupted time-series design. Match each observation from their data pattern to the specific logical inference it allowed them to make when analyzing the cause of increased productivity.
In the study where a factory reduced work shifts from to hours, the researchers' conclusion that the shift reduction directly caused increased productivity would be methodologically unjustified if the performance improvement had only been a short-term spike that returned to previous levels within a few days.
In the factory study illustrating an interrupted time-series design, what specific change served as the experimental 'interruption'?
In the factory study example, the researchers' use of an interrupted time-series design meant that they compared a sequence of multiple weekly productivity measurements rather than comparing only one measurement from the period when shifts were hours to one measurement from the period when shifts were hours.
In a classic interrupted time-series study, researchers found that weekly worker productivity increased and remained consistently elevated after a factory reduced its work shifts from 10 hours to _____ hours.
In the factory shift reduction study (an interrupted time-series design), match each study component to the specific methodological role it plays in supporting the researchers' causal conclusion.
In the factory study, collecting a series of weekly productivity measurements before the shift reduction—rather than only a single pre-change score—allowed researchers to detect whether productivity was already on a(n) _____ trend prior to the intervention, which, if present, would undermine the conclusion that the shift reduction caused the improvement.
A student is evaluating whether the factory interrupted time-series data justify the researchers' causal conclusion. Order the following evaluative checks from most fundamental (1) to least fundamental (5), reflecting the logical priority in which each criterion should be applied.