ANNOTATED

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR
HYPOTHESIS

SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED
BY

Prof.Mrs.Baby Uma,M.Sc(N), R.Shubha

Vice Principal I Yr M.Sc(N)

NNC, Vallioor NNC, Vallioor

 FORMULATION OF HYPOTHESIS

Introduction:

The formulation of hypothesis or proposition as to the possible answers to the research

questions is an importance steps in the process of formulation of the research problem. Hypothesis
is usually considered as the principal instrument in research. Its main function is to suggest new
experiment and observations. Keen observation, creative thinking, hunch, unit, imagination, vision,
insight and sound judgement are of greater importance in setting up reasonable hypotheses. A
thorough knowledge about the phenomenon and related fields is of great value in its process. The
formulation of hypotheses plays an important part in the growth of knowledge in every science. The
hypotheses are formulated to facilitate the findings of the research study.

Meaning of hypothesis:

 The relationship between/ among variables,

 The research hypothesis is a predictive statement, capable for being tested by

scientific methods, that relates an independent variable to some dependent variable.
The level of influence of independent variables on the dependent variables.

 E.g.: “students who receive counselling will show a greater increase in creativity than
students not receiving counselling.”

 A proposal intended to explain certain facts or observations.

 A hypothesis is a precise testable statement prediction of what the researcher expects

to find or prove.

 It is a tentative answer to a research question.

 A hypothesis is a tentative proposition formulated for empirical testing. It is a

declarative statement combining concept.

Definition of hypothesis:

 Goode and Hatt have defined a hypothesis, “a proposition which can be put to test to
determine validity.”
  According to Rummel and Balline, “A hypothesis is a statement capable of being
tested and thereby verified or rejected.”

 According to M.H. Gopal,” a hypothesis is a tentative solution posed on a cursory

observation of known and available data and adopted provisionally to explain certain
events and to guide in the investigation of others .It is, in fact, a possible solution to
the problem.”.

 A tentative theory or supposition provisionally adopted to explain certain facts, and to

guide, in the investigation of others, hence, frequently called a working hypothesis.

Characteristics of hypothesis:

Hypothesis must possess the following characteristics:

Hypothesis should be clear and precise. If the hypothesis is not clear and precise, the
inferences drawn on its basis cannot be taken as reliable.

Hypothesis should be capable of being tested. In a swamp of untestable hypothesis,

many times the research programmes have bogged down. Some prior study may be
done by researcher in order to make hypothesis a testable one

Hypothesis should state relations between variables, if it happens to be a relational

hypothesis.

Hypothesis should be limited in scope and must be specific. A researcher must

remember the narrower hypothesis is generally more testable and he should develop
such hypothesis.

Hypothesis should be stated as far as possible in most simple terms so that the same is
easily understandable by all concerned. But one must remember that simplicity of
hypothesis has nothing to do with its significance.

Hypothesis should be amenable to testing within a reasonable time. One should not
use even an excellent hypothesis, if the same cannot be tested in reasonable time for
one cannot spend a life-time collecting data to test it.

Hypothesis must explain the facts that gave rise to the need for explanation. This
means that by using the hypothesis plus other known and accepted generalization, one
 should be able to deduce the original problem condition. Thus hypothesis must
actually explain what it claims to explain; it should have empirical reference.

Importance of hypothesis:

Hypothesis has a very important place in research although it occupies a very small
place in the body of a thesis. It is almost impossible for a research worker not to have
and or more hypotheses before proceeding with his work. The importance of
hypothesis can be more specifically stated as under:

It Provides direction to research. It defines what is relevant and what is irrelevant.

Thus, it prevents the review of irrelevant literature and the collection of useless or
excess data.

It is the investigator’s eye- a sort of guiding light in the world of darkness.

It prevents blind research. Prevents indiscriminate gathering of data which may later
turn to be irrelevant.

It places clear and specific goals before us. These clear and specific goals provide the
investigator with a basis for selecting samples and research procedures to meet these
goals.

It serves the function of the linking together related facts and information and
organising them in to one comprehensible whole.

It enables the investigator to understand with greater clarity his problem and its
ramifications, as well as data which beat on it.

It serves as a formulation for drawing conclusions. It provides the outline for setting
conclusions in a meaningful way.

Difficulties of hypothesis:

There are a number of difficulties from which a beginner may suffer at the stage of
formulating a good hypothesis.

Lack of knowledge and clarity of the theoretical framework of the area in which the
investigator chooses to work.

Lack of ability to make use of the theoretical framework logically.

 Lack of acquaintance with available research technique resulting in failure to be able
to phrase the hypothesis properly.

Vagueness of the statement: For example, a course in ethics will make a student a
more ethical adult.

Criteria of a good hypothesis:

A good hypothesis must satisfy the following criteria;

o It should provide tentative answer o the proposed problem. This can be in the form of
a declaration statement or in the form of a directional statement or in a null form.

o It should be operational, that is there should be a method for recording and measuring
the variables involved in the hypothesis.

o It should be as simple as possible.

o It should be specific but not trivial or inconsequential. A very broad hypothesis, no

doubt, makes the problem unworkable. But a very hypothesis cut the life out of it.

o A hypothesis must always be stated in advance of collecting evidence aimed at its

testing. If and only if a hypothesis is stated in advance of collecting facts aimed at its
testing will such facts be useful in the verification or repetition of the hypothesis.

Various types of Hypothesis:

1. Descriptive hypothesis:

These are propositions that describe the characteristics (such as size, form, or distribution) of
a variable. The variable may be an object, person, organisation, situation or event.

Some examples are:

“The rate of unemployment among arts graduates is higher than that of commerce graduates.”

“Public enterprises are more amenable for centralized planning.”

2. Relational hypothesis:

These are propositions, which describe the relationship between two variables. The
relationship suggested may be positive or negative correlation or causal relationship.
Some examples:

“Families with higher incomes spend more for recreation.”

“The lower the rate of job turnover in a work group, the higher the work productivity.”

3. Casual hypothesis:

State that the existence of, or a change in, one variable cause or leads to an effect on another
variables. The first variable is called the independent variable, and the latter the dependent variables
the researcher must consider the direction in which such relationships flow.ie. Which are cause and
which effect is

4. Working hypothesis:

While planning the study of a problem, hypotheses are formed. Initially they are not be
very specific. In such cases, they are referred to as “Working hypothesis” which are subject to
modification as the investigation proceeds.

5. Null hypothesis:

These are hypothetical statements denying what are explicitly indicated in working
hypothesis. They are formed in the negative statement.

For example:” There is no relationship between families’ income level and expenditure on
recreation”.

Null hypothesis is formulated for testing statistical significance. Since, this form is a
convenient approach to statistical analysis. As the test would nullify the null hypothesis, .they are so
called. There is some justification for using null hypotheses. They conform to the qualities of
detachment and objectivity to be possessed by a researcher. If the attempts to test hypotheses which
he assumes to be true, it would appear as if he is not behaving objectively. The problem does not
arise when he uses null hypotheses. Moreover, null hypotheses are more exact. It is easier to reject
the contrary of hypotheses than to confirm it with complete certainty. Hence the concept of null
hypothesis is found to be very useful.

6. Alternate Hypothesis {Ha}

It is a statement, which is accepted, after a null hypothesis is rejected based on the test result.
 Ex: If the null hypothesis is that “there is no relationship between the eye colour of husbands
and wives”, it is rejected then automatically the alternative hypothesis is that “there is relationship
between the eye colour of husbands and wives is accepted.”

7. Statistical hypothesis:

There are statements about a statistical population. These are derived from a sample. These
are quantitative in nature in that they are numerically measurable, e.g., “Group A is older than
Group B.”

8. Common sense Hypothesis:

These represent the common sense ideas. They state the existence of empirical uniformities
perceived through day-to-day observations.

“Soldiers from upper-class are less adjusted in the army than lower class men”

“Fresh students conform to the conventions set up by seniors”

9. Complex Hypothesis:

These aim at testing the existence of logically derived relationships between empirical
uniformities. For example,

“The concentric growth circles characterize a city”.

10. Analytical Hypothesis:

These are concerned with the relationship of analytic variables. These hypotheses occur at
the highest level of abstraction. These specify relationship between changes in one property and
changes in another.

Sources of Hypothesis:

1. Theory: This is one of the main sources of hypotheses. It gives direction to research by
stating what is known logical deduction from theory leads to new hypotheses. For example,
profit/wealth maximization id considered as the goal of private enterprises. From this
assumption, various hypotheses are derived. “The rate of return on capital employed is an
index of business success “; the optimum capital structure is that combination of debt and
 equity which leads to the maximum value of the firm.” “Higher the earning per share, more
favourable is the financial leverage.”
2. Observation: Hypotheses can be derived from observation. From the observation of price
behaviour in a market for example, the relationship between the price and demand for an
article is hypothesized.
3. Analogies: These are another resource of useful hypotheses. Julian Huxley has pointed out
that casual observation in nature or in the framework of another science may be fertile source
of hypotheses. For example, the hypotheses that “similar human types or activities may be
found in similar geographical regions ‘came from plant ecology.
4. Intuition and personal experience: may also contribute to the formulation of hypotheses,
personal life and experiences of persons determine their perception and conception.  These
may, in turn, direct a person to certain hypotheses more quickly. The story of Newton and the
falling apple, the flash of wisdom of Buddha under banyan tree illustrate this individual
accident process.
5. Findings of studies: Hypotheses may be developed out of the finding of other studies in
order to replicate and test
6. Culture: Another source of hypotheses is the culture on which the researcher was nurtured.
7. Continuity of research: The continuity of research in field itself constitutes important
sources of hypotheses. The rejection of some hypotheses leads to the formulation of new
once capable of explaining dependent variables in subsequent researchers on the same
subject.

Procedure in testing of hypothesis:

There are five steps involved in testing of hypothesis. There are briefly discussed below.
 Formulate the hypothesis

Set up a suitable significance level

Select test criterion

Compute

Make decisions
ERROR IN TESTING

Type I Error (α): It refers to the rejection of a null hypothesis when it is true. The I error is
symbolized by α (alpha)

Type II Error (β): Accepting a null hypothesis when it is false is called type II error which is
symbolized by β (beta)
In the test of a null hypothesis the possible decisions are shown in the following table:

CONDITION DECISION
Accept H0 Reject H0
H0 is true Correct decision Incorrect decision(Type I error)

H0 is false Incorrect decision (Type II error) Correct decision

In the form of probability:

α =P (Type I error) = P (Reject H0 / H0 true)

β= P (Type II error) = P (Accept H0 / H0 false)

Conclusion

It is true that hypotheses are useful and they guide the research process in the proper
direction. In fact, many experiments are carried out with the deliberate object of testing hypothesis.
Decision-Makers often face situations wherein they are interested in testing hypothesis on the basis
of available information and then take decisions on the basis of such testing. But in all analytical
and experiment studies, hypothesis should be setup in order to give a proper direction to them. The
hypothesis will guide a researcher in the selection of pertinent facts that are required to explain the
issue considered for the study. Thus, formulation of hypothesis plays an important role in the
research studies.
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. CITATION: Polit D.E. & Beck, CT. (2008). “Nursing research: Generating and assessing
evidence for nursing practice” (8th edition). Philadelphia: Wolter Kluwer, Lippincott
Williams & Wilkins. 

ANNOTATION: AJN award-winning authors Denise Polit and Cheryl Beck present

research essentials, steps of hypothesis, and explore types and error in hypothesis and its
testing by igniting student curiosity and encouraging them to pursue a professional pathway
that incorporates thoughtful appraisals of evidence. The only thing is it is little bit hard to
follow.

2. CITATION: Galero T.E. (2011). “A simplified approach to thesis and dissertation writing”.
Quezon City: National Bookstore.

ANNOTATION: Not a well-known author but his works has helped many students to write
their thesis properly. He has given a clear meaning about hypothesis, its types and different
techniques to formulate hypothesis and also how to test them. A little more information
would have been helpful.

3. CITATION: Talbot, L.A. (1995). “Principles and practice of nursing research”. USA:
Mosby Year Book,Inc. 

ANNOTATION: Dr. Laura A. Talbot RN C EdD PhD., has published few articles and
books. In this book she has explained about what is hypothesis, characteristics of good
hypothesis, its types, how to put it into testing. It is really helpful and as a student it is easy to
follow and a little more example would have been helpful

4. CITATION: Nieswiadomy, R.M. (2008). “Foundations of Nursing Research” (5th edition).

Singapore: Pearson Education South Asia Pt Ltd.

ANNOTATION: This book illuminates all steps of the nursing research process, helping
readers understand the importance of research to evidence-based nursing practice, evaluate
and critique research, and determine whether study findings are ready to apply in practice. Its
conversational tone explain hypothesis simply and clearly. A little additional information
about the different types of hypothesis would have been helpful.

5. CITATION: Kothari C.R (2009). “Research Methodology-Methods and techniques” (2 nd

edition). Delhi: New Age International publishers.
ANNOTATION: C.R. Kothari was Principal, University Commerce College, Jaipur, and
Associate Professor in the Department of Economic Administration and Financial
Management (EAFM), University of Rajasthan, Jaipur. Earlier, Dr Kothari had taught at
Government College, Ajmer. He contributed research papers/articles to several research
journals of repute.

Testing of hypothesis is explained in detail with lot more concepts. It talks about the
definition of hypothesis and basic concepts in testing of hypothesis. Hypothesis testing for
different statistical tests were also explained clearly. Overall it is helpful.