Research project Statistic

STA2023

Research Project

Are there differences between students with a dependent child or children and

students with no dependents?

Introduction

One-in-every-four students at North Campus, or 25% of the student population, have a

dependent child to care for. This can be especially challenging as these students have to balance

family life, job, and college coursework as they seek to complete their degree. For many such

students, the problem is compounded if they are single parents without the support of a spouse or

partner. My research project will focus on this specific student population and will attempt to

answer the research questions below.

Research Questions

1. Does having a dependent child to care for affects a student’s GPA? In other words, is there a difference in GPA between students who have a dependent child to care for and

students who don’t?

2. Do students with a dependent child experience more anxiety in taking statistics? 3. Do students with a dependent child perceive statistics to be more difficult than students

with no dependents?

4. Do students with a dependent child work more hours on their jobs than students with no dependents?

5. Do students with a dependent child spend more hours on their homework than students with no dependents?

Hypotheses: My hypotheses for the research questions above are as follows:

1. I believe that students with a dependent child will have a lower GPA than students with no dependents.

2. I believe that students with a dependent child will experience greater anxiety in taking statistics

3. I believe that students with a dependent child will perceive statistics to be more difficult than students with no dependents.

4. I believe that students with a dependent child will work more hours on their jobs than students with no dependents.

5. I believe that students with a dependent child will spend less hours on their homework than students with no dependents.

Method

In order to answer these research questions, I will first select a sample of students with a

dependent child and a sample of students with no dependent child. For each sample, I will also

collect data on the following variables: gender, age, race, GPA, hours work per week, course

anxiety, course difficulty, and hours spent on homework. I will then compute the means for both

groups to determine if there are significant differences in GPA, course anxiety, course difficulty,

hours worked on job, and hours spent on homework.

Results

The results from the data analysis are shown in Table 1 which shows the sample means.

Table 1: Sample Means

Students with

dependents

Students with no

dependents

GPA 3.16 3.02

Age 34.67 23.40

Hours work per week 37.35 32.30

Course anxiety (scale of 1 -7) 5.03 4.49

Course difficulty (scale of 1 7) 4.96 4.67

Hours spent on homework 10.98 9.42

Research question 1: Does having a dependent child affects a student’s GPA? In other

words, is there a difference in GPA between students who have a dependent child and

students who don’t have a dependent child?

Results from table 1 shows that students with a dependent child had a higher mean GPA (3.16)

than students with no dependents (3.02). This was totally unexpected and completely opposite to

what I predicted. I assumed that students with dependents will have greater challenges and more

difficulty in balancing family, work, and school and therefore their GPA will be lower. However,

the results showed otherwise. One reason could be that students with dependents are more

serious about their education and therefore are more dedicated to their school work.

Figure 1: GPA comparison between students with dependents and students without

dependents

3.16

3.02

2.50

2.60

2.70

2.80

2.90

3.00

3.10

3.20

Students with dependents Students with no dependents

Mean GPA Comparison

Research question 2: Do students with a dependent child experience more anxiety in taking

statistics?

Results from table 1 shows that students with a dependent child experience a higher degree of

anxiety in taking statistics (mean = 5.03) than students with no dependents (mean = 4.49). My

hypothesis was confirmed. Students with a dependent child do experience more anxiety in taking

statistics. This increased anxiety about taking statistics could be due to the fact that students with

dependents are typically older and may be returning to college after a long layoff.

Figure 2: Mean anxiety level about statistics between students with dependents and

students without dependents

5.03

4.49

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

Students with dependents Students with no dependents

Mean anxiety level about statistics

Research question 3: Do students with a dependent child perceive statistics to be more

difficult than students with no dependents?

I predicted that students with dependents will perceive statistics to be more difficult than students

without any dependents. The results from the analysis supported my prediction. Students with

dependents had a mean difficulty level of 4.95, whereas students with no dependents had a mean

of 4.67. This could be because students with dependents might be returning to school after a long

time and face many more challenges than students with no dependents.

Figure 3: Mean difficulty level of statistics between students with dependents and students

without dependents

Research question 4: Do students with a dependent child work more hours on their jobs

than students with no dependents?

Results from table 1 shows that students with a dependent child work more hours on their jobs

(mean = 37.35) than students with no dependents (mean = 32.30). These results supported my

prediction. It is reasonable to assume that students with dependents will need to work longer

hours in order to pay their bills and to support their dependent child or children. This is

especially so if they are also single parents.

Figure 5: Mean hours worked per week between students with dependents and students

without dependents

4.96

4.67

3.00

3.50

4.00

4.50

5.00

5.50

Students with dependents Students with no dependents

Mean difficulty level of statistics

37.35

32.3

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Students with dependents Students with no dependents

Mean hours worked per week

Research question 4: Do students with a dependent child spend more hours on their

homework than students with no dependents?

Results from table 1 shows that students with a dependent child spend more hours on their

homework (mean = 10.98) than students with no dependents (mean = 9.42). These results did not

support my prediction. I predicted that students with a dependent child will have less time to

spend on their homework given their added responsibilities and challenges in balancing family

life, work, and school. Yet, in spite of their added responsibilities and challenges, students with

dependents are able to spend more time on their homework than students without dependents.

Figure 6: Mean hours spent on homework between students with dependents and students

without dependents

Conclusion

The results of the data analysis revealed there are important and significant differences between

students with dependents and students with no dependents. Students with dependents are

significantly older and work longer hours on their jobs than students with no dependents.

Moreover, in spite of their added responsibilities and challenges, students with dependents

typically spend more time on their homework than students with no dependents. But perhaps the

most surprising finding of this study is the fact that students with dependents have a higher mean

GPA than students with no dependents. This was totally unpredicted and quite puzzling, given

the fact that students with dependents are significantly older, work longer hours on their jobs,

and have added responsibilities and challenges in balancing family life, work, and school.

10.98

9.42

0.00

2.00

4.00

6.00

8.00

10.00

12.00

Students with dependents Students with no dependents

Mean hours spent on homework

Moreover, students with a dependent child perceive themselves less capable to handle statistics

and are more anxious about succeeding in the course than their counterparts with no dependents.

Maybe their higher GPA could be explained by the fact that they are more mature, they take their

education more seriously, and are more motivated to succeed.

Appendix

Sample of Students with NO Dependents

Stu Id

Gender Age Race GPA Hours work per week Dep Child

Course anxiety

Course Difficulty

Hours on homework

12 F 15 W 4.00 0 N 5 4 18

183 F 27 B 2.90 27 N 4 2 3

321 F 23 B 3.00 32 N 5 2 21

67 F 21 B 2.30 35 N 5 3 2

149 M 20 B 3.60 30 N 5 5 20

280 F 23 H 3.28 15 N 4 4 7

355 F 22 H 2.80 0 N 7 5 5

471 F 23 H 3.28 15 N 4 4 7

521 F 22 H 2.80 0 N 7 5 5

99 F 18 A 4.00 20 N 2 3 4

278 F 21 B 2.71 30 N 4 4 18

567 F 28 O 3.75 32 N 3 6 6

470 M 23 A 3.83 20 N 7 5 14

268 F 20 B 2.70 0 N 5 7 4

311 F 20 B 2.70 0 N 5 7 4

194 M 18 B 3.90 0 N 6 4 18

66 F 28 M 3.20 35 N 4 5 15

42 F 55 H 2.65 40 N 6 7 20

470 F 22 M 2.87 40 N 3 3 20

527 M 48 W 3.00 0 N 5 6 20

677 M 26 W 3.80 36 N 5 5 4

271 F 21 B 2.50 25 N 7 3 12

345 F 25 H 2.50 40 N 5 5 5

460 F 18 B 3.80 20 N 4 5 10

77 F 24 B 4.00 20 N 7 7 20

144 F 21 B 2.05 0 N 2 3 10

291 F 20 B 2.51 24 N 3 7 3

357 F 19 W 2.50 40 N 7 5 6

433 M 20 MR 3.20 0 N 4 3 5

143 F 28 W 3.14 40 N 4 3 4

283 F 27 B 2.60 30 N 3 3 6

Sample of Students with Dependents

Stu Id

Gender Age Race GPA Hours work per week Dep Child

Course anxiety

Course Difficulty

Hours on homework

521 F 29 B 2.80 15 Y 5 5 8

743 F 35 B 2.80 37 Y 4 5 20

498 F 31 B 3.10 68 Y 5 4 6

671 F 37 B 2.80 36 Y 7 5 10

732 F 24 O 3.07 30 Y 5 4 14

488 F 20 B 3.00 26 Y 7 7 10

690 F 51 B 3.00 40 Y 3 4 36

455 M 43 B 2.69 40 Y 6 3 16

712 F 30 B 3.50 30 Y 7 7 15

267 F 32 B 2.78 40 Y 6 7 15

304 F 30 B 2.70 40 Y 7 5 10

275 F 35 B 2.70 40 Y 2 2 16

365 F 36 H 3.80 0 Y 5 6 10

437 F 36 H 3.80 20 Y 5 6 10

612 M 49 B 3.50 0 Y 7 1 15

469 M 49 B 3.50 20 Y 7 1 15

304 F 49 H 4.00 36 Y 5 5 10

284 M 55 H 3.86 48 Y 5 5 12

721 F 50 H 3.30 37 Y 7 3 15

533 F 50 H 3.30 37 Y 7 3 15

361 M 41 H 3.50 48 Y 2 4 6

552 F 52 Multi 3.80 30 Y 4 4 45

730 F 36 H 2.97 40 Y 7 4 8

549 F 53 W 3.00 24 Y 5 6 2.5

361 F 23 B 3.00 35 Y 5 5 3

427 F 31 B 2.90 40 Y 4 4 17

501 F 32 B 2.45 40 Y 4 4 20

391 M 35 B 3.20 30 Y 1 2 20

477 F 52 W 3.40 40 Y 6 4 12

529 F 33 B 3.90 40 Y 3 4 10

641 F 49 H 2.80 0 Y 4 5 3

659 F 20 H 2.90 32 Y 3 5 10