Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

Article 1: Mbilinyi, L. F., Neighbors, C., Walker, D., Roffman, R., Zegree, J., Edleson, J., & O'Rourke, A. (2011). A telephone intervention for substance-using adult male perpetrators of intimate partner violence. Research on Social Work Practice, 21(1), 43–56.

Abstract: Objective: To preliminarily evaluate telephone-delivered motivational enhancement therapy (MET) in motivating unadjudicated and nontreatment seeking intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetrators, who also use substances, to self-refer into treatment. Method: 124 adult men were recruited via a multimedia marketing campaign and were randomly assigned to the intervention (MET) or comparison group following a baseline assessment. Participants in the MET condition received a personalized feedback report on their IPV and substance-use behaviors, consequences, and social norms beliefs. Results: Results supported the likely effectiveness of MET in short-term reduction of IPV behavior, increasing motivation for treatment seeking, and changing perceived norms for IPV and substance abuse (SA). Conclusions: Applications for brief MET interventions to facilitate voluntary treatment entry among substance-using IPV perpetrators are discussed.

Questions that apply to this article:

1. Identify one of the research hypotheses. What would the null hypothesis for this research question be?
2. Would this hypothesis be considered a one-tailed hypothesis? Why or why not?
3. Was this null hypothesis retained or rejected by the authors?
    

Article 2: Gutierrez, C., & Kirk, D. (2015). Silence speaks: The relationship between immigration and the underreporting of crime. Crime & Delinquency, 1–24. doi:10.1177/0011128715599993

Abstract: Scarce in criminological literature is an exploration of whether crime reporting varies geographically. Yet, there are substantive reasons to believe not only that the percentage of crimes reported to the police varies across jurisdictions but also that crime reporting can be explained by ecological characteristics. Drawing upon data from both the National Crime Victimization Survey and the U.S. census, this study examines the relationship between immigration and the likelihood that crimes are reported to the police. Results indicate that crime reporting is inversely related to increases in the relative size of both the noncitizen and foreign born populations within a metropolitan area, and that the negative effect is greater for violence than for property crime. Implications for the underreporting of crime are discussed.

Questions that apply to this article:

1. Was hypothesis 1 a one- or two-tailed hypothesis?
2. How would the findings have differed if the hypothesis was nondirectional?
3. What advantages are offered by using a directional over a nondirectional hypothesis?