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FORMULATION OF HYPOTHESIS
Hypothesis Formulation Once you have identified you research question, it is time to formulate your hypothesis. While
the research question is broad and includes all the variables you want your study to consider, the
hypothesis is a statement that specific relationship you expect to find from your examination of these
variables. When formulating the hypothesis(es) for your study, there are a few things you need to keep
in mind. Good hypotheses meet the following criteria:
- Identify the independent and dependent variables to be studied.
- Specify the nature of the relationship that exists between these variables.
- Simple (often referred to as parsimonious). It is better to be concise than to be long- winded. It is also better to have several simple hypotheses than one complicated hypothesis.
- Does not include reference to specific measures.
- Does not refer to specific statistical procedures that will be used in analysis.
- Implies the population that you are going to study.
- Is falsifiable and testable.
As indicated above, it is better to have several simple hypotheses than one complex one. However, it is
also a good idea to limit the number of hypotheses you use in a study to six or fewer. Studies that
address more hypotheses than six will often be too time consuming to keep participants interested, and
uninterested participants do not take the importance of their responses as seriously. Another advantage
to limiting the number of formal hypotheses you formulate is that too many can make the discussion
section of your paper very hard to write.
It is important to remember that you do not have to have a formal hypothesis to justify all
comparisons and statistical procedures you might use. For instance, it is only when you start doing
exploratory analysis of your data that you realize that gender is an influencing factor. You do not have to
back up and write a hypothesis that addresses this finding. In fact, it is better in most cases to not do
this. You can report any statistical findings you feel are relevant, whether or not you have a hypothesis
that addressed them.
The final criterion listed above warrants additional mention. A good hypothesis is not only
testable, that is, something you can actually test for in your study, but is must also be falsifiable. It is
tempting to ignore this requirement, especially as a new researcher. We want so badly to find great
things, and for our study to turn out exactly as we expect it to, that we tend to ignore the possibility that
we don’t know everything and that no prediction is failsafe when it comes to humans. Try to keep in
mind that all research is relevant. Whether or not your findings are what you expect, you will find
something. Believe it or not, failing to find group differences can be just as important as finding
expected group differences. In fact, studies that return results in opposition to what we were hoping for,
or believed would logically occur, often lead to many more great studies than we could have hoped for.
After all, it could be great for the findings of your current research to act as a guiding principal to your
future research… it is likely that this would require less work in terms of literature review, as you would
always be familiar with at least a portion of the literature that is relevant to your latest study!
3.1 definition of hypothesis
3.2. the so-called
more disciplines, one of which is law. This is essential, since your paper is interdisciplinary and
a demonstration of the interdisciplinary process.
In your hypothesis, you are predicting the relationship between variables. Through the
disciplinary insights gained in the research process throughout the year, you “prove” your
hypothesis. This is a process of discovery to create greater understandings or conclusions. It is
not a strict proof as in logic or mathematics.
Following are some hints for the formulation of your hypothesis:
- Be sure to read on the topic to familiarize yourself with it before making a final
decision. You need to make certain that the topic is researchable in an interdisciplinary
sense, meaning that there is sufficient published material on the topic in the legal
literature and in the literature of a second or possibly a third discipline to write a 35-page
paper.
- As noted, a research hypothesis is more than just a topic. It has two elements
(variables) that are in relation to each other. Remember that, within the word
"hypothesis" is the word "thesis." Your hypothesis is what you propose to “prove” by
your research. As a result of your research, you will arrive at a conclusion, a theory, or
understanding that will be useful or applicable beyond the research itself.
- Avoid judgmental words in your hypothesis. Value judgments are subjective and are
not appropriate for a hypothesis. You should strive to be objective. Therefore the use of
personal opinion is to be avoided.
- Your hypothesis must involve an issue or question that cannot be answered exclusively
by the discipline of law. You should try to limit your inquiry to the literatures of 2 or 3
disciplines. It is best to choose a hypothesis where you already have some level of
familiarity with the disciplines that are most relevant to the topic.• 5. Be sure that each term in your hypothesis is clearly understood and defined; do not
which evolved into a hypothesis. Look for the variables that each student subsequently explored
in his/her paper. The examples below are final form hypotheses, which have been revised
throughout the research process. You will find that your hypothesis may undergo changes too, as
your research progresses.
Ali Abiden
Research Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that the recognition of the right to physician-assisted
suicide is a protection of individual civil liberties.
Discipline and Sub-Disciplines:
Law ( Civil Liberties / Constitutional Law); Political Science (American Government)
Hypothesis as Question: Would the recognition of the right to physician-assisted suicide be a
protection of individual civil liberties?
Paper Title: The Right to Physician-Assisted Suicide and Individual Civil Liberties
Christine Aramini
Research Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that current law regarding eminent domain transfers
property rights to private enterprise without consideration of “the public good.”
Disciplines and Sub-Disciplines:
Law (Eminent Domain-focusing on Supreme Court Ruling/ Current NJ State Law);
Political Science (Constitutional Law/American Government and Politics/State and Local
Government); Sociology (Political Sociology)
Hypothesis as Question: Does the current law regarding eminent domain transfer property rights
to private enterprises without consideration of the “public good”?
Paper Title: Transfer of Property Rights: Finding the “Public Good” in Eminent DomainDorothy Kenney
Research Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that, subsequent to District of Columbia v. Heller, the
United States Supreme Court has laid the foundation to uphold an individual's Second
Amendment "right to bear arms" under state law.
Disciplines and Sub-Disciplines:
Law (Constitutional Law) ; Political Science (American Government, Political Theory)
Syndrome has become increasingly accepted as a justification for self-defense in homicide cases
Disciplines and Sub-Disciplines:
Law(Domestic Violence Law and Criminal Law) Psychology (Behavioral Psychology)
Hypothesis as Question: Should Battered Woman Syndrome become more accepted as a
justification for self-defense in homicide cases?
Paper Title: Battered Woman Syndrome: A Defense of Justification
Alex Taub
Research Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that law school courses in “Law and Literature”
provide non-traditional perspectives that enrich a law school education.
Disciplines and Sub-Disciplines:
Law(Education); Literature (Education)
Hypothesis as Question: What can be gained from the non- traditional interdisciplinary study of
law and literature in a law school curriculum?
Paper Title: Law and Literature: A Paradigm for Non- Traditional Interdisciplinary Law School
Formulating the Hypothesis
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Formulating a hypothesis helps by defining an initial explanation to be tested in the research process.
KEY POINTS
In an equation, the variable whose value depends on one or more variables in the equation.
independent variable
In an equation, any variable whose value is not dependent on any other in the equation.
EXAMPLES
In his book Making Democracy Work, Robert Putnam developed a theory that social capital makes government more responsive. To demonstrate his theory, he tested several hypotheses about the ways that social capital influences government. One of his hypotheses was that regions with strong traditions of civic engagement would have more responsive, more democratic, and more efficient governments, regardless of the institutional form that government took. This is an example of a causal hypothesis. In this hypothesis, the independent (causal) variable is civic engagement and the dependent variables (or effects) are the qualities of government. To test this hypothesis, he compared twenty different regional Italian governments. All of these governments had similar institutions, but the regions had different traditions of civic engagement. In southern Italy, politics were traditionally patrimonial, whereas in northern Italy, politics were traditionally more open and citizens were more engaged. Putnam's evidence supported his hypothesis: in the north,
which had a stronger tradition of civic engagement, government was indeed more responsive and more democratic.
To test this hypothesis, he compared twenty different regional Italian governments. All of these governments had similar institutions, but the regions had different traditions of civic engagement. In southern Italy, politics were traditionally patrimonial, whereas in northern Italy, politics were traditionally more open and citizens were more engaged. Putnam's evidence supported his hypothesis: in the north, which had a stronger tradition of civic engaegment, government was indeed more responsive and more democratic.
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A hypothesis is an assumption or suggested explanation about how two or more variables are related. It is a crucial step in the scientific method and, therefore, a vital aspect of all scientific research. There are no definitive guidelines for the production of new hypotheses. The history of science is filled with stories of scientists claiming a flash of inspiration, or a hunch, which then motivated them to look for evidence to support or refute the idea.
The Scientific Method is an Essential Tool in Research
