Statistics in Quantitative Methods: Data Collection Methods

Term Paper Part 2: Statistics In Quantitative Methods
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course Code and Name
Professor
Assignment Due Date
Term Paper Part 2: Statistics In Quantitative Methods
Data Collection Methods
The purpose of the study is to collect information on the perception and mental health issues of young Canadian adults aged 22-29 years who use marijuana for recreational purposes. The study will implement a mixed method approach; encompassing both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore and compare how the use of recreational cannabis impact on lives of young adults in Canada. Subsequently, the convergent design of mixed design will be utilized. The design was conducted in three stages. According to Chih-Pei & Chang (2017), initially, the quantitative and qualitative data are collected and analyzed separately or simultaneously, the results are merged, and finally, the data is interpreted, and the outcomes are compared.
The dependent variable is the daily life of young adults in Canada, while the independent variable is recreational marijuana. Intervening variables include Canadian laws and regulations, global and local policies, and various interventions toward marijuana use. Statistical data required includes the recorded use of cannabis Sativa by Canadian youth, percentage cases of deaths and illnesses from marijuana, and recorded positive outcomes of using cannabis Sativa by Canadian youth. Such data can be sourced from the Canadian government database Canis which presents an array of socio-economic and geographical data. Further relevant data can be sourced from the Centre for Disease Control in Canada and the United States.
Quantitative data will be collected through self-administered survey questionaries composed of closed and open-ended questions. The questionnaire will be made up of two parts. The first part covers the socio-demographic characteristics of selected participants. Common questions concerning the demographic characteristics of the participant’s sex, race, age, education level, and gender are assessed. The second part of the semi-structured questionnaire assesses the participant’s marijuana use, such as frequency, type, duration of use, and how marijuana is used.
Further, one-on-one semi-structured interviews will be used to collect qualitative data on mental health changes among young adults using marijuana for recreational purposes. Participants who consent to participate in the study will be provided with the option of providing their contact information if they can only participate in the study through a telephone interview. Interviewees will be able to describe their experience with recreational marijuana and how it has affected their mental health.
Moreover, the study will also utilize secondary data from previously published journals to identify various mental health issues associated with the daily use of recreational use of marijuana. Generally, the use of these secondary resources allows for comparison with results collected from the mixed method approach
Study Population
The target population for this study is young adults using marijuana for recreational purposes in Canada. The eligibility criteria include:
* Male and female adults 22–29 years.
* Self-reported habit daily use of marijuana for recreational purposes.
* Previous daily users of marijuana for recreational purposes.
Participants who use marijuana daily for other reasons, such as doctor’s prescriptions, are excluded from the study.
Sample Size Selection and Sampling Technique
The study aimed to recruit 500 participants for the study. Of the 500 participants, 400 will be engaged in the closed-ended questionnaires, while 100 will participate in the one-on-one interviews. Considering the target audience and purpose of the study, purposive, a non-probability sampling method will be used. The sample size is huge, and the study aims to recruit specific age and marijuana consumption characteristics. Therefore, the study considers purposive sampling a suitable method for recruiting participants who are only in the age bracket of 22-29 years and are either current or previous daily consumers of marijuana for recreational purposes.
Ethical Issues and Considerations
Various ethical issues that might arise during the research include informed consent, anonymity, and confidentiality (Cacciattolo, 2015). All potential participants will be briefed on vital information about the study to decide whether to participate. Due to the sensitive nature of the study, personally identifiable information of the client will be protected to maintain anonymity, especially during the one-on-one interview. Access to participants’ information generated through survey questionnaires and interviews, such as names and contact information, will be restricted to protect the confidentiality of data collected in interviews and questionnaires. Subsequently, the safety of the client’s information will be secured and protected by password in NVivo and SPSS. Finally, participants will be informed of their rights during the study, such as the right to withdraw from the study at any point without repercussions.
Analysis of Stationary Data
Data extracted from the survey questionnaires will be entered into Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 27. Descriptive and inferential statistics will be the two key methods to analyze the quantitative data. Firstly, descriptive statistics, statistical deviation, and central tendency measures will be run to describe participants in concerns with personal characteristics and the outcome...