A critical review is primarily used in the event where there is a need to assess and establish the reliability of given study. Ideally, the task involves: analyzing the how the data was collected; the results that were found; the findings of the study, and more importantly the relevance of the research in relation to its real-life application. In this paper, the focus is on Anthony Onwuegbuzie’s article titled; Academic procrastination and statistics anxiety. Antony delves into the dynamics of academic procrastination and its relation to statistical anxiety. In other words, he strives to explore the link between graduate student postponement of studies and how it is linked to a fear of statistics related courses.
He concludes that a high percentage of the academic procrastination among the graduate students can be traced to the statistics anxiety. The implications of this study go a long way in providing instructors with insight on what causes student procrastination and therefore develop ways through which they can help eliminate such incidences. It is without a doubt that the academic performance of an individual is directly linked to their attitude towards their courses (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). Statistics anxiety can be defined as the nervousness that a person develops in the course of taking a course in statistics within a formal setting. Academic procrastination, on the other hand, is described as a conscious sidestepping or avoidance of a task in terms of completion or starting it.
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A sense of fear ultimately results in a negative attitude towards a given subject. In regards to statistics courses, this fear manifests in the form of academic procrastination. Antony postulates the idea that the prevalence of statistics fear is as high as 80% among graduate students, with academic procrastination having a prevalence of up to 95% among college students. In conducting this study, the author focused on 135 students who were enrolled in a small public university under various disciplines and departments (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). Participation was voluntary, and credit was offered to the participants as an appreciating for their time and efforts. A significant proportion of the participants were female, representing a 92.6% proportion of the entire study group. It is also important to note that many were Caucasian with a representation of 93.3% and their ages ranging from 21 to 51 (Onwuegbuzie, 2004).
A survey was used to collect information from the students, with one focusing on their statistics anxiety and the other on their tendency to procrastinate their academic assignments. The outcome of the study was that the tendency to procrastinate was more prevalent among the graduate students as compared to undergraduate students. Another essential finding of the study by Antony was that 65% to 75% of the respondents had the desire to decrease their degree and tendency to procrastinate (Onwuegbuzie, 2004).
The findings of this study were in tandem with the hypothesis of the study that statistics and procrastination analysis are linked. The author then goes on to provide approaches and strategies that can be employed in the reduction and elimination of both anxiety and procrastination. Examples of this approaches include the breakdown of an assignment into smaller and manageable components or through the gradual summary of reading (Onwuegbuzie, 2004).
In-Depth Critique of the Article
Purpose
The author is clear in stating the focus of the study he is conducting. From the very onset, the reader is introduced to the problem that is being researched. He explains that his focus will be to explore the challenge of statistics anxiety and its relation to academic procrastination among graduate students. In an effort to further define his course of study, he states that, while procrastination has been intensely studied within the undergraduate population, a considerable gap exists in regards to the information and studies that have been conducted among graduate students (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). Therefore from the very onset, a reader is aware of the fact that the researcher is exploring the connection that exists between academic procrastination and statistics anxiety.
Literature Review
In exploring existing material on the subject at hand, Antony delves broad and deep. His literature review contains numerous papers and studies that had been conducted much earlier. His material provides plenty of ancient studies that date back to the 1970s with few recent studies being included. The major challenge that can be noted in regards to his approach is that he gives little information in regards to how he found the papers that he cited (Brew and Lucas, 2009). Another major flaw in his literature review is that he does not consider whether other studies have been conducted on the papers he chooses to cite within his paper.
Objectives/hypothesis
The research question of the study is clear right from the very start. Antony hypothesizes that he graduate students suffer from academic procrastination primarily because they experience statistic anxiety. The literature that Antony includes in his paper is in line with the literature review that he is focusing on. His literature review is also essential in providing the reader with an adequate background of understanding the problem at hand. The studies that he cites in his material has a direct correlation to the information that he is studying.
Ethical Standards
The greatest ethical problem that is often raised in relation to research studies is that it that of awareness of a study being conducted. A subject needs to be aware of any study being conducted. Otherwise, it becomes an illegal surveillance on an individual, and despite the depth and wealth of the insight, it may contain it is likely to lose it credibility within the academic world. For Antony, the subjects of his study volunteered to participate in the study, and to which they were rewarded for participating (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). In regards to physical, emotional and psychological harm, the subjects of the study were not harmed in any way considering that the study entailed the administration of two surveys. The ethical challenge that can be raised in relation to this particular study is whether the confidentiality of the participants is preserved. There is no mention of whether any efforts are made towards the perseveration of confidentiality for students involved in the study.
Operational Definitions
A critical aspect of understanding a specific area of study is a clear definition of the terms being explored by the researcher. Onwuegbuzie ensures that the reader has a clear grasp of what the essential terms mean. First off, he begins by making sure that the reader is made aware of what procrastination and statistics anxiety mean. He goes further to define and state the measurable dimensions of statistics anxiety that will be researched in the study. The only undoing of this study is that the researcher fails to capture specific terms that are used in regards to the statistical analysis of data. His assumption, which significantly undermines its operational definitions of his study, is the readers have a comprehensive grasp of statistics.
Methodology
Antony ensures that the reader gets to grasp the approach and methodology of the study by ensuring that it is thoroughly explained. A Statistical Anxiety Rating Stale and a Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students are utilized in conducting the research. The responses of the participants are measured using a Likert-format Scale in the Statistical anxiety rating scale. For the Procrastination assessment scale-students approach, participants engaged in a two-step procedure that entailed providing a procrastination rating level for various academic tasks as well as providing a reason as to why they found it necessary to procrastinate on their academic assignments (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). The greatest challenge that can be experienced in regards to this particular approach is that the credibility of the answers provided is determined by the trustworthiness of the respondents. Another issue worth mentioning in regards to the methodology of this study is that the study groups were small and as such, its results are highly open to question. It is evident that the females and Caucasians are over-represented in the study based on the percentage proportions.
Data Analysis and Results
The examination of the relationship between procrastination and statistic anxiety is determined using statistical analysis. In other words, the correlated variables are conducted using factor analysis. Statistical significance on the other hand is determined using canonical analysis. The presentation of date is also precise since it provides graphs and tables that are well-labeled. While the statistical analysis employed in the research is highly appropriate, its greatest undoing is its small sample size.
Discussion
The discussion of the research focuses on ensuring that the reader has a clear understanding of the relationship between the literatures reviewed as well as the results obtained from the study. Not only does the author discuss some of the weakness of the study but also goes ahead to assert that the approach employed fails to capture sample diversity (Onwuegbuzie, 2004). In an attempt to ascertain the credibility of his study, Antony goes ahead to relate the findings of his study to the studies that have been conducted among undergraduate students.
References
Antony is meticulous in furnishing his readers with references to the information that he uses in the research. Not only does he accurately document their usage within the paper, but he also goes ahead to provide an extensive list of the sources of his material.
Conclusion
Overall, the article can be said to be well written. Not only is it explicit in explaining the methodology and thesis but also goes ahead to provide substantial support using documented research. While the literature reviewed might be regarded as being out of date, it is highly extensive.
References
Brew, A., & Lucas, L. (2009). Academic research and researchers . Maidenhead: Society for Research into Higher Education & Open University Press.
Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2004). Academic procrastination and statistics anxiety. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education , 29 (1), 3–19. doi:10.1080/0260293042000160384
