What is the key difference between a Research Question and a Hypothesis?

What is the key difference between a Research Question and a Hypothesis?

• A. RQs ask; hypotheses predict.
• B. RQs predict relationships; hypotheses describe phenomena.
• C. RQs are always qualitative; hypotheses are always quantitative.
• D. RQs require data; hypotheses do not.

Answer: (A)

The key distinction here is about the purpose of each statement in guiding a study. A research question frames what you want to understand about a phenomenon—it's an open-ended inquiry that describes the topic or condition you’re exploring without asserting a specific outcome. A hypothesis, on the other hand, is a specific, testable prediction about a relationship or effect between variables that you can confirm or refute with data. For example, a research question might ask, “What factors influence student engagement in online courses?” A corresponding hypothesis would be, “Higher instructor feedback quality will be associated with higher student engagement.” The research question sets the direction of the investigation, while the hypothesis provides a concrete expectation to test with data. So the correct idea is that research questions ask questions to guide inquiry, whereas hypotheses make predictions that can be tested. The other statements misrepresent the roles or nature of RQs and hypotheses: research questions aren’t inherently about predicting relationships, they aren’t restricted to qualitative methods, and both RQs and hypotheses typically require data to address them.

The key distinction here is about the purpose of each statement in guiding a study. A research question frames what you want to understand about a phenomenon—it's an open-ended inquiry that describes the topic or condition you’re exploring without asserting a specific outcome. A hypothesis, on the other hand, is a specific, testable prediction about a relationship or effect between variables that you can confirm or refute with data.

For example, a research question might ask, “What factors influence student engagement in online courses?” A corresponding hypothesis would be, “Higher instructor feedback quality will be associated with higher student engagement.” The research question sets the direction of the investigation, while the hypothesis provides a concrete expectation to test with data.

So the correct idea is that research questions ask questions to guide inquiry, whereas hypotheses make predictions that can be tested. The other statements misrepresent the roles or nature of RQs and hypotheses: research questions aren’t inherently about predicting relationships, they aren’t restricted to qualitative methods, and both RQs and hypotheses typically require data to address them.