Title

Your title should clearly summarize your main research question in a concise, informative way.

What to include:

• A short, clear statement of the main topic.
• The key variables you are studying and the type of relationship between them (e.g., “association between” or “relationship between”).
• Names of both authors.�

Tips:

• Make the title fully explanatory on its own — someone should understand your project topic without reading anything else.
• Avoid extra words that add no meaning (e.g., “A Study of…”).
• Do not use causal terms like “impact of” or “effect of.”
• Avoid abbreviations and jargon.
• Keep it specific but not overly long — aim for 12–15 words or fewer.�

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Example: The Association Between Weather Patterns and Caterpillar Reproduction

Introduction & background

This slide sets the stage for your project. It should explain what your topic is, why it matters, and how it connects to what others have studied.

What to include:

• Begin with a clear, engaging statement that introduces your topic and why it’s important. Use examples or simple definitions for key terms so the slide is accessible to both specialists and non-specialists.
• Summarize what is already known from previous research. Focus on major findings and conclusions that relate directly to your topic.
• Make sure each statement you include helps lead toward the reason your study is needed.
• Use in-text citations for all references.�

Tips:

• Avoid heavy jargon or overly technical theory in your opening — keep it approachable.
• Don’t oversimplify to the point of being vague; your audience should feel informed, not talked down to.�Keep the literature summary concise and relevant, not a complete history of the topic.

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Research Gap & Purpose

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This slide bridges from what is known to what is not yet known, and clearly explains the purpose of your study.

What to include:

• Identify one or more gaps, limitations, or unanswered questions in the existing research that your project will address.
• Explain why this gap matters — what could be learned or improved by studying it.
• End with a short, clear statement of your project’s overall purpose or aim.�

Tips:

• Be specific about the gap — avoid vague phrases like “there is little research.” Instead, describe exactly what is missing.
• Make sure the gap connects directly to the research questions on the next slide.
• Keep this focused; the goal is to set up why your project is worth doing.

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Research Question (what you specifically asking?)

This slide states your team’s two research questions clearly and concisely. Each research question should connect directly to the gap identified on the previous slide.

What to include:

• Two-column format presenting separate but complementary research questions.
• Each research question must be written as a single, specific, answerable question (e.g. a testable hypothesis)

Tips:

• Keep wording parallel so the questions feel like part of the same project.
• Avoid vague phrasing — be clear about the variables and relationships you will investigate.
• Make sure the scope of each question is realistic for the time and data available.�

Study Design & Data Source

This slide describes where your data came from, who or what was studied, and how the information was collected.

What to include:

• The name of the dataset and the organization or researchers who collected it (with citation).
• The population studied (e.g., individuals, households, schools, regions) and any relevant characteristics (e.g., age, gender, income level).
• The level of analysis (e.g., individual, group, aggregate).
• The number of observations
• How the data were collected (e.g., survey, surveillance, case study) and when/where collection took place.
• Any inclusion or exclusion criteria applied during data collection (but save exclusions during analysis for the Results section).
• If relevant, note any known limitations or strengths of the data collection process (e.g., reliability, representativeness).

Tips:

• Use clear, meaningful descriptions for your study groups instead of abbreviations or generic labels.�Be specific enough that a reader can picture the observations you analyzed.
• Cite the data source properly.�

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Example: The data for this analysis come from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC, cite). This nationally representative dataset includes self-reported survey measurements on alcohol use, health status, and demographic characteristics from 43,093 U.S. adults. This project focuses on low-income, college-age women (n = 10,000).

Variables of Interest

Example: Measures of academic success were determined using a series of 5-point Likert agreement scale questions such as “I have enough time to go to my professor's office hours when needed.” Each question was dichotomized into “agree” (Strongly Agree, Agree), and “disagree” (Neutral, Disagree, Strongly Disagree).

Response Variable Description

Explanatory Variable Description

Descriptive Relationship

Statistical Analysis Methods

This slide explains the statistical methods you will use to answer your research question. State your approach clearly and link each method to the type of variables and relationships you are analyzing. Note the lack of two column format - this means your methods for all RQ’s should be written together. Expect to come back and revise this page as you get into homework 09 and 10.

What to include:

• A brief statement about the exploratory data analysis (EDA) you conducted to understand variable distributions and relationships.
• The specific statistical tests or models you will use for your main analysis (e.g., t-test, ANOVA, chi-square test, correlation, linear regression, logistic regression).
• Note any covariates you plan to adjust for in multivariable models.

Tips:

• Match the method to the type of variables (e.g., categorical vs. quantitative).
• Avoid vague language — name the exact test or model.
• Keep it concise — bullet points are fine if each is clear and connected to the question.

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Example: Exploratory data analysis (tables and graphs) was used to describe the distribution of the outcome and predictor variables and explore their relationships. A chi-square test was used to compare proportions of Outcome X between Group A and Group B. A multivariable logistic regression model was then used to assess the association between Outcome X and Predictor Y, adjusting for age, gender, and income.

Bivariate Analysis Results

Multivariable Model Building

Multivariable Model Results

Model Assessment

Discussion & Conclusions

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This slide explains the meaning of your results and ties together all parts of your analysis for both research questions.

What to include:

• Summarize what your descriptive, bivariate, and multivariable results show about your topic.
• State whether your research hypotheses were supported, and if not, offer possible explanations.
• Describe the main patterns or trends you observed and what they suggest.
• Compare your findings to results from previous research — note where they agree or differ and why that might be.�

Tips:

• Focus on interpretation, not repeating the numbers from earlier slides. That does not mean that you won’t be repeating the information or the message, but putting the results in context.
• Use plain language to explain the significance of your findings.
• If results were unexpected, discuss plausible reasons rather than leaving them unexplained.

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Implications & Limitations

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This slide explains why your results matter, how they could be used, and what factors might limit their interpretation.

What to include:

Implications

• Practical applications of your findings — who might use them and how.
• Specific recommendations or actions based on your results.
• Suggestions for future research, naming specific variables or questions and explaining why they are important.

Limitations

• Who your results apply to (generalizability).
• Any model assumptions that were not met.
• If observational data were used, note that the findings show associations, not cause-and-effect.
• Other possible factors not included in your model that could explain the outcome.

Tips:

• Keep implications and limitations clearly separated with subheadings.
• Be specific — avoid vague phrases like “more research is needed” without saying what kind of research and why.
• Acknowledge limitations honestly; it makes your work stronger, not weaker.

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References

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This slide lists all sources you cited in your slides or research report.

What to include:

• All references from your research plan plus any additional sources used during the project.
• Correct APA format for every citation, including articles, datasets, and software.
• Enough detail for someone else to find the source.�

Tips:

• You can use a smaller font size to fit all references on one slide.
• Double-check that every in-text citation has a matching entry here.
• Cite software properly (e.g., R, RStudio, and any packages you used). How to cite software in Text
1. For R - Type citation()
2. For R Studio visit https://support.rstudio.com/hc/en-us/articles/206212048-Citing-RStudio

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STAGING SLIDES

If you have slides that you think you may want later, put them below this slide.