Assignment No.

Dr. M. Waseem Bari

Business Research Methods

Marriam Farid

21836

6th Semester

BBA Evening A

10-August 2020

Department of Business Administration & Management Science

Government College University Faisalabad

Q No. 1
Please explain the main implications of using a deductive analytical
approach for the way in which you conduct the process of qualitative analysis?


A deductive approach is concerned with “developing a hypothesis (or hypotheses) based

on existing theory, and then designing a research strategy to test the hypothesis”.

It has been stated that “deductive means reasoning from the particular to the general. If a
causal relationship or link seems to be implied by a particular theory or case example, it
might be true in many cases. A deductive design might test to see if this relationship or
link did obtain on more general circumstances”.

Deductive approach can be explained by the means of hypotheses, which can be derived
from the propositions of the theory. In other words, deductive approach is concerned with
deducting conclusions from premises or propositions.

What is Qualitative Data Analysis?

Qualitative data analysis involves the identification, examination, and interpretation of

patterns and themes in textual data and determines how these patterns and themes help
answer the research questions at hand.Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA) is the range of
processes and procedures whereby we move from the qualitative data that have been
collected into some form of explanation, understanding or interpretation of the people
and situations we are investigating. QDA is usually based on an interpretative philosophy.
The idea is to examine the meaningful and symbolic content of qualitative data.It is
important to note that qualitative data analysis is an ongoing, fluid, and cyclical process
that happens throughout the data collection stage of your evaluation project and carries
over to the data entry and analysis stages.

Principles of Qualitative Data Analysis :

1. People differ in their experience and understanding of reality (constructivist-many

meanings). 

 

2. A social phenomenon can’t be understood outside its own context (Context-bound).

3.  Qualitative research can be used to describe phenomenon or generate theory

grounded on data.

4. Understanding human behaviour emerges slowly and non-linearly. 


5.  Exceptional cases may yield insights into a problem or new idea for further inquiry. 


Features of Qualitative Data Analysis :

1. Analysis is circular and non-linear.


2. Iterative and progressive.


3. Close interaction with the data.


4. Data collection and analysis is simultaneous.

5. Level of analysis varies.

6. Uses inflection i.e. “this was good”.


7. Can be sorted in many ways.


8. Qualitative data by itself has meaning, i.e. “apple”

Types of Qualitative Analysis :

1)  Content analysis 


2)  Narrative analysis 


3)  Discourse analysis 


4)  Framework analysis 


5)  Grounded theory 


1) Content Analysis:

Content analysis is the procedure for the categorisation of verbal or behavioural data for
the purpose of classification, summarisation and tabulation. This is one of the most
common methods to analyse qualitative data. It is used to analyse documented
information in the form of texts, media, or even physical items. When to use this method
depends on the research questions. Content analysis is usually used to analyse
responses from interviewees.Content analysis can be done on two levels:

Descriptive: What is the data? Interpretative: what was meant by the data?

2) Narrative Analysis :

A form of qualitative analysis in which the analyst focuses on how respondents impose
order on the flow of experience in their lives and thus make sense of events and actions
in which they have participated.Narratives are transcribed experiences. Every interview/
observation has narrative aspect. The researcher has to sort-out and reflect up on them,
enhance them and present them in a revised shape to the reader. The core activity in
narrative analysis is to reformulate stories presented by people in different contexts and
based on their different experiences. Narrative analysis focuses on“the story itself”and
seeks to preserve the integrity of personal biographies or a series of events that cannot
adequately be under- stood in terms of their discrete elements (Riessman 2002:218).
Narrative “displays the goals and intentions of human actors; it makes individuals,
cultures, societies, and historical epochs comprehensible as wholes” (Richardson
1995:200).

3) Discourse Analysis :

Like narrative analysis, discourse analysis is used to analyse interactions with people.This
is a method of analysing a naturally occurring talk (spoken interaction) and all types of
written texts. It focuses on how people express themselves verbally in their everyday
social life i.e. how language is used in everyday situations?

a) Sometimes people express themselves in a simple and straightforward way

b) Sometimes people express themselves vaguely and indirectly

c) Analyst must refer to the context when interpreting the message because the same
phenomenon can be described in a number of different ways depending on context .

4) Framework Analysis :
This is more advanced method that consists of several stages such as familiarisation, identifying a
thematic framework, coding, charting, mapping and interpretation.

Familiarisation: Transcribing & reading the data 


Identifying a thematic framework: Initial coding framework which is 


developed both from a priori issues and from emergent issues 


Coding: Using numerical or textual codes to identify specific piece of data which
correspond to different themes 


Charting: Charts created using headings from thematic framework. 


Mapping and interpretation: Searching for patterns, associations, concepts 


and explanations in the data. 


5) Grounded Theory:

Systematic theory developed inductively, based on observations that are summarised into
conceptual categories, reevaluated in the research setting, and gradually refined and
linked to other conceptual categories.This theory starts with an examination of a single
case from a ‘pre-defined’ population in order to formulate a general statement (concept or
a hypothesis) about a population. Afterwards the analyst examines another case to see
whether the hypothesis fits the statement. If it does, a further case is selected but if it
doesn’t fit there are two options: Either the statement is changed to fit both cases or the
definition of the population is changed in such a way that the case is no longer a member
of the newly defined population. Then another case is selected and the process
continues. In such a way one should be able to arrive at a statement that fits all cases of
a population-as-defined. This method is only for limited set of analytic problems: those
that can be solved with some general overall statement .

The Process or Steps of Qualitative Data Analysis :

1. Organise the data 


2. Identify-framework 


3. Sort data into framework 


4. Use the framework for descriptive analysis 


5. Second order analysis 


1. Organise the Data :

“Valid analysis is immensely aided by data displays that are focused enough to permit
viewing of a full data set in one location and are systematically arranged to answer the
research question at hand.” The best way to organise your data is to go back to your
interview guide. Identify and differentiate between the questions/topics you are trying to
answer, and those that were simply included in the interview guide as important, but for
the moment, not essential. Data should be organised in a way that is easy to look at, and
that allows the researcher to go through each topic to pick out concepts and themes.

2. Identify a Framework :

1. Framework will structure, label and define data. 


Explanatory – Guided by the research question. 

Exploratory-Guided by the data. 


2. Framework = Coding plan. 


3. Sort Data into Framework :

1. Code the data.


2. Modify the Framework.


3. Data entry if use computer packages.

4. Use Framework in Descriptive Analysis :

1. Arrange the responses in categories

2. Identify recurrent themes.


5. Second Order Analysis :

1. Identify recurrent themes. 


2. Notice patterns in the data. 


3. Identify respondent clusters (Search for causality and identify related themes). 


4. Build sequence of events. 


5. Search data to answer research questions. 


6. Develop hypothesis and test. 


Q No. 2
Which sorts of data will you need to retain and file while you are
undertaking qualitative research?
Qualitative data are non-numeric and descriptive. Qualitative research is generally
concerned with providing meaning and context to a problem.The research questions are
usually open-ended and exploratory.There are a variety of methods of data collection in
qualitative research, including observations, textual or visual analysis (eg from books or
videos) and interviews (individual or group). However, the most common methods used
are interviews and focus groups.

INTERVIEW:

Interviews are the most common method of data collection in qualitative research. An
interview is a face-to-face conversation between two individuals with the sole purpose of
collecting relevant information to satisfy a research purpose. Sometimes, in case physical
presence is not possible, video interviews or phone calls are done. Interviews also
facilitate recording certain idiosyncrasies of the participants that may provide certain
context in certain researches.Interviews are of different types namely; Structured, Semi-
structured and unstructured with each having a slight variation from the other.

Structured interviews are, essentially, verbally administered questionnaires, in which

a list of predetermined questions are asked, with little or no variation and with no scope
for follow-up questions to responses that warrant further elaboration.Consequently, they
are relatively quick and easy to administer and may be of particular use if clarification of
certain questions are required or if there are likely to be literacy or numeracy problems
with the respondents.

Unstructured interviews do not reflect any preconceived theories or ideas and are
performed with little or no organisation. Such an interview may simply start with an
opening question such as 'Can you tell me about your experience of visiting the dentist?'
and will then progress based, primarily, upon the initial response. Unstructured interviews
are usually very time-consuming (often lasting several hours) and can be difficult to
manage, and to participate in, as the lack of predetermined interview questions provides
little guidance on what to talk about (which many participants find confusing and
unhelpful).

Semi-structured interviews consist of several key questions that help to define the
areas to be explored, but also allows the interviewer or interviewee to diverge in order to
pursue an idea or response in more detail.2 This interview format is used most frequently
in healthcare, as it provides participants with some guidance on what to talk about, which
many find helpful. The flexibility of this approach, particularly compared to structured
interviews, also allows for the discovery or elaboration of information that is important to
participants but may not have previously been thought of as pertinent by the research
team.

Best Data Collection Tools for Interviews:

For collecting data through interviews, here are a few tools you can use to easily collect
data.

1. Audio Recorder

2. Digital Camera

3. Camcorder

QUESTIONNAIRES:

This is the process of collecting data through an instrument consisting of a series of

questions and prompts to receive a response from individuals it is administered too.
Questionnaires are designed to collect data from a group. For clarity, it is important to
note that a questionnaire isn't a survey, rather it forms a part of it. A survey is a process of
data gathering involving a variety of data collection methods, including a questionnaire.

On a questionnaire, there are three kinds of questions used. They are; fixed-alternative,
scale, and open-ended. With each of the questions tailored to the nature and scope of
the research.

Best Data Collection Tools for Questionnaire:

1. Formplus Online Questionnaire

2. Paper Questionnaire

REPORTING:

By definition, data reporting is the process of gathering and submitting data to be further
subjected to analysis. The key aspect of data reporting is reporting accurate data
because of inaccurate data reporting leads to uninformed decision making.

Best Data Collection Tools for Reporting:

Reporting tools enable you to extract and present data in charts, tables, and other
visualisations so users can find useful information. You could source data for reporting
from Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) reports, newspapers, website articles,
hospital records.

1. NGO Reports

2. Newspapers

3. Website Articles

4. Hospital Care records

EXISTING DATA:

This is the introduction of new investigative questions in addition to/other than the ones
originally used when the data was initially gathered. It involves adding measurement to a
study or research. An example would be sourcing data from an archive.

Best Data Collection Tools for Existing Data:

The concept of Existing data means that data is collected from existing sources to
investigate research questions other than those for which the data were originally
gathered. Tools to collect existing data include: 

1. Research Journals

2. Surveys

OBSERVATION:

This is a data collection method by which information on a phenomenon is gathered

through observation. The nature of the observation could be accomplished either as a
complete observer, an observer as a participant, a participant as an observer or as a
complete participant. This method is a key base of formulating a hypothesis.As with other
qualitative data collection techniques, observation provides an enormous amount of data
to be captured and analysed. Observation also provides the researcher with some unique
methodological and ethical challenges. Methodologically, the act of being observed may
change the behaviour of the participant impacting on the value of findings. However, most
researchers report a process of habitation taking place where, after a relatively short
period of time, those being observed revert to their normal behaviour. Ethically, the
researcher will need to consider when and how they should intervene if they view poor
practice that could put patients at risk

Best Data Collection Tools for Observation:

Observation involves the active acquisition of information from a primary source.

Observation can also involve the perception and recording of data via the use of scientific
instruments. The best tools for Observation are:

1. Checklists

2. Direct observation

FOCUS GROUPS:

The opposite of quantitative research which involves numerical based data, this data
collection method focuses more on qualitative research. It falls under the primary
category for data based on the feelings and opinions of the respondents. This research
involves asking open-ended questions to a group of individuals usually ranging from 6-10
people, to provide feedback.the focus group may provide a more relaxing environment
than a one-to-one interview; they will not need to be involved with every part of the
discussion and may feel more comfortable expressing views when they are shared by
others in the group. Focus groups also allow participants to ‘bounce’ ideas off each other
which sometimes results in different perspectives emerging from the discussion.
However, focus groups are not without their difficulties. As with interviews, focus groups
provide a vast amount of data to be transcribed and analysed, with discussions often
lasting 1–2 hours. Moderators also need to be highly skilled to ensure that the discussion
can flow while remaining focused and that all participants are encouraged to speak, while
ensuring that no individuals dominate the discussion.

Best Data Collection Tools for Focus Groups:

A focus group is a data collection method that is tightly facilitated and structured around
a set of questions. The purpose of the meeting is to extract from the participants' detailed
responses to these questions. The best tools for tackling Focus groups are: 

1. Two-Way

2. Duelling-Moderator

COMBINATION RESEARCH:
This method of data collection encompasses the use of innovative methods to enhance
participation to both individuals and groups. Also under the primary category, it is a
combination of Interviews and Focus Groups while collecting qualitative data. This
method is key when addressing sensitive subjects. 

Best Data Collection Tools for Combination Research:

The Combination Research method involves two or more data collection methods, for
instance, interviews as well as questionnaires or a combination of semi-structured
telephone interviews and focus groups. The best tools for combination research are: 

1. Online Survey

2. Dual-Moderator

Q No. 3
Your friend or colleague is concerned about preparing her or his project
presentation. What advice will you give to help him or her prepare this
presentation?

Presenting the information clearly and effectively is a key skill to get the message or
opinion across and, today, presentation skills are required in almost every field.
Presentation skills and public speaking skills are very useful in many aspects of work and
life like business, selling, training, teaching and lecturing that develops confidence and
other social situations. The formats of presentations are oral, multimedia, PowerPoint,
short impromptu and long-planned. Good preparation-through certain tips like natural talk
to audience, standing rather than sitting, varying the tone, eye contact, using visual aids,
checking timings, structuring the presentation, staying focused and alert throughout the
presentation, answering honestly and concisely to the questions raised-is the groundwork
for making a presentation effective. It is important to state the purpose clearly at the
beginning to talk about, report on, too examine, to instruct, to explain, to outline, to fill, to
give an overview, to highlight and to discuss the subject of presentation. Presentation
should have three main elements: the introduction, middle and conclusion. Within the
main body of the presentation, divide the key message into three elements and then
expand each of these points into three sub-points. If one is using a visual aid such as
PowerPoint, limit the number of bullet points to three on each slide and expand on each
of these points as one goes along. Presentation programs can either supplement or
replace the use of older visual aid technology, such as pamphlets, handouts,
chalkboards, flip charts, posters, slides and overhead transparencies. Text, graphics,
movies, and other objects are positioned on individual pages or "slides" or "foils". The
"slide" analogy is a reference to the slide projector, a device that has become somewhat
obsolete due to the use of presentation software. Slides can be printed, or (more usually)
displayed on-screen and navigated through at the command of the presenter. Transitions
between slides can be animated in a variety of ways, as can the emergence of elements
on a slide itself. Typically, a presentation has many constraints, the most important being
the limited time to present consistent information. Presentations are a great way to speak
directly to people who are interested in your field of study, to gather ideas to push your
projects forward, and to make valuable personal connections. I give her some tips to
help her prepare an effective presentation and capitalise on the opportunities that giving
presentations provides. See Tip 4 below for details.

1. Know your audience.

The first and most important rule of presenting your work is to know your audience
members. If you can put yourself in their shoes and understand what they need, you'll be
well on your way to a successful presentation. Keep the audience in mind throughout the
preparation of your presentation. By identifying the level of your audience and your
shared knowledge, you can provide an appropriate amount of detail when explaining your
work. For example, you can decide whether particular technical terms and jargon are
appropriate to use and how much explanation is needed for the audience to understand
your research.You can also decide how to handle acronyms and abbreviations. For
example, NMR, HMQC, and NOESY might be fine to use without definition for a room full
of organic chemists, but you might want to explain these terms to other types of chemists
or avoid this level of detail altogether for a general audience.It can be difficult to gauge
the right level of detail to provide in your presentation, especially after you have spent
years immersed in your specific field of study. If you will be giving a talk to a general
audience, try practicing your presentation with a friend or colleague from a different field
of study. You might find that something that seems obvious to you needs additional
explanation.

2. Create a clear, logical structure

Next, you'll need to think about creating a clear, logical structure that will help your
audience understand your work. You're telling a story, so give it a beginning, middle, and
end. To start, it can be helpful to provide a brief overview of your presentation, which will
help your audience follow the structure of your presentation. Then, in your introduction,
get everyone "on the same page" (i.e., provide them a shared reference point) by giving
them a concise background to your work. Don't swamp them with detail, but make sure
they have enough information to understand both what your research is about and why it
is important (e.g., how it aims to fill a gap in the research or answer a particular problem
in the field). By making the foundation of your research clear in the introduction, your
audience should be better able to follow the details of your research and your subsequent
arguments about its implications. In the main part of the presentation, talk about your
work: what you did, why you did it, and what your main findings were. This is like the
Methods and Results sections of a manuscript. Keep a clear focus on what is important
and interesting to your audience. Don't fall into the trap of feeling that you have to present
every single thing that you did.

3. Talk in "spoken English" style, not in "written English" style.

The style of spoken English is quite different from that of written English. If you are
preparing your script from text in a research paper, you will need to change the style of
the written phrases into that of spoken phrases. The written English we read in research
papers often has a very formal style, using complex vocabulary and grammatical
structures. This level of complexity is possible because readers can take their time
reading papers to understand the content fully and can look up unfamiliar words or
grammatical phrases as needed. This is not possible when listening to spoken English,
when the audience hears your point once and fleetingly (this is why brief text and images
on your slides can help convey your message fully).Written English tends to use fewer
contractions, more place-centric words such as "above" or "below", and a more formal
tone, whereas spoken English uses more contractions, more time-centric words such as
"earlier" or "later", and more casual speech.

4. Practice your presentation and practice again.

Public speaking is the part of presentations that most people dread. Although it might not
be possible to get over your nerves completely, good preparation and practice will give
you confidence. Most confident speakers do lots of preparation and use notes well. After
you've written your script, practice and learn is—not so that you learn to say it by rote,
but so that it will become easier to remember the important points to say, the links
between the points (to maintain the flow of your 'story'), and the words and phrases that
express your points clearly. One way that we at ThinkSCIENCE can help you with this is
through our audio recording service, in which a native speaker records your script at your
chosen speed (native speed, slightly slower, or considerably slower). You can then use the
recording to practice pronunciation, intonation, and pacing.

Again, if possible, try to avoid reading directly from your slides or script. Once you know
your script, you can make a simple set of notes to jog your memory. If you are speaking
instead of just reading, you can better engage with your audience and capture their
attention. Leave yourself adequate time to practice your presentation with your notes and
slides. Check your timing, remembering that you might speak a little faster if you are
nervous, and that you will need to account for changing slides and pointing at visual
material.

Q No. 4
Your project tutor has returned your draft project report with the
suggestion that you make a clearer distinction between your results and your
conclusions. How will you go about this?


Abstract

Science curricula often require students to collect, record, and describe experimental
observations and results, as well as to draw conclusions. The first purpose of this study is
to document and analyse students' performance regarding the differentiation between
results and conclusions, while they are engaged in scientific investigations within biology
classrooms. The second purpose is to describe and analyse teachers' thinking regarding
this issue. The findings show that while learning biology in school, students often have
difficulties in differentiating between experimental results and conclusions. Although
teachers were highly aware of their students' difficulties and held a rich set of ideas about
the sources of those difficulties, the instructional means they used were insufficient. Two
hypotheses are suggested as the source of students' difficulties. Further research is
needed to investigate those hypotheses and to formulate recommendations for improved
instructional means.Science reports demonstrate how a particular experiment was
accomplished, and what exactly the scientist was trying to find out or prove. It also
details what the experimenter learned from the process, what could have been done
differently to improve the experiment, and ideas for future experiments. As kids learn to
use the scientific method to discover the world around them, keep in mind that the goal
of a science report is to explore what exactly the student learned during the experiment.

Write down what you hope to prove in your experiment. State your hypothesis (what you
think will happen) during the experiment. List all of the materials you need to do the
experiment.

Discuss step-by-step each stage of the experiment. Include everything you did to
accomplish the experiment from setting it up to making observations. Someone else
should be able to reproduce your experiment just by following your instructions.

Detail your results. Look for changes that happened during your experiments. Write
measurements and observations in an experiment journal or log. Write down even if no
changes happened at all. Your log will make it easier to write down your results in your
report. Take before and after pictures to include with your report.

Write a conclusion that states whether your hypothesis was proved correct. Include
reasons you believe your hypothesis was shown to be correct or not. State how you
would do the experiment differently in the future. Show how you would expand on the
experiment, such as including different variables to test.

Results:
The Results section follows the Methods and precedes the Discussion section. This is where the
authors provide the data collected during their study. That data can sometimes be difficult to
understand because it is often quite technical. Do not let this intimidate you; you will discover the
significance of the results next.When you record the results of a scientific experiment, you record
what happens as you follow your procedure. Results should be raw data that is measurable rather
than general observations, and it should relate directly to your research question and hypothesis. For
example, if your experiment involves growing plants, the results will be data about one aspect of the
plants’ growth, such as how much each plant grows over a particular period of time or which seed
sprouts first. The results should also include notations of any variations in the conditions of the
experiment, which in this case might be an unexpected overnight freeze or which seed received the
most water.

Conclusion:
When you first skim an article, it may be useful to go straight to the Conclusion and see if you can
figure out what the thesis is since it is usually in this final section. The research gap identified in the
introduction indicates what the researchers wanted to look at; what did they claim, ultimately, when
they completed their research? What did it show them—and what are they showing us—about the
topic? Did they get the results they expected? Why or why not? The thesis is not a sweeping
proclamation; rather, it is likely a very reasonable and conditional claim.

Conclusion and Results are two terms used in thesis writing and surveys or experiments
respectively. Conclusion forms the end part of a thesis or a dissertation. On the other hand results
form the end part of a survey or a chemical experiment. This is one of the main differences between
conclusion and results. Conclusion aims at the briefing of the research findings of the researcher. It
should be short and concise. It should contain concise and short paragraphs. A conclusion should
not contain long paragraphs. On the other hand results can be statistical in composition and
sometimes descriptive too. If they are descriptive in nature then they can contain long paragraphs
too. The aim of the conclusion is to impress upon the reader the validity of the research findings by
the researcher. On the other hand the results of a chemical experiment or a survey aim at presenting
before the reader the valid information about the exactness of the statistical data and the outcomes
therein. This is an important difference between conclusion and results. It is said that a dissertation
or a thesis should never be submitted without a conclusion. In other words ‘conclusion’ forms a
very important part of a research thesis. On the other hand results of a survey or a chemical
experiment prove the validity of the experiment or the survey as the case may be. Any scientist will
proceed from the results of his experiments. If the results are not to his satisfaction then he would
continue with his experimentation. On the other hand a conclusion is a final say in the preparation
of a thesis. This is one of the most important differences between a conclusion and results. A thesis
is often evaluated on the basis of the conclusion therein.Discussion is about interpreting your study
results. When you discuss the study results, you relate your study findings to previous studies; you
contextualise the contribution of your study. As for having them as sections in a research paper, that
depends on what a researcher wants to communicate. Some researchers would present study results
first before discussing the study findings. This strategy allows a researcher to focus on presenting
the study results only in conjunction with the research questions and/or objectives. Other
researchers would prefer to combine presentation of study results with discussion given that both
are closely connected inclusion therein.After all the data is organised in a form that relates it to your
hypothesis, you can interpret it and reach a conclusion about the experiment. The conclusion is
simply a report about what you learned based on whether the results agree or disagree with your
hypothesis. It usually contains a summary of the actual procedure and makes note of anything
unexpected that happened during the experiment. Your conclusion should consider all possible
explanations of the data, including any errors you might have made, such as forgetting to water the
plants one day. It can also give you a point from which to create further hypotheses relating to the
experiment.

Example:

RESULTS :
We examined our hypotheses using the 846 persons for whom mortality data were available.
Because this sample included the re- spouses of both members of a couple, we computed the
intraclass cor- relation (ICC) for the couple-level effect on mortality. We first created a variable that
grouped individual participants by couple (n ︎ 423). We next constructed a two-level hierarchical
model (Level 1 estimated variation in mortality at the individual-participant level, Level 2 esti-
mated variation at the couple level) using RIGLS (restricted iterative generalised least squares)
estimation for binomial models (MLwiN ver. 1.1, Multilevel Models Project, Institute of Education,
London, 2000). A significant ICC could be interpreted as indicating that the death of one partner
was significantly related to an increase or de- crease in the probability of the other partner dying
(within the study period). Results of this procedure indicated that there was no couple- level effect
on mortality (ICC ︎ .00, n.s.). Thus, for all analyses, we treated each member of a couple as an
independent source of data.

Conclusion :

Giving support may be an important component of interpersonal relationships that has considerable
value to health and well-being. It may not be a coincidence that mortality and morbidity studies
inad- vertently assess giving or manipulate giving (e.g., taking care of a plant; Rodin & Langer,
1977) to operationalise variables of interest such as receiving social support or locus of control. If
giving, rather than receiving, promotes longevity, then interventions that are currently designed to
help people feel supported may need to be rede- signed so that the emphasis is on what people do to
help others. The possibility that giving support accounts for some of the benefits of social contact is
a new question that awaits future research.