South University Internal Validity Discussion - Discuss the importance of internal validity

Description

Start reviewing and responding to the postings of your classmates as early in the week as possible. Respond to at least two of your classmates' initial postings on different days of the week. Participate in the discussion by providing a statement of clarification, providing a point of view with a rationale, challenging an aspect of the discussion, or indicating a relationship between two or more lines of reasoning in the discussion. Additionally, you may want to ask questions of your classmates to solicit their points of view related to a topic or provide examples from your own experiences to demonstrate how topics are experienced in a real world setting. Cite sources in your responses to other classmates. Complete your participation for this assignment by the end of the week.

Internal Validity

Internal validity is the extent to which a researcher is confident that no other variable(s) except those being studied caused the results. While internal validity is related to cause and effect therefore the experimental method, some individuals use the term to indicate a well-designed methodology in general. There are common threats to internal validity an evaluator should be aware of to better design a quality evaluation methodology.

At the beginning, of your response, briefly summarize your program evaluation and then:

1. Discuss the importance of internal validity to the program evaluation process.

2. Identify at least three potential threats to the internal validity of your program evaluation. Explain your reasoning for why the threats exist.

3. Recommend strategies to address the identified potential threats and lessen their impact on the program evaluation results.