FORMULATING HYPOTHESIS

 A hypothesis is an educated guess

 A possible explanation for a set of observations or answer to a scientific question
 A hypothesis is something that can be tested.

Hypotheses answer “how,” “what,” and “why” questions.

 BASED ON RESEARCH: You should be able to give reasons why you chose your hypothesis.
 Hypotheses can either be supported or disproved.

HYPOTHESIS SERVES THE FOLLOWING FUNCTIONS (USES)

1. They provide guide and direction to the research
2. They indicate the major independent and dependent variables being considered
3. They suggest the type of data that must be collected

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD HYPOTHESIS

 A good hypothesis is researchable
 It should be stated in definite terms, the relationship between variables
 It should be testable
 It should follow the findings of previous studies

TYPES OF HYPOTHESIS

A. Null Hypothesis (Ho)

- no existence of an effect and interaction of relationships or of difference. One assumes that no
significant relationship or difference exist after which the research seeks to ascertain the
improbability of such.
- It is stated in a negative form of a statement
Example: There is no significant difference between the effects of potato and cassava tubers on the
growth of broiler chicken in terms of weight

B. Alternative hypothesis (Ha)

- The operational statement of the research hypothesis.
a. deductive hypothesis – when the Ha is based on theory
b. inductive hypothesis – when the Ha is based on observations

HOW DO YOU WRITE A GOOD HYPOTHESIS?

A good hypothesis is worded like this:

If…..then…...because
OR
I predict…because
I think…because
 • After the word “If”… explain what will change in the investigation
• After the word “then” …write what you predict will happen as a result of that change
• After the word “because” …explain why you think the result will happen

EXAMPLES:
If salt is added to a plant’s soil then the plant will die because salt will dry out the soil so that there is
not enough water left for the plant.

If people spend more time in the sun then they will be more likely to get skin cancer because exposure
to ultraviolet light in sunlight causes skin cancer.

If 7th graders and 8th graders complete the same math problems, then the 8th graders will have more
answers correct, because they have studied math for one year longer than the 7th graders.

If dry bread and moist bread are left in bags for two weeks, then the moist bread will grow mold more
quickly than the dry bread, because mold is a living organism, and organisms need water to survive.

If some students eat breakfast before school and others do not, then the ones who do eat breakfast
will have better grades in their morning classes, because their brains have more energy to think.

Evaluate each hypothesis based on whether it can be tested

 If the polar ice caps begin to melt, the amount of salt in ocean water will change.
 Dogs use mind control on their owners to be taken for walks and car rides.
 If an animal is deaf, then it cannot hear.
 A propeller with large blades can propel an airplane faster than a propeller with smaller
blades can.

A scientist notices that the tomato plant closest to her neighbor’s yard is much taller than any of the
other plants in her garden bed. She also notices that the neighbor turns on his sprinkler system every
day, and that some of this water reaches only her big plant. The scientist creates a question: Does
daily watering from a sprinkler make a tomato plant grow faster than other tomato plants?

The scientist creates this hypothesis to address her question: “If I water the tomatoes in my garden
daily then they will grow faster because tomatoes grow more when they get more water.”

What do you do with a hypothesis?

The hypothesis that a scientist creates leads him or her to make a prediction that can be tested next in
an investigation.

Notice how the example scientist’s hypothesis makes a prediction that can be tested:
 “If I water the tomatoes in my garden daily then they will grow faster because tomatoes grow
more when they get more water.”
 What will the scientist do in the investigation to test her hypothesis?

A hypothesis is not just a prediction

• In science a prediction is an educated guess about the expected outcome of a specific test
• In science a hypothesis goes further
*A hypothesis includes a possible explanation about why the expected outcome of a test will
occur
PREDICTIONS VS HYPOTHESIS

Example Prediction: If it gets cold outside the leaves will change colors.
Example Hypothesis: If it gets cold outside then the leaves will change color because leaf color change
is related to temperature.

If students eat a lot of candy then they will get more cavities because sugar on teeth causes cavities.

If students eat a lot of chocolate then they will get a sick stomach because a lot of chocolate all at once
is hard for the stomach to digest.