1.Research Methods Flashcards
psychology
the scientific study of human thoughts, feelings and behaviour
Steps of the scientific method
1.Identify the topic
2.Formulate a research hypothesis
3.Design the research
4.collect data
5.Analyse the data
6. interpret results
7. Report the research and findings
(I HAVE MADE CAKE AND I ROCK)
pseudoscience
pseudoscience- any non scientific approach to studying human thoughts, feelings and behaviours that may produce biased or unreliable results.
List any 3 examples of pseudoscience
crystal healing, ear candling, urine therapy, astrology, phrenology
Phrenology
phrenology- explored the relationship between the skulls surface features and an individuals personality characteristics
Why do people believe in pseudoscience?
Barnum effect- notion that people are more likely to believe statements about themselves when they are positive, vague and general even when there is no particular reason to do so.
Empirical evidence
Empirical evidence is data collected through systematic observations and/or carefully constructed observations. Hence, minimises chance for bias, errors and faulty conclusions.
population
population refers to the entire group of research interest , in which researchers will wish to apply/generalise their findings
sample
sample refers to the research participants who were selected from the larger population
purpose of an experiment
an experiment is used to test a cause and effect relationship between two particular variables
variable
something that can change (vary) and is measurable
Independent variable
The ‘cause’
-the variable that is changed or manipulated by the researcher to see whether it affects another variable
Dependent variable
The ‘effect’
-the variable that is used to measure the effects of the Independent variable
Hypothesis template
It is hypothesised that those who are (exposed to the IV) will have (directional impact on the DV) in comparison to those who have not been (exposed to the IV)
Extraneous variables vs. confounding variables
EV’s are any variables other than the Independent variable that can cause an unwanted change in the DV (they are controlled for prior to the researcher). Confounding variables are like EV’s however, it is not possible to determine which variable caused the change in the DV. (not controlled for prior)
List the extraneous variables
- Placebo Effect
- Order effects
- Non standardised instructions and procedures
- Individual differences
- Experimenter effect
describe the Placebo effect
When a participants responses is changed by their belief (expectation) that they are receiving some kind of treatment, as opposed to the change caused by the actual treatment
describe order effects
occurs when performance is influenced by the specific order in which the experimental tasks are presented, rather than the IV
describe non standardised and procedures
If certain groups are given different instructions from the researcher, this can have an unwanted impact on the DV.
describe individual differences
any differences between the participants you are studying (other than the IV) that may impact the DV
describe the experimenter effect
any of a number of subtle cues or signals from an experimenter that may affect the performance or response of subjects in the experiment.
list the sampling procedures
random sampling
convenience sampling
stratified sampling
stratified random sampling
describe random sampling
ensures that every member of population of research interest has an equal chance of being selected to be apart of the sample
limitations of random sampling
-no guarantee that sample is representative
-need complete list of target popn therefore time consuming
describe stratified sampling
dividing the population into different subgroups (strata) and selecting a separate sample from each stratum in the same proportions that they appear in the population
limitations of random stratified and stratified sampling
-need complete list of target population therefore time consuming
describe convenience sampling
selecting participants who are readily available without any attempt to make sample representative of the population
advantages of convenience sampling
-easy and less time consuming hence ‘convenient’
limitations of convenience sampling
-may produce biased sample in most cases therefore unreliable/potential misleading results
-difficult to generalise to population
describe random allocation
-every participant in the sample has an equal chance of being selected to any of the experimental groups used (control/experimental)
-used to obtain groups that are as alike as possible before introducing the IV
describe counterbalancing
-used to minimise/’balance out’ order/practice effect
-involves systematically changing order of treatments/tasks for participants in a balanced way
ways to reduce extraneous variables
-single blind procedures
-double blind procedures
-use of placebos
-standardised instructions or procedures
-research designs
-counterbalancing
describe single blind procedures
participants are unaware of whether they are in the control or experimental conditions.
describe double blind procedures
Both participants and researchers dealing directly with participants are unaware of the experimental conditions
how does the use of placebos combat the placebo effect
the control group can be given a placebo so that they form the same expectations as those in experimental group.
-often used in drug trials
identify the experimental designs
independent groups design
repeated measures design
matched participants design
identify and describe the types of order effects
-practice effects:arises from repeating tasks
-carry over effects:arises from the influence of previous tasks on the current task at hand
what is a placebo
a fake treatment
law of large numbers
the greater the sample size the greater the chance that the attributes of the sample are representative of the wider population.
what does counterbalancing aim to combat
unwanted effects or order effects
identify the methods of allocation
-random allocation
-counterbalancing
identify the gold standard sampling technique
random stratified sampling
what do single blind procedures aim to combat
the placebo effect
what do double blind procedures aim to combat
placebo effect and experimenter effect
describe the independent groups design
Participants are randomly allocated to one of two (or more) entirely separate ‘independent groups’. The random allocation procedure is used after participants have been selected for the experiment but before the experiment begins
Advantages of independent groups design
-Avoids order/practice effects and carry over effects
-Cost effective
-less time consuming (comparatively)
Limitations of Independent groups design
-Participant and Individual differences are present
-more participants required (compared to repeated measures design)
describe repeated measures design
the same participants are used in both the experimental and control group
advantages of repeated measures design
-controls individual differences between groups
-less participants required
limitations of repeated measures design
-order and practice effect are present (may perform better the second time)
-carry over effects (fatigue and boredom may lead to worse results)
-high drop out rates
describe matched participants design
participant in one condition matches a participant in another condition(s) based one or more participant variables of interest.
Advantages of matched participants design
-avoids order/practice effect
-participant differences are reduced
limitations of matched participants design
-time consuming to find participants that match
-can never obtain an exact match
-if one participant drops out, so must their partner
identify types of non experimental research studies
-cross sectional studies
-case studies
-observational studies
describe cross sectional studies
a cross sectional study selects and compares groups of participants on one or more personal variables (eg age, gender) of interest at a single point in time.
another name for cross sectional studies
quasi experiment
identify & describe a major limitation to the cross sectional study
Cohort Effect
-When researchers measure characteristics of groups of people who were Born at significantly different times there may be a difference in behaviour due to the cohort effect rather than the chronological age difference
describe case studies
a case study is an intensive in depth investigation of some phenomena of interest in an individual, group, organisation or situation.
describe observational studies
collection of data by carefully watching and recording behaviour as it occurs
pros of natural settings
-placebo effect is not present
-natural/normal behaviour
cons of natural settings
-results may not be accurate because extraneous variables may be present (that have not been controlled for)
-decreased control over variables
pros of contrived settings
-increased control over variables
-increased accuracy of results
what is participant observation
researchers take part in the study and may wish to be mistaken for participants
what is non participant observation
researchers conceal their presence
advantages of cross sectional studies
-relatively quick and easy
-can study multiple variables at once
-good starting point for further research
advantages of case studies
-able to gain more information on topic of interest that could otherwise be unethical or difficult to study
limitation of case studies
-time consuming
-can not generalise findings because of very small sample size
advantages of observational studies
-easier to generalise from neutralistic setting because of increased control
limitation of observational studies
-observer bias
-decreased control over EV
-can only be used for observable behaviours
what are self reports
participants written or spoken responses to questions, statements or instructions presented by a researcher
assumptions of self reports
-participants are being honest
-participants understand the questions asked
-participants can accurately recall information
types of data collection
-questionnaires
-interviews
-rating and likert scales
what are questionnaires
a set of written questions designed to draw out information from people on a topic of research interest
identify and describe the major limitation of questionnaires
Social desirability bias
-tendency for survey responders to answer in a way that may be viewed favourably
what are interviews
an interview involves questions asked by the researcher with the aim of obtaining self report information on a topic of research interest
identify the types of interviews
structured and unstructured interviews
what is a structured interview
-participant is asked specific ,pre determined questions in a controlled manner
-script is followed whilst questions are read in a neutral manner with no comments or cues
pro of structured interview
-decreased experimenter effect
con of structured interview
-can not obtain a rich and meaningful source of data
what is an unstructured interview
-Freedom of discussion and interaction between interviewer and participant
-researcher asks a series of open ended questions and new questions are developed as the interview progresses
what are rating scales
-uses fixed response questions or statements for which participants rank or rate each item by selecting from number of options
what are likert scales
-20 statements or questions to which participants respond with a five point scale
-used to measure attitudes
-attitude is defined by sum of responses
advantages of self reports
-Efficient way to collect data
-useful for collecting data from large groups of people
-guaranteeing anonymity allows collection of data relating to sensitive topics
-open ended questions provide a rich source of data about a particular topic
disadvantages of self reports
-social desirability bias
-experimenter effect
-highly language dependent
-non response bias
what is the non response bias
people who volunteer to respond to a questionnaire are likely to respond differently to those who don’t
what’s data
the information that is collected during the research process
-data is empirical evidence
identify the types of data
-primary data
-secondary data
-qualitative data
-quantitative data
what is primary data
is data collected directly by the researcher (or through others) to commonly test a hypothesis
other name for primary data
raw data
what is secondary data
data that has been collected by someone other than the researcher
other name for secondary data
second hand data
pro of primary data
-reliable data because collected by researcher themselves
con of primary data
-time and money consuming
pro of secondary data
-convenient and readily available
con of secondary data
-may be unreliable and irrelevant
what is quantitative data
Numerical information or the ‘quantity’ or amount of what is being studied
eg of quantitative data
score out of 100 on a test
what is qualitative data
commonly in the form of descriptions, words, meanings or pictures
pro of quantitative data
-easy to interpret and understand
con of quantitative data
-lacks meaning (not a rich source of data)
pro of qualitative data
-rich source of data that is meaningful
con of qualitative data
-difficult to understand and interpret
what is the holistic approach
the use of both qualitative and quantitative data, in order to obtain a rich source of information that can be optimally generalised to the population
identify two types of statistics
descriptive and inferential
what are descriptive statistics
employed to analyse, organise, summarise and present results. HOWEVER they can not be used to interpret results in a meaningful manner
eg of descriptive statistics
-tables
-graphs
-percentages
-measures of central tendency (mean, median and mode)
-standard deviation
what are inferential statistics
are used for interpreting and giving meaning to results, allows us to determine whether the hypothesis is supported
eg of inferential statistics
p-value
what is a conclusion
a conclusion is a decision about what results obtained from a research study mean (is the hypothesis supported)
what is a generalisation
A generalisation is a decision about how widely the findings of a research study can be applied, particularly to other members of the target population
what is validity
validity refers to the extent to which procedures used for research study measure what it intended to measure
what is reliability
reliability refers to the extent to which results obtained from the research are dependent, stable and consistent
identify types of validity
internal and external
what is internal validity
Internal validity refers to the extent to which the results obtained for study are actually due to the variables that were tested or measured not some other factor (EV’s)
what is External Validity
external validity refers to the extent to which the result obtained for a study can be generalised to the target population
what are ethics
Ethics refer to the standards that guide individuals to identify good, desirable or acceptable conduct
research merit and integrity
-key questions
-is the research worthwhile and justifiable?
-does it contribute to knowledge?
-does it follow ethical standards?
Beneficence
-key questions
-does the researcher maximise the possible benefits of research to the community
-does researcher minimise the risks of harm to participants?
Justice
-key questions
-Are the researchers fair, do they exploit one particular individual or group?
-is the selection process fair?
Respect for human beings
-key questions
-does the researcher take into account the rights, beliefs, perceptions and cultural backgrounds of all participants?
list participants rights
-confidentiality
-voluntary participation
-withdrawal rights
-informed consent
-deception
-debriefing
-professional conduct
describe confidentiality
Participants have a right to privacy, they should not be identified in publications of the research
describe voluntary participation
The participant must not be coerced to participate in the experiment
describe withdrawal rights
the participant has the right to withdraw from the experiment at any time
describe informed consent
participants must be appropriately informed of the
-goals
-methods
-their rights
-the risks
-signed by guardian if vulnerable
G MRS GIV
describe deception and debriefing
Where deception is necessary, participants must be fully debrief at the conclusion of the research. This includes being informed of the purpose of the research and correct any mistaken attitudes or beliefs about the research
describe professional conduct
The researchers must act in a professional manner, they must follow the ethical guidelines of the APS
