4.2.3 Research methods Flashcards
what is an experimental method
experimental method involves the manipulation of an independent variable to measure the effect on the dependent variable.
what is an aim
a general statement of what the researcher intends to investigate , the purpose of the study
what is a hypothesis
a clear precise testable statement that states the relationship between variables to be investigated , stated at the outset of any study
what is the difference between an aim and hypothesis
an aim is a general statement and a hypothesis is a precise statement that is testable
what is a directional hypothesis and when is it used
it states the direction of the difference of the relationship , used when there is previous research to indicate outcome
what is a non directional hypothesis and when is it used
it does not state the direction of the study and if us used when there is no previous research or when findings from earlier studies are contradictory
what is a laboratory experiment
takes place in a controlled environment in which the researcher manipulates the independent variable and records effect on dependent variable whilst having strict control of extraneous variables
what is a field experiment
takes place in a natural setting within which the researcher manipulates the independent variable and records the effect on the dependent variable
what is a natural experiential
an experiment where the change in the independent variable is not brought about by the researcher , it would have happened if the researcher had not or been there . The researcher records the the effect on the dependent variable
what is a quasi experiment
a study that is almost an experiment but the independent variable has not been determined by anyone , the variables simply exist such as being old or young
evaluate lab experiments
strengths:
High internal validity - strict control over extraneous variables
High reliability- High levels of control allows replication to occur
ethical- participants mostly know they are taking part eg informed consent
Weaknesses:
Demand characteristics participants know they are being tested
Low external validity
evaluate field experiments
strengths
high levels of external validity takes place in natural setting
no demand characteristics participants don’t know they’re being tested
weaknesses:
low internal validity no control over extraneous variables
ethical issues cannot give informed consent as they are unaware being tested
Less reliability as it cannot be fully replicated due to lack of control
evaluate natural experiments
strengths
high external validity - more natural setting
less conflict over ethical issues - events would happen anyway without presence of researcher
no demand characteristics
weaknesses:
low internal validity lack of control and increased risk of extraneous variables influencing results
low reliability due to difficulty of replication
evaluate quasi experiment
Strengths:
high internal validity - usually in a lab - control over extraneous variables , however difficulty to know if IV impacted DV
Lack of conflict over ethical issues participants know they’re being tested
reliability as it’s highly controlled allowing replication
weaknesses:
low external validity
demand characteristics
what is a naturalistic observation
watching and recording observable behaviour in a setting which it would normally occur
what is a controlled observation
watching and recording observable behaviour within a structured environment e.g where some variables are managed
what is a covert observation
when participants observable behaviour is watched and recorded without their knowledge and consent
what is an overt observation
when participants behaviour is watched and recorded with their knowledge and consent
what is a a participant observation
the researcher becomes a member of the grouo whose behaviour he/she is watching and recording
what is non participant observations
the researcher remains oustide of the grouo whose behaviour he/she is watching and recording
okay why is the difference between observations and experiments
observations are non experimental methods meaning they cannot establish a cause and effect relationship , observations do not have an independent variable , they havw variables but there IS NO MANIPULATION
evaluate naturalistic observations
low internal validity
low reliability
high external validity
low demand characteristics
evaluate controlled observations
low external validity
high demand characteristics
high internal validity high reliability (replication)
evaluate covert observations
high ethical issues - no informed consent
high internal validity
low demand characteristics
evaluate overt observations
high internal validity
low demand charactestixs
low ethical issues
evaluate participant observations
high internal validity
low objectivity
evaluate non participant observations
low internal validity
high objectivity
what is an unstructured observation
type of observation where every instance of a behaviour is recorded in as much detail as possible . this is useful if the behaviours researchers are interested in do not occur very often
what is a structured observation
a type of observation where the researcher uses various systems to organise observations such as sampling technique and behavioural categories
what is target behaviour
behaviours which are the main focus of an investigation
what are behavioural categories
when a target behaviour is broken up into components that are observable and measurable
what is a continuous recording
making a note of everything without pause
what is event sampling
when the researcher records the number of times a particular behaviour or event occurs in a target individual or group
what is time sampling
when the researcher records behaviour within a pre determined time frame
what is inter observer relatability
the extent to which there is an agreement between two or more observers involved in the observations of a behaviour. This is measured by correlating the observations of two or more observers . If the correlation between the two observers is +0.8, the date is said to havw high inter observer reliability
what is quantitative data
data that can be counted usually given as numbers
what is qualitative data
date taht is expressed in words and non numerical form
what is observer bias
when observers expectations effect whag they see or hear , this reduces the validity of the observation
what are the two types of self report techniques
questionaires and interviews
what is an interview
a live encounter whwre the interviewer asks a set of questions to assess an interviewer thoughts and or experiences. the questions may be pre determined (structured) or developed as the interview goes on (unstructured)
what is a structured interview
questions are determined in advance
what is an unstructured interview
interview starts out with general aims and some possible questions and let’s the interviewee’s answers guide subsequent questions
what is a semi structured interview
contains some predetermined questions and some questions developed in response to answers given . This allows the researcher to ask follow up questions when they deem it appropriate
what is an interview schedule
a set of pre-set questions for an interviewer to use
what is interviewer bias
bias that occurs as a result of the interviewer , this may be the way they respond to participants ,the areas they are interested in e.t.c. It affects the results that are obtained from the interview
what is a grouo interview
more than one participant interviewed at a time
why is clarity important in an interview and what are three common errors to avoid in question design
clarity is key as if respondents are confused or misinterpret particular questions it can havw a negative impact on the quality of information received.
- overuse of jargon
- emotive language and leading questions
- double barrelled questions and double negatives
evaluate structured interviews
high reliability and replicability
low interviewer bias
low validity may miss key things due to only asking pre determined questions
straightforward to use for data analysis
high risk of social desirability bias
evaluate unstructured interview
not reliable and replicable
higher interviewer bias
high validity
harder to analyse data
risk of social desirability bias
evaluate semi structured interviews
mixed reliability + replicability
mixed interviewer bias
higher validity
semi difficult to analyse data
risk of social desirability bias
what is a questionnaire
a questionnaire is a type of self report technique. It is a set of written questions used to assess a persons thoughts and or experiences. A questionnaire may be used as a part of an experiment to assess the dependent variable
what are the two types of questions used in self report techniques
open and closed questions
what is an open question
an open question is a question where there is no fixed choice of repsonse , they tend to produce qualitative data that is rich in depth but hard to analyse
what is a closed question
a closed questuon is where there is a fixed set of responses that is determined by the person who sets the questions, this could be a yes or no question or answered in a scale . They produce quantitative data data which is easier to analyse but may lack depth
evaluate questionnaires
strengths :
cost effective , can gather large amounts of data quickly
can be completed without researcher present
data produced by questionnaires can be generally easy to analyse
weaknesses
participants may not always be honest - social desirability bias
questionnaires often produce response bias - e.g just selecting yes regardless of the question (aquiescence bias)
what is a correlation
a mathematical technique in which a researcher investigates an association/relationship between two variables called co variables
what are co-variables
the variables investigated within a correlation , they are not referred to as independent and dependent variables because a correlation investigates an association/relationship between the variables rather than trying to show a cause and effect relationship
what is a positive correlation
as one co variable increases so does the other
what is a negative correlation
as one co variable increases the other decreases
what is zero correlation
when there is no association/relationship between the co variables
what is a correlation coefficient
the strength and direction of an association/relationship is measured using a correlation coefficient.
It ranges from -1 to +1. + means positive - means negative , the closer to 1 means the stronger the two variables are related
what is the difference between correlations and experiments
(ex= experiment c = correlation)
ex- difference , c- relationships
ex- manipulate IV measure DV , C-measure both co-variables
ex-controlled , can establish cause and effect C- no control (observing) can’t establish cause and effect
ex- extraneous or confounding variables , c- intervening variable
what is content analysis
content analysis is a kind of observational study in which behaviour is indirectly studied by examining the communications that people produce , it may involved quantitative or qualitative analysis or both
what is coding , referring to content analysis
the stage of content analysis in which the communication to be studied is analysed by identifying each instance of the chosen categories , it is the process of placing quantitative or qualitative data into categories
what is thermatic analysis
an inductive and qualitative approach to analysis that involves identifying implicit or explicit ideas within the data. The data is then organised according to these themes . Themes often emerge once some coding of the data has occurred
what is the aim of content analysis
the aim is to summarise and describe the data in a systematic way so that overall conclusions can be drawn , this can be done by placing data into categories and counted (quantitative) or can be analysed in themes(qualitative)
evaluate content analysis
strengths:
can avoid ethical issue e.g data is collected from media that is already readily available
It’s a flexible research method , includes both qualitative and quantitative data , makes it more favourable than research methods thag just produce one
has high ecological validity , based on real world situations and what people actually do
weaknesses:
tells us “what” but doesn’t tell us “why”
at risk of observer bias - interpretation of material subjective which affects validity
what are case studies
an in depth investigation , description and analysis of a single individual grouo institution or event. often an analysis of unusual events , provide insight into events that couldn’t be created by researchers through manipulation of IV. Often longitudinal and can use qualitative and quantitative data
evaluate case studies
strength:
Provide rich data into unusual and atypical behaviour e.G HM . helps deepen understanding of human behaviour , wlukd not be possible through manipulation of IV
Hells generate hypothesis for future studies , e.G case of KF showers different types of STM , which can even lead to development of theories eg working memory model
weaknesses:
poor generalisation
potential researcher bias as researcher become very involved with the cases , can reduce validity
poor replicability , reduces the reliability
