4.2.3.1 DEMAND CHARACTERISTICS AND INVESTIGATOR EFFECTS

Question 1

what are demand characteristics?

Answer 1

• all the clues in an experiment which convey to the ppt the purpose of the research
• can change the results of an experiment if ppts change their behaviour to conform to expectations

ppts will be affected by:
- their surroundings
- the researcher’s characteristics
- the researcher’s behaviour

• experiments should attempt to minimise these factors buy keeping the environment as natural as possible, carefully following standardised procedures

Question 2

what are experimenter / investigator effects?

Answer 2

• experimenter unconsciously conveys to ppts how they should behave
• this is called experimenter bias
  this may include:
• design of study
• selection of and interaction with ppts during the research process

experimenter might do this by giving unintentional clues to the ppts about what the experiment is about and how they expect them to behave
- the personal attributes can also effect behaviour