Additional Methods, Features of Science & Scientific Reports Flashcards
What is content analysis?
a technique used to analyse qualitative data which involves coding the written data into categories - converting qualitative data into quantitative data, involved the indirect study of people via communications e.g. text messages
What are coding units?
categorising data into useful/meaningful units as some data sets can be extremely large, can involve words, themes, characters, roles, time, space
What are the strengths of using content analysis?
- allows researchers to circumvent many of the ethical issues that would have been encountered in other research methods as much of the content is already in the public domain - no problems with consent
- research often high in external validity as there is nothing artificial about the data
What are the limitations of using content analysis?
- the possibility of bias as the interpretation is subjective, and data may be analysed out of the context in which it was produced
- cultural bias may be a problem as interpretation of meaning of different verbal or written content. may be affected by the language/culture of the observer, and the coding units they have chosen to use
- choice of material and content to be analysed includes potential for bias
How do we deal with the issue of subjectivity in content analysis?
to have a number of researchers who work independently, and compare their results (a form of inter-rater reliability) - to increase reliability, researchers should be trained before hand in how to use the coding units
What is thematic analysis?
a method for analysing qualitative data which involves identifying, analysing and recording patterns within the data - purpose is to identify patterns of meaning or repeated themes across a dataset that provide an answer to the research that is being addressed, themes are identified through a rigorous process of familiarisation, data coding and theme development and revision
What are the 6 stages to approaching thematic analysis?
- familiarisation with the data
- coding
- searching for themes
- reviewing themes - check candidate themes against the dataset, to determine if they tell a convincing story of the data
- defining and naming themes
- writing up
What are the strengths of using thematic analysis?
- richness in detail from this form of analysis, retains the descriptive nature of the material
- it is flexible and can be used to answer different types of research question
What are the limitations of using thematic analysis?
- risk of subjectivity, hence, researcher bias
- very lengthy
What are case studies?
an in-depth investigation of an individual, group or event, where data is gathered from a range of sources using different methods (e.g. observations & interviews) longitudinal and may involve talking to family/friends
What are the strengths of using case studies?
- give a detailed picture of an individual that helps to uncover what type of person they are related to present and past behaviour
- by studying unusual cases we learn more about normally functioning people
- they provide a variety of in-depth and detailed information that may not be possible to gather from experiments
- often provide the only method for studying a particular condition/event e.g HM
What are the limitations of using case studies?
- may rely on memory which may be inaccurate/distorted (retrospective studies), also past records may be incomplete
- can only tell you about one person/group so findings can not be generalised
- interviewer may be biased or interviewee may not be honest
- objectivity from researchers can be difficult and data may be very subjective
- issue of confidentiality
What are the goals of a science?
- prediction
- understanding
- control
What is objectivity?
idea it doesn’t matter who makes a measurement/observation, they will record the same thing
How do we reduce the possibility of unconscious bias?
- standardised instructions
- operational definitions of variables
- techniques e.g. double-blind
Why is there a lack of objectivity?
- experimenter bias
- subject matter means it is not possible
Where is there evidence of objectivity?
- brain scans
- experiments e.g. Skinner’s pigeons, behaviours such as pecking a disk objectively measured
What is the empirical method?
the belief that only the source of true knowledge is through our senses and in some psychological cases, in some studies, cannot always be directly observed
- consists of observation and measurement
What is evidence against objectivity?
- reliant on self-report methods and qualitative data (require interpretation) e.g. Bowlby’s 44 Thieves
What is a problem with the empirical method?
- thoughts and feelings are not directly observable - physics also have issues like this and use inference - in psychology, can infer through influences on the behaviour of people
What us replicability?
the extent to which a piece of research can be repeated under the same conditions as the original research
Where is there evidence of replicability?
Asch’s study repeated by many with similar results e.g. Crutchfield
What is a problem with replicability?
natural experiments cannot be repeated and checked for reliability e.g. Romanian Orphan Studies due to ethical issues or purely the nature if the study
What is falsifiability?
Popper’s principle that a theory cannot be considered scientific unless it admits the possibility of being proved untrue
What is evidence for falsifiability?
- theories in some approaches make clear, testable predictions e.g. WMM makes clear predictions about dual task method
What is evidence against falsifiability?
- theories in the psychodynamic approach cannot be tested because the concepts are vague and often use unconscious claims e.g. about the id
What is a paradigm?
a shared set of assumptions and agreed methods within a scientific discipline
What is a paradigm shift?
the result of a scientific revolution: a scientific change in the dominant, unifying theory within a scientific discipline
What is an example of a paradigm?
different approaches could be seen as different, legitimate paradigms
Give an example of a paradigm shift
behaviourism to cognitive approach
What is a problem with the concept of paradigms?
Kuhn: no single paradigm has been settled in psychology, and huge disagreements remain e.g. whether the conscious mind can and should be studied
How does theory construction work?
- gathering evidence through direct observation
- coming up with the theory
What is a theory?
a set of general laws or principles that Jas the ability to explain particular events or behaviours
How does hypothesis testing work?
- once the observation has occurred (empirically) and the theory has been decided, researcher needs to come up with the hypothesis, then test the hypothesis with the study and then accept/reject/or amend the theory
What are reasons that psychology should be considered a science?
- understanding/knowledge at a theoretical level, helping us understand how and why people behave the way that they do
- enables objective/empirical support
- allows for progress within discipline
- allows for practical application
- allows prediction and control of behaviour
- allows for replication and increase in confidence in validity of theories
What are the reasons that psychology should not be considered a science?
- problem with control of variables
- demand characteristics
- artificiality of environments means results may not be generalisable
- unobservable private experience and even if it is observed, may be subjective interpretation
- ethical issues including dehumanisation
What are the sections of a scientific report?
- abstract
- introduction
- method
- results
- discussion
- referencing
What does an abstract include?
short summary 150-200 words including main elements: aims, hypothesis, method/procedure, results and conclusions
- when researching a particular topic, psychologists read lots of abstracts to identify those investigations that are worthy of further examination
What does the introduction include?
literature review including: theories, concepts and studies that are related to the current study
- more specific aims and hypotheses presented
What is in the method section?
(so that other researchers can easily replicate the study if they wish)
- design
- sample
- apparatus/materials
- procedure (including briefing, standardised instructions and debriefing)
- ethics
What is in the results section?
- descriptive statistics e.g. tables, graphs, charts, measures of central tendency/dispersion
- inferential statistics
- if researcher has used any qualitative methods
What is the discussion section?
- summarise findings in verbal form in context of evidence from the introduction
- discuss limitations of research
- wider implications of the research
What goes in the referencing of a report?
- full details of source material
