Assessing reliability

Question 1

What is external reliability?

Answer 1

This is a measure of the extent to which one measure of an object varies from another measure of the same object e.g. if one interview was conducted one day and then conducted a week later the outcome should be the same otherwise the interview is not reliable

Question 2

What is Internet interviewer reliability (or into greater reliability)

Answer 2

This can be assessed by comparing the results from both interviewers with the same interviewees and the same outcomes should be produced

Question 3

What is internal reliability

Answer 3

This is a measure of the extent to which something is consistent within itself example all the questions on the psychological test should be measuring the same thing

Question 4

What is a method for measuring internal reliability

Answer 4

A split half method

Question 5

What is the split half method

Answer 5

This can be calculated by comparing two halves of the test questionnaire or interview this can be done by randomly selecting half the test items and placing them on form a complacently other items on form B therefore you end up with two forms of the same test each form should yield the same score

Question 6

How would you measure the two resulting scores from a split half reliability test

Answer 6

The two scores can be compared by calculating a correlation coefficient

Question 7

How do you improve low internal reliability?

Answer 7

You select the test items that produce the greatest similarity and seeing if there is a stronger correlation with the remaining items

Question 8

What is a measure of external reliability

Answer 8

Test retest method

Question 9

What is the test retest method

Answer 9

This involves giving the same test or questionnaire or interview to the same person on two separate occasions to see the same results are obtained if the test of questionnaire interviews given at two different times of no treatment in between it it should yield the same results if the results are not similar than the test has low reliability

Question 10

How do the two scores of the test re test method be compared

Answer 10

By calculating a correlation coefficient

Question 11

How do you improve low external reliability

Answer 11

A number of factors may cause poor reliability over time – A poorly trained interviewer, ambiguous questions, or inconsistent participatant answers

Question 12

What is the Rosenberg self-esteem scale?

Answer 12

This is one of the best-known measures of self esteem . Self-esteem refers to the opinion you have of yourself and your value .

Question 13

What is the dieting belief scale

Answer 13

This is a measure of weight locus of control i.e. the extent to which an individual feels in control of their weight

Question 14

What are the strengths of questionnaires

Answer 14

Can be easily repeated so that data can be collected from large numbers of people relatively quickly
questionnaires do not require specialist administrators
respondents may feel more willing to reveal personal information than in an interview

Question 15

What are the strengths of structured interviews

Answer 15

They can be easily repeated
requires less skill than unstructured interviews
easier to analyse than unstructured interviews because answers are given to the same set of questions

Question 16

What are the strengths of an unstructured or semi structured interview

Answer 16

You can access it deeper insight that may not be revealed by predetermined questions

Question 17

What are the weaknesses of a questionnaire

Answer 17

Answers may not be truthful because of leading questions and social desirability bias
the sample may be biased because only certain kinds of people fill in questionnaires e.g. literate people who are interested
response that there is a tendency for respondents to answer all questions in the same way regardless of context this would bias their answers

Question 18

What is a response set?

Answer 18

response set is that there is a tendency for respondents to answer all questions in the same way regardless of context this would bias their answers

Question 19

What are the weaknesses of a structured interview

Answer 19

The interviewer’s expectations may influence the answers the interviewee gives -
interviewer bias
Internet interviewer reliability may be low
data will be restricted by the predetermined set of questions unlike an unstructured interview

Question 20

What are the weaknesses of an unstructured interview

Answer 20

More affected by interviewer bias than structured interviews
even more likely to be affected by leading questions
requires well trained interviewers which makes them more expensive
the answers from unstructured interviews and less easy to analyse because they are unpredictable

Question 21

Freud Proposed that early life experiences create our adult personalities - how?

Answer 21

Freud suggested that frustration or overindulgence during key developmental stages led to predictable personality traits

Question 22

What is the consequence of frustration over harsh treatment at the oral stage?

Answer 22

Oral aggressive character characterised by aggressiveness domination pessimism envy and suspicion

Question 23

What is the consequence of frustration over indulgence at the oral stage?

Answer 23

Oral receptive character is optimistic gullible overdependent on others trusting and full of admiration for others

Question 24

What is the oral stage age

Answer 24

0- 1 1/2 years

Question 25

What is the age of the Anal stage?

Answer 25

One and a half to 3 years

Question 26

What is the impact of frustration or harsh treatment at the anal stage?

Answer 26

Anal-retentive character is neat stingy precise orderly and obstinate

Question 27

What is the impact of overindulgence at the final stage?

Answer 27

The anal expulsive character is generous messy disorganised careless and defiance