Biases Flashcards
What are the different types of biases? (RSM)
The Hawthorne effect
Demand Characteristics
Social desirability bias
Researcher bias
Investigator effect
What is the Hawthorne effect?
Why does this matter?
The thought that if people are interested in something and in the attention they are getting, then they will show a more positive response and try harder at tasks
This may make results artificially high which could lead to invalid conclusion
Is there a anti-Hawthorne effect?
The opposite can occur is participants are uninterested
What are demand characteristics?
Why does this matter?
When there are aspects of the study that allows participants to form an idea about its purpose. Then the participants may act in a way to “please” the researchers
This cause the data to become invalid
What is social desirability bias?
People will try to show themselves in the best light possible
Why does social desirability bias matter?
They may not complete a task truthfully as they want to give more socially acceptable answers
This makes the results invalid
What is researcher bias?
How the researchers expectations can influence how they design their study and how they behave towards the participants
What may be the effect of researcher bias?
Hypothesis may be false
The researchers may focus on answers that fit their expectations
What is the investigator effect?
Anything the researcher does that affects how participants behave
What is the Hawthorne effect also known as?
The please you or screw you effect
Explain the part of researcher bias: expectations?
This could effect the measurements and analysis because the expectation of the researcher will have a pre conceived idea of how they want to data to look
What are demand characteristics?
When the participants act in a way that they think will please the experimenters as they have guessed the nature of the study
What could demand characteristics lead to (in interviews and questionnaires)?
The researcher asking leading questions
What is a leading question?
A question which indicates what the researcher wants
How can demand characteristics be controlled?
By making sure participants don’t know what group they are in
