(BRB) social and cognitive psychology (PP2) Flashcards
what are some experimental methods
lab experiments and field experiments
what are some non-experimental methods
observations, questionaries and interviews and case studies
what is the fundamental difference between the experimental method and non-experimental method
- the amount o control variables used
define a questionnaire
- a self report data collection method consisting of a series of carefully structured questions given to participants in a standardised manner
what are the principles of a questionnaire design
- all questions are valid and objective
- fit for purpose (to the point)
- filler questions
- sequence of questions
- standardised procedures
- pilot studies
- ethical issues (low levels of deception may be necessary)
what are leading questions in a questionnaire
- questions where the correct answer is prompted
what are socially desirable answers in a questionnaire
- where the respondents give an answer that reflects what they think they ought to say to present themselves in a positive light
what are open questions
- allow respondents to express themselves freely in their own words and without constraints (usually qualitative data)
what are closed questions
- give the participants a set range of answers to choose from, also known as fixed questions
- (usually quantitative data)
what is a likert scale
- allows people to show how much they agree of disagree with a statement
what is a ranked scale item
- participants asked to give a number to represent their views
what is split half method
- establishes internal reliability
- the set of questions are split in half (randomly) and have cores from each half compared
what is sematic difference scale
- people are asked to place a mark on a line to represent their feelings/opinions
what are the strengths of questionnaires
- high reliability because standardised procedures are used, the test retest method can be used establish reliability
- the standardised procedures act as controls for extraneous variables
- the researcher does not need to be present to administer the questionnaire which means people could be more willing to be truthful
- larger amount of data can be collected cheaply and quickly
what are the weaknesses of questionnaires
- often use closed questions which limits validity as participants have no opportunity to express their full ideas
- if the purpose of the questionnaire is obvious then demand characteristics can cause socially desirable answers
- participants may misunderstand questions which limits validity
define what interviews are and why they might be used
face to face verbal questioning of the participant
- will be used when a lot of detail is needed on the topic
what are the different types of interviews
- structured interviews
- unstructured interviews
- semi-structured interviews
what are structured interviews
- predetermined questions given in a set order
- usually use closed questions and quantitative data is collected
- usually standardised
what are unstructured interviews
- questions are not in a set format
- informal in atmosphere and non-directive
- researchers may have a set topic area but the exact phrasing of the questions is left to the interviewer
- usually open questions and qualitative data
what are semi-structured interviews
- set questions but some will allow the interviewer more chance to explore the answers further
- quant and qual data
what is good practise in interviews
- important that the interviewee feels at ease and understands the questions being asked
- important the interviewer establishes rapport which includes responding to non- verbal communication and good listening skills
- avoid leading questions
can cause and effect be established with an interview
- no as there is no way to control all the variables
define what thematic analysis is
- technique used for the analysis of qual data - identifying and addressing patterns in qual data allowing conclusions to be drawn
what are the 6 steps of thematic analysis in order
- 1) familiarisation with the data
- 2) coding
- 3) searching for themes
- 4) reviewing themes
- 5) defining and naming themes
- 6) writing up
what are the strengths of thematic analysis
- the data remains rich and qualitative when identifying themes
- reduction of large amounts of qual data into manageable summary allowing conclusions to be drawn
- validity remains high
what are the weaknesses of thematic analysis
- researcher might have themes in mind when they do the initial coding so the themes may come from the researcher instead of the data, reducing validity
- reliability is also affected by this
- time consuming and a very highly skilled task
whats the difference between experimental methods and experimental designs
- methods are concerned with the overall type of experiment and design is concerned with how we allocate participants
what is the single blind
- a control for demand characteristics
- participants do not know the aim of the experiment so they dont change their behaviour
- low levels of deception are necessary
what is the double blind
- a control for demand characteristics and experimenter effects
- participants and experimenters do not know the aim of the study
what is the experimental condition
- participants experience the main condition of the IV
what is the control condition
- condition that gives the researcher a baseline for comparison
what are the 3 experimental designs
- independent groups
- repeated measures
- matched pairs
define independent groups
- different participants for each section
define repeated measures
- same participants for each section
define matched pairs
- different participants in each section but same for more important IV
advantages of independent groups
- no order effects
- less demand characteristics
- same test for both conditions
advantages of repeated measures
- participant variables are constant
- fewer participants required
advantages of matched pairs
- participant variables controlled
- no order effects
- demand characteristics controlled
- same test for both conditions
disadvantages of independent groups
- participant variables may affect the results
- more participants required
disadvantages of repeated measures
- demand characteristics may be more obvious
- order effects may confound results
- different but equivalent tasks may need to be designed for each
disadvantages of matched pairs
- matching participants is difficult (perfectly)
- process may be biased to experimenter effects
- more participants are required
- attrition may occur which means you lose data from both participant
