Chapter 5, 6, and 7 Flashcards
_________________ refers to how well a study’s variables are measured or manipulated.
Construct Validity
As researchers decide how they should operationalize each variable in a study, they choose among three common types of measures: _____________, _______________, and _____________________.
Self-report, observational, and physiological.
To study conceptual variables, researchers start by __________________ and then create an _____________________.
Stating a definition of their construct and then create an operational definition.
A _____________________ operationalizes a variable by recording people’s answers to questions about themselves in a questionnaire or interview
Self-report measure
An _____________________ operationalizes a variable by recording observable behaviors or physical traces of behaviors.
Observational measure
______________________ operationalize variables by recording biological data, such as brain activity, hormone levels, or heart rate.
Physiological measures
Operational variables can be _______________ or ____________________.
Categorical (nominal) or quantitative (continuous)
___________________________ can further be classified as ordinal, interval, or ratio.
Quantitative variables
_______________________ represent a ranked order without equal intervals
Ordinal scales
_________________________ have equal intervals between levels but lack a true zero point.
Interval scales
____________________________ have equal intervals and a true zero point, allowing for meaningful ratios.
Ratio scales
The reliability of a measure determines whether researchers can rely on its scores _________________________.
Consistently
Reliability can be assessed through _____________________, _____________________________, and ________________________.
Test-retest reliability, interrater reliability, and internal reliability.
_________________________ ensures that individuals receive similar scores each time they are measured.
Test-retest reliability
_____________________________ ensures consistency in scores regardless of who conducts the measurement.
Interrater reliability
_________________________________ applies to measures combining multiple items, ensuring consistency across items.
Internal reliability
Researchers use ________________________________ and ________________________ to quantify reliability.
Scatterplots and correlation coefficients
_________________ visually represent the strength and direction of the relationship between variables.
Scatterplots
The relationship is strong when dots are ___________ to the line.
Close
The correlation coefficient (r) quantifies the relationship, ranging from _____ to _____.
-1.0 to 1.0.
A positive slope corresponds to a positive r, indicating a ___________ relationship, while a negative slope corresponds to a negative r, indicating an _____________ relationship.
Direct and inverse
The closer r is to 1 or -1, the ____________ the relationship; when closer to 0, the relationship is __________________.
Stronger and weaker
A ______________.r in interrater reliability suggests serious discrepancies between observers’ ratings.
Negative
_________________ is used instead of r for assessing interrater reliability when observers rate categorical variables, measuring agreement in placing participants into categories.
Kappa
The closer Cronbach’s alpha is to ________, the better the scale’s reliability.
1.0
For self-report measures, researchers are looking for Cronbach’s alpha of _________ or higher
.80
________________ is the appropriateness of a conclusion or decision.
Validity
__________________ is the upward, downward, or neutral slope of the cluster of data points in a scatterplot.
Slope direction
_________________ is a description of an association indicating how closely the data points in a scatterplot cluster along a line of best fit drawn through them.
Strength
_______________________ is a measure of internal reliability for a set of items; it is the mean of all possible correlations computed between each item and the others.
Average inter-item correlation
__________________________ is the correlation-based statistic that measures a scale’s internal reliability. Also called coefficient alpha.
Cronbach’s alpha
________________________ is crucial for abstract constructs like happiness, intelligence, stress, or self-esteem, which cannot be directly observed.
Construct validity
___________________ refers to the subjective plausibility of a measure aligning with the conceptual definition of a construct.
Face validity
_________________________ evaluates whether a measure correlates with a specific behavioral outcome that it should theoretically be associated with.
Criterion validity
________________________ is especially important for self-report measures because the correlation can indicate how well people’s self-reports predict their actual behavior.
Criterion validity
__________________________________ is when researchers see whether scores on the measure can discriminate among two or more groups whose behavior is already confirmed.
Known groups paradigm
___________________________ is an empirical test of the extent to which a self-report measure correlates with other measures of a theoretically similar construct. See also discriminant validity.
Convergent validity
__________________________ is an empirical test of the extent to which a self-report measure does not correlate strongly with measures of theoretically dissimilar constructs.
Discriminant validity
_________________________ is the extent to which a measure captures all parts of a defined construct.
Content validity
