Chapter 6: Research Strategies and Validity

Question 1

Qualitative Research

Answer 1

narrative report attempting to DESCRIBE and SUMMARIZE observations

Question 2

Quantitative Research

Answer 2

measuring variables that vary in QUANTITY that can be summarized, analyzed, and interpreted by statistical analysis.

Question 3

5 types of research strategies

Answer 3

1) descriptive
2) correlational
3) experimental
4) quasi experimental
5) non-experimental

Question 4

______strategy measures the current state of individual variables for specific groups of individuals, and is not concerned with the relationship

Answer 4

descriptive strategy

Question 5

_____ determines the existence of a relationship between 2 or more variables, but is not causal

Answer 5

correlational strategy

Question 6

non- experimental research strategy

Answer 6

answers questions about relationship between 2 or more variables by demonstrating a difference between groups and treatment conditions, but there is not enough control to completely explain the relationship (does not produce cause-effect), but demonstrates a relationship

Question 7

example of non- experimental research strategy

Answer 7

there is a relationship between gener and verbal ability; girls tend to have a higher verbal ability then men, but we don’t know why

Question 8

quasi experimental research study

Answer 8

• addresses questions about cause and effect relationships between 2 or more variables.
• uses some control, but flaws prevent results from containing absolute causal relationship.

Question 9

example of a quasi experimental research study

Answer 9

the treatment may cause a reduction in smoking behaviour, but the reduced smoking may be caused by something else.

Question 10

experimental research study

Answer 10

cause answer CAUSAL QUESTIONS about relationship. rigorous control.

Question 11

experimental research study example

Answer 11

increasing the amount of exercise causes a decrease in cholesterol levels.

Question 12

any factor that raises doubts about research results or interpretation of results is a ________

Answer 12

threat to validity

Question 13

validity:

Answer 13

how accurately the research study actually answers the questions it was intended to answer.

Question 14

4 primary types of validity

Answer 14

1) statistical conclusion validiity
2) construct validity (face, content, convergent and divergent)
3) internal validitiy
4) external validity

Question 15

statistical conclusion validity and threats

Answer 15

-concerns the extent to which the researchers use statistics properly and draw the appropriate conclusions from the analysis.

4 threats:

1) wrong analysis- wrong statistical tests
2) selective reporting–> will skew stats
3) fishing: researcher keeps trying different analysis until soemthing significant changes
4) reliability of measures
- less reliability= increased error validity and NON SIGNIFICANT statistics

Question 16

Construct validity

Answer 16

face, content and convergent/divergent as seen in chapter 2.

Question 17

external validity

Answer 17

degree to which obtained values hold true outside the constraints of the study.
- changes to population, environment.

Question 18

3 kinds of generalization

Answer 18

1) generalization between sample to the general population
2) generalization from one research event to another. would the results obtained in one specific study also be obtained in aa similar study? is the study REPLICATABLE
3) generalization from a research study to a real-world situation.
- lab setting vs natural environment

Question 19

Internal validity

Answer 19

degree to which a study/experiment is methodically sound and confound free. does the research produce a SINGLE EXPLANATION for the relationship between the 2 variables?

Question 20

Threats to EXTERNAL VALIDITY and examples

Answer 20

1) generalization ACROSS PARTICIPANTS
- selection bias; sample that has characteristics that are different than the target population
- using only university or college students
- volunteer bias
- participants in study have similar characteristics and do not represent target population (ex/ sampling from a suburban neighborhood and generalizing to entire city)
- cross species generalizatoin

2) Generalizing ACROSS FEATURES of a STUDY
- novelty effect; may be responding differently than in real world
- reactivity; influence of a participants awareness of participating in an investigation
- multiple treatment interference; the influence of experience from earlier treatments (PRACTICE OR FATIGUE)
- experimenter characteristics: participants can be indirectly influenced by the characteristics of the experimenter

3) generalization ACROSS FEATURES of a MEASURE
- sensitization; when the process of measurement alters participants so that they react differently to treatment–> occurs in pre test sensitization
- time of measurement; affect of treatment may decrease or increase with time-something that may not be accounted for. results may differ on time of measurement

ex/ smoking cessation on certain drug is effective the first few months of treatment, but starts to wear off after 6 months–> threat to validity

Question 21

confounding variable

Answer 21

a threat to INTERNAL validity that is an extraneous variable that changes and influences the DV being studied.
- may provide an alternative explanation for the observed relationship between 2 variables and therefore is a threat to internal validity

Question 22

Categories of confounding variables of internal validity

Answer 22

1) environmental variables–> time of day, size of room
2) threats to internal validity for studies that compare DIFFERENT GROUPS–> individual differences
3) Time related variables: threats to internal validity for studies comparing one group over time

Question 23

assignment bias? examples of threats to internal validity for studies that compare DIFFERENT GROUPS

Answer 23

assignment bias: when the process used to assign different participants to different treatments produces groups of individuals with different characteristics.

example of individual difference threat to internal validity: if you are testing a drug that makes you run faster, and you separate people into two groups (DV and CONTROL) the dv, that gets the drug, are naturally faster (different characteristic) than the control group that does not get any drugs. the differences between the groups will cause a heightened and exaggerated outcome, and allows for an alternative explanation for any observed difference

Question 24

Factors that change as time passes? Examples of Time related variables: threats to internal validity for studies comparing one group over time

Answer 24

1) History–> environmental event other than treatment between treatment conditions that may effect performance (ex/ events at home)
2) maturation; systematic changes in participants physiology or psychology; large concern when particpants are elderly or really young children
3) instrumentation: instrument bias or decay. observer may change–> get better with practice, fatigued
4) testing effects: fatigue effects, practice effects, carry over effects

5) regression to the mean
- tendency for the extreme scores to move towards the mean when measurement procedure is repeated. (due to improvement)

score= true score + error

6) attrition; participants lose interest, they move away, the die etc.
- causes amount of people in group at the end to be different than the amount at the beginning of the study

Question 25

when is regression to the mean a problem?

Answer 25

when participants are selected because of their low or high scores.

Question 26

descriptive studies have _____ internal validity and _____ external validity

Answer 26

N/a internal, high external validity

Question 27

correlational studies have _____ internal validity and _____ external validity

Answer 27

poor internal validity (is not CAUSAL) and high external validity (not a lot of controls that would make the experiment unable to transfer to a normal setting)

Question 28

experimental studies have _____ internal validity and _____ external validity

Answer 28

high internal validity, low external validity (hard to repeat in normal setting)

Question 29

non experimental studies have _____ internal validity and _____ external validity

Answer 29

poor internal validity (no controls) and a bit higher external validity

Question 30

quasi experimental studies have _____ internal validity and _____ external validity

Answer 30

lower than experimental but more than non experimental internal validity, and higher experimental validity

Question 31

Artifacts

Answer 31

external factors that may influence or distort measurements

-threat to internal and external validity

Question 32

2 common artifiacts

Answer 32

1) experimental bias or expectancy: when experimenter’s believes regarding the outcome influence the results
- may treat participants differently, misjudge responses, not record results properly

2)demand characteristics and participant bias: curs of features from research situtation that suggest the purpose and hypothesis of the study or influence the participant behavior