Chapter 7: Research Methods Flashcards
Define aim.
A statement of intent for a study.
Define hypothesis.
A concise testable statement of your expected results.
Define operationalisation.
Making a variable measurable.
E.g Intelligence- you can use an IQ test.
What are the two types of hypotheses?
Directional hypothesis.
Non-directional hypothesis.
Define ‘directional hypothesis’.
States the specific outcome.
Specifies whether one variable is greater, lesser or different from another, rather than just indicating that there’s a difference without specifying its nature.
E.g Exercise increases weight loss.
Define ‘non-directional hypothesis’.
States that there is a difference or relationship between two variables but does not specify the change in the relationship.
E.g There is a difference in performance between Group A and Group B.
When do you use a directional hypothesis?
If there is previous research that suggests a result.
When do you use a non-directional hypothesis?
If there is no known previous research/previous research that produced an outcome.
What is a variable?
Factors involved in your study.
What are the 4 types of variables?
Independent variable.
Dependent variable.
Extraneous variable.
Confounding variable.
Define the independent variable.
The factor we manipulate in order to see a change in the dependent variable.
Define the dependent variable.
The factor we measure.
We hope to see a change as a result of the independent variable changing.
Define the extraneous variable.
Any other factor apart from the independent variable that could affect the dependent variable.
E.g noise, illness, mental state, socio-economic factors etc.
Define the confounding variable.
An extraneous variable that is related to the independent variable in the study.
E.g Harlow’s monkeys, different heads.
What is the pilot study?
A small scale version of a study.
Allows methodology to be tested- the instructions/ questions will be checked.
Allows researcher to see if the study is viable (practical).
What are demand characteristics?
Any feature of the study that makes the participant think they know the aim. This will often result in the participant changing their behaviour.
The participant can either facilitate the results, where they give the results the researcher wants, or they can do the ‘Screw-You’ effect, where they do everything to produce ‘wrong’ results.
What are investigator effects?
Anything the researcher does (deliberately or not) that could affect the outcome of the study.
E.g Spending more time on the conditions of the participants.
This could lead to them interpreting some results differently.
What is the solution for demand characteristics?
The Single Blind Technique.
- conceal the aim of the research.
What is the solution for investigator effects?
The Double Blind Technique.
- conceal the aim from the participant and use a researcher who doesn’t know the aim to conduct the research.
Define an ‘experimental design’.
How participants are placed across conditions (the variations of I.V).
What are the three types of experimental designs?
Independent groups.
Repeated measures.
Matched pairs.
Define independent groups and list its pros and cons.
Definition: different participants in each condition.
Pros: use same materials.
No order effects.
Less chance of demand characteristics.
Takes less time.
Cons: may need more participants.
Individual differences.
Define repeated measures and list its pros and cons.
Definition: all participants in all conditions.
Pros: may need fewer participants.
No individual differences.
Cons: you need different but equal materials.
Order effects.
More time consuming.
Define matched pairs and list its pros and cons.
Definition: participants matched in advance on key variables and paired across conditions and compare results.
Pros: same as independent groups.
Can reduce individual differences.
Cons: can’t remove all individual differences.
Hugely time consuming.
What is a control group?
A condition where the I.V is not manipulated.
What are order effects?
When performance in later conditions is affected by the fact that the condition comes later.
2 types: boredom effect.
Practice effect.
What are boredom effects?
Participants grow tired of the research.
What is the practice effect?
Participants do better in later conditions as they get used to the test style.
Explain the solution to order effects.
Counter-balancing.
It reduces order effects, where half the participants complete condition A, then B. Then another half complete condition B, then A. Therefore, they will be balanced across both conditions, reducing the impact on the results.
What are experimental methods?
Where the experiment takes place.
Name all four experimental methods.
Laboratory experiment.
Field experiment.
Natural experiment.
Quasi experiment.
Explain a laboratory experiment with its advantages and disadvantages.
In a lab or controlled setting.
I.V and E.V’s are controlled.
Advantage: high level of control so high internal validity therefore the use of lab experiments to help establish causality between I.V and D.V can remove all E.V’s.
Disadvantage: low external validity because all E.V’s are controlled so the results cannot be applied in any other setting.
Explain a field experiment with its advantages and disadvantages.
In the ‘field’/natural setting
I.V’s are controlled, E.V’s are not.
Advantages: offer high external validity- useful in scenarios where causality has been conformed in a lab and you now wish to test in the real world.
Disadvantage: lacks internal validity- too many E.V’s that could impact results.
Explain a natural experiment with its advantages and disadvantages.
In a natural setting
I.V is manipulated but not by the researcher.
Advantages: allows you to study events that cannot be studied in a lab for practical/ethical/legal reasons.
High external validity.
Disadvantages: low internal validity.
Explain a quasi experiment with its advantages and disadvantages.
In a lab or the field.
I.V is naturally occurring and cannot be manipulated. E.g gender ethnicity, time passing etc.
Advantage and Disadvantage is that it depends on the setting. Where you can have quasi field or quasi lab with the pros and cons listed in the type of experiment that it is.
Define meta analysis.
The review of findings of multiple related studies.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of meta-analysis?
Advantage: allows analysis of resumes over more data giving greater validity and allowing identification of trends.
Saves time and effort.
Disadvantage: you cannot be sure of the reliability and internal validity of the methods.
What is validity?
Whether results are correct.
Validity needs to be reliable.
What are the 6 types of validity?
Internal validity.
External validity.
Population validity.
Cultural validity.
Ecological validity.
Temporal validity.
What is internal validity?
If the I.V caused the D.V to change then there is internal validity.
What is external validity?
If the research is applicable elsewhere then there is external validity.
What is population validity?
If you can generalise the findings from your sample to other groups of people then there is population validity.
What is cultural validity?
What is ecological validity?
If it can be applied to real-life settings then there is ecological validity.
What is temporal validity?
If it can be applied to different time periods then there is temporal validity.
What is sampling?
Selecting a sample from a population.
What is a sample?
An unbias representative cross-section of population. There is no input from the researcher.
A sample should equally represent the population.
What is a population?
A group you wish to study.
What are the 5 types of sampling?
Random sampling.
Stratified sampling.
Volunteer sampling.
Opportunity sampling.
Systematic sampling.
What is random sampling?
The whole of a population have an equal chance of being selected.
A researcher may place names of the population on a piece of paper, place it into a container and remove the needed number of names creating a sample.
