Component 2: Introduction to Experiments Flashcards
definition of experiment
a technique that assess a cause and effect relationship between an IV and DV
4 features of an experiment?
- the researcher MANIPULATES the IV
- there are 2 conditions: an EXPERIMENTAL and a CONTROL condition
- the researcher RANDOMLY ALLOCATES the participants to each condition
- There is a CAUSE & EFFECT relationship between IV & DV
What is an experimental condition?
IV is manipulated
What is a control condition?
Iv is either constant or removed all together
What is the Independent variable?
Independent variable: what we manipulate / control
What is the dependent variable?
What we measure
Ethics: informed consent?
informed = aware of experiment
- gives participants opportunity to give consent
Ethics: right to withdraw?
Throughout experiment
Ethics: harm?
Not allowed to cause harm physically or psychologically + no more harm than everyday risk
ethics: confidentiality
keeping everything anonymous
What is operationalisation?
Turning general questions about the subject into measurable, testable propositions
What are the three parts of how Scientific method works
¹. Question & a theory (what explains and organises lots of different observations and predicts outcomes)
². Hypothesis- testable prediction
³. Test with a replicable experiment
What is a case study?
Case studies take an in depth look at one individual
What is a problem with case studies?
Case studies can sometimes be misleading, because by their nature they can’t be replicated as they may be overgeneralizing
What is good about case studies?
- good at showing what can happen
- end up framing questions for more extensive and generalizable studies
- memorable
- a great story telling device that psychologists use to observe behaviour
What is naturalistic observation?
Where researchers simply watch behaviour in a natural environment
What are naturalistic observations great for?
- describing behaviour
What are the problems with naturalistic observations?
- very limited in explaining behaviour
What are surveys or interviews?
Asking people to report their opinions and behaviours
What are surveys & interviews good for?
Accessing peoples consciously held attitudes and beliefs
What are the problems with surveys and interviews?
Subtle word choices can influence results- how to ask questions can be difficult
what is sampling bias?
To fairly represent a population, need to get a random sample where all the members of a target group had an equal chance of being selected
Why can we not make firm conclusions from correlations?
Correlations predict the possibility of cause and effect relationships BUT THEY CANNOT PROVE THEM
What is an experiment
Experiments allow investigators to isolate different effects by manipulating an independent variable, and keeping other variables constant
What is a double blind procedure?
Researchers don’t know which group is experimental and which is control so they don’t intentionally influence the results through their own behaviour
