Experiments Flashcards
What is a research aim?
The concept that the researcher wants to investigate. This is usually fairly specific as a research aim will reflect what the researcher is directly wanting to find out about.
An example of a research aim
To investigate if there are gender differences in mobile phone use
What is a research question?
This must actually be a question, with a ? at the end.
An example of a research question
Are females more likely to use auditory communication than males when using a mobile phone?
What is a null hypothesis?
This predicts that the IV will not have an affect on the DV. Any differences will be due to chance factors
Example of a null hypothesis
There will not be a significant difference in the number of balls successfully thrown into a bucket when completing the task in front of a noisy audience as opposed to a silent audience; any difference will be due to chance factors
What is an alternative hypothesis?
This predicts how one variable (the IV) is likely to affect another variable (the DV). An alternative hypothesis predicts that the IV will affect the DV.
Example of an alternative hypothesis
There will be a significant difference in the number of balls successfully thrown into a bucket when completing the task in front of a noisy audience as opposed to a silent audience
What is a one-tailed hypothesis?
This predicts not only that the IV will have a significant effect on the DV but also the direction this effect will go in.
Example of a one-tailed hypothesis
Men who have beards are perceived as significantly older than clean-shaven men
What is a two-tailed hypothesis?
This predicts that the IV will have a significant effect on the DV but it does not predict the direction this effect will go in.
Example of a two-tailed hypothesis
Rainy weather has a significant effect on people’s happiness
What is target population?
The group of people the researcher is interested in studying
Example of target population
Whether they want to study males or females or both
What is self-selecting?
This is when people volunteer to take part in the study. Often adverts, posters or leaflets will be distributed which contain details about the research and contact details for participants to use if they wish to take part.
