Experiments: Types

Question 1

What is a laboratory experiment?

Answer 1

-Do not have to be undertaken in a laboratory
-IV is manipulated by the experimenter
-Carried out in a controlled setting

Question 2

What is a field experiment?

Answer 2

-Do not have to be undertaken in a field
-Carried out in a ‘normal’, ‘everyday’ environment
-IV is manipulated by the experimenter

Question 3

What is a quasi experiment?

Answer 3

-Includes an IV that is beyond the experimenter’s control
-Something naturally occurring
-Not something the experimenter can change
E.g. participant gender, occupation

Question 4

What is a strength of laboratory experiments?

Answer 4

-Controlled settings reduce the effects of extraneous variables: high internal validity
-Increases internal reliability as can be replicated many times with participants being compared

Question 5

What is a strength of field experiments?

Answer 5

-High ecological validity as takes place in a ‘normal’ setting
-Higher generalisability
-High internal validity: participants may be more at ease due to the more realistic environment
-Less effort to conduct

Question 6

What is a strength of quasi experiments?

Answer 6

-High ecological validity as the IV is not manipulated
-Helps us study variables we cannot manipulate

Question 7

What is a weakness of laboratory experiments?

Answer 7

-Low ecological validity: cannot generalise findings to real life
-More effort to conduct

Question 8

What is a weakness of field experiments?

Answer 8

-Higher chance of extraneous variables influencing the results
-Participants may have different experiences, therefore lowering internal reliability

Question 9

What is a weakness of quasi experiments?

Answer 9

-Difficult to conduct
-Cannot control some participant variables that may influence results