Final

Question 1

What are the types of research?

Answer 1

-Qualitative: exploratory; small sample; theory building; no hypothesis; narrative report.
-Quantitative: confirmatory; large sample; theory testing; hypothesis; statistical analyses

Question 2

What are the strategies of quantitative research?

Answer 2

Category I: 1.descriptive
Category II: 2.correlational
Category III: 3.experimental; 4.quasi-experimental; 5.non-experimental

Question 3

How does constraint impact quantitative research strategies?

Answer 3

high constraint: higher precision & validity for conclusions, but not flexible.
low constraint: more flexible/exploratory, but be careful about conclusions (precision & validity)

Question 4

What is descriptive research?

Answer 4

Goal: to describe a single variable or each individual variable when several are involved.
Measures a variable or set of variables as they exist naturally; not concerned with associations between variables.

Question 5

What are the three major categories of descriptive research?

Answer 5

-observational
-survey
-case study

Question 6

What is observational research?

Answer 6

3 methods for collecting data: behavioural observation; content analysis; archival research
3 sampling observations: time sampling; event sampling; individual sampling ……
3 types of observational research: naturalistic/unobtrusive observation; participant observation; contrived/structured observation

Question 7

What is behavioural observation?

Answer 7

Direct observation and systematic recording of behaviours as they occur in a natural setting.
2 major concerns: presence of a researcher (use habituation); subjectivity (use multiple raters, trained observers, clearly defined behaviours; inter-rater reliability)

Question 8

What is content analysis and archival research?

Answer 8

Both use indirect techniques of behavioural observation.
-content analysis: examination of behaviour/events in literature, movies, tv shows, or similar media.
-archival research: examination of historical records to measure behaviours or events that occurred in the past

Question 9

What are the techniques for quantifying observational research?

Answer 9

-frequency method: instances of each specific behaviour;
-duration method: time individual spent engaging in specific behaviour during a fixed-time observation;
-interval method: dividing observation period into a series of intervals and recording if behaviour occurs during intervals

Question 10

What is naturalistic observation?

Answer 10

Observe behaviour in a natural setting as unobtrusively as possible.
Strengths: behaviour observed in real world; authetic/high external validity; useful for non-manipulated behaviours
Weakness: time-consuming; potential observer influence and subjective interpretation

Question 11

What is participant observation?

Answer 11

Interact with participants or become one of them - go undercover.
Strengths: access to otherwise inaccessible information; participation gives unique insight/perspective; authentic/high external validity
Weakness: time-consuming and dangerous; ethical issues; loss of objectivity; increased observer influence

Question 12

What is contrived observation?

Answer 12

Observe participants in a setting designed to illicit the behaviour of interest - structured observation.
Strengths: don’t have to wait for behaviour to occur; can be done in lab or in field
Weakness: less natural/authentic

Question 13

What is survey research design?

Answer 13

Goal: get a sense of people’s attitudes and behaviours in relation to a particular issue.
Three major areas of consideration: 1.question content/wording of questions; 2.the response format; 3.administering a survey

Question 14

What is question content?

Answer 14

1. Is the question necessary/useful?
2. Are several questions needed?
3. Is your question double-barrelled? (2 questions in 1)
4. Do respondents have the needed information? (background info, terminology, acronyms)
5. Is the question biased or loaded?
6. Will respondents answer truthfully?
7. Is your question specific enough?

Question 15

What are response formats for survey research design?

Answer 15

1. Open-ended questions: ask the respondent to comment on a particular topic/issue
2. Restricted questions: limited number of response alternatives (multiple choice); can have element of open-mindedness (other, please specify)
3. Rating-scale questions: numerical value; Likert-type scale (1-10); semantic differential scale (multiple response options, polar opposites)

Question 16

What are the ways of administering a survey?

Answer 16

-Internet surveys:
strengths: efficient for large sample; access to many individuals with common characteristics; survey can be individualized;
weaknesses: expense for site; sample may not be representative; cannot control composition of the sample; nonresponse bias;

-Mail surveys:
strengths: convenient and anonymous; nonthreatening to participants; easy to administer;
weaknesses: expensive and time-consuming; low response rate and nonresponse bias; unsure exactly who completes the survey;

-Telephone surveys:
strengths: conducted from home or office;
weaknesses: time-consuming; interviewer bias

-In-person surveys and interviews:
strengths: efficient to administer with groups; 100% response rate; flexible (groups or individual interviews)
weaknesses: time-consuming with individual interviews; risk of interviewer bias

Question 17

What is the case study design?

Answer 17

In-depth examination of one or more individuals of interest - idiographic approach. If no treatment or intervention = case history.
Strengths: not averaged over a diverse group; detailed description; vivid, powerful, convincing; compatible with clinical work; can study rare and unusual events; can identify exceptions to the rule
Weaknesses: limited generalization; potential for selective bias; potential for subjective interpretation

Question 18

What is correlational research?

Answer 18

Goal: to establish that a relation/association exists between variables and to describe the nature of the relationship (form, direction & strength).
There is no attempt to manipulate, control, or interfere with the variables.

Question 19

What are the 3 characteristics of correlational research?

Answer 19

-Form of the relation: looking for pattern in data that suggests a consistent and predictable relationship; linear relationship or non-linear relationship (curve).
-Direction of the relation: how are changes in one variable related to changes in the other variable; positive correlation (both variables increase/decrease) or negative correlation (1 variable increases, 1 variable decreases, vice-versa).
-Strength of the relation: degree of association between two variables; expressed mathematically as the correlation coefficient (r) between -1.00 and +1.00; Pearson r used when 2 variables are ratio/interval; Spearman r used when 1 variable is ordinal.

Question 20

What are the strengths of correlation coefficient/relation?

Answer 20

-r near 0 indicate weak relations (0.00-0.29 = weak)
-r close to -1 or 1 indicate that points lie close to a straight line (0.30-0.69 = moderate)
-r equal to -1 or 1 indicate that points lie exactly along a straight line (0.70-1.00 = strong)

Question 21

What is regression?

Answer 21

Regression line is the line-of-best fit which is drawn through the points.
The closer the points are to the line, the greater the relation/association between the variables.
Regression analysis is a way of using associations between variables as a method of prediction. One variable is specified as the predictor variable and the other as the criterion variable.

Question 22

What is the significance of the correlation?

Answer 22

We need to consider if the correlation is statistically significant (interpreting data), which is determined by consulting a table that considers sample size and alpha level.
To be significant, r must be equal to or larger than the value corresponding to the appropriate df(n-2) and p level.

Question 23

What is shared variance?

Answer 23

It is the shared common ground between variables A and B (symbol: r²).
Problem: r is ordinal (not equal increments), so r=.80 is not 2x as strong as r=.40.
Solution: convert to ratio scale by squaring r –> r²; ex: r=.40 r²=.16, shared variance = 16%

Question 24

What do we use when we are interested in looking at the relationship between more than two variables?

Answer 24

We run a multiple correlation, where we look at all the correlations among the variables of interest.
But the correlations are still considered in pairs and the results are displayed in a correlation matrix.

Question 25

What is a correlation matrix?

Answer 25

A table showing correlation coefficients between sets of variables. It shows which pairs of variables have the highest correlation with each other.
Each cell in the table shows the correlation between two variables

Question 26

Explain “correlation is not causation”.

Answer 26

Correlation describes the relationship between two variables, but it does not tell us about causality (weak internal validity). Knowing that A & B are correlated does not tell us if A causes B.
Correlations are very useful for predictions.

Question 27

What is the third variable problem?

Answer 27

Just because two variables are related does not mean that there is a direct relation between them (spurious correlation). A third unidentified variable may be responsible for producing the observed relation.

Question 28

What is the directionality problem?

Answer 28

Although a research study may establish a relationship between two variables, the existence of a relationship does not always explain the direction of the relationship.
But it may suggest the direction of influence.

Question 29

What is epidemiological studies?

Answer 29

Epidemiologists attempt to determine what factors are associated with diseases (risk factors), and what factors may protect people or animals against disease (protective factors).

Question 30

What other things can correlation be used for?

Answer 30

Correlations can also be used to establish validity and reliability (Test-retest reliability & Concurrent validity).
Correlations can also be used to evaluate theories, e.g., nature versus nurture.

Question 31

What are two potential problems of correlation?

Answer 31

1. Nonlinear relationships: Need to look at scatterplot to look at the shape of the relationship - must be linear; a curvilinear relationship may give a misleading value.
2. Restricted range: When the range of values measured for one of the variables is restricted for some reason. This will lead to misleading results.

Question 32

What are the strengths and weaknesses of correlation?

Answer 32

-Strengths: Records what exists naturally; Helps identify where to look for causes; Can investigate what is otherwise unethical to examine experimentally; High external validity
-Weaknesses: Cannot assess causality; Low internal validity

Question 33

What is experimental research?

Answer 33

Most powerful of the research methods (high constraint).
Main goal of an experiment is to arrive at a causal explanation.
Manipulation of one variable (IV) to observe its effect on another variable (DV) while holding other potential influences constant.

Question 34

What are the 4 basic elements of experimental research?

Answer 34

Manipulation
Measurement
Comparison
Control

Question 35

What are the 2 basic types of experimental research?

Answer 35

-Between groups: Two or more groups are formed at random from a pool of subjects (independent groups). Each group receives a different experimental treatment (value of the IV) and the groups are compared.
-Within groups: There is only one treatment group, and each subject is given all values of the IV. The comparison is made between scores obtained at different levels of the IV for same subjects.

Question 36

What are 2 critical components of experimental research?

Answer 36

1. Independent and dependent variables:
   -independent variable: manipulated by experimenter; seen as cause; 2 levels of IV; more than 1 IV in a study is called a factorial design.
   -dependent variable: trying to effect change in variable; DV measured for each level of IV, then compared across conditions; more than 1 DV in a study is called a multivariate study.
2. Experimental and control groups:
   -experimental group: the participants in your experiment exposed to the manipulation.
   -control group: a group in your experiment that is not exposed to the manipulation and that is used for comparison purposes.

Question 37

What are extraneous and confounding variables?

Answer 37

-Extraneous variables: extra variables that are present in the study but are not studied/investigated; don’t matter because they don’t affect the outcome; affects all conditions/participants equally; ex: age, gender, ethnicity; 3 categories: environmental variables, participant variables, time-related variables.
-Confounding variables: class of extraneous variable that acts as an IV and can mask the true effect of the IV investigated; matter because they vary systematically along with the IV and affects the outcome; only affects one condition; ex: music, performance, researcher

Question 38

What confounds affect internal validity?

Answer 38

-Within-groups Design:
1. history: external events occurring between first and second tests; the longer the time interval between pretest & post-test measurement, the greater the possibility that outside events will influence treatment outcome;
2. maturation: processes within the person produce changes in a subject over time unrelated to treatment (ex: physical growth, cognitive development, boredom);
3. repeated testing: possible effects of the pretest on the posttest (progress may be due to experience), Solomon Four Group Design tests for this confound;
4. instrumentation: changes in the characteristics of a measurement instrument over time (persons change);
5. regression to the mean: scores closer to the mean are more likely to change on a subsequent measure (high scores are more likely to go down & low scores are more likely to go up);
6. environmental conditions;

-Between-groups Design:
1. assignment bias: subjects are put into groups for reasons other than study participation (systematic difference between groups before treatment);
2. attrition: loss of subjects from 1+ groups (vacation, lost interest, busy), differential attrition is the difference in drop-outs affecting one group more than another;
3. compensation: compensatory equalization (untreated individuals/groups learn of treatment received by others and demand the same/equivalent treatment) and compensatory rivalry (untreated group learns of treatment received by others and work extra hard so expected superiority of other group isn’t demonstrated);
4. resentful demoralization: untreated/control group learn others are receiving special treatment and become less productive/efficient/motivated because of resentment, creates false appearance of advantage for treated group (Type I error);
5. environmental conditions

Question 39

What are the 5 ways to control for confounding variables?

Answer 39

Introducing experimental control prevents extraneous variables from becoming confounds.
1. Remove them (no confounded variable)
2. Hold them constant (confounded variable x2)
3. Use a placebo control
4. Match them (match across conditions, 9m 9f)
5. Randomize them (randomly assign participants to treatment conditions so extraneous variables balance out across conditions; controlling environmental and participant variables simultaneously instead of individually)

Question 40

What are the threats to external validity?

Answer 40

-From the sample to the general population: selection bias; college students; volunteer bias; participant characteristics; cross-species generalizations
-From one study to another: experimenter characteristics; types of measures used; time of measurement
-From study to real world: simulation vs artificiality; mundane realism; experimental realism

Question 41

What are research artifacts?

Answer 41

A non-natural feature accidentally introduced into the study. Is a general threat to both internal and external validity.
-Experimenter bias: Inadvertent tendency to influence results in expected direction. Solution: double blind study
-Participant reactivity: Participants modify their natural behaviour in response to being in a study (Good subject role; Negativistic subject role; Apprehensive subject role). Solution: blind & deception.

Question 42

What is between groups design?

Answer 42

Two or more groups are formed at random from a pool of subjects (independent groups). Each group receives a different experimental treatment (value of the IV) and the scores for the groups are compared. 1 score per participant; independent measures. To look for an effect of your IV, you compare the mean scores (DV) for each group.

Question 43

What is systematic variance and non-systematic variance?

Answer 43

-Systematic variance is the difference in the DV between groups.
-Non-systematic variance is the DV scores varying withing groups (individual differences occurring by chance).

Question 44

How do we keep within group variance low to limit individual differences?

Answer 44

-Standardizing procedures
-Holding a participant variable constant
-Increase sample size

Question 45

How do we make groups equivalent to avoid individual differences between groups (confounding variable)?

Answer 45

-Created equally
-Treated equally, expect for IV
-Composed of equivalent individuals

Question 46

How do we determine statistical significance?

Answer 46

By comparing between groups variance to within groups variance.
F = between-group variance (systematic) / within-group variance (error)
When there is a large within-group variance, it is difficult to see an effect - want to minimize it.
Large BG variance is good; large WG variance is bad.

Question 47

What is randomization?

Answer 47

-Participants are randomly assigned to groups to ensure groups are as equal as possible before treatment or intervention.
-Most powerful technique to control for the effect of pre-existing differences by equalizing them (spreading them evenly).

Question 48

What is the difference between randomization and random sampling?

Answer 48

-RS - random selection of Ss from a larger population to participate in a study.
-RA - random assignment of Ss to experimental or control groups in a particular study.

Question 49

What is Free Random Assignment?

Answer 49

-Coin toss to ensure Ss are assigned to groups solely on the basis of chance.
-If more than 2 groups, a table of random numbers is used to guard against the bias of repetition.
-Theoretically should lead to equality, but not guarantee.

Question 50

What are 2 other techniques available other than randomization?

Answer 50

-(1) matched-group: Participants are matched on critical variables that may act as important confounds (age, gender). 3 steps: 1. Rank subjects on the variable for which control is desired. May require pretest. 2. Segregate subjects into matched pairs on that variable. 3. Randomly assign pair-members to the conditions.
-(2) randomized-block: groups of individuals are marched in blocks (range of values); Random assignment to groups from each block.

Combine matching and randomization techniques to compare participants in one group with participants in another group who are similar to them.

Question 51

What are the advantages and disadvantages of between groups design?

Answer 51

-Advantages: Very simple design; No carryover effects
-Disadvantages: Requires many participants; Individual differences & environmental differences; Groups must be equivalent before the manipulation

Question 52

What is the within group design?

Answer 52

Only one treatment group, each subject is given all levels/conditions of the IV; comparison is made between score obtained at different levels of the IV for same participants (multiple scores each); each participant serves as their own control.

Question 53

What are the 2 kinds of within group designs:

Answer 53

1) concurrent measures: All levels of IV are present at the same time (choice paradigm); Simplest case scenario (subjects choose the value of the IV they prefer); Toy type preference: educational vs mechanical vs sport vs life-like vs furry animal.
2) repeated measures: most common approach for within-subjects design; every subject receives all values of IV and performance is the basis of comparison; accomplishes 2 things: 1. equating groups (by using same participants) 2. reducing within-group variance (by controlling for individual differences); error variance reduced; controlling for individual differences increases sensitivity and the ability to detect a treatment effect.

Question 54

What is the major problem of within groups design?

Answer 54

-Carryover effects = effects that one treatment may have on another treatment (sometimes desirable, ex: therapy).
-Exposure to one manipulation may produce persistent consequences influencing the participants response to subsequent manipulations.
Includes: practice effects, fatigue, boredom, interference.
Solutions: randomization & counterbalancing

Question 55

What is counterbalancing?

Answer 55

Complete counterbalancing: all possible treatment orders are used equally - equal numbers of participants in each treatment condition.
Ex: 3 treatments = 6 possible combinations (3 x 2 x 1); 5 treatments = 120 possible combinations (5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1)

Question 56

What is the Latin Square Design?

Answer 56

Each treatment occurs equally often in each position in the experiment.
Ex: latin-square for counterbalancing the order of 4 treatments.

Question 57

What is reversability?

Answer 57

Within-subjects designs are not adequate if the experimental conditions produce a lasting effect on the participant that cannot be reversed.
IVs that permanently alter the development or state of participants have irreversible carry-over effects (ex: physiological damage such as brain lesions; learning or memory).

Question 58

What is the reversal design?

Answer 58

ABA design: Allows verifying the presence or absence of carry-over effects.
-Condition A = measure behaviour at baseline
-Condition B = measure during intervention
-Condition A = measure after intervention stopped
Does behaviour return to the baseline? If so, there is no carry-over effect.

Question 59

What are the advantages and disadvantages of within groups design?

Answer 59

-Advantages: Fewer participants required; Good when participants are hard to find; Greater sensitivity to treatment effect due to elimination of variance caused by individual differences; Each participant acts as his own control; Very powerful design under suitable conditions
-Disadvantages: Not suitable when carryover effects (fatigue, practice, boredom) are permanent; Participant attrition may be a problem