Fundamentals of Research Flashcards
Fundamental parts of the description of a study
a) Aim
b) Procedure
c) Results
d) Findings
Aim
a) Purpose of the study
b) Which behavior is studied in a population?
Procedure
a) Step-by-step process used by the researcher to carry out the study
b) How was the data collected?
Results
Numerical / Descriptive data obtained and processed
Findings
Interpretations of the collected data
a) Open to discussion
b) More credible if confirmed by other studies.
c) Relevant for the studied population
d) Aware of potential cultural bias
Participants
People who take part in the study
Target population
Group of people to which the findings of the study are expected to be generalized
Sample
Group of people who are chosen from the target population to take part in the study.
Main feature of a sample
Representativeness
Representativeness
Stg reflects all the essential characteristics of the target population
No population validity
A sample that is not representative of the target population
Sampling techniques
a) Convenience
b) Haphazard
c) Random
d) Stratified
e) Snowball
f) Self-selected
Convenience (opportunity) sampling
a) Find a group that already exists
b) Participants are selected based on naturally ocurring groups
When should you use convenience sampling?
a) Wide generalization is not the primary goal
b) Look if the hypothesis works in a particular case.
What should you do before the application of convenience sampling?0
a) Question the nature of the sample
b) Is there a gender, cultural or socioeconomic trait in the sample?
Advantages of convenience sampling
a) Easy to get participants
b) Low financial cost and time
Disadvantages of convenience sampling
a) Problematic to generalize
b) Lack of representativeness
Haphazard sampling
a) No random / systematic
b) Standing in front of a local mall and choosing people to interview on their thoughts about exercise and health.
Disadvantage of haphazard sampling
a) Biased form of sampling
b) Must be AVOIDED
Self-selected sampling
Participants volunteer in response to an advertisement
Advantages of self-selected sampling
a) Easy to obtain participants
b) Sample will be highly motivated
Disadvantage of self-selected sampling
Difficult to generalize (More motivated than general population)
Snowball sampling
Participants recruit other participants for a study
When should snowball sampling be used?
When it might be difficult to access research participants
a) Drug / alcohol users
Advantages of snowball sampling
a) Save time
b) Establish trust with the researcher
Disadvantage of snowball sampling
Not highly representative of the larger population
Random sampling (Ideal method)
One in which every member of the target population has an equal chance of being selected
a) Pulling names out of a hat
b) Random number generator
Advantage of random sampling
Easy to generalize findings to larger population
Struggles of random sampling
A particular group may get overrepresented in the chosen random sample.
Stratified sampling (Theory driven)
Drawing a random sample from each subpopulation within a target population
Consequence of stratified sampling
Fair distribution of characteristics in a target sample
Advantage of stratified sample
Takes into consideration the diversity of a target sample
Consequence of following a non-random sampling technique
a) Sampling bias
b) Some members of a population are less likely to be represented than others.
Reasons for using students
Saves working time, money, and effort
