Key Terms Flashcards
Ecological Validity
the degree to which an investigation REPRESENTS real life experiences
Experimenter Effects
ways that the researcher can accidentally INFLUENCE the participant through their
- appearance
- behaviour
Demand Characteristics
the CLUES in an experiment that lead the participants to think they KNOW what the researcher is looking for
ex= body language
IV
- manipulates
- assumed to have a DIRECT EFFECT on the DV
DV
- measure
- this is the OUTCOME/ RESULT of the study
EVs
- all variables, NOT the IV, which COULD affect the results (DV) of the experiment
- should be CONTROLLED when feasible
Confounding Variables
- variables that HAVE affected the results (DV)- NOT THE IV
- it could be an EV that has not been controlled
Random Allocation
- randomly allocating participants to IV conditions means that ALL should have an EQUAL chance of taking part in EACH condition
- its principle is to AVOID BIAS in the way the experiment is carried out and to LIMIT the effects of participant variables
Order Effects
CHANGES in participants’ performance due to their repeating the same/ similar test more than once.
Examples:
a) PRACTICE EFFECT- an improvement in performance due to repetition- i.e. because of familiarity w/ the task
b) FATIGUE EFFECT- a decrease in performance due to repetition- i.e. because of boredom/ fatigue
name 2 order effects
1) Practice Effect
2) Fatigue Effect
Experimental Group
- the group being treated, or otherwise MANIPULATED for the sake of the experiment
Control Group
- receive NO treatment
- used as a comparison group
