L20 - Types of Validity, Assessing and Improving Validity Flashcards
what is VALIDITY?
VALIDITY refers to whether a MEASURING INSTRUMENT or STUDY MEASURES WHAT IT CLAIMS TO MEASURE
In other words, whether something is TRUE or LEGITIMATE
what is INTERNAL VALIDITY?
INTERNAL VALIDITY is a MEASURE of whether RESULTS OBTAINED are SOLELY AFFECTED by CHANGES IN THE IV in a CAUSE AND EFFECT RELATIONSHIP
what is EXTERNAL VALIDITY?
EXTERNAL VALIDITY is a MEASURE of whether DATA CAN BE GENERALISED to OTHER SITUATIONS OUTSIDE OF THE RESEARCH ENVIRONMENT
what is ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY?
ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY is a TYPE OF EXTERNAL VALIDITY and refers to the EXTENT TO WHICH psychologists can APPLY THEIR FINDINGS TO OTHER SETTINGS - PREDOMINANTLY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
A LACK OF ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY is typically a point made when discussing WEAKNESSES OF LABORATORY BASED STUDIES
what is TEMPORAL VALIDITY?
TEMPORAL VALIDITY is another FORM OF EXTERNAL VALIDITY which refers to EXTENT TO WHICH RESEARCH FINDINGS can be APPLIED ACROSS TIME
E.g ASCH’S RESEARCH INTO CONFORMITY is often said to be LACKING TEMPORAL VALIDITY as the study was conducted in a MORE CONFORMIST ERA, and thus the FINDINGS MAY NOT BE AS APPLICABLE IN TODAY’S SOCIETY
how can we ASSESS the VALIDITY of an EXPERIMENT? (1)
Firstly, the FACE VALIDITY can be considered, does the test APPEAR to MEASURE WHAT IT SAYS IT MEASURES
On the FACE OF IT, does it look like it has VALIDITY?
A TEST OF FACE VALIDITY is most likely to be conducted by a SPECIALIST IN THE GIVEN AREA, if the SPECIALIST BELIEVES that the INSTRUMENT or MEASURE is VALID, this is often seen as a GOOD INDICATION of FACE VALIDITY
how can we ASSESS the VALIDITY of an EXPERIMENT? (2)
A SECOND WAY of assessing whether or not a MEASURE IS VALID is to USE CONCURRENT VALIDITY
This is where the PERFORMANCE OF THE TEST IN QUESTION is COMPARED to a TEST THAT IS ALREADY RECOGNISED and TRUSTED IN THE SAME FIELD
As BOTH MEASURES are LOOKING TO DO THE SAME THING, it would be EXPECTED for pps to SCORE RELATIVELY SIMILARLY on each questionnaire. STATISTICALLY, a CORRELATION of +0.80 OR HIGHER would assume that there is HIGH CONCURRENT VALIDITY
how can the VALIDITY of EXPERIMENTS be IMPROVED?
- use a CONTROL GROUP, this allows psychologists to see whether the IV INFLUENCES THE DV, INCREASING CONFIDENCE IN THE VALIDITY OF THE RESEARCH
- SINGLE/DOUBLE BLIND PROCEDURES - DECREASES CHANCE of DEMAND CHARACTERISTICS OCCURRING
- USING STANDARDISED INSTRUCTIONS, this MINIMISES INVESTIGATOR EFFECTS
how can the VALIDITY of QUESTIONNAIRES be IMPROVED?
One way of IMPROVING VALIDITY in a QUESTIONNAIRE is to ensure that pps know that their RESPONSES are going to be KEPT ANONYMOUS, because by REMAINING UNIDENTIFIABLE, pps are LESS LIKELY to GIVE ANSWERS that are SOCIALLY DESIRABLE
how can the VALIDITY of OBSERVATIONS be IMPROVED?
When it comes to OBSERVATIONS, psychologists can IMPROVE VALIDITY, in particular ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY, by making sure that the RESEARCHERS have MINIMAL IMPACT on the BEHAVIOUR THAT THEY ARE OBSERVING
One way to do this is via a COVERT OBSERVATION
Another way of IMPROVING VALIDITY in OBSERVATIONS is the use of BEHAVIOURAL CATEGORIES that are VERY SPECIFIC and DO NOT OVERLAP to DECREASE RESEARCHER SUBJECTIVITY
what is TRIANGULATION?
TRIANGULATION is when you COLLECT DATA from a VARIETY OF SOURCES to IMPROVE the VALIDITY OF DATA