Methodologies Flashcards
What are laboratory experiments?
Experiments carried out in controlled conditions, this allows for a clear understanding effect of IV on DV and allows for control of the extraneous and confounding variables. The use of standardized procedures, reduces researcher bias and relicability
What are experiments?
Psychological information has been acquired from experimental research, the prime method of enquiry in science. Experiment is the method of studying human behaviour that, through careful measurements looks to uncover causal relationships- factors that cause us to act in certain ways. Differs from other methods as involves manipulation of variables.
What are field experiments?
Experiments that involves manipulation of variables but is done in what the participant sees as a natural environment. This allows for more realistic look and is argued that it produces data that is more valid. Only be used when it’s considered crucial that natural setting is used to investigate behaviour. However, the participants can not know they are taking part to avoid demand characteristics
What are quasi experiments?
Experiments where researcher cannot manipulate the IV. They lack the control of other experiments. For example, looking at sex differences in an ability like creativity, participants are allocated to their sex. The Iv is therefore the sex difference and it cannot be manipulated by researcher. Some quasi experiments look to be lab experiments when not
What are natural experiments?
Experiment where instead of manipulating the IV, the researcher rakes advantage of a naturally occurring change in an IV. No experimental control apart of which is naturally in place, likelihood of extraneous variables being present is high and are uncontrolled. It’s kind of opportunistic as the Iv would naturally be arisen and not something that can be manipulated
What are participant and non-participant observations?
In observational studies a researcher can be either directly involved in the situation being observed(participant observation) or can remain outside and unobserved(non-participant observation).
Participant Observation- might involve the experimenter as part of a sports team in which they are investigating group behaviour
Non-Participant Observation- might be where the experimenter is observing the play of children from behind a one way mirror
What is content analysis?
It’s a observational technique which is used to analyse written information, can be used to assess presence of concepts in books.
Content analysis we produce a record of behaviour, not just an observation of the behaviour. reliability can be checked by using more than one rater and investigate if observations are comparable - Inter-rater reliability. Data is quantitative and can be analysed into themes to produce qualitative data
What are self reports?
Information is gathered from participants. Most common techniques of self report are interviews and questionnaires. They are useful when we want to gather in-depth information from ones own perspective. In experiments and observations we can not explain why. Self reports allow us to gain this information. They also allow to question the motives behind one’s behaviour. Social desirability can cause problems about validity.
What are structured interviews?
Resembles the questionnaire except rather than writing their own responses, participants respond verbally to questions asked by researcher. Same question asked to all participants in same way.
What are semi-structured interviews?
There are no fixed questions and instead the interview is guided by a predetermined set of topics or themes to be uncovered. The order they are uncovered, or the way they are addressed can vary across participants
What are correlational studies?
Technique that shows whether or not two variables are associated, these are known as co-variables. Aswell as being a research method, correlation can be used to analyse data gathered from any research method. Data from observational studies and questionnaires might be analysed to see if there is a relationship between two or more factors.
Positive correlation-as one variable increases the other does too
Negative correlation- as one variable increases the other decreases
Zero correlation- the two variables are not related at all
These are presented in scatter diagrams
What are case studies?
Careful and systematic investigation of a single individual or a small group such as a family. Researcher studies single example either because they are unique or a typical example of a type of person. Case studies take a long time to conduct and various methods of data collection can be used such as lab experiments, therefore they are detailed in-depth with information
What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative data?
Quantitative research produces numerical data and qualitative produces data that is descriptive
What are primary and secondary sources?
Primary data are those that are gained directly by the researcher. Secondary data are those that have been already collected but which are reused by researcher. Case study uses both primary and secondary sources
Primary-Interviews
Secondary-School or medical reports
