methodology Flashcards
Etic approach
an approach studying cultures that looks at norms and ideas between cultures, cultures from the outside and draws on data from many cultures.
When researchers are looking for universal laws of behaviour and comparing cultures, this is an etic approach.
Emic approach
an approach studying cultured that looks at a culture from within it, to find out about its norms and ideas, focuses on one culture to understand it.
imposed etic
when a technique or psychological test is used in one culture even though it was designed for use in another culture.
Ethnocentrism
The belief that your own cultural ethnic group is superior to other culture or ethnic groups.
Eurocentrism
The fact of seeing things from the point of view of Europe or European people; the fact of considering Europe or Europeans to be the most important.
Alpha bias
Exaggerated or overestimation of differences between the sexes, presented as fixed and inevitable. When the differences between men and women are exaggerated which result in alpha based theories that devalue one gender in comparison to the other.
Beta bias
Theories that ignore or minimise sex differences. These theories often assume that the findings from studies using males can equally apply to females.
ethnography
A qualitative method for collecting data often used in the social and behavioural sciences. Data are collected through observations and interviews, which are then used to draw conclusions about how societies and individuals function
cross cultural designs
involves taking samples from different cultural groups and comparing the results of the research to assess the similarities and differences between them.
example: can be used to research experiences of schizophrenic patients in different cultures to determine whether the same symptoms are presented or whether treatments are equally effective.
strengths:
cross cultural designs
What does this enable psychologists to see and compare?
What’s good in terms of its reliability?
what can this reduce in research?
-Allows consideration of how culture may impact on the behaviour in question.
-enable psychologists to see whether some behaviours are universal, i.e not effected by cultural differences. They can compare the prevalence of mental illnesses across cultures and look for cultural variation in mental illness and diagnosis. This means they are able to identify universal trends and specific variation which enables diagnosis and treatments to be updated and tailored to individual cultures.
-Also allow for generalisations between cultures to build a body of knowledge e.g if schizophrenia is diagnosed using ICD-10, which is used in many different cultures and countries, then knowing that ‘schizophrenia’ is found universally is important.
-reliability in cross cultural research is likely to be high. If the same procedures are repeated in different cultures, They are likely to be carefully documented, therefore the study can be easily repeated to check for consistency in the findings.
-can also reduce the level of ethnocentrism in research as such research highlights cultural differences and similarities in mental illness. Therefore makes findings more generalisable to a range of patients, especially when working with patients from a different culture to their own.
Weaknesses:
cross cultural designs
what can researcher expectations cause?
what can arise as a result of conducting research in different cultures?
What’s a problem with procedures developed in the US?
what’s a problem associated with generalisations being made about the whole culture?
-An issue with cross-cultural research is observer bias can be a problem because researchers have expectations about how they anticipate other cultural groups will behave and this may affect their measurements. The use of local researchers can help overcome this.
-Communication difficulties may also arise if a researcher is conducting an investigation in a different culture and language to their own, which could cause misunderstandings of diagnosis and treatments, but this can be overcome using local researchers.
-Reseachers may use tests or procedures that have been developed in the US and are not valid in any other culture. This may make individuals in the other culture appear abnormal or inferior. This is known as an imposed etic.
-Participants in cross-cultural research may not be representative of that culture, yet we make generalisations about the whole culture or even the whole country. This could lead to stereotypes or labels of mental health which are not reflective of that culture.
if features of a culture are socially constructed then behaviours, thoughts, attitudes and emotions are not comparable between cultures as what is being measured may be different. Validity of the measurements would only be found within the culture the issues are set in.
cross sectional research
This method is used to take a quick ‘snap shot’ of behaviour in a population, rather than waiting for longitudinal data to be gathered. Researchers usually use a large group of people in the sample, to get a good cross section of the whole target population. e.g research Into different experiences of people with schizophrenia at different ages.
longitudinal study
Longitudinal research involves studying the same participants over a long period of time, documenting any changes that occur. the development or time based changes can be seen through the pattern of measurements.
For example, research clinicians may monitor changes in symptoms for patients undergoing treatment. They may measure symptom expression or severity at certain intervals or at specific time periods . Therefore this can demonstrate any reduction in symptoms indicating treatment effectiveness.
weaknesses:
longitudinal study
what problems arise due to practicality?
Why may validity be questioned as a result of the study being carried out over a long period of time?
Why is a high drop-out rate a problem?
What are ethical issues linked to commitment and high intrusiveness?
what can happen due to the length of the study?
what’s an issue linked with cohort effects?
-Although it makes more sense to follow the same individual rather than comparing two different groups, there are practical issues to consider as they take place over a longer period of time, therefore requiring financial input throughout the time and ways to keep participants, including researcher time. Problems can occur with a lack of finance.
-validity may be questioned because of the impact of studying the participant over a long period of time as relationships can develop between them and the researcher, especially in clinical psychology as they are classed as vulnerable groups and some studies may involve the patient and researcher becoming quite close due to the sensitive nature of some of the measures that might be involved. therefore resulting in researcher bias as the researcher becomes too close to the patient.
As the patient also becomes further involved with the study then they also start to display demand characteristics to try to meet the aims of the study.
-can be a problem with high drop-out rate as the research can be quite a big commitment for the participants. especially when involving vulnerable participants some may find it difficult to remain in the study. Too many dropping out can impact the generalisability of the findings. If those with similar characteristics drop out then this creates a validity issue and the sample may no longer be representative of the target population. For example, if those with more severe symptoms drop out then the researcher is left with a biased sample.
-There could be ethical issues linked to participants committing to take part in a study for a long time. If the research becomes intrusive it could cause distress to the participant and given the vulnerable nature of the group, continued consideration of ethical issues is important. Researcher must repeatedly gain consent, perhaps with each different research method and measure conducted, and the participant should be reminded not their right to withdraw regularly.
-depending on the length of a study, the research could become outdated. Clinical psychology is a fast-paced area with new ideas and treatments constantly being developed. If a study takes 10 years to complete and publish then there may have been so many changes and developments that the research is no longer valid.
-cohort effects can affect the generalisability of the results. it is possible that the finding and conclusions will only apply to groups of people who have lived through similar social and economic circumstances to the original group of participants.
strengths:
longitudinal study
what’s good about using the same participants throughout?
what’s good about using a variety of methods?
-Longitudinal research is high in validity as participant variables are controlled for as the same participants are used throughout, meaning comparisons are more meaningful as there are less extraneous variables. For example if considering the impact of ACT over time, with the same patients being monitored throughout means that factors such as gender and SES are controlled for.
-Validity is high because longitudinal studies tend to be in-depth studies and involve a range of research methods. for example, patients with anorexia may be studied using a variety of methods such as gathering data about weight loss/ gain patterns, qualitative data gathered from interviews and much more. This means that rich and in-depth data can be gathered from the patients.
