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AQA A-Level Psychology (2) > P2 Section C (Research Methods) > Flashcards

P2 Section C (Research Methods) Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the abstract of a report

A

The abstract of a report is the first section of a psychological report consisting of a 150 word summary of the report.

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2
Q

What is included in the abstract of a report

A

Included in the abstract of a report is the aim, hypotheses, method, results, and conclusions of the report

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3
Q

What does the abstract of a report save researchers from doing

A

The abstract of a report saves researchers from reading hundreds of reports to find relevant research, instead they only need to read the abstract.

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4
Q

What is the introduction of a report

A

The introduction of a report is an overview of the research field (such as aggression) and then narrowed down to the personal piece of research being done.

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5
Q

Why is the funnel technique used in the introduction of a report

A

The funnel technique is used in the introduction of a report so broad themes and can be addressed first and then the more in-depth part of your study is explained.

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6
Q

What is the aims in a report

A

The aims in a report is the general targets of the study

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7
Q

What is the hypothesis in a report

A

The hypothesis in a report is a section stating what is going to be tested and what the expected outcome of the tests are

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8
Q

How is the hypothesis disclosed in a report

A

The hypothesis is disclosed in a report by saying the alternative and null hypothesis unambiguously and then justifying the direction of the hypothesis (either one-tailed or two-tailed)

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9
Q

What is the method of a report

A

The method of a report is a detailed section outlining how the experiment is conducted so anyone can replicate it

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10
Q

What is included in the method of a report

A

Included in the method of a report is the design, method, sample, participant, apparatus, procedure and ethics

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11
Q

What is the experimental design

A

The experimental design is the how participants are allocated to different conditions - independent groups, repeated measures or matched pairs

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12
Q

What is the experimental method

A

The experimental method is the type of experiment used to manipulate the variables to establish cause and effect such as lab experiment or field experiment

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13
Q

What is the sample

A

The sample is the way participants have been recruited for example volunteer sampling

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14
Q

What is the experimental procedure

A

Experimental procedure is a set of standardised instructions to follow in the study.

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15
Q

What is the results of a report

A

The results of a report is the section where the key findings are displayed in relation to the hypothesis

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16
Q

What is included in the quantitative results of a report

A

Included in the quantitative results of a report are the descriptive statistics (like charts), the measure of central tendency, the measure of dispersion (like standard deviation), reasoning behind choice of statistical test (like sign test)

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17
Q

What is included in the qualitative results of a report

A

included in the qualitative results of a report is thematic analysis of theme and categories in the language

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18
Q

What is discussion in a report

A

Discussion in a report is a summary of results in relation to the hypothesis and aims

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19
Q

What is included in the discussion of a report

A

Included in the discussion of a report is the comparison of own results to previous research, limitations of the research and how to improve for the future and also real-life applications of the research

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20
Q

What is referencing in a report

A

Referencing in a report is where all the sources the researcher has used to gather initial information and apparatus are credited to the founder

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21
Q

What is the appendices in a report

A

The appendices in a report is where any materials that’ve been used in the study are placed such as charts, questionnaires, consent forms, raw data and statistical calculations

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22
Q

What does the hypothesis predict

A

The hypothesis predicts the relationship between the dependent and independent variables

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23
Q

What must the hypothesis must be

A

The hypothesis must be operationalised which defines what each variable looks like

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24
Q

What is an example of an operationalised hypothesis

A

An example of an operationalised hypothesis is “aggressiveness will increase as time goes on and will be shown by more swearing”

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25
Q

What is the independent variable

A

The independent variable is the thing changed by the researcher (often the cause)

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26
Q

What is the dependent variable

A

The dependent variable is the measured result of the change

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27
Q

What is an alternative hypothesis

A

An alternative hypothesis is a testable statement of what the experimenter thinks will happen

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28
Q

What is a null hypothesis

A

A null hypothesis is a testable statement of what the experimenter predicts could happen by chance alone - opposite of alternative

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29
Q

What is a directional one tailed hypothesis

A

A directional one tailed hypothesis is a prediction of how the independent variable will effect the dependent variable, with a specified change

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30
Q

What is a non-directional two tailed hypothesis

A

A non-directional two tailed hypothesis is where direction is not stated but simply says that one factor affects another, or that there is an association or correlation between two variables

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31
Q

What is an extraneous variable

A

An extraneous variable is any variable other than the independent variable which may effect the dependent variable

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32
Q

What are the 3 types of extraneous variable

A

The 3 types of extraneous variable are participant variable, situational variable and experimenter variable

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33
Q

What is participant extraneous variable

A

Participant extraneous variable is factors like participants age and IQ which may affect results

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34
Q

What is situational extraneous variable

A

Situational extraneous variable is factors of the experimental setting and surrounding environment which may affect results like temperature or noise levels

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35
Q

What is experimenter extraneous variable

A

experimenter extraneous variable is factors of the experimenter such as their personality, appearance or their method of conducting which may affect results

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36
Q

What is an example of an experimenter extraneous variable

A

An example of an experiment extraneous variable is the gender of the researcher, as a female researcher may receive different answers than a male researcher

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37
Q

What is a confounding variable

A

A confounding variable is any uncontrolled extraneous variable which negatively affects results

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38
Q

What are demand characteristics

A

Demand characteristics are features of a piece of research which allow the participant to work out the aims or hypotheses of a study which may make participant change their behaviour

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39
Q

What are investigator effects

A

Investigator effects are ways in which researchers can unconsciously influence the participants response in a study

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40
Q

What is an example of investigator effects

A

an example of investigator effects is the researcher being biased in their interpretation of their data and so finding what they expect to find, also investigator’s accent or tone may effect participants as they may respond differently to a stern voice

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41
Q

How can researcher avoid investigator effects

A

researcher can avoid investigator effects by doing a double-blind study where the researcher and participant both don’t know what condition they’re in (e.g. don’t know whether medicine is given or a placebo)

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42
Q

What is independent groups design

A

independent groups design is where participants are allocated into separate groups for each condition

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43
Q

What is repeated measures design

A

repeated measures design is where participants are allocated into the same group for every condition

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44
Q

What is matched pairs design

A

Matched pairs design is where participants are allocated into two separate groups matched in pairs for qualities like IQ or age and one person from each pair takes part in a separate condition

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45
Q

Strengths of independent groups

A

Strengths of independent groups are less prone to demand characteristics since participants do one condition and so are less likely to guess aim of study

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46
Q

Weakness of independent groups

A

Weakness of independent groups is prone participant extraneous variables since participants in one condition may be more intelligent than those in another, causing different results

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47
Q

Strengths of repeated measures

A

Strengths of repeated measures are less prone to participant extraneous variables since the same people are in both conditions and less participants needed as they provide both sets of data

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48
Q

Weakness of repeated measures

A

Weakness of repeated measures are order effects since participant may be fatigued or bored which affects the results of second condition or participants may perform better in the second condition as they have had practise from the first and also prone to demand characteristics since they take part in all conditions so have an idea of what is being measured

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49
Q

How can you reduce order effects

A

Order effects can be reduced by counterbalancing, whereby half participants do condition A first followed by condition B, then the other half do condition B first then condition A

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50
Q

Strengths of matched pairs

A

Strengths of matched pairs are there are no order effects since different participants do each condition and also participants are matched so less prone to participant variables as there isn’t individual differences affecting the results

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51
Q

Weakness of matched pairs

A

Weakness of matched pairs are it is time-consuming to match participants and also matching is difficult since all participants will have different variables effecting their performance

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52
Q

What is a lab experiment

A

A lab experiment is an experiment done in a controlled environment where accurate measurements are possible

53
Q

What are strengths of a lab experiment

A

Strengths of a lab experiment are easier to replicate since the procedure is standardised and there is higher control of extraneous variables so cause and effect can easily be established

54
Q

What are weaknesses of a lab experiment

A

Weaknesses of a lab experiment are low ecological validity as it’s been done in an artificial setting where participant may act unnatural so can’t be applied to real-life and also participants are prone to demand characteristics as they’re aware they’re being tested

55
Q

What is a field experiment

A

A field experiment is an experiment done in a real-life environment where the experimenter still manipulates the independent variable

56
Q

What are strengths of a field experiment

A

Strengths of a field experiment are high ecological validity as the setting reflects real life and also less likelihood of demand characteristics since study may be covert

57
Q

Weaknesses of field experiment

A

Weaknesses of field experiment are less control over extraneous variables and also it’s less able to be replicated

58
Q

What is a natural experiment.

A

A natural experiment is an experiment conducted in real-life where experimenter has no control over the independent variable

59
Q

Strengths of natural experiment

A

Strengths of natural experiment are less prone to demand characteristics as experiment may be covert and also higher ecological validity as done in real-life setting

60
Q

Weaknesses of natural experiment

A

Weaknesses of natural experiment are unethical as experiment may be covert so no informed consent

61
Q

What is a quasi experiment

A

A quasi experiment is an experiment where the independent variable occurs naturally and already exists such as age or gender

62
Q

Strengths of quasi experiment

A

Strengths of quasi experiment are high ecological validity as done in real life setting

63
Q

Weaknesses of quasi experiment

A

Weaknesses of quasi experiment are unable to replicate as there’s no control over variables

64
Q

What’re the two types of observation technique

A

The two types of observation technique are participant and non-participant

65
Q

What is participant observation

A

Participant observation is when observers are involved in the situation being studied to have a hands-on perspective such as Zimbardos prison experiment

66
Q

What is non-participant observation

A

Non-participant observation is when observers aren’t actively involved in the study such as in Ainsworth’s Strange Situations study

67
Q

What is overt observation

A

Overt observation is when participants know they’re being observed

68
Q

What is covert observation

A

Covert observation is when participants don’t know they’re being observed

69
Q

What are strengths of observational techniques

A

Strengths of observational technique are high external validity since observations usually done in a natural setting and also can be used when it’s impractical or unethical to manipulate variables like when studying football hooliganism

70
Q

What are weaknesses of observational techniques

A

weaknesses of observational techniques are observer bias as observers may see what they want to see and also issues of invasion and informed consent arise if participants don’t know they’re being observed

71
Q

How can data be gathered in observations

A

Data can be gathered in observations by visual recordings, audio recordings and note-taking

72
Q

How’re behavioural categories used in observational design

A

behavioural categories are used in observational design by dividing target behaviours into subsets of behaviours through coding systems like M for Male and T for Talking

73
Q

What is event sampling in observations

A

Event sampling in observations is when observer counts the number of times a behaviour occurs in an individual

74
Q

What is time sampling in observations

A

Time sampling in observations is when the observer counts number of behaviours in a certain time frame such as what behaviour is exhibited every 30 seconds

75
Q

What is inter-observer reliabilty

A

Inter-observer reliability is when each observer reports the same behavioural results and so lessening the chances of observer bias

76
Q

How can inter-observer reliability be achieved

A

inter-observer reliability be achieved by operationalising a set of behavioural categories together before the observation so they don’t overlap with each other and are unambiguous

77
Q

What are self-report techniques

A

Self-report techniques are research methods in which participants gave information without researcher’s interference

78
Q

What are closed questions in a questionnaire

A

closed questions in a questionnaire are questions which involve yes or no answers or a range of fixed responses

79
Q

What are open questions in a questionnaire

A

Open questions in a questionnaire are questions which allow the participant to answer in their own words and are more difficult to analyse but more in-depth

80
Q

Strengths of questionnaire

A

Strengths of questionnaire are they’re replicable as they use standardised questions and also there is a lack of investigator effects as it can be done without researcher

81
Q

Weaknesses of questionnaire

A

Weaknesses of questionnaire are participants may misinterpret questions and also they’re prone to social desirability bias as participants may lie in order to reflect who they want to be rather than who they are such as not revealing racist beliefs

82
Q

What’re 3 types of interview

A

3 types of interview are structured, unstructured and semi-structured

83
Q

What is structured interview

A

Structured interview is where identical closed questions are read to participants and interviewer writes down the answers and interviewer doesn’t need any training

84
Q

What is unstructured interview

A

Unstructured interview is where there is an informal discussion about a topic and interviewer can ask follow-up questions and interviewer needs some training

85
Q

What is semi-structured interview

A

Semi-structured interview is where there is a combination of structured and unstructured techniques producing quantitative and qualitative data

86
Q

Strengths of interviews

A

Strengths of interviews are that misinterpreted questions can be explained and understood and also unstructured interviews allow for complex or sensitive issues to be dealt with face-to-face making participant relaxed

87
Q

Weaknesses of interviews

A

Weaknesses of interviews are interviewer effects as interviewer can bias answers like by gender as female participant may be uncomfortable talking to male interviewer about sex and also participants may have difficulty putting feelings or opinions into words

88
Q

What are correlational studies

A

Correctional studies are measuring factors to assess the direction and strength of a relationship

89
Q

What are co-variables

A

Co-variables are the variables investigated in a correlation as the study is investigating a relationship between them, not a cause and effect

90
Q

Strengths of correlational analysis

A

Strengths of correlational analysis are that correlation can be quantified such as +0.9 and also correlation doesn’t require manipulation of variables so can be used in unethical experiments

91
Q

Weaknesses of correlational analysis

A

Weaknesses of correlational analysis are prone to extraneous variables which may have influenced a relationship such as a holiday affecting the amount of ice creams eaten depending on temperature

92
Q

What are the two types of validity tested before a study

A

the two types of validity tested before a study are face validity and construct validity

93
Q

What is face validity

A

Face validity is when a study is assessed to see if it looks like it measures what it’s supposed to

94
Q

What is construct validity

A

Construct validity is ensuring there’s a theory which can back up what is being studied to provide theoretical grounding

95
Q

What are two types of validity assessed after a study

A

Two types of validity assessed after a study are concurrent validity and predictive validity

96
Q

What is concurrent validity

A

Concurrent validity is when comparisons are done to see whether the results are similar to show validity

97
Q

What is predictive validity

A

Predictive validity is the extent to which results can predict future events

98
Q

what is opportunity sampling

A

opportunity sampling is when participants are recruited conveniently because they are available at the time of carrying out the study

99
Q

strength of opportunity sampling

A

strength of opportunity sampling is that it is time effective and less costly

100
Q

limitation of opportunity sampling

A

limitation of opportunity sampling is that it is not representative of of whole population so lacks generalisability and also there is researcher bias as researcher chooses ppts

101
Q

random sampling

A

random sampling is when all members of population have equal chance of being picked by methods like assigning numbers to population and using random number generator

102
Q

strength of random sampling

A

strength of random sampling is that there is no researcher bias as no influence over who is picked

103
Q

limitation of random sampling

A

limitation of random sampling is that if the sampling frame is large, then random sampling may be impractical and also it may be time-consuming

104
Q

systematic sampling

A

systematic sampling is where every nth number person is chosen from a sampling frame

105
Q

strength of systematic sampling

A

strength of systematic sampling is that it is fairly representative of population and there’s no researcher bias

106
Q

limitation of systematic sampling

A

limitation of systematic sampling is that it is not truly unbiased unless you use random number generator beforehand

107
Q

stratified sampling

A

stratified sampling is when a population is divided into stratas and then samples are chosen from each strata using a random sampling method

108
Q

strength of stratified sampling

A

strength of stratified sampling is that it there is no researcher bias as selection within strata is random

109
Q

limitation of stratified sampling

A

limitation of stratified sampling is that identified stratas can’t fully reflect all the differences between the people of the wider population and also time-consuming

110
Q

volunteer sampling

A

volunteer sampling is when ppts self-select themselves to take part in a study

111
Q

strength of volunteer sampling

A

strength of volunteer sampling is that participants are more likely to cooperate as they are willing to participate

112
Q

limitation of volunteer sampling

A

limitation of volunteer sampling is that they may attract a particular profile of person so generalisability will lack

113
Q

structured observation

A

structured observation is where researchers quantify what they are observing with a predetermined checklist of behaviours and sampling methods like event sampling or interval sampling

114
Q

unstructured observation

A

unstructured observation is where researcher continuously records and writes everything they see during the observation

115
Q

what is single-blind procedure

A

single-blind procedure is where only participants are unaware of what condition they are in so to avoid demand characteristics

116
Q

what is type 1 error

A

type 1 error is when there is a false positive where the null hypothesis has been rejected when it’s actually true (claiming there is a significant difference when there actually isn’t one)

117
Q

what is type 2 error

A

type 2 error is when there is a false negative where the null hypothesis has been accepted when it’s actually false (claiming there is no significant difference when there actually is one)

118
Q

what is a paradigm

A

a paradigm is a set of shared ideas and assumptions within a scientific principle

119
Q

what is a paradigm shift

A

a paradigm shift is a change in set of shared assumptions within a scientific discipline as a result of scientific revolution

120
Q

what are Kuhn’s thoughts on psychology and paradigms

A

Kuhn’s thoughts on psychology are that it is a pre-science since there are too many conflicting approaches and paradigm shfits show progress within a science

121
Q

what is falsifiability

A

falsifiability is the principle that states a theory cannot be scientific unless it allows itself to be proven untrue

122
Q

how does Popper support falsifiability

A

Popper supports falsifiability as he said that successful theories that have been tested and supported have simply not been not been proven false yet and so psychology is a pseudoscience

123
Q

what is a pseudoscience

A

pseudoscience is science that can’t been proven wrong like Freud’s Oedipus complex

124
Q

when to use bar chart

A

bar chart is used when data is nominal (in categories) and bars need to be separated if drawing

125
Q

when to use scattergram

A

scattergram is used when data is correlational

126
Q

when to use histogram

A

histogram is used when data is interval (like scores on a test, kilograms, metres, seconds etc) and bars need to touch each other if drawing

127
Q

what is a peer review

A

peer review is an assessment of a study done anonymously by experts in the field of the particular study carried out before a study is published

128
Q

what are the aims of a peer review

A

aims of a peer review are to check validity, assess appropriateness, assess for plagiarism and inform allocation of future funding

129
Q

what is an issue of anonymity of peer review

A

negative of peer review is that researchers can use their anonymity to criticise rivals in a field of psychology

AQA A-Level Psychology (2) (5 decks)

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