Paper 3 Essential Understandings

Question 1

What is a case study?

Answer 1

It is a detailed analysis over time of an area of interest (a case) to produce context dependent knowledge. A case study should also be an in-depth study of an individual.

Question 2

What is a naturalistic observation?

Answer 2

These are observations of natural occurring behaviour in a natural setting. Field notes are an important part of the data. Observations may be participant or non-participant observations (overt and covert).

Question 3

What are the different types of interviews?

Answer 3

Unstructured, seem-structured, and focus group interviews.

Question 4

What are the features of an experiment?

Answer 4

It has an independent and dependent variable. All other factors that could affect the DV are controlled as far as possible.

Question 5

What is a field experiment?

Answer 5

The researcher manipulates the IV but conducts the experiment in a real-life environment. Therefore, extraneous variable cannot be controlled.

Question 6

What is a quasi-experiment?

Answer 6

Participants are grouped based on a characteristic of interest, such as gender, ethnicity, or scores on a depression scale.

Question 7

What is a natural experiment?

Answer 7

Where researcher’s find naturally occurring variables and study them.

Question 8

What is correlations research?

Answer 8

Focuses on two variables but are not termed independent and dependent variables as the hypothesis is not based on a potential cause and effect, instead they are referred to as co-variables.

Question 9

What does a matched pair design involve?

Answer 9

Randomly assigning one of a pair to either the control or the experiment group. Researchers may match individuals on specific characteristics, such as ethnicity or age. E.g. twin studies.

Question 10

What does an independent samples/ measures design involve?

Answer 10

Uses two separate groups of participants.

Question 11

What does a repeated measures design involve?

Answer 11

Exposes participants to each condition making up the IV.

Question 12

What is the IV?

Answer 12

The factor that the experimenter manipulates.

Question 13

What is the DV?

Answer 13

The measurement generated by the manipulation of the IV.

Question 14

What is random sampling?

Answer 14

The process where every member in the target population has an equal chance of being selected.

Question 15

What is convenience/ opportunity sampling?

Answer 15

The process of selecting people who are able to participate in the study at a given time.

Question 16

What is volunteering sampling?

Answer 16

When individuals choose to participate in the study.

Question 17

What is purposive sampling?

Answer 17

When participants are chosen because they possess characteristic salient to the research study.

Question 18

What is snowball sampling?

Answer 18

When participants who are already in a study help the research to recruit more participants through their social network.

Question 19

What is reliability?

Answer 19

It is the consistency of a study in terms of the extent to which a test or measure produces the same results in repeated trials.

Question 20

What is validity?

Answer 20

It is the degrees to which the results accurately reflect what the research is measuring.

Question 21

What is external validity?

Answer 21

It is the extent to which the results of a study can be generalised or transferred to another sample or context.

Question 22

What is internal validity?

Answer 22

It refers to the rigour of the study and the extent to which the researcher took alternative explanations into account.

Question 23

What is credibility?

Answer 23

It is used in qualitative research to indicate whether or not the findings of the study are congruent with the participants perceptions and experiences.

Question 24

What is researcher bias?

Answer 24

It is when the researcher acts different towards participants, which may influence or alter the participants behaviour.

Question 25

What must a researcher do in qualitative research to avoid researcher bias?

Answer 25

They must assess personal biases in relation to the study and should apply reflexivity to control for this.

Question 26

What is participant bias/ a demand characteristic?

Answer 26

It is when participants act according to how the research may want them to act. E.g. social desirability effect.

Question 27

What is sampling bias?

Answer 27

It is when the sample is not representative of the target population.