Paper 3 Terms: Generalizing Findings

Question 1

Population Validity

Answer 1

The extent to which findings can be generalized from the sample to the target population; validity is high when the sample is representative of the target population.

Question 2

Ecological Validity

Answer 2

The extent to which findings can be generalized from the experiment to other settings or situations; has an inverse relationship with internal validity.

Question 3

Construct Validity

Answer 3

Characterizes the quality of operationalizations, or if proper measurements were in place—the leap we make from directly observable operationalizations to the unobservable construct.
- Only talk about it if the questions ask how an experiment was measured.
- (e.g., how well do IQ tests accurately measure intelligence)