Pilot Studies, Observations, Self-Report, Correlations and Data

Question 1

What is a pilot study?

Answer 1

A small-scale version of an investigation which takes place before the real investigation to check that procedures work, allowing the researcher to make changes if necessary.

Question 2

What is a single-blind procedure?

Answer 2

The participants are unaware of the true aims of the study or other details, so any information which may create expectations is not revealed until the end to control demand characteristics.
- Subject to investigator effects.

Question 3

What is a double-blind procedure?

Answer 3

Neither the participants or researcher are aware of purpose - commissioned by 3rd party.
An important feature of drug trials where the investigator doesn’t know which are placebos.
Controls for investigator effects.

Question 4

What is a naturalistic observation?

Answer 4

Watching and recorded behaviour in the setting within which it would normally occur.

Question 5

What is a controlled observation?

Answer 5

Watching and recording behaviour within a structured environment - one or more variables managed.

Question 6

What is a covert and overt observation?

Answer 6

Covert - participants watched and recorded without knowledge or consent.
Over - participants watched and recorded with knowledge and consent.

Question 7

What is a participant observation?

Answer 7

The researcher becomes a member of the group whose behaviour they are watching and recording.

Question 8

What is a non-participant observation?

Answer 8

The researcher remains outside of the group whose behaviour they are watching and recording.

Question 9

What is a limitation that occurs in all observation techniques?

Answer 9

Observer bias - interpretation may be affected by their expectation. This can be reduced using multiple observers.
A limitation is that they cannot demonstrate causal relationships explicitly, though they can be inferred.

Question 10

What is the evaluation of naturalistic observations?

Answer 10

+ High external validity because findings can be easily generalised.
- Lack of control makes replication difficult. May be uncontrolled variables that make judging behaviour difficult.

Question 11

What is the evaluation of controlled observations?

Answer 11

+ CVs/EVs can be controlled for so replication is easier.
- May produce findings that cannot be applied to everyday life.

Question 12

What is the evaluation of covert observations?

Answer 12

+ Removes demand characteristics and ensures any behaviour observed is natural. Increases internal validity.
- Ethics questioned as there is no consent or right to privacy.

Question 13

What is the evaluation of overt observations?

Answer 13

+ No ethical issues as they are controlled for.
- Behaviour likely to change - demand characteristics or social desirability.

Question 14

What is the evaluation of participant observations?

Answer 14

+ The researcher can experience the situation as participants do, increased insight = increased validity.
- May identify too strongly with the PPs and lose objectivity.

Question 15

What is the evaluation of non-participant observations?

Answer 15

+ Allow the researcher to maintain an objective psychological distance from PPs.
- Loose valuable insight gained in an observation as too far removed from people and behaviour studied.

Question 16

What is the difference between a structured and unstructured observation?

Answer 16

Unstructured - The researcher writes down everything they see. Rich in detail but there is often too much going on to all be recorded.
Structured - Using target behaviours and only recording that which is the main focus of the investigation.

Question 17

What are behavioural categories in observations?

Answer 17

When a target behaviour is broken up into components that are observable and measurable (operationalised).

Question 18

What are sampling methods in observations?

Answer 18

Continuous recording - a feature of unstructured where everything is recorded as it happens and therefore every behaviour observed is recorded.
Event sampling - every time a target behaviour occurs it is recorded.
Time sampling - A target behaviour is recorded once in every fixed time frame, e.g. every 30 seconds.

Question 19

What is the evaluation of structured observations?

Answer 19

+ Recording of data easier and more systematic.
+ Producing quantitive data so it can be analysed and compared.
- Limited - no qualitative data.

Question 20

What is the evaluation of unstructured observations?

Answer 20

+ More richness and depth of detail due to qualitative data recorded.
- Observer bias - the researcher may only record behaviours that catch their eye.
- Inaccurate potentially - the researcher may miss important events by just not noticing them.

Question 21

What is the conditions for behavioural categories?

Answer 21

They have to be observable, measurable and self-evident and previously agreed upon.
All possible forms of target behaviour are included, there should not be a ‘dustbin category’ where all behaviours are deposited.
Categories should be exclusive and not overlap.

Question 22

What is the evaluation of event and time sampling?

Answer 22

Event useful when target behaviour happens infrequently and could be missed with time sampling. If event is too complex though, important details missed with event sampling.

Time useful in reducing umber of observations made.
Could be unrepresentative of the observation as a whole.

Question 23

What is a self-report technique?

Answer 23

Any method in which a person is asked to state their own feelings, opinions, behaviours or experiences related to a given topic.

Question 24

What is a questionnaire?

Answer 24

A set of written questions used to assess a persons thoughts or experiences. Often contains both open and closed questions.

Question 25

What is the difference between open and closed questions?

Answer 25

Open - no limitations on how to answer - qualitative.
Closed - scale, rating, boolean or binomial scale - quantitative.

Question 26

What is a strength of questionnaires?

Answer 26

Cost effective - gather lots of data quickly with easy distribution. Can be completed without a researcher present - low effort.
Data produced usually straightforward, particularly with closed-Q questionnaires. Can be used for statistical analysis.

Question 27

What is a limitation of questionnaires?

Answer 27

Responses not always truthful - demand characteristics/social desirability bias.
Produce response bias - overly favouring one end of a scale.

Question 28

What are the 3 kinds of interviews?

Answer 28

Structured - pre-determined question list in a pre-determined order.
Unstructured - free conversation with no pre-arranged conditions.
Semi-structured - pre-determined question list with freedom to elaborate or expand.

Question 29

What is the evaluation of structured interviews?

Answer 29

+ Easily replicable due to standardised format and reduced differences between interviewers.
- Not possible for interviewers to deviate from the topic or explain their questions, limiting richness of data collected.

Question 30

What is the evaluation of unstructured interviews?

Answer 30

+ More flexibility and follow-up points possible - can find unexpected information
- May lead to a risk of interviewer bias and analysis of data not straightforward.
- Risk of lying for social desirability.

Question 31

What is a Likert scale?

Answer 31

Respondents indicate agreement on a scale, usually 5 point scale from strongly agree to disagree.

Question 32

What is a Rating scale?

Answer 32

Similar to Likert but respondents identify a value indicating strength of feeling on a topic, e.g. enjoyment.

Question 33

What is a fixed-choice option?

Answer 33

Includes a list of possible options and respondents required to indicate those applicable to them.

Question 34

What are 4 things to avoid when writing good questions?

Answer 34

Overuse of jargon, emotive language, leading questions, double-barrelled questions and double negatives.

Question 35

What should one consider when designing an interview?

Answer 35

A standardised schedule of questions to reduce interviewer bias.
Conducted in a quiet, private room so the candidate is honest.
Open with neutral questions to relax the candidate.
Reassure them of strict confidence referring to their data.

Question 36

What is a strength of using correlations?

Answer 36

Provide precise, quantifiable measures of how 2 variables are related.
Suggests ideas for future research if variables are related.
Quick and easy to carry out with data analysis.

Question 37

What is a limitation of using correlations?

Answer 37

Can tell us correlation but not causation - don’t have the information to tell which variable is causing change.
Could be an intervening variable causes the relationship.
Correlations can be misused or misinterpreted easily because you can’t draw causal conclusions.

Question 38

What are the main aims of peer review?

Answer 38

To allocate research funding, to validate the quality and relevance of research, and to suggest amendments or improvements.

Question 39

How is anonymity a strength of peer review?

Answer 39

The peer doing the reviewing remains anonymous to therefore remain objective however this may be used to get back at researchers they have a gripe with. Some journals do open-name reviewing to avoid this.

Question 40

What is publication bias?

Answer 40

Editors want to publish significant headline-grabbing findings to increase credibility and circulation of a publication. They also prefer to publish positive results. This means that important research is ignored because it does not meet the requirements.

Question 41

How can peer review bury groundbreaking research?

Answer 41

The peers are likely to be especially critical of research that contradicts their view and therefore research that challenges the status quo can often get buried.