principles of research unit 2

Question 1

Define what is meant by the term ‘operationalisation of variables’.

Answer 1

Operationalisation of variables refers to when the researcher quantifies the measurement of the dependent and/or independent variable, e.g. happiness is measured on a scale from 1 to 10.

Question 2

Describe one advantage of the use of self-selected sampling in Milgram’s study.

Answer 2

Advantages:
 Potentially less time consuming/more cost effective than techniques such as stratified sampling as a sampling frame does not have to be designed in advance, e.g. Milgram only had to place an advert in the New Haven newspaper and wait for participants to volunteer.
 Potential for a less biased sample than using opportunity sampling (increased population validity) as the researcher does not actively choose
participants e.g. Milgram did not select the 40 participants himself as they
all replied to an advertisement.

Question 3

describe one disadvantage of the use of self-selected sampling in milgram’s study

Answer 3

Disadvantages:
 Population validity is jeopardised by placement of the advertisement e.g.
a newspaper in one local area (New Haven) is likely to contain culture bias and affect obedience.
 People who volunteer tend to have more outgoing personalities making results harder to generalise, e.g. Milgram’s 40 males are likely to all have been outgoing and perhaps more/less likely to obey.

Question 4

Explain how one other sampling technique could have been used by Milgram to select his participants.

Answer 4

 Milgram could have used opportunity sampling of his own students at Yale University to select his participants.
 Milgram could have used quota sampling to select his participants so that he could gain a variation of subgroups to take part in his test of obedience.
 Milgram could have used systematic sampling, where he selected males from every nth household in the New Haven area to participate in his study

Question 5

Suggest one reason that Kohlberg (1968) may have chosen only to sample boys from early adolescence onwards, rather than girls, in his research ‘The child as a moral philosopher’.

Answer 5

 Males were chosen as there is less variation in hormones that might affect results, compared to females from adolescence onwards, e.g. females’ menstrual cycles create imbalances in hormones at different parts of their cycle which could affect morals.
 Choosing only one gender to study removes some of individual/gender differences that might arise if he had chosen to study both sexes, e.g. it may be assumed that boys have been raised in similar ways to other boys, but that differences in socialisation of males and females could create differences in morals.

Question 6

As part of his research, ‘The child as a moral philosopher’, Kohlberg (1968) had to consider ‘culture bound moral concepts.’
(a) Define the term ‘researcher bias’

Answer 6

Researcher bias refers to when the results of the study are jeopardised based on a decision the researcher has made about the design of the
experiment, e.g. only to include a specific subgroup of society, or when the researcher inadvertently influences the responses of the participants, e.g.
they use a leading tone of voice in their interviews.

Question 7

Explain how researcher bias might impact the validity of a study, with reference to Kohlberg’s research.

Answer 7

 Research methodology – impacts of the researcher in terms of apparatus chosen to measure morality.
 Alpha/Beta Bias – Kohlberg’s own cultural values impact on his perception of the participants responses where he overestimates/underestimates differences in morality.
 Causation of social desirability bias – the researcher might influence the responses of the boys he is studying, not only by design, but through
procedure e.g. some ppts are given more encouragement than others etc.

Question 8

Identify one difference between an experiment and a quasi-experiment.

Answer 8

 The participants are not randomly allocated in a quasi-experiment, but they are in an experiment.
 There will be a control group in an experiment, but not necessarily in a quasi-experiment.
 The IV is manipulated in an experiment, but this could be naturally occurring in a quasi-experiment.

Question 9

Briefly explain one disadvantage of an independent groups design.

Answer 9

 No control over participant variables - Differences between the groups could be caused by a variable other than gender, e.g. I.Q. invalidating the results.

Question 10

Evaluate research which is conducted in the field.

Answer 10

 Advantages of research conducted in the field e.g. higher levels of external validity, reduced chances of demand characteristics/social desirability etc.
 Disadvantages of research conducted in the field e.g. lower levels of reliability and internal validity, harder to control confounding/extraneous variables etc.
 Comparisons to other locations for research, e.g. the relative merits/problems of research that is conducted in the field compared to in a laboratory or online locations.