Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

23-24: Y13 Structured Revision Sessions > Quantitative Methods > Flashcards

Quantitative Methods Flashcards

1
Q

What is Quantitative data?

A

Data which is represented in numbers. Usually large data sets

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Is quantitative data generally considered to have high or low validity?

A

Low validity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Is quantitative data generally considered to have high or low reliability?

A

High reliability

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Do interpretivists or positivists prefer quantitative data?

A

Positivists

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What kinds of questionnaires are there?

A

Telephone, email, online, postal, face to face

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

True or False: a pratical strength of questionnaires is that there is no need to train interviewers

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

True or False: A practical weakness of questionnaires is that they are costly and take a long time to prepare

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of questionnaires is that they can be done confidentially/anonymously

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of questionnaires is that it can be tricky to gain consent

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of questionnaires is that they could have low response rates

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of questionnaires is that answers are often quite brief (superficial)

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of questionnaires is that they are good for exploring sensitive issues

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of questionnaires is that researchers know they are getting the truth from their respondents

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of questionnaires is that they typically have large sample sizes

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of questionnaires is that the researcher’s biases can affect the data

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of questionnaires is that there is no way to clarify the meanings of questions, so participants may misinterpret them

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is an interview schedule?

A

A pre-set list of questions to be asked in the interview

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What is a questionnaire?

A

A preset list of questions sent out to participants

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is a structured interview?

A

A preset list of questions that a researcher asks a participant, without deviating

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

True or false: A practical strength of structured interviews is that it is cheap and easy to train researchers

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

True or false: A practical strength of structured interviews is that data can be easily analysed, thanks to their close-ended questions

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of structured interviews is that, compared to questionnaires, they are time-consuming and costly

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of structured interviews is that they can cover large sample sizes, but not as many as questionnaires

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of structured interviews is that interviewees do not have to answer questions they don’t want to

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of questionnaires is that participants can be kept anonymous

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of structured interviews is that they are not suitable for sensitive topics, as there is no opportunity to build rapport and trust

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of structured interviews is that there is no room for interviewer bias to affect participant responses

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of structured interviews is that data can lack verstehen (empathy/understanding) as there is no opportunity for participants to give more information

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of structured interviews is that they generally have a higher response rate than questionnaires

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of structured interviews is that they have low reliability

A

False - the opposite is true

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

What is a non-participant observation?

A

Where researchers watch a group doing something, but doesn’t get involved

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

True or false: A practical strength of non-participant observations is that it is easy to gain access as they are conducted in natural settings

A

True

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of non-participant observations is that it can be difficult to access certain groups, e.g. prisoners

34
Q

True or false: A practical strength of non-participant observations is that it is quick to complete

A

False - the opposite is true

35
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of non-participant observations is that researchers may impact the group they are trying to observe

A

False - the opposite is true

36
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of non-participant observations is that everyone in the observed group will be happy to engage in the study

A

False - the opposite is true

37
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of non-participant observations is that every participant is told what the study is about

A

False - this could reduce the validity of the data (Hawthorne Effect)

38
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of non-participant observations is that the researcher may be placed in danger, having to gain the group’s trust before getting involved

A

False - researchers aren’t getting involved so don’t need to gain trust

39
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of (overt) non-participant observations is that participants are not asked for their consent

A

False - the opposite is true

40
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of non-participant observations is that they have high validity

A

False - there is a lot of room for subjectivity

41
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of non-participant observations is that they have high reliability

42
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of non-participant observations is that there is no risk of researchers ‘going native’

43
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of non-participant observations is that they are impossible to repeat so are unreliable

A

False - If the observation is structured

44
Q

What is a lab experiment?

A

A highly controlled test in an artificial setting to establsh cause and effect

45
Q

True or false: A practical strength of lab experiments is that they are cheap to run, only needing a space to do the study

46
Q

True or false: A practical strength of lab experiments is that they are always appropriate for investigating sociology

A

False - society cannot fit in a lab!

47
Q

True or false: A practical strength of lab experiments is that they are quick, especially for small-scale research

48
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of lab experiments is that it is impossible to identify all variables which could affect the experiment (extraneous variables)

49
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of lab experiments is that informed consent is gained as participants do not have to take part

50
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of lab experiments is that debriefs can be given to participants straight afterwards

51
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of lab experiments is that they could cause harm and distress to participants

52
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of lab experiments is that they could rely on deception

53
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of lab experiments is that the Hawthorne effect cannot take place

54
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of lab experiments is that they can be repeated to increase representativeness

55
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of lab experiments is that they are subjective, so the researcher could influence the study

A

False - they are standardised so the opposite is true

56
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of lab experiments is that they lack ecological validity as they are done in artifical settings

57
Q

What is a field experiment?

A

A test set in a natural/real life setting

58
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of field experiments is that they are difficult to access compared to lab experiments

A

False - it is easy to access a natural environment

59
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of field experiments is that it is difficult to control extraneous variables

60
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of field experiments is that they cannot be used to study complex problems

61
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of field experiments is that participants can be debriefed after the experiment

62
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of field experiments is that participants are likely to be harmed

A

False - usually only a small change is made to the natural setting

63
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of field experiments is that it is not always possible to gain informed consent from everyone in the natural setting

64
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of field experiments is that there can be no deception

65
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of field experiments is that the Hawthorne effect can take place

A

False - this is unlikely, participants are likely to be unaware the experiment is happening

66
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of field experiments is that they have low validity, as it is difficult to control extraneous variables

67
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of field experiments is that they have high ecological validity

68
Q

What are official statistics?

A

A secondary data source produced by an official body, e.g. the government or a company

69
Q

True or false: A practical strength of official statistics is that they allow comparisons between different groups, e.g. can be helpful for DA

70
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of official statistics is that they are difficult to access

A

False - they are usually published online

71
Q

True or false: A practical strength of official statistics is that all organisation which collect data use the same definitions for things

A

False - e.g. sociologists, governments, and charities may all define ‘poverty’ differently. Definitions can also change over time

72
Q

True or false: A practical weakness of official statistics is that the data sociologists want may not exist/have been collected

73
Q

True or false: An ethical strength of official statistics is that there is no risk of participant harm

A

True - there are no participants

74
Q

True or false: An ethical weakness of official statistics is that it is inappropriate for studying sensitive topics as it is dehumanising

75
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of official statistics is that they can be used to spot patterns and trends

76
Q

True or false: A theoretical strength of official statistics is that they are objective

77
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of official statistics is that there is no verstehen

78
Q

True or false: A theoretical weakness of official statistics is that they may have low representativeness if the sample is small

79
Q

What are hard statistics?

A

Data sets where it is likely that all the data has been collected. E.g. marriage rates published by the government must be accurate, as a marriage is not valid unless it is verified by the government

80
Q

What are soft statistics?

A

Data sets where it is likely that not all the data has been collected. E.g. crime rates, as there is a “hidden figure of crime” that is not included because it is not reported, not recorded properly etc

23-24: Y13 Structured Revision Sessions (7 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions