Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Psychology > Reasearch Methods > Flashcards

Reasearch Methods Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Psychology 101 flashcards GRE® Psychology flashcards AP® Psychology flashcards
1
Q

What is an aim?

A

Outline research topic

- always start aims with “to investigate”

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

Alternative hypothesis

A
  • prediction

- could be directional (one tailed)cor non directional (two tailed)

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

Directional hypothesis

A

States which way they predict the results will go
E.g “boys will score higher on the maths test than girls”
- good if there’s previous data

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

Non directional hypothesis

A

States there will be a difference but not what the difference will be
E.g “there will be a difference in maths test scores between boys and girls”

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

Null hypothesis

A

This hypothesis is accepted if the results of experiment are not significant
- states there will be no difference of any difference is down to chance

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

Independent variable

A

The thing that is manipulated/ changed

E.g the different groups, different conditions

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

Dependent variable

A

The thing that is measured

- this doesn’t change

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

Operationalise

A

Explaining how the variables could be manipulated/ measured

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

Correlational hypothesis

A
  • in a correlation there is no IV and DV
  • there are co variables- two things which are measured and cleared for a relationship
    E.g “there will be a positive correlation between footsize and height”
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Random sampling

A

Each participant has an equal change of being selected

E.g random name generator, name drawn from a hat

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

Opportunity sample

A

Asking people who are available at that time to take part

E.g researcher may ask parents picking their children up from school

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

Volunteer sample

A

Researcher advertises the study and people who see the advert may get in contact and volunteer
E.g poster and newspaper

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

Systematic sampling

A

Selecting every nth name from a list

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

Stratified sampling

A

Selecting people from every portion of your population

- in the same proportions

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

Opportunity advantages and disadvantages

A

A: easy to do, not time consuming
D: tend to get similar volunteers take part

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

Random advantages and disadvantages

A

A: fairest technique- equal way to pick people
D: Difficult to achieve, time consuming, effort

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

Systematic advantages and disadvantages

A

A: provided representative sample
D: it is researcher bias

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

Stratified advantages and disadvantages

A

A: good for clear representation
D: complicated to do, time consuming

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

Volunteer sampling

A

A: easy to do, not time consuming, minimal input from researcher
D: tend to get very similar volunteers take part- not generalisable

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

What is an experiment?

A
  • involves a change in an independent variable
  • researcher will record or measure the effects of this on dependent variable
  • how the iv is manipulated and under what circumstances varies with the type of experiment
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Laboratory experiment

A
  • controlled artificial environment
  • independent variable is manipulated
  • participants are randomly assigned to conditions
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Field experiment

A
  • natural environment
  • independent variable is manipulated
  • a “true” experiment
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Natural experiment

A
  • independent variable is not manipulated
  • it is unplanned and has occurred because of a naturally occurring event
  • could be natural or controlled setting
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Laboratory advantages and disadvantages

A

A: easily replicated, has internal validity
D: could lack external validity, artificial setting

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

Field advantages and disadvantages

A

A: not an artificial setting- more external validity, demand characteristics are lower
D: can’t control for some extraneous variables, ethical issues- no informed consent (covert experiments)

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

Natural advantages and disadvantages

A

A: it is ethical
D: participants may not be randomly allocated to experimental conditions, not easy to replicate

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

Quasi experiment

A
  • independent variable is not manipulated- it is based on an existing difference between people e.g age, gender, personality
  • there is planned manipulation of this naturally occurring IV
  • could be natural or controlled setting
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

Quasi advantages and disadvantages

A

A: easily replicated- under controlled lab conditions
D: can’t randomly allocate participants

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

Self report methods

A

Both questionnaires and interviews are types of self report methods.
This is because the participant reports their own thoughts and feelings about a particular matter

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

Open question

A

The participant can give any answer they wish

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

Closed question

A

There are a set number of responses which participant selects from

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

Questionnaire

A

A self report method with written questions which the participants selects from

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

Fixed choice option (closed question)

A

Includes a lot of possible optional and respondent are required to indicate what applies to them

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

Likert scale (closed questions)

A

The respondent indicates their agreement with an statement scale (ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

Rating scales

A

Participants select a value that represents their strengths of feeling about a particular topic

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

disadvantages questionnaires

A
  • double barrelled questions contains 2 questions in one (only may agree with one half but not the other)
  • if it is too lengthy, people are less likely to finish it
  • leasing questions- the phrasing of the question indicates a particular response
  • biased options- obvious as to what option leads to what conclusion
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

Conducting an observation- behavioural categories

A
  • these are used in structured observations as a checklist

- the target behaviour is broken down into behavioural categories and then operationalised

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

Sampling methods- continuous recording

A
  • all instances of target behaviour are recorded

- in complex observations this is not always feasible

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

Sampling methods- event sampling

A

Counting the number of times a particular behaviour occurs in a father individual or group, doesn’t take account time- just a tally

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

Sampling methods- time sampling

A

Recording behaviour within a lee established time frame

E.g take note what a target individual is doing every 30 seconds of some other time interval

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

Structured interviews

A
  • face to face or phone
  • contain standardised pre set questions
  • sometimes includes a list of pre determined answers
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
42
Q

Unstructured interviews

A
  • a conversation
  • the interviewer has a general idea of the topics they want to discuss but the actual questions and sequence of questions develop during the course of the interview
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
43
Q

Semi structured interviews

A
  • still has a list of issues/ questions
  • however, questions can be asked in any order
  • if something interesting comes up the interviewer can veer away from standardised questions
  • questions generally open- ended but data can also be collected
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
44
Q

Naturalistic observation

A

A research method carried out in a naturalistic setting, in which the investigator does not interfere in any way but merely observed the behaviour in question

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
45
Q

Controlled observation

A

Observing behaviour under controlled conditions

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
46
Q

Overt observations

A

The participants are aware That they are being observed

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
47
Q

Covert observation

A

The participants are not aware they they are being observed

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
48
Q

Structured observation

A

Researcher determines precisely what behaviours are to be observed and used a standardised checklist to record the frequency with which they are observed within a specific time frame

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
49
Q

Unstructured observation

A

The observer recalls all relevant behaviour but has no system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
50
Q

Participant observation

A

The researcher gets involved with participant activity so they can experience it for themselves, joins in

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
51
Q

Non participants

A

The observer remains separate from the participants to maintain objectivity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
52
Q

Overt observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: ethical- they have consent
W: Hawthorne effect- act differently when aware of being watched

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
53
Q

Covert observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: no Hawthorne effect
W: not ethical (no informed consent)

54
Q

Structured

A

S: easy to replicate
W: cant use new behaviours- not standardised checklist

55
Q

Unstructured observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: record all behaviour- including unexpected
W: ignore unexpected behaviour

56
Q

Controlled observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: can control extraneous variables
W: less generalisable to real life, low internal validity

57
Q

Naturalistic observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: good external validity
W: small scale- less representative

58
Q

Participant observation: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: high validity- better insights

W: researcher may come to identify too strongly with those they are studying and lose objectivity

59
Q

Non participant: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: more objective
W: thoughts + feelings lost

60
Q

Behavioural categories: strengths and weaknesses

A

S: makes data collection more structured and objective
W: there can’t be a ‘dustbin category’ in which the researcher finds other behaviours outside the categories

61
Q

Event sampling : strengths and weaknesses

A

S: useful when the target behaviour or event happens quite infrequently
W: too complex- observer may overlook important details

62
Q

Time sampling : strengths and weaknesses

A

S: this is useful if you have a lot of behaviours you need to record
W: data can lack detail if every behaviour isn’t noted

63
Q

What is a correlation?

A

When two things are measured in order to identify if there is a relationship between them

64
Q

Positive correlation

A

Both variables increase together

65
Q

Negative correlation

A

As one variable increases, the other decreases

66
Q

No correlation

A

No relationship between the variables

67
Q

Curvilinear

A

The relationship is predictive although it is not linear but curved

68
Q

Intervening variable

A

A variable that comes between two other variables, which is used to explain the association between those two variables

69
Q

Continuous variable

A

A variable that can take long on any value within a certain range

70
Q

Correlation co- efficient

A
  • Number between 0 and 1
  • Tell us how strong the correlation is- the nearer to 1 the stronger the correlation
  • It has the sign in front of the number which tells us whether the correlation is positive or negative
71
Q

Correlation or experiment?

A
  • In an experiment the researcher controls or manipulates the independent variable
  • in contrast, in a correlation there is no manipulation of the two variables
  • it is therefore not possible to determine cause and effect
72
Q

Types of experimental design: independent groups

A

A separate group of participants for each condition of the IV

E.g IV gender- one group is male and the other is female

73
Q

Types of experimental design: matched pairs

A

A separate group of participants for each condition of the IV but they are fitted for certain characteristics

E.g IV gender= separate group of males and females but I will make sure that the groups are matched for age and income

74
Q

Types of experimental design: Repeated measures

A

Every participant completes all conditions

E.g one group has music playing then the same group does another test without music

75
Q

Independent groups: advantages and disadvantages

A

A: no demand characteristics, no order effect
D: can’t establish cause and effect, individual differences

76
Q

Repeated measures : advantages and disadvantages

A

A: less differences- no individual differences, more valid
D: increase in demand characteristics, order effect- they could get better, they could get bored or tired

77
Q

Matched pairs : advantages and disadvantages

A

A: only take part in a single conditions- reduces demand characteristics
D: matching can be time consuming and expensive

78
Q

Pilot studies

A
  • conducted to test design
  • it is also conducted to test measures used
  • can be used to test for reliability to re test and yes
  • used to identify extraneous variables so controls can be put in place for the actual study
  • used to ensure all the ethical issues have been dealt with
79
Q

What is meant by ethics?

A

The consideration of what is acceptable or right behaviour in the pursuit of a personal or scientific goal

80
Q

Informed consent

A

The participant has been informed about everything that Is going to happen in the experiment
- full knowledge, no deception

81
Q

Right to withdraw

A

Allowing the participant to stop the experiment

They can also withdraw their data

82
Q

Deception

A

When the participants don’t know what is actually going on in the experiment
- researcher is lying

83
Q

Confidentiality

A

Giving away personal information e.g name

Data kept in confidence

84
Q

Protection of participants

A

Not harming the participants emotionally or physically

85
Q

Dealing with informed consent

A
  • participants should be issued with a consent letter or form detailing all relevant information
  • it is then signed if participant wants to take out experiment
86
Q

Alternatives ways of getting consent: presumptive consent

A

Rather than getting consent from participants themselves, similar group of people are asked if the study is acceptable

87
Q

Alternatives ways of getting consent: prior general consent

A

Participants give their permission to take part in number of different studies- including one that involved deception. By consenting, participants are effectively consenting to be deceived

88
Q

Alternatives ways of getting consent: retrospective consent

A

Participants are asked for their consent having taken part in the study. May not be aware of their participation

89
Q

Internal validity

A

Affected if there are extraneous or cofounding variables- this is lowered because then we are no longer testing the effect of the IV and DV

90
Q

Extraneous variable

A

Which affect the DV but don’t vary systematically with the IV
(Random error- might not affect everyone in the same way)
E.g temperature or room

91
Q

Confounding variables

A

Affect the DV and do vary systematically with the IV (affects everyone in the same way)

92
Q

External validity

A

Can we accurately generalise?
Population validity- is our sample representative?
Ecological validity- is the environment accurate to real life?
Temperal validity- is the experiment still accurate to today’s validity over time society?

93
Q

Demand characteristics

A

Type of extraneous variable
Difficult to control
Participants may guess the aims of the research and then may act in a way that they think is expected

94
Q

Investigator effects

A

Unwanted influence of the researcher on the experiment

This may be unconscious behaviour, such as smiling more with one condition compared to another

95
Q

Participant reactivity: Hawthorne effect

A

When the added attention of being in a story affects participant behaviour

96
Q

Participant reactivity: demand characteristics

A

When participants think they have figured out the aims as the experiment and change their behaviour

97
Q

Participant reactivity: social desirability

A

When participants try to look good by answering/ behaving in a socially acceptable way

98
Q

Investigator effects: experimenter bias

A

When the experimenter effects the results

E.g through their interpretation, through body language

99
Q

Investigator effects: interviewer bias

A

When the interviewer affects the responses of the interviewee

100
Q

Investigator effects: greenspoon effect

A

When the interviewer makes affirmative noises e.g mmhhhmm

After certain answers, this affects the way the participant responds

101
Q

Randomisation

A

Using chance at every available opportunity

Controls for experimenter bias

102
Q

Counterbalancing

A

Half of the participants do condition one, the other half do condition two then they swap

103
Q

Single blind design

A

Use of deception to mislead participants

Controls for demand characteristics

104
Q

Standardisation

A

Keeping everything the same for every participant

Controls for experimenter bias

105
Q

Double blind design

A

When both the researcher and participant don’t know the aims of the study
Controls for demand characteristics and experimenter bias

106
Q

Reliability

A
  • consistency
  • if they did the test on another day would they get the same results?
  • if there is standardised procedures and instructions
    I.e is there consistency in the way the experiment is conducted
107
Q

Inter- rated reliability

A
  • are the observers scoring in the same way?
  • more than one researcher looking at the investigation
  • testing for consistency
  • check how well they link
108
Q

Checking for reliability

A
  • conduct the test again and see if you get the same results
  • conduct and spearmens rho test comparing the scores- testing for a correlation (if there is no correlation between the observers etc, then it is not consistent so not reliable)
109
Q

Improving reliability

A
  • observers familiarise themselves with behavioural categories
  • conduct a small scale pilot study
  • compared the data observers have gotten by calculating a correlation co efficient
  • operationalise variables if needed
  • repeat
110
Q

Purpose of review

A

1) Validate the quality and relevance of research
2) Suggest amendments and improvements
3) Allocation of research funding

111
Q

Process of peer review

A
  • other psychologists check reports
  • psychologists working in similar field
    things considered: validity, significance, originality, methods, design
  • report can be accepted, amendments, suggested or rejection
112
Q

Strengths of peer review

A
  • Essential so that high quality is produced

- Keeps a check on dishonest psychologists

113
Q

Weaknesses of peer review

A
  • Publication
  • Expensive
  • Time consuming
  • Subjective
114
Q

Qualitative data

A

Expressed in words, non numerical

115
Q

Quantitative data

A

Expressed numerically rather than in words

116
Q

Primary data

A

First hand from participants, collected specifically for the purposes of the research

117
Q

Secondary data

A

Data collected by someone other than the person doing the research

118
Q

Quantitative data strengths and weaknesses

A

S: simple and quick- easy to analyse, use measure of central tendencies
W: less in depth opinions

119
Q

Qualitative strengths and weaknesses

A

S: more in depth research and opinions, greater external validity
W: could be time consuming, harder to analyse, reply on subjective interpretations, subject to bias

120
Q

Primary data strengths and weaknesses

A

S: you have control, authentic data, you know it is accurate
W: time consuming- may be hard to achieve and expensive

121
Q

Secondary data strengths and weaknesses

A

S: easier to get- quicker and cheaper, been peer reviewed- increase in validity
W: May be inaccurate, could be out of date

122
Q

Measures of central tendency

A

Find the average
Mean= sum of all scores divided by the number of values there are
Mode= most common value
Median= middle value

123
Q

Measures of dispersion

A

Find the spread/ variety of data
Range= highest value- lowest value
Standard deviation= calculates how far scores deviate from the mean

124
Q

Mean strengths and weaknesses

A

S: includes all data, most representative
W: could be anomalies (skews data) , could be time consuming

125
Q

Mode strengths and weaknesses

A

S: can be used with qualitative data, not affected by extreme values
W: useless if there is no mode, mode may not be representative

126
Q

Median strengths and weaknesses

A

S: not affected by extreme values, can be used when data is not internal
W: isn’t representative of the data as a whole

127
Q

Range strengths and weaknesses

A

S: includes all data pieces
W: only takes account two extreme values, anomalies can be easily affected

128
Q

Standard deviation strengths and weaknesses

A

S: all of the data is included in calculation so is more representative of the data as a whole
W: is affected by extreme values

129
Q

What are inferential statistics?

A
  • draw conclusions about our data
  • tell us whether our results are significant enough that we can generalise with any certainty
  • based around probability
130
Q

Significance (sign test)

A
  • if a sign test shows our results are significant we accept our alternative hypothesis
  • if they are no significant we accept our null hypothesis

Psychology (7 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions