Research Flashcards
Studies that measure the effect of an intervention by randomly assigning group or individuals to either an intervention group or a control group
Randomized Controlled Trial
This study can be difficult to do in SW practice because it can be considered unethical to withhold treatment to people who need it in order to make a “control group”
Randomized Controlled Trial
This type of research is typically identified as being void of randomization of either subjects or treatment and/or the lack of comparison groups
Quasi-Experimental Design
The body of this research design attempts to answer questions such as: “does this treatment or intervention have an impact?” and “what is the relationship between program practices and outcomes?”
Quasi-Experimental Design
Research where the subject serves as his/her own control, rather than using another individual/group
Single Subject Design
(Example) A medical social worker wants to see if texts improve medical compliance to treatment in diabetic patients. They start with a baseline measure of compliance, text clients daily for a month while measuring compliance, then stop texting and measure compliance again
Single Subject Design
In this design, participants are asked to retrospect (literally, to look back) and try to remember what they were like at an earlier time point
Retrospective Design
(Example) Researchers could ask teenagers about how they were disciplined as young children
Retrospective Design
In this design, researchers collect data at a single point in time from participants of different ages
Cross-sectional Design
(Example) Participants in their 20s, 40s, and 60s complete a measure of traditionalism and then whether there is a positive correlation between age and traditionalism
Cross-sectional Design
In this design, the same people are measured at different ages
Longitudinal Design
(Example) Researchers could follow the development of babies with development delays
Longitudinal Design
A combination of cross-sectional and longitudinal designs. Groups of people from several different ages are measured and then followed over time
Cross-sequential Design
The overall consistency of a measure
Reliability
Ex: If two different social workers administer the same interview to a client, do they get similar results
Reliability
The degree to which the tool measures what it claims to measure
Validity
The confidence that can be placed in the cause-and-effect relationship in a study
Internal validity
The extent to which an effect in research can be generalized to other populations, settings, and treatment variables
External validity
The extent to which the results of a particular test/measurement correspond to those of a previously established measurement for the same construct
Concurrent validity
Ex: To ensure a test accurately measures what it is supposed to, you look for other tests that have already been found to be valid measures of your construct, administer both tests, and compare results to each other
Concurrent validity
Involves testing a group of subjects for a certain construct, and then comparing them with results obtained at some point in the future
Predictive validity
Ex: You want to predict the risk factors for high school drop out
Predictive validity
Systematic investigations that include inductive, in-depth, studies of individuals, groups, organizations, or communities; focuses on the why and how of decision making to better understand human behavior
Qualitative Research
This is a factor that can be varied or manipulated in an experiment
Independent Variable
The degree to which an instrument measures the characteristic being investigated
Construct Validity
Systematic investigations that include descriptive or inferential statistical analysis
Quantitative Research
Systematic research inquires made without complete controls
Quasi-Experimental Research
In social research, the concept concerned with the extent to which a procedure is able to measure the quality it is intended to measure
Validity
The phenomenon or reaction to be tested or measured when a new stimulus, condition, or treatment is introduced
Dependent Variable
The extent to which study findings can be generalized beyond the sample used in the study
External Validity
A questionnaire or other data-gathering instrument administered to a subject just before a period of inquiry that provides a baseline for comparison with the end results
Pretest
Research conducted under carefully controlled conditions, in which subjects being investigated are randomly selected and systemically compared with control groups, with treatment variables being introduced to the experimental group but not the control group, and the use of statistical analysis to determine if significant differences occur between the groups observed
Experimental Study
A research procedure often used in clinical situations to evaluate the effectiveness of an interventions; the behavior of an individual client is used as a comparison and a control
Single Subject Design
The degree to which different people give similar scores for the same observations; refers to the consistency of a measure
Inter-Rater Reliability
The middle score
Median
Repeated testing of the same phenomenon or group of subjects over an extended time
Longitudinal Study
The extent to which the effects detected in a study are truly caused by the treatment or exposure in the study sample, rather than being due to other biasing effects of extraneous variables
Internal Validity
A type of design used to explore or gain insights into a phenomenon
Exploratory Study
The value that occurs most frequently
Mode
The use of chance procedures in psychology experiments to ensure that each participant has the same opportunity to be assigned to any given group
Random Assignment
The process of searching published work to find out what is known about a research topic
Literature Review
The average value or measure of central tendency
Median
A mutual relation; a pattern of variation between two phenomena in which change in one is associated with change in the other
Correlation
In research, a collection of subjects who are matched and compared with a control group in all relevant respects, except that they are also subject to a specific variable being tested
Experimental Group
A statement that no relationship exists between study variables
Null Hypothesis
A procedure for testing and validating a questionnaire or other instrument by administering it to a small group of respondents from the intended test population; the procedure helps determine whether the test items possess the desired qualities of measurement and the ability to discriminate other problems before the instrument is put to widespread use
Pilot Study
A questionnaire or other data-gathering instrument administered to a subject at the end of a specific period of inquiry
Post Test
