Research method Flashcards
Oparationalisarion
a form of positivism which defines scientific concepts in terms of the operations used to determine or prove them.
Dependent variables
a variable (often denoted by y ) whose value depends on that of another.
Variable the experimenter measures. This is the outcome (i.e. result) of a study.
Independent variables
a variable (often denoted by x ) whose variation does not depend on that of another.
Variable the experimenter manipulates (i.e. changes) – assumed to have a direct effect on the dependent variable.
Situational variables
Situational Variables are factors in the environment that can unintentionally affect the results of a study. Such variables include noise, temperature, odors, and lighting. For example, let’s say researchers are investigating the effects of caffeine on mood.
Participant variables
Participant Variables: These extraneous variables are related to individual characteristics of each participant that may impact how he or she responds. These factors can include background differences, mood, anxiety, intelligence, awareness and other characteristics that are unique to each person.
Experimenter bias
(psychology) bias introduced by an experimenter whose expectations about the outcome of the experiment can be subtly communicated to the participants in the experiment. Type of: bias, preconception, prejudice. a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation.
These are the ways that the experimenter can accidentally influence the participant through their appearance or behavior.
Investigator effects
Experimenter / Investigator Effects. The experimenter unconsciously conveys to participants how they should behave - this is called experimenter bias. The experiment might do this by giving unintentional clues to the participants about what the experiment is about and how they expect them to behave.
Demand characteristics
A demand characteristic is a subtle cue that makes participants aware of what the experimenter expects to find or how participants are expected to behave. Demand characteristics can change the outcome of an experiment because participants will often alter their behavior to conform to the experimenters expectations
The clues in an experiment that lead the participants to think they know what the researcher is looking for (e.g. experimenter’s body language).
Artificiality
Artificiality (also called factitiousness, or the state of being artificial or man-made) is the state of being the product of intentional human manufacture, rather than occurring naturally, through processes not involving or requiring human activity.
External validity
External validity refers to the extent to which the conclusions from your research study can be generalized to the people outside of your study. There are three types of generalization: population, environmental, and temporal
Empirical research
Based on real world observations. Researchers gather data from observation of behavior.
Theories are constructed and tested
Research question
Question posed when researchers are considering how to support a theory with scientific evidence
Operational definition
Defines a veritable in terms of the steps taken to measure it
Directional hypothesis
States direction of a difference
Non-directive hypothesis
Claims a difference exists but doesn’t make claims about direction
