Research methods Flashcards
All 3 papers
Aim
Describe the purpose of the experiment.
E.g To investigate whether drinking energy drinks makes people more talkative
Hypotheses
A statement that is made at the start of a study and clearly describes the relationship between variables.
E,g Drinking SpeedUpp will make people become more talkative.
two types of hypotheses and what they are
Non- directional : Simply states there is a difference between two variables but the difference is not specified.
E,g People who drink SpeedUpp differ in terms of talkativeness compare with people who don’t drink SpeedUpp
Directional : Researcher makes it clear the difference that is anticipated
E.g People who drink SpeedUpp become more talkative than people who don’t.
The four types of variables
- Confounding
- Dependent
- Independent
- Extraneous
Difference between independent and dependent variables
Dependent : The variable that is being measured
Independent : The variable that is being changed / manipulated so the effects of the change can be measure on the DV
Operationalisation
Clearly defining variables in terms of how they can be measured.
Extraneous Variables
Unwanted variables - interfere with the IV
Confounding Variables
Change systematically with the IV.
E.g temperature
Demand characteristics
Any cues from the researcher or from the research situation that may be interpreted by participants as revealing the purpose of an investigation. This may lead to a participant changing their behaviour to fit the research situation.
- Participant changes behaviour to show experimenter what they think they want to see.
Investigator effects
Any effect on the investigators behaviour (on purpose or not) impacting the research outcome.
- E.g design of study, selection or interaction with participants
Randomisation
The use of chance methods to control for the effects of bias when designing materials and deciding the order of experimental conditions.
- reduce researchers unconscious biases when designing investigation
Standardisation
Using exactly the same formalised procedures and instructions for all participants in a research study.
The 3 types of experimental designs
- Independent groups
- Repeated measures
- Matched pairs
Independent group
Two seperate groups experience two different conditions of the group.
- Control : no manipulation of IV
- Experimental : experiencing largest amount of manipulation of IV
Repeated measures
All participants experience both conditions.
ABBA technique - experience condition A then experience condition B
Matched pairs
Participants are paired together on a variable or variables relevant to the study.
e.g being matched on IQ
One weakness of using independent groups
Participants are not the same in terms of participant variables.These differences may act as confounding variables reducing validity of findings.
Random allocation
An attempt control for participant variables. Each participant has same chance of being in either condition.
One weakness for repeated measures
Each participant has to do atleast two tasks and order of tasks may be significant (i.e order effects).
Order effects could arise because repeating two tasks could cause boredom or fatigue that might cause deterioation on performance in second task.
Counterbalancing
An attempt to control order effects. Half participants take part in condition A and the other in B.
- ABBA technique
4 types of experiments
- lab
- field
- natural
- quasi
Strengths and weaknesses of lab experiments
Strength - High control over confounding variables and extraneous variables.
Replication is more possible because high level of control
Weakness - May lack generalisability, environment artificial and experiment cannot be generalised past research setting - low external validity
Participants usually aware they are being investigated so more likely to display demand characteristics
Tasks participants are asked to carry out lack mundane realism and aren’t realistic to everyday life
Strengths and weaknesses of field experiment
Strength : higher mundane realism compared to lab experiments - behaviour is more valid and authentic
Weakness : Loss of control of confounding and extraneous variables .
Ethical issues - some participants unaware they are being studied
Strengths and weaknesses of quasi experiments
Strength:
Often carried out under controlled conditions and therefore share some strengths with lab experiments
Weakness:
Like natural experiments cannot randomally allocate participants to conditions and therefore there may be confounding variables
In both quasi and natural experiments, the IV is not deliberately changed by a researcher and therefore we cannot claim that the IV has caused any observed change
