Research methods

Question 1

what is hypothesis

Answer 1

a statement predicting what research results will show before it is carried out

Question 2

the two types of hypothesis

Answer 2

alternative hypothesis
null hypothesis

Question 3

what is alternate hypothesis

Answer 3

a statement that predicts a difference or correlation in results

Question 4

what is null hypothesis

Answer 4

a statement that predicts no difference or correlation in results

Question 5

what is independent variable

Answer 5

something the researcher changes or manipulates

Question 6

what is dependent variable

Answer 6

something that is measured to see if it has changed (after an independent variable has been manipulated)

Question 7

why don’t researchers use IV and DV when predicting a correlation

Answer 7

correlations do not show cause and effect, they instead measure two co-variables to see if there is a relationship between them

Question 8

what is cause and effect

Answer 8

the process of one variable affecting a change in another

Question 9

what is co-variable

Answer 9

something that changes in relation to another variable

Question 10

why is the best method to establish if one variable affects another is to do an experiment

Answer 10

experiments allow psychologists to have control over extraneous variables

Question 11

what is extraneous variable

Answer 11

a variable, apart from the independent variable, that can affect the dependent variable unless it’s controlled

Question 12

what is a common way to control extraneous variables

Answer 12

keeping them the same across conditions, known as standardisation

Question 13

what is standardisation

Answer 13

a way of controlling extraneous variables that keeps them the same across conditions

Question 14

what is experimental design

Answer 14

the way participants are allocated to conditions in an experiment

Question 15

two methods of experimental design

Answer 15

repeated measures design
independent measures design

Question 16

what is repeated measures design

Answer 16

an experimental design where participants take part in each condition

Question 17

what is independent measures design

Answer 17

an experimental design where participants are different in each condition

Question 18

strength of repeated measures

Answer 18

comparing ‘like with like’ so differences are not due to individual differences between participants

fewer participants need to be recruited, saving money and time

Question 19

weakness of repeated measures design 1

Answer 19

participants may perform worse on the second condition due to the boredom or fatigue effect

Question 20

weakness of repeated measures design 2

Answer 20

participants may perform better on the second condition due to the practice effect

Question 21

weakness of repeated measures design 3

Answer 21

participants may work out the independent variable and change their behaviour accordingly (the effect of demand characteristics)

Question 22

weakness of repeated measures design 4

Answer 22

the task may need to be changed between conditions, making it an extraneous variable

Question 23

strength of independent measures design 1

Answer 23

no order effects (boredom/fatigue effect, practice effect, demand characteristics)

Question 24

what are order effects

Answer 24

factors that impact negatively on research findings because participants follow the same order of conditions in an experiment

Question 25

strength of independent measures design 2

Answer 25

the same task can be used in both conditions because participants will not be familiar with it

Question 26

weakness of independent measures design 1

Answer 26

differences between conditions could be due to participant variables

Question 27

weakness of independent measures design 2

Answer 27

potentially, more participants need to be recruited as they cannot be used more than once per condition

Question 28

what is sample

Answer 28

a group selected from a larger population

Question 29

what is target population

Answer 29

the entire set of people psychologists want to research

Question 30

what is representative

Answer 30

an accurate reflection of a larger group

Question 31

what is generalisability

Answer 31

the ability to draw conclusions that apply to a larger group outside of research

Question 32

what is random sample

Answer 32

a sample selected using chance

Question 33

what is opportunity sample

Answer 33

a sample selected by convenience

Question 34

what is self-selected sample

Answer 34

a sample selected through volunteers

Question 35

what is sampling method

Answer 35

a technique for selecting participants from a population

Question 36

strength of opportunity sampling

Answer 36

it is quick and convenient compared to random sampling

Question 37

weakness of opportunity sampling

Answer 37

it is biased as studying people who are available as they live close by may result in a group of similar people, in terms of age, education, ethic group or social class

Question 38

strength of self-selected sampling

Answer 38

psychologists do not have to put much effort into selecting participants as they volunteer themselves, they also have consent from the participants

Question 39

what is consent

Answer 39

when a person agrees on being studied or agrees on someone’s behalf

Question 40

weakness of self-selected sampling

Answer 40

certain types of people are more likely to volunteer to take part in psychological research and they will be over-represented in the sample

Question 41

strength of random sampling

Answer 41

it is very likely to give a representative sample, there is no bias

Question 42

weakness of random sampling

Answer 42

there is a chance of a freak sample where certain types of people are over-represented and others are under-represented or missing from the sample