Research Methods Flashcards
What is the definition of content analysis?
A technique for systematically analysing various kinds of qualitative data (e.g. texts, films, emails, other media) The data can then be placed into categories and counted (quantitative) or analysed in themes (qualitative - known separately as thematic analysis)
What is time sampling?
Time sampling is a method of sampling behaviour in an observation study and is where an observer records behaviour at prescribed intervals. For example, every 10 seconds.
What is event sampling?
Event sampling is used to sample behaviour in observational research. It is where an observer records the number of times a certain behaviour occurs.
What is coding in content analysis?
- Watch the material and establish potential categories (if there are two psychologists they should do this separately)
- compare categories and agree on set ones.
-Carry out the content analysis separately and count the number of examples that fit into each category to produce quantitative data.
-The psychologists should then compare their answers to look for agreement and use an appropriate statistical test to analyse the reliability of their results.
What is Thematic analysis?
- researchers initially use coding to analyse the data, comparing the categories they find.
- they then find examples of emergent themes.
-Look back at sample and collect new set of data, then represent it appropriately and write it up in a report.
What is Inter-rater reliability ?
psychologists carry out content analysis separately, create categories and then compare their answers. Correlation of +0.8 is reliable.
What is Test-retest reliability?
The psychologist could conduct the content analysis (creating categories, and then recode them (create the categories again) at a later date and compare the two. Correlation of +0.8 is reliable.
What is Internal validity?
Whether the effects observed in a study are due to manipulation of the independent variable and not any other factor.
What is External validity?
Refers to how well you can generalise the results from research participants (apply the findings of a study) to people, places and times outside of the study.
What was Milgram’s 1963 experiment?
Aim: To see how far people would go in obeying an instruction if it involved harming another person.
Procedure: Two roles of either learner or teacher. Teacher is the participant and has to ask the ‘learner’ a series of questions. The teacher had to give an electric shock at each wrong answer, starting at 15V and ending at 450V (lethal)
Results: Two thirds of participants continued to the lethal voltage, and everyone continued to 300V.
What is the evaluation of Milgram’s study?
-Research tends to confirm Milgram’s original findings.
-High cultural validity when done around the world, except with women on women in Australia, which only had 16% obedience.
What is the My Lai study?
The My Lai massacre was where more than 500 Vietnamese citizens were killed in cold blood at the hands of US troops. People were tortured and raped, and it began with the command of Officer Calley. Calley was later the only one arrested for this atrocity.
What is triangulation?
The use of a number of different sources or evidence, e.g. data compiled from interviews with friends and family, personal diaries, observations etc.
Why do observations have a high ecological validity?
Because they use covert observations so there is minimal intervention from the researcher, as they cannot influence the participants behaviour.
What level of measurement is used for nominal data?
Mode
What level of measurement is used for ordinal data?
-Median
-Range
What level of measurement is used for Interval data?
-Mean
-Standard deviation
What is ordinal data?
Data on a numerical scale but without precise spacing e.g. scale of 1-10.
What is interval data?
Data based on a standardised scale with precise intervals e.g. numbers.
What is nominal data?
data that is in categories e.g. dogs, cats, rats.
What is the aim of statistical testing?
To determine the likelihood that the relationship found in the study is significant or due to chance.
What do we mean by ‘probability’
A numerical measure of the likelihood that a particular event will occur ranging from 0 to 1 where 0 indicated statistical impossibility and 1 indicates statistical certainty.
What is a significance level?
The point at which the researcher can claim to have discovered a significant difference or correlation within the data.
What does P<0.05 mean?
The probability that the observed effect (the result) occurred by chance (i.e. would have occurred if there was no difference or association in the data) is less than 5%.