Research Methods

Question 1

What is a lab experiment?

Answer 1

• Conducted in a highly controlled environment.
• The IV is manipulated to see the impact on the DV, whilst the effects of other variables are minimised as far as possible.

For example, giving researchers lists of words to remember, giving them another task to prevent rehearsal, then testing their recall of the information.

Question 2

Advantages of lab experiment

Answer 2

• Extraneous variables are closely controlled, meaning the IV is likely to have affected the DV, increasing the internal validity of the study.
• Research can be easily repeated as there will be a controlled, standardised procedure, increasing the reliability of the results

Question 3

Disadvantages of lab experiment

Answer 3

• Artificial nature of the set-up means that the results may not reflect ‘real-life’ behaviour, so reducing the external validity of the study.
• Participants know they are being tested so may change their behaviour (demand characteristics).
• Tasks given in the research may not be reflective of everyday tasks (lack of mundane realism).

Question 4

What is a field experiment?

Answer 4

The experimenter manipulates an IV in a more natural setting.

For example, Piliavin (1969) got a confederate to collapse on a train when smelling of alcohol or carrying a walking stick, and seeing how many people helped in each condition.

Question 5

Advantages of a field experiment

Answer 5

• Higher mundane realism than lab experiments, therefore higher external validity.
• Often participants won’t know they are being studied, so demand characteristics are less of an issue.

Question 6

Disadvantages of field experiment

Answer 6

• Harder to control extraneous variables, so harder to know if the IV has affected the DV.
• If participants are unaware they are being studied this raises ethical issues (lack of informed consent).

Question 7

What is a natural experiment?

Answer 7

The experimenter studies the effects of a naturally occurring IV.
Participants may still be studied in a lab-type setting to see the effects, but the IV is not manipulated by the researcher.

For example, Williams (1986) looked at the effects on gender attitudes after the introduction of TV to a small town in Canada. Also Romanian orphanage study.

Question 8

Advantages of natural experiment

Answer 8

• High external validity, as the IV is naturally occurring.
• The effects can be tested of factors that could not be manipulated by the researcher (e.g., the effects of lack of attachment in Romanian orphans).

Question 9

Disadvantages of natural experiments

Answer 9

• Even less control over extraneous variable than field experiments.
• Participants can’t be randomly allocated to conditions, introducing the possibility of bias.
• Naturally occurring IVs may be rare, so studies can’t be repeated.

Question 10

What is a quasi experiment?

Answer 10

The IV is based on an existing difference between people. For example, gender differences in attitudes towards food.

Question 11

Advantages of quasi experiment

Answer 11

• Can be tested under controlled conditions, increasing the scientific credibility of the research.

Question 12

Disadvantages of quasi experiment

Answer 12

• Participants can’t be randomly allocated to conditions, introducing possible confounding variables e.g. is differences between men & women biological, social etc

Question 13

What is a naturalistic observation and a controlled observation?

Answer 13

Naturalistic observations take place within a natural, non-manipulated environment, for example in a workplace or school.

Controlled observations are more manipulated, for example the Strange Situation, so that variables are more controlled and effects of particular situations can be seen.

Question 14

Advantages & disadvantages of naturalistic observation

Answer 14

• High in external validity (as they are very true-to life), but lower levels of control.

Question 15

Advantages & disadvantages of controlled observation

Answer 15

• Lower external validity, but more control (allowing for easier replication).

Question 16

What is a covert and overt observation?

Answer 16

Covert observations take place without the participants being aware that they are being watched.

Overt observations are when the participant does know they are being watched, and have given prior consent to do so.

Question 17

Advantages & disadvantages of covert observation

Answer 17

• No demand characteristics, so more truthful behaviour is shown, but there are ethical issues (lack of consent).

Question 18

Advantages & disadvantages of overt observation

Answer 18

• Participants may change their behaviour due to demand characteristics & social desirability bias, but they are more ethically sound as have informed consent.

Question 19

What is a participant observation and a non-participant observation?

Answer 19

Participant observations are when the researcher themselves takes part, for example by joining the workforce in a workplace.

Non-participant observations are when the researcher does not actually participate, but just observes.

Question 20

Advantages & disadvantages of participant observation

Answer 20

• The researcher gets a greater insight into the experiences of those being observed, may build rapport etc.
  But they may lose objectivity as they become part of the study, friendly with other participants, and so on

Question 21

Advantages & disadvantages of non-participant observation

Answer 21

• The researcher is more likely to remain objective, but may lack the extra insight gained from being a participant themselves.

Question 22

What do self-report techniques involve?

Answer 22

Self-report techniques involve asking people about their behaviour.

Question 23

What are questionnaries?

Answer 23

These are sets of questions which participants complete independently, for example on their attitudes towards something or beliefs about something. Questionnaires can be used as part of an experiment (e.g. measuring locus of control through a questionnaire, and then testing the participants in some way).

Question 24

What are open vs closed questions?

Answer 24

Open questions - the participant can answer in any way they wish- for example, ‘why do you think people follow orders?’. This produces qualitative data, which is rich in detail.

Closed questions - there are a set of answers participants must choose from- for example ‘do you think that people follow orders because of (a) the situation they are in, or (b) their personality?’. This produces quantitative (numerical) data which can be easily counted.

Question 25

Advantages of using a questionnaire

Answer 25

• Questionnaires can be sent to (potentially) thousands of people, without the researcher needing to be present whilst they are completed. Potentially there is access to a very large sample.
• The responses will usually be easy to analyse, especially if the questions are closed.

Question 26

Disadvantages of using a questionnaire

Answer 26

The responses may be biased:
- Social desirability bias- not being truthful to try to present yourself in a better light (underestimating the amount of alcohol you drink)
- Response bias- answering all questions in a similar way and not reading the questions properly (ticking ‘yes’ for everything)
- Acquiescence bias- a tendency to agree with things, meaning that the questionnaire is measuring a tendency to agree rather than what it is intending to measure.

Question 27

What is an interview? (structured, unstructured, semi-structured)

Answer 27

These are face-to-face interactions between the researcher and participant.
They can be:
- Structured, where the interviewer asks a set of pre-determined questions and doesn’t deviate from them.
- Unstructured - where the interviewer creates questions in response to the participant’s answers during the interview
- Semi-structured - where there are some pre-set questions but also the opportunity to ask extra questions as well.

Question 28

Advantages of structured interviews

Answer 28

Structured interviews can easily be repeated and the data are more easy to analyse

Question 29

Disadvantages of structured interviews

Answer 29

• They are inflexible and can’t include additional information.
• As in questionnaires, participants may not be honest with their answers, reducing the validity of the responses.

Question 30

Advantages of unstructured interviews

Answer 30

Allow more flexibility to investigate answers in more depth.

Question 31

Disadvantages of unstructured interviews

Answer 31

• Difficult to repeat and hard to analyse for trends and patterns.
• As in questionnaires, participants may not be honest with their answers, reducing the validity of the responses.

Question 32

What is a correlation? (positive/negative/none)

Answer 32

• A correlation measures the relationship between two variables, and the strength of that relationship.
• They are plotted on a graph known as a scattergram/scattergraph.
• Correlations can be positive, meaning that as one variable increases, so does the other one, for example as the number of people present increases, so does the rate of obedience.
• Negative means that one variable increases whilst the other decreases, for example as the level of anxiety increases, the accuracy of eyewitness testimony decreases.
• No correlation means there is no link between the two variables.

Question 33

How does a correlation differ from an experiment?

Answer 33

In an experiment, the researcher manipulates an IV, attempts to control all other variables, and records the effect on the DV.

In a correlation, there is no manipulation of either variable- they are known as co-variables.

Therefore, it cannot be concluded that one co-variable has caused the other to change, just that there is a correlation between them. Another variable might actually have caused the change. e.g. as ice cream sales increase, drowning deaths increase.

In an experiment, causal links can be established, as the impact of other variables are minimised.

Question 34

Advantages of using a correlation

Answer 34

• Correlations can be used as a starting point for further research. If no relationship is found, then there is no need to undertake experiments into the subject.
• They are quite easy to conduct- the researcher just needs to find two sets of data to compare.

Question 35

Disadvantages of using a correlation

Answer 35

• Demonstrating a cause-effect link is not possible, as other variables might be involved.
• The findings of correlational studies are often reported as facts, leading to misinterpretations, which could have consequences (for example, black people are more likely to be convicted of knife crimes than non-black people, but this does not mean that ethnicity causes knife crime- black people are more likely to come from poorer socio-economic backgrounds so are more likely to turn to knife crime due to this).

Question 36

What is content analysis?

Answer 36

This is a type of observational research in which something that has been produced (such as newspaper articles and television adverts) is studied. The aim is to analyse the communication in order to detect trends and make conclusions.

Question 37

Advantages of content analysis

Answer 37

• Content analysis is high in external validity, as what is being analysed is the material that people consume in ‘real life’.
• It allows for the investigation of potentially sensitive topics, without the need for consent, as the material is in the public domain.

Question 38

Disadvantages of content analysis

Answer 38

Content analyses may not take into account the motivations of the people that created the content in the first place, potentially weakening the validity of conclusions that can be drawn.