research methods

Question 1

lab experiment

Answer 1

where the iv is directly manipulated in a highly controlled artificial environment
+- got control over extraneous variables (situational variables ), scientific, predictable, reliable - test-retest- repeat- external- replicate, internal- control/standardisation
– lacks ecological validity, demand characteristics, lack of construct validity.

Question 2

field experiment

Answer 2

where the iv is directly manipulated in a natural environment with some level of control
+- high in ecological validity, less chance of demand characteristics, population if sample represents where its studied
– higher chance of extraneous variables, harder to test cause and effect, less scientific, harder to get consent, harder to replicate

Question 3

quasi experiement

Answer 3

a naturally occurring iv that is not directly manipulated in either controlled or natural environment
+- more ethical, nothing manipulated , natural behaviour
–difficult to carry out as iv already exists , time consuming , extraneous variables likely - less reliable.

Question 4

what is an experimental method in general (+/-)

Answer 4

manipulating IVs to test cause and effect so the hypothesis can be tested.
+- more scientific, objective ( measuring behaviour) (data)
– demand characteristics

Question 5

structured observation (+/-)

Answer 5

predefined behaviour categories.
+- easier to record, easier to establish inter-rater reliability.
– reductionist, reduce validity, observer bias.

Question 6

unstructured observation (+/-)

Answer 6

no predefined plan they record everything.
+- increases construct validity, wide range of context.
– harder to record, hard to establish reliability- lack of control- no time/even sampling, observer bias, lacks external reliability

Question 7

controlled observation(+/-)

Answer 7

a research method where researchers watch participants in an artificial environment
+- increases reliability
–lowers ecological validity

Question 8

naturalistic observation (+/-)

Answer 8

takes place in natural environment
+- less demand characteristics/ high EV
–low in reliabilty

Question 9

participant observation(+/-)

Answer 9

where the researcher takes part in the experimt and activites.
+-, greater accuracy/detail, sometimes only way eg .gang
– ethical issues, reduces validity if behaviours influenced

Question 10

non participant observation (+/-)

Answer 10

the researcher doesn’t take part.
+- remains objective, no influence on behaviour
–can’t observe certain behaviour, less detail/accuracy

Question 11

overt observation(+/-)

Answer 11

participants are aware they are being watched.
+- more ethical ( consent)
– risk of demand characteristics/ decreases validity

Question 12

covert observation(+/-)

Answer 12

participants are unaware they are being watched
+- less chance of demand characteristics/ increases validity - natural behaviour, event/time sampling to increase reliability
–less ethical ,they can’t consent

Question 13

event sampling (+/-)

Answer 13

every occurrence of behaviour as specified on predefined checklist. observed at specified time.
+- quantitative data, easier to record
– reductionist, reduce validity, observer bias.
(similar to structured )

Question 14

what is time sampling ? (+/-)

Answer 14

behaviour on predetermined checklist recorded at specific time intervals.
+- reliable
– time consuming, lowers validity as behaviour may be missed.

Question 15

what is an observation

Answer 15

where researcher observes and records participants behaviour, but does not manipulate any variables
(can be use for a correlation )

Question 16

target population

Answer 16

the audience a piece of research is generalised to from the sample

Question 17

sample

Answer 17

group of participants that are representative of a target population

Question 18

alternate hypothesis (h1)

Answer 18

there will be a difference.

Question 19

null hypothesis (h0)

Answer 19

there is no difference

Question 20

one tailed hypothesis

Answer 20

iv-dv-iv directional ( one will be higher/less than the other iv )

Question 21

two-tailed hypothesis

Answer 21

there will/will not be a difference
non-directional

Question 22

extraneous variable

Answer 22

something that is not the iv but
CAN affect the dv through lack of control.

Question 23

confounding variable

Answer 23

something that not an iv but DOES affect the dv through lack of control

Question 24

types of extraneous variables

Answer 24

individual differences( age, gender, culture)
situational variables ( environment )

Question 25

conditions and two types?

Answer 25

'groups of IV ' control , experimental

Question 26

repeated measures ( +/-) (within groups)

Answer 26

same participants used in all conditions +- any changes in conditions are likely due to IV not participant less individual differences -- more chance of demand characteristics/order effects

Question 27

independent measures (+/-) (between groups)

Answer 27

participants only take part in one condition +-task variable, less chance of order effects/ demand characteristics -- more individual differences any change to condition is more likely due to participant variables

Question 28

matched pairs measure (+/-)

Answer 28

recruit participants and match them based on characteristics +- individual differences controlled for -- time consuming (have to be observed/tested before matching)

Question 29

opportunity sampling (+/-)

Answer 29

researcher chooses the most convenient people to the study. +- easiest, less time to locate sample. -- biased sample as selected from limited geographical areas, not very representative.

Question 30

random sampling (+/-)

Answer 30

every member in target population ahs equal chance of being chosen as names are pulled out a hat. +- no bias as all have equal chance -- difficult and time consuming, representative sample not guaranteed.

Question 31

snowball sampling (+/-)

Answer 31

researcher selects a person then they ask the person if they know anyone willing to take part within the target population. process continues. +- possible to include members where no lists/identifiable clusters exists eg. criminals who aren't easy to access. -- biased as sample drawn from small part of target population

Question 32

self-selecting sampling (+/-)

Answer 32

people will volunteer themselves to take part in the research. +- gives a wide range of ppts, convenient, ethical as leads to informed consent. -- unrepresentative as leads to bias sample because they won't respond unless they have an interest so may lead to demand characteristics.

Question 33

What is nominal data

Answer 33

Categorical data- frequency table eh number of … A questionnaire with closed questions so generally a number of how many times something has occurred. Usually a smaller table

Question 34

What is a +/- of nominal data and what measure of central tendency is it ?

Answer 34

The mode: +- Quickest, easy to generate from closed questions, increase reliability. - - superficial

Question 35

What is a +/- of ordinal data and what measure of central tendency is it ?

Answer 35

Median : +- more info, takes into account anomalies - -time consuming

Question 36

What is ordinal data

Answer 36

Scale: data ranked or ordered form biggest to smallest, usually a bigger table

Question 37

What is interval data

Answer 37

The divisions are equal and fixed like time, weight ,height ,temperature.

Question 38

What is a +/- of interval data and what measure of central tendency is it

Answer 38

Mean : +-Scientific, comparable, more reliable - - abstract method may not use a fixed measure, anomalous result may affect results significantly.

Question 39

What is level of significance ( what%)

Answer 39

This determines whether we accept or reject the null hypothesis. Our results will have an observed value that we compare to the criptic value that we don’t calculate(95%) If the probability is less than or equal to 0.05 (95% confident ) we accept the null. The 5% may be fluke or extraneous variables.

Question 40

what ethical considerations come under the principle: respect.

Answer 40

confidentiality, right to withdraw, informed consent, equality- gender, ethnicity.

Question 41

what ethical considerations come under the principle: competence (the ability to do something successfully )

Answer 41

no ethical issue but it is about professionalism, recognising ethical issues, peer review.

Question 42

what ethical considerations come under the principle: responsibility

Answer 42

psychological harm ,debriefing

Question 43

what ethical considerations come under the principle: integrity ( the quality of being honest)

Answer 43

deception, inappropriate relationship

Question 44

what is an open question (+/-)

Answer 44

no pre-determined response, can express opinion so we find out why. discuss, outline, why. +- high in construct validity- detail -- hard to analyse and spot trends/patterns.

Question 45

what are closed questions (+/-)

Answer 45

pre-determined response (include answer in example) +- easy to analyse and interpret -- don't find out why so lacks construct validity.

Question 46

what is a Likert scale and what does it do.

Answer 46

how far do you agree/ disagree. gain opinion and numbers.

Question 47

what is a rating scale and what does it do.

Answer 47

on a scale of eg. 1-5 numbers only.

Question 48

what is a semantic differential scale and what does it does.

Answer 48

opposing adjectives. usually moved electronically. flexible dynamic scale- opinion. eg. l11l11l

Question 49

strengths and weaknesses of questionnaires

Answer 49

+- quicker with a large sample- more consistent more ethical as is kept confidential, increases reliability- split half method -- social desirability greater chance of leading questions- low construct

Question 50

strengths and weaknesses of interviews

Answer 50

+- less chance of social desirability. -- less ethical as they see them and take a name so isn't confidential. -- takes longer with a large sample.

Question 51

what is a structured interview (+/-)

Answer 51

pre-determined set of questions in professional environment. +- more reliable- asked the same questions- can use split half -- more chance of social desirability. hard to analyse

Question 52

what is an unstructured interview (+/-)

Answer 52

no pre-determined set of questions it can be like a conversation. +- less chance of social desirability. -- more detail - follow interests. -- less reliable, hard to analyse.

Question 53

what is a semi-structured interview (+/-)

Answer 53

some pre-determined questions but some relation to conversation. +- more detail but is reliable as there is some consistency making it valid. -- social desirability.

Question 54

what is a strength of interviews

Answer 54

people can ask if they are confused.

Question 55

what is meant by validity

Answer 55

how trustworthy the procedure is . does the research set out to measure what it was meant to measure.

Question 56

what is internal validity

Answer 56

look how specifically in the study behaviour was measured.

Question 57

what is external validity

Answer 57

(generalisability) outside of the study where we can generalise it to.

Question 58

what is face validity (in)

Answer 58

does something look like it will measure what it is supposed to.

Question 59

what is construct validity (in)

Answer 59

does the measure relate to assumed characteristics of what is being assessed.

Question 60

what is concurrent validity (in)

Answer 60

one test correlates well with a measure that's previously been tested.

Question 61

what is criterion validity (in)

Answer 61

to extent to which a measure can predict the performance or behaviour of measured thing.

Question 62

what is ecological validity (EX)

Answer 62

whether it generalises to a real world environment outside of the study. external is high in mundane realism- in the middle can argue both.

Question 63

what is population validity (EX)

Answer 63

is the sample representative of wider target population. beliefs.

Question 64

what is reliability

Answer 64

how consistent a piece of research is. can you get the same again ?

Question 65

what is internal reliability

Answer 65

high levels of control in the study as things are kept the same- standardisation.

Question 66

what is external reliability

Answer 66

is their consistency outside of the study at different times/places.

Question 67

what is inter-rater reliability

Answer 67

two or more people agree on the results of the research. consensus of average 0.8

Question 68

what do you get with high and low levels of control

Answer 68

high- extraneous variables. low- demand characteristics/ less natural behaviour.

Question 69

ways of getting high/low levels of internal reliability

Answer 69

high- lab experiment, controlled/covert observation, questionnaire eg .same questions, structured interview low- observation, self-report - can't be the same if repeated as is opinion.

Question 70

ways of getting high/low levels of external reliability

Answer 70

high- big samples- more consistent as can replicate more people. low- time differences (longitudinal) attrition affect?

Question 71

what is the split half method

Answer 71

comes from self-report. two halves of questions are similar so we can assume the test is reliable. eg. asking a repeat question but wording it differently

Question 72

what is the test-reset method

Answer 72

experiment test them more than once eg. start/end of month to see if attitudes are different.

Question 73

what are type 1 errors

Answer 73

false positive we accept the alternate but should have accepted the null rather than rejecting it. we assume results were down to iv but it was down to chance this may be because the p-value is to lenient like p<0.10

Question 74

what are type 11 errors

Answer 74

false negative we reject the alternate when we should have accepted it. assume results were down to chance but they were down to IV. this may be because p-value is to stringent (tight/strict) but sometimes this is necessary in the medical industry.

Question 75

what is meant by hypothesis testing

Answer 75

predicting if the manipulation of the isolated variables will affect the DV. if there is a difference predicted- alternative hypothesis, prediction of no difference is null hypothesis directional - one tailed , non-directional - two tailed

Question 76

what is meant by falsification

Answer 76

find something to refute theory - argue against it - prove there theory wrong e.g. Freud - unfalsifiable as he looks for behaviour to support theory

Question 77

what is meant by induction

Answer 77

scientific reasoning - observing a behaviour to then make a theory after tentative hypothesis was made to develop theory to undergo further empirical investigation

Question 78

what are examples of cultural, individual and social diversity factors

Answer 78

individual- age/gender/height/weight/disposition/ ethnicity social- class, societal roles e.g. job role/sector culture- values, country, morals