research methods Flashcards
what are the 4 main stages of an experiment
theory, prediction, experimental, observation
what is an aim
a general statement of what the researchers intend to find out in a research study
what is a hypothesis
precise testable statement about the assumed relationship between variables
when is directional hypothesis used
when there is previous research
what are the 2 types of hypothesis
directional and non directional
what is a directional hypothesis
a hypothesis that states there will be a change and the direction in which the results are expected to go
what is a non directional hypothesis
a hypothesis that predicts that there will be a change but not the direction of the change
what is a null hypothesis
a hypothesis that no significant difference exists
what is an independent variable
a characteristic of an experiment that is changed (2 or more ‘conditions /groups)
what is a dependent variable
variable that is being measured
what is operationalisation
clearly defining the variables in terms of how they can be
measured
what is an extraneous variable
any variable other than the is IV that affects the DV if not controlled
what are extraneous variables divided into
demand characteristics, investigator effects, participant variables, situational variables
what are demand characteristics
participant knows aim of research so changes behaviour
what are investigator effects
any affect of the researchers behaviour on the outcomes of the research
what are participant variables
individual differences, eg IQ
what are situational variables
any features of the experimental situation
eg: noise
what are two ways psychologists can control extraneous variables
standardisation, randomisation
what is standardisation
using exactly the same procedures and instructions for all participants
what is randomisation
the use of chance to control bias eg names out hat
what is mundane realism
how an experiment mirrors the real world
what is an extraneous variable
any variable that effects the DV that isn’t the IV
what are examples of experimental design
repeated measures, independent groups, matched pairs
what is repeated measures
there is only one group of participants that takes part in both conditions
what are strengths of repeated measures
no participant variables and people are the same
what are the limitations of repeated measures
they know the IV, may work out the experiment and change behaviour ( demand characteristics) may get tired or bored or practiced( order effects)
what is it called when the participants knows the experiment and changes their behaviour because of this
demand characteristics
what is it called when the participant repeats the experiment and gets bored or gets practice
order effects
how do you deal with the limitations of repeated measures
counter balancing - ABBA
half do A then B
other half to B then A
what is the name of the process making half the group to each condition in a different order
counter balancing
what is independent groups
there are two separate groups of participants. one group takes part in condition A and the other in condition B
what are the strengths of independent groups
they don’t know about the other IV, less demand characteristics, both IVs can be done at the same time( time effective), no order effects
what are the limitations of independent groups
participant variables, may be very different to less accurate results
how do you deal with the limitations caused by independent groups ?
try to make sure independent groups are as similar to each other as possible or randomly allocate ( names from a hat) reduces bias
what is matched pairs
there are two separate groups but this time they are matched in pairs for certain qualities. one group takes part in condition A and one takes part in condition B
what is a strength of matched pairs
it decreases the amount of participant variables, less demand characteristics, no order effects
what are the limitations of matched pairs
not all participant variables are gone,difficult and takes a long time
how do you deal with the limitations of matched pairs
conduct a pilot study ( small scale trial of main study) to consider key variables to match
what type of experimental design causes order effects
repeated measures
what are order effects
practice effects might occur or fatigue
what experimental design does counterbalancing take place in
repeated measures
what is counterbalancing
half of participants participate in condition A then B and the other half do B then A means the first and second condition is not the same for everyone
what is random allocation
when participants are assigned to condition A or B randomly ( names out of a hat )
what experimental design uses random allocation
independent groups
what are the 4 types of experiment
laboratory, field, natural, quasi
what is a laboratory experiment and what are the features
experiment done in a lab, controlled artificial environment, IV is manipulated by researches to observe effects on DV, Extraneous variables are controlled, standardised procedure, scientific, objective- free from bias
what is objectivity
free from bias
what is an example of a lab experiment
milgram- Yale uni, IV: authority figure
DV: whether participants where obedient to authority figure
65% of ppts administered 450 volts
strengths of lab experiment
reliable- can be repeated
free from bias
high internal validity
EVs controlled
high degree of control
weakness of lab experiment
artificial environment- lacks realism/ external validity
demand characteristics
investigator effects
what is a field experiment and what are the main factors
an experiment in an everyday setting, IV is manipulated and DV is observed, other variables difficult to control, behaviour is more natural, subjects generally unaware, can not establish cause + effect
what is an example of a feild experiment
bickman- social power of uniform
IV: uniform worn
DV: level of obedience
strengths of field experiments
participants unaware- less demand characteristics
increases realism
more research opportunities
weaknesses of field experiments
more EVs
lower internal validity
low reliability
ethical isssues- no consent
what is a natural experiment and what are the main factors of it
researcher has not chained the IV, had happened naturally and researchers look at it, used when it is not practical or ethical to manipulate IV
what is an example of a natural experiment
comparing adopted children with biological parents
bank robbery experience and memory
strengths of natural experiment
high realism
research opportunities where it would not be ethically possible
weaknesses of natural experiments
low internal validity
participant variables
lack of research opportunities
what is a quasi experiment
conducted when the IV is based on existing differences between people, not really experiment
what is an example of a quasi experiment
mental illnesses or phobias
what is reliability
being repeatable, different researchers using same methods to obtain same results ( consistent)
what is validity
(truthful) does the experiment measure what it said it was supposed to ? ( genuine)
what is internal validity
whether the effects of the experiment is due to IV and not other factors- internal validity is high when EVs are controlled
what is external validity
whether it can be generalised to the outside world ( realism ) not artificial
what is target population
the whole group that you are studying eg everyone in your year group
what is a sample frame
a list of everyone in the population. eg list of everyone in year group
what is a sample
the group of people taken from the sampling frame with whom you actually do the research. eg 1 person in every 10 from year group
what is cross-sectional
if a sample is cross sectional then it means it will be made up of a range of different people to best represent the research population
what is generalisation
results from the study can be applied to the whole of the research population
what is representative
when data can be said to accurately represent the research population in terms ofc, for example, gender and age
what is random sampling
due to chance not bias, every member of the population had an equal chance of being chosen, eg names from a hat or number generator
what are positives of random sampling
can be representative for large samples, no bias
what are negatives of random sampling
not representative for small samples, time consuming
what is opportunity sampling
when the researcher samples whoever is available at the time and willing to be studied
what are the 5 types of sampling
random, opportunity, volunteer, stratified/quota, systematic
what are the positives of opportunity sampling
economical and quick
what are the negatives of opportunity sampling
might not be representative, could be bias- people picked
what is volunteer sampling
when people actively volunteer by responding to a request which has been advertised by the researcher( in a newspaper for example) the researcher can then select those who are suitable
what are positives of volunteer sampling
consent( more ethical)
what are the negatives of volunteer sampling
only volunteer if interested( bias) , not representative( many will not see advert), bias because researcher can select
what is stratified/ quota sampling
classify the population into categories/subgroups and then choose a sample which consists of participants from each category. equal numbers are selected from a grouping. more of a group in a population so more of that group in sample. mathematically worked out
what are positives of stratified/quota sampling
representative
what are negatives of stratified/quota
time consuming
what is systematic sampling
researcher numbers participants in a sampling frame and then picks their participants at a set interval, for example picking every 5th person
what does the british psychological society do
it has a code that all researchers must stick to when conducting experiments . it is their professional duty to follow them and if they don’t they may lose reputation or career
what is a cost benefit approach
determine whether the researchers proposals are ethically doubt to go ahead ( comes at what cost)
what is an ethical issue ?
when conflict exists between the rights of participants in research studies and the goal of research to produce authentic, valid and worthwhile results
what are the ethical guidelines key points
confidentiality, deception, consent, debrief, right to withdraw, protection of participants
what is the way to remember ethical guidelines
Can
Do
Cant
Do
With
Participants
confidentiality
deception
consent
debrief
right to withdraw
protection of participants
things to add in a consent form
an overview of experiment( this experiment requires you to)
any possible ethics issues
and name ….
signature….
date….
what is confidentiality
protections of personal information
what is deception
misleading and not telling truth or withholding info- stops demand characteristics
what is consent
an agreement from participant to take part
what is informed consent
information about the study and purpose of it
what is a debrief
after the research- tells them what happened and what the study was for and the results
what is right to withdraw
the participants can leave at any point in the experiment given as part of consent form
what is protection of participants
protecting participants from psychological or physical harm- can not put you in any more harm than real life experience- have to leave the research how you start
how to deal with informed consent
formally agree in writing
debrief after the study offer right to withhold data
how to deal with deception
debrief after - can not stop feelings of shame
how to deal with right to withdraw
emphasis at the beginning and throughout the study remind them
how to deal with protection from harm
avoid risks greater than everyday life
how to deal with confidentiality
no names, numbers
store information securely
how to deal with privacy
do not observe without consent
what are pilot studies
small scale version of an investigation that takes place before real investigation is conducted
what is the aim of a pilot study
checks that procedures materials measuring scales work
what is an example of when a pilot study is used
when using questionnaires or interviews- try out questions in advance and remove or reword some that are confusing
what is single blind
participants not told the aim of the study as well as other details such as which condition they are or if there are conditions at all. not revealed till end ( no demand characteristics)
what is a double blind study
neither the participants or the researchers are aware of the aims of the investigation. investigators can not influence participants behaviour
what is an example of when a double blind experiment is used
drug trials- neither participant or investigator knows which is drug and which is placebo
what is the control group
group that receives the placebo. sets the baseline for the purpose of comparison. if the change is greater in experimental group this is because of the IV
what is quantitive data
data that focuses on numbers and frequencies which can be counted
what is a positive for quantitative data
easy to look for trends and patterns and easy to analyse
what is a negative for quantitative data
lacks detail
what is qualitative data
date that describes meaning and experiences which is expressed in words ( passage of text)
what is a positive of qualitative data
rich in detail and description gives valid picture of what is happening
what are negatives of qualitative data
time consuming and expensive to collect
what is a questionnaire
set of questions designed to collect information about a topic or topics
what are the four different types of questions
open questions, closed questions, likert scales, rating scales
what is an open question
participant can give any answer they wish
what is a closed question
set number of responses which participants selects from
what is a likert scale
a scale of responses to a question often 1-5 demonstrating a level or agreement
what is a rating scale
assess the strength of à participants opinion. must identify a value that represents their strength of feeling 1-10
what is social desirability bias
presenting yourself in a socially acceptable positive light
example of a likert scale
i like this subject
1 2 3 4 5
strongly agree strongly dis
what is a structured interview
interview questionnaires. list of questions that the researchers read out to respondent in a particular order. typically contain closed questions
what is an unstructured interview
the interviewer will have some ideas and topic areas to cover but can ask any questions. makes interviews less formal and more like a conversation
what are the advantages of questionaires with open questions
higher validity- respondents answer as they wish allows for new insights
what are disadvantages of open questions
difficult to analyse and time consuming
what are advantages closed questions
quantitative data
easy to analyse
easier to obtain large sample
easy to replicate
what are disadvantages of closed questions
may not be response that actually accurately represents respondents feeling
what are advantages or structured interviews
easy to repeat
easier to analyse
requires less interview skill
quantatitive data
what are disadvantages of structured interviews
sample size -smaller than questionaires
what are advantages of unstructured interviews
more detailed info
qualititative data
what are disadvantages of unstructured interviews
require skilled interviewer
higher likelihood of interview bias
what are non experimental methods
an method where there is no manipulation of variables
what can not be established in an observation
cause and effect relationships
what are the two ways that observations are used in psychological research
a non experimental method( entire study is an observation) or as part of another research method
what are the 8 sub-types of observations
naturalistic or controlled
structured or unstructured
participant or non participant
overt or covert
what happens in a naturalistic observation
behaviour is studied in a natural situation where everything has been left as it normally is ( eg classroom or shopping centre)
what is a positive of a naturalistic observation
high external validity- realism
what happens in a controlled observation
some variables are controlled by the researcher, reducing the naturalness of the behaviour being studied. ppt likely to know they are being observed and likely to be in lab
what is a positive of a controlled observation
more reliable and easy to repeat
what is the Hawthorne effect
when ppt change behaviour because they know they are being watched - effects external validity (realism)
what is a participant observation and what are the P and N
the observer acts as part of the group
more likely to be bias but can gain more detail
may become attached
what is a non participant observation and the P and N
researcher is detached, the experimenter does not become part of the group being observed (eg cctv cameras ) free from bias but less detail
what is an overt observation
open observation so participant knows they are being observed and why
what is a covert observation
closed- observation is kept secret from the ppts - observer undercover
ethical issues
what is an observational design
now they record observation/data
what are the different types of observational design
unstructured it structured
what is an unstructured observation
making notes as you go along - no system
difficult to repeat or standardise
what is a structured observation
when researchers has a system- uses a coding system to tally the number of times a behaviour occurs and uses sampling procedures to decide what to observe and when
what is a coding system
when behaviour is operationalised by being broken into diff behavioural categories
what are behavioural categories
a sub set of specific and operationalised behaviours
what are the two different sampling procedures
time sampling and event sampling
what is time sampling
list of behaviours but 1 person in 1 time frame
what is event sampling
focuses on one behaviour only tallying that one event - continuous
what is inter observer reliability
makes data recording more objective and unbiased observations are carried out by two researchers at the same time
what are strengths of observation
high realism and external validity
no demand characteristics
may be more accurate and reliable
allows study variables that would be unethical
what are the limitations to observations
in overt- demand characteristics
may be observer bias
sample being observed may not be accurate reflection of everyone
hard to repeat
not much control
how is validity dealt with in observations
further observations in diff settings
more than one observer
double blind so no observer bias
how is reliability dealt with in observations
observations should be consistent
inter observer reliability
coding system
what is peer review
the assessment of scientific work by others who are specialists in the same field, to ensure that any research intended for publication of high quality
what things are considered in peer review
the report is considered in terms of validity ( is the report truthful) , significance ( is it important or with publishing) and originality ( has it been done before)
what is the peer review process
researcher writes paper and submits
editor determines whether article is useful
editor sends to peers who review for quality of research
article returned to editor along with recommendation to reject or not reject article
editor decides
what are the two variables in correlation called
co variables
what is a correlation
a relationship between two variables-
what is a correlation hypothesis
hypothesis that states the expected relationship between co variables ( eg age and beauty are positively correlated)
what are correlation coefficients
a number no bigger than 1
+ or - shows whether it is a positive correlation or negative
number says how closely co variables are related
closer number to 1 means stronger
what is a strong positive correlation: -0.6, +0.2, +0.95
+0.95
when looking at correlation, what is it important to remember
only looks at relationship- no IV or DV
what are advantages of correlation analysis
good beginnings of research
allows for predictions
no manipulation
what are the limitations of correlation analysis
no cause and effect
what is quantitative data
data that focuses on numbers and frequencies that can be counted- easy to obtain and read, objective and free from bias
what is qualitative data
describes meaning and experiences which is expressed in words
more detailed and descriptive
time consuming and difficult to analyse
what type of data to experiments give
quantitative
what kind of data do observations give
qualitative and quantitative
what type of data do self report techniques give
quantitative and qualitative
what type of data do correlations give
quantitative
what is primary data
info that has been obtained first hand by the researcher
what is secondary data
info already collected by someone else so predates the current research often comes from government
positives of primary data
new and relevant
directly relevant
negatives of primary research
time consuming and costly
positives of secondary data
easy to collect and free
negatives of secondary data
could be outdated
features of tables (displaying data)
raw data from findings of a study
measure of central tendency- mean median mode
measure of dispersion- range
along is row down is column
what are the measures of central tendency
mean median and mode
what are the measures of dispersion
range
standard deviation
what are the features of a bar chart
discreet
data in categories
height of each bar is frequency
spaces between bars
what are the features of histograms
data is continuous - no spaces between bars
eg weather and temps
what are the features of a line graph
continuous
lines connect points to show how something changes
what are the features of scattergrams
co variables
representation of the association between 2 co variables
what are advantages of correlation analysis
good beginnings of research
allows predictions to be made
no manipulation
what are the disadvantages of correlation analysis
no cause and effect
extraneous relationships
what are the 3 types of distribution
normal, negatively skewed and positively skewed
what are the features of a normal distribution
bell curve
mean median mode same or very similar
symmetrical spread of data
what are the features of negatively skewed distribution
left foot
mean lowest
median little
mode much higher
no longer symmetrical
factors of positively skewed distribution
right foot
mean is the most
mode is the lowest
data not symmetrical
what is standard deviation
tells how varied ppts scored are
small dev- similar
large dev- variation
what is one tailed
directional- one way it could go
what are the three things the sign test is used for
to test difference
repeated measures
nominal data ( sorted into categories)
what does the probability have to be in the sign test
0.05
what things do you need to use the sign test table
the significance level (0.05)
the number of ppts ( minus any 0s)
whether it is one tailed or two tailed
if the calculated value is the same or less than the s value it is significant
how do you find the calculated value in the sign test
count up the + and - and then take the smallest number
what is peer review
the assessment of scientific work by others who are specialists in the same feild
what is the purpose and aims of peer review
report considered in terms of validity, significance and originality
what is the process of peer review
researcher writes a paper + submits
editor determines whether it is useful
peers review it
editor
published
what is content analysis
A research at all used to determine the presence of certain words themes or concepts within qualitative data
What are the strengths of content analysis
produces large data set easy to analyse
Less time consuming
Easy to replicate
What are the limitations of content analysis
observer bias- however this can be prevented using inter observer reliability
Interpretive bias as research and may ignore some things and pay more attention to others
How do you conduct content analysis
researcher reads through and examines the data
Identifies coding units
Data is analysed and coding units are applied
Tally is made up of the number of times coding unit appears
What are the main features of a science
Control- standardised procedures and control of EV and IV
Objectivity- research it is detached and there is no bias or influence
Replicability - can be repeated
Empirical - evidence to prove ideas
What are the stages of an inductive approach
observations
Testable hypothesis
Conduct study to test hypothesis
Draw conclusion
Proposed theory
what are the stages of a deductive approach
Observation
Proposed theory
testable hypothesis
Conduct study
Draw conclusion
What is hypothesis testing
Where theories are modified and it tests the validity of the theory
What is falsification
The idea that theory cannot be true or considered scientific unless it allows itself to be proven untrue
Successful theories constantly tested and never wrong
What is a paradigm and paradigm shift
Paradigm is the way of thinking and methods of studying commonly accepted this changes due to evidence to another way of thinking and this is called the shift
What is a case study
An in-depth investigation description and analysis of a single individual group institution or event
What are the strengths of case studies
research were not ethically possible
Tests hypothesis
Creates new hypothesis
Rich in depth and detail
what are the negatives of case studies
Not generalisable
No control of a variables
Research bias as they build a relationship
Ethical issues
What are the positives and negatives of mean
use of all values
Good for interval data
Influenced by outliers
What are the positives and negatives of the median
not affected by outliers
Good for ordinal data
Not as sensitive as mean
what are the strengths and limitations of the mode
Useful for nominal data
Not useful when there are several modes
what are the steps of reporting psychological investigations
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Methods
Results
Discussion
References
what is the title for in a psychological investigation
States the topic of the report
Informative so they understand what it is about before reading on
What is the abstract of a psychological investigation
summary of all the key details of the research report
People can read to know whether the research study is worth examining
What is the introduction in a psychological investigation
Information of past research on similar topic that relevant theories and studies are mentioned
What is in the method section of psychological investigations
A description of what the researcher exactly did when they undertook the study
In enough detail so anyone reading could replicate
What are the results of psychological investigations for
all the findings presented even with inferential and descriptive statistics
what is the discussion part of the psychological investigation
Considers what the findings exactly meant for us and other psychological theories
What are the references for at the end of a psychological investigation
List of all the sources that were quoted or referred to in the report
what is anonymity in peer review and what are the two types
- processs of keeping the author and reviewers anonymous during review
- keeping it free from bias
- single bind- author doesn’t know the identity of reviewers - reviewers can give honest feedback without feeling consequences
- double bind- both remain anonymous to each other to eliminate bias
what is publication bias in peer review
- the tendency for positive or significant findings being more frequently published than more negative results
- can discourage researchers from submitting negative studies
what is maintaining the status quo in peer review
- tendency to favour established theories
- prefer research that supports existing widely accepted theories
- harder for research that challenges to gain acceptance
what is level of significance
how sure we are about correlation or difference existing
if it is significant
reject null hypothesis
level of significance is 0.05
what is a type 1 error
OPTIMISTIC
incorrect rejection of the null hypothesis
claims significance when there is not one
what is a type 2 error
TOO STRICT
failure to reject the null hypothesis
claims there is no significance when there is
