Research Methods Flashcards
What is an aim?
A statement of what the researcher intends to find out in a research study
What does operationalize mean?
Turning an abstract conceptual idea into a measurable unit
What is an independent variable?
The characteristic of an experiment that is manipulated or changed by researchers, not by the other variables in the experiment
What is a dependent variable?
The variable that is being measured or tested in an experiment
What is a hypothesis?
A precise, testable statement of what the researchers predict will be the outcome of the study.
What is a null hypothesis?
It states that there is no relationship between the variables being studied
What is a target population?
The population that a study is intended to research and to which generalisations from samples are to be made
What is a sampling frame?
The population that the researcher is interested in
What is opportunity sampling?
When you use people who are available at the time for a study
What is systematic sampling?
When you select every nth person from a list to be your participant
What is stratified sampling?
A method of sampling that involves the division of a population into smaller sub groups known as strata
What is quota sampling?
Researchers make sub populations that reflect proportions of the target population and participants are allocated to the sub populations through opportunity sampling
What is self selected sampling?
Respondents choose whether to take part
What is snowball sampling?
A recruitment technique in which research participants are asked to assist researchers in identifying other potential subjects
What is time sampling?
During observation, you record data or behaviour at a time interval e.g. once every 30 seconds
What is Internal Reliability?
It refers to the consistency of the measuring tool
What is event sampling?
During observation, it is when you record data every time a certain event happens e.g. make a tally for every time someone drinks
What is an overt observation?
When participants know they are being observed
What is a covert observation?
When participants don’t know they are being observed
What is participant observation?
When the observer becomes a part of the study and acts as a participant themselves
What is non-participant observation?
When the observer isn’t a part of the study and doesn’t act as a participant
What is a naturalistic observation
When the observation is taken place in a natural environment
What is a controlled observation?
It is when some variables are controlled by the researcher in an artificial environment
What is a lab experiment?
Laboratory experiments are a research method by which researchers create controllable environments to test hypotheses
What is a field experiment?
It is an experiment that takes place in a real world setting
Evaluate Lab Experiments
Low ecological validity
Standardised procedures
Demand Characteristics
What is a confounding variable
A variable that isn’t of interest but effects the outcome and that can’t be controlled
What is mean?
When you add all the numbers together and divide by the amount there are
What is median
When you line up all the numbers in order from lowest to highest and pick the number in the middle
What is mode
The number with the highest frequency
