Research Methods Flashcards
What are the advantages of a case study:?
Can go into depth & detail
Can examine rare phenomenon
Can study phenomena which would be unethical in other experimental designs
What are the disadvantages of a case study:?
Usually a small grp studied thus not easily generalisable
Time consuming
Cause & effect may be unclear because of real world situation
Researcher Bias may occur
What are the advantages of a controlled experiment?
Can identify cause & effect
May be generalised if valid
Experimenters have a high degree of control
What are the disadvantages of a controlled experiment?
Open to experimenter effect
Time consuming
Expensive
Artificial setting
May be unethical or impossible to control on a certain variable
What are the advantages of a correlational study
Real world setting
Can give insight & direction for future research
What are the disadvantages of a correlational study
Cannot determine cause & effect
May be subject to extraneous variables
Bidirectional
What are the advantages of a simulation?
Allows researchers to view hard-to- see phenomena in detail.
What are the disadvantages of a simulation?
Expensive
Time consuming
What are the disadvantages of psychological modelling?
May oversimplify reality
Needs lot of data
May not apply to real life situations
What is accuracy?
how close a measurement is to the true value of the quantity being measured
What is validity?
the extent to which psychological tools and investigations truly support their findings
or conclusions
What are the advantages of Fieldwork?
Depth / Detail
Lots Data
Can be over a long period
What are the disadvantages of Fieldwork?
Questionnaires prone to bias
Time consuming & Expensive
Qualitative data hard to summarise
What are the advantages of a literature review?
Provides an overview of research
Can uncover patterns & gaps
Can identify good/bad methodologies
What are the disadvantages
of a literature review?
May be subject to selection bias
Time consuming
Usefulness depends on quantity of research
What are the advantages of psychological classification?
Common Language
Simplify complex issues
May provide a sense of belonging to people with similar conditions
What does BIll JNR stand for?
Ethical Concepts :
Beneficence
Integrity
ll
Justice
Non-Maleficence
Respect
What does WICkeD DiVa stand for?
Ethical Guidelines :
Withdrawal Rights
Informed consent
Confidentiality
ke
Deception
Debriefing
i
Voluntary Participation
a
What are the disadvantages of psychological classification?
Can oversimplify conditions
May lead to bias & stereotyping
What are the advantages of psychological modelling?
Simplify complex situations
Explains unobservable events
Can be used where otherwise unsafe
What is precision?
how closely a set of measurement values agree with each other
What is Repeatability?
the extent to which successive measurements or studies produce the same results when carried out under identical conditions within a short period of time
What is Reproducibility?
the extent to which successive measurements or studies produce
the same results
when repeated under different conditions
What does True value mean?
the value, or range of values, that would be found if the quantity could be measured perfectly
What are the two types of validity?
Internal and External validity
Internal Validity is
the extent to which
an investigation truly measures or investigates what it claims to
External validity is
the extent to which the results of an investigation can be applied to similar individuals in different settings
What is Beneficence?
The commitment to maximising benefits and minimising the risks and harms involved in taking a particular position or course of action
What is Integrity?
the commitment to searching for knowledge and the honest reporting
of all results, whether favourable or unfavourable, in ways that permit scrutiny and contribute to public knowledge and understanding
What is Justice?
the moral obligation to ensure that there is fair consideration of competing claims; that there is no unfair burden on a particular group from an action; and that there is fair distribution and access to the benefits of an action
What is Non-maleficence?
the principle of avoiding causing harm
What is Respect?
Explain the concept of Confidentiality ?
The privacy, protection and security of a participant’s personal information ie anonymity
of individual results,
Explain the concept of Debriefing:.
a procedure that ensures that, at the end of the experiment, the participant leaves understanding the experimental aim, results and conclusions
Explain the concept of Informed consent
processes that ensure participants understand the nature and purpose of the experiment, including potential
risks (both physical and psychological), before agreeing to partic
Explain the concept of Use of deception in research
the act of intentionally misleading participants about the true nature of a study or procedure
Explain the concept of Use of Voluntary participation:
a principle that ensures there is no coercion
or pressure put on the participant to partake in an experiment, and they freely choose to be involved
Explain the concept of Withdrawal rights:
he right of participants to be able to discontinue their involvement in
an experiment at any time during, or after
the conclusion of, an experiment without penalty
Explain the concept of Random errors:
errors in data that are unsystematic and
occur due to chance
Explain the concept of Systematic errors:.
errors in data that differ from the true value by a consistent amount
Explain the concept of Uncertainty:
the lack of exact knowledge relating to something being measured due to potential sources of variation in knowledge
What is an Outlier?
a value that differs significantly from other values in a data set
What is an Independent Variable
the variable which is manipulated or changed by the researcher,
and the variable that is assumed to have a direct effect on the dependent variable (I change)
What is a Dependent Variable?
the variable the researcher measures in an experiment for changes (Data)
What an Extraneous variable?
any variable that is not the independent variable but may cause an unwanted effect on the dependent variable
What a confounding variable?
a variable that has directly and systematically affected the dependent variable, apart from the independent variable
What is Experimenter Bias?
Unintentional actions that may occur in the collection and treatment of data.
What is the Placebo Effect
where the participants behavioural responses may be influenced by their expectations on how they believe they should behave.
What is the Double-Blind Procedure? when is it used?
Neither the experimenter nor the participants know whether they are in the control or experimental
To control for experimenter bias.
What is the Single-Blind Procedure
Either experimenter OR participants (generally participant) know whether they are in the control or experimental
What are the 4 components of a hypothesis?
IV
DV
Population
Direction
What are the advantages of Convenience Sampling?
Sample is biased.
Unreliable.
Quick, easy, cheap and convenient!
What are the advantages of random sampling?
Each member of population has EQUAL chance of being chosen.
Gives a representative sample.
Difficult to achieve with large populations.
What is stratified sampling and what are the dis/advantages of it?
Dividing population into distinctive sub-groups, then selecting a separate sample from each sub-group in the same proportions as they occur in the population
Easy to claim the sample is representative of the general population but is time consuming and expensive
What are the advantages and disadvantages of within subjects designs
ADVANTAGES:
Eliminates participant differences
Fewer participants needed
DISADVANTAGES:
Dropouts
Order/boredom/practice effect
What are the advantages and disadvantages of between subjects designs
ADVANTAGES:
quick and easy
cost effective
few dropouts
DISADVANTAGES:
doesn’t control individual participant differences
What is the difference between within and between subject designs
In within subjects designs participants complete every experimental condition
In between subjects designs individuals are divided into different groups and complete only one experimental condition
