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Pyschology > Research Methods > Flashcards

Research Methods Flashcards

1
Q

Alternative Hypothesis

A

Predicts a relationship between the IV and the DV
(there will be a difference…)

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2
Q

Null hypothesis

A

Predicts no correlation or difference between the IV and the DV. Any relationship will be due to chance alone.

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3
Q

One-tailed Hypothesis

A

Directional

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4
Q

Two-tailed Hypothesis

A

Non-directional

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5
Q

Laboratory Experiment

A

An experiment conducted in a researcher-controlled environment

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6
Q

Field Experiment

A

An experiment conducted in a participants natural environment

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7
Q

What are the three experimental designs?

A

independent groups
repeated measures
matched pairs

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8
Q

natural experiment

A

an experiment that investigates a naturally-occurring IV

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9
Q

Pros of lab experiments

A

can determine causality
can control extraneous variables

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10
Q

cons of lab experiments

A

low ecological validity
demand characteristics

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11
Q

pros of field experiments

A

high ecological validity
no demand characteristics

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12
Q

cons of field experiments

A

ethical issues (consent)
can’t determine causality
can’t control extraneous variables

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13
Q

pros of independent groups

A

no order effects
less demand characteristics

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14
Q

cons of independent groups

A

individual differences (participant variables)
more ppts to recruit (compared to repeated measures)

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15
Q

pros of repeated measures

A

no individual differences
less ppts to recruit (than matched pairs and independent groups)

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16
Q

cons of repeated measures

A

order effects
demand characteristics

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17
Q

pros of matched pairs

A

no individual differences
no order effects
less demand characteristics

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18
Q

cons of matched pairs

A

more ppts to recruit (than repeated measures)
time consuming —> ppt retention

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19
Q

what is nominal measurement?

A
  • the number of ppts falling into various categories (eg. big-small, man-woman)
  • ppts can only belong to one category at a time (can move from one to the other)
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20
Q

what is ordinal measurement?

A
  • can be numbers or words
  • can be placed in rank order (hot, hotter, hottest)
  • data has unequal intervals (may be based on personal interpretation)
  • categories are subjective
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21
Q

what is interval measurement?

A
  • scores are on a linear scale (like ordinal, rank order)
  • data has equal intervals (can only be numbers)
  • categories are objective
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22
Q

what is ratio measurement?

A
  • has equal intervals
  • has real zero (scale starts at zero, although may not be possible to score)
  • examples: height, cm, kg, bpm
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23
Q

what is a type one error?

A
  • the level of significance is too lenient
  • a true null hypothesis is rejected
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24
Q

what is a type two error?

A
  • the level of significance is too stringent
  • false null hypothesis is accepted
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25
Q

what is research validity?

A

whether or not the research is testing what it claims to be testing
- external: findings are generalisable to other situations
- internal: the extent to which the experiment measured what it set out to

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26
Q

what is research reliability?

A

the consistency of the reasearch
- external: consistency of results when related on same ppts over period of time and on other ppts
- internal: consistency within research

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27
Q

what is inter-rate reliability?

A

scores of two or more of the research team are compared for consistency (eg. 8/10 match is 80% inter-rate reliability)
(internal reliability)

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28
Q

what is the split half method?

A

question is asked in first half of test, repeated in second half with different wording (should produce same result)
(internal reliability)

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29
Q

what is test re-test?

A

same test is administered twice at two different points of time; compared for consistency with statistical analysis; should be no significant difference in results
(external reliability)

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30
Q

what is face validity?

A

intuitive measurement - do the findings and conclusions make sense?
(internal validity)

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31
Q

what is content validity?

A

content of a test represents area of interest (involves bringing in an expert of the field)

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32
Q

what are the sections of a psychological report?

A
  • abstract
  • introduction
  • method
  • results
  • discussion
  • references
  • appendices
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33
Q

what is a CAT scan?

A
  • computed axial tomography
  • series of x-rays combined to make a 2-or-3 dimensional picture of scanned area
  • dye often injected into patient
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34
Q

what are the pros of a CAT scan?

A
  • reveal abnormal structures in the brain (eg. tumours)
  • higher image quality than traditional x-rays
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35
Q

what are the cons of a CAT scans?

A
  • requires more radiation than traditional x-rays
  • only provides structural information
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36
Q

what is an MRI scan?

A
  • magnetic response imaging
  • use of magnetic field (brain atoms change alignment when radio is on, emit radio signals when off)
  • signals read by detector, brain structure is mapped
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37
Q

what is a functional MRI (fMRI)?

A

provides anatomical and functional information - repeated images taken of brain in action

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38
Q

what are the pros of MRI’s?

A
  • more detailed image of brain soft tissue (than CAT)
  • less radiation; suited for when examination must be undergone several times
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39
Q

what are the cons of MRI’s?

A
  • takes a long time
  • can be uncomfortable for patients
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40
Q

what are PET scans?

A
  • positron emission tomography
  • slightly radioactive glucose administered to patient
  • brains most active areas use glucose; radioactive areas of brain detected, created a picture of brain activity
  • between 10-40 minutes and is painless
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41
Q

what are the pros of PET scans?

A
  • reveals otherwise unavailable chemical information
  • shows brain in action
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42
Q

what are the cons of PET scans?

A
  • costly; not easily available for research
  • patient must be injected with radioactive substance; can only be used a few times
  • less precise than MRI
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43
Q

what is the IV?

A

independent variable - what we manipulate

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44
Q

what is the DV?

A

dependent variable - what we measure

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45
Q

what are co-variables?

A

related variables

46
Q

what is the correlation co-efficient?

A

the statistical significance of a correlation

47
Q

what are extraneous variables?

A
  • may affect the IV, participants are affected differently
  • should be controlled or eliminated
48
Q

what is an experiment?

A

where the IV is manipulated (by the researcher)

49
Q

what is a naturalistic observation?

A

takes place in ppts natural environment

50
Q

what is a controlled observation?

A

takes place in an artificial setting

51
Q

what is a covert observation?

A

ppts unaware of observation

52
Q

what is an overt observation?

A

ppts aware of observation

53
Q

what is a ppt observation?

A

researcher/observer is involved in situation being observed

54
Q

what is non-ppt observation?

A

researcher/observer not involved in situation being observed

55
Q

what is event sampling?

A

recording how many times a particular event occurs

56
Q

what is time sampling?

A

behaviour is recorded at regular intervals

57
Q

what is content analysis and what is it used for?

A
  • it is the analysis of qualitative data
  • it is used to turn qualitative data into quantitative data
58
Q

what is a questionnaire?

A

a standardised list of questions given to ppts

59
Q

what is a structured interview?

A

composed of standardised, pre-set questions

60
Q

what is an unstructured interview?

A

has spontaneous, unstructured discussion

61
Q

what are the pros of content analysis?

A
  • easy, quick
  • allows statistical analysis due to production of quantitative data
62
Q

what are the cons of content analysis?

A
  • cannot determine causally
  • cannot draw conclusions
63
Q

what is a correlational study?

A

the study of a systematic association between two continuous variables

64
Q

what is a case study?

A

detailed investigations into a person, group of people or event

65
Q

what are the pros of case studies?

A
  • produces detailed qualitative data
  • allows for otherwise impractical or unethical investigations
66
Q

what are the cons of case studies?

A
  • low ecological validity
  • researcher bias
67
Q

what is a longitudinal study?

A

research conducted over a long period of time (in order to observe long-term effects)

68
Q

what are the pros of longitudinal studies?

A
  • controls ppt variables
  • can study change in a person over a period of time
69
Q

what are the cons of longitudinal studies?

A
  • attrition (samples can end up biased or too small)
  • order effects and demand characteristics
  • expensive
70
Q

what is a cross-sectional study?

A

study involving groups of people who do not share the variable of interest, but do share other relevant variables (studies cross-sections of society)

71
Q

what is a self-report method?

A

ppts provide information about themselves

72
Q

what are the pros of online research?

A
  • reach a wide range of people
  • quick and easy
73
Q

what is a con of online research?

A
  • cannot confirm information offered—> potentially skewed results (cannot guarantee validity of results)
74
Q

what is a target population?

A

the population you wish to research/pull your sample from

75
Q

what is a sample population?

A

the people you have in your sample (from your target population)

76
Q

what is random sampling?

A

each ppt has an equal chance of selection/is chosen randomly

77
Q

what is a pro of random sampling?

A
  • unbiased (each ppt has equal chance of selection)
78
Q

what are the cons of random sampling?

A
  • can be time-consuming (must list all target population)
  • can be a non-representative sample (by chance)
79
Q

what is systematic sampling?

A

the use of a pre-determined system to select ppts (form of random sampling)

80
Q

what is a pro of systematic sampling?

A
  • unbiased (selection made with objective system)
81
Q

what are the cons of systematic sampling?

A
  • starting number must be randomly selected before interval is applied for true non-bias
  • may be non-representative (by chance)
  • time-consuming
82
Q

what is opportunity sampling?

A

the recruitment of those either most available or most convenient

83
Q

what are the pros of opportunity sampling?

A
  • efficient
  • not time-consuming (quick)
84
Q

what is a con of opportunity sampling?

A
  • biased (sample drawn from small part of target population)
85
Q

what is stratified sampling?

A

ppts are randomly recruited from strata in proportion to their occurrence in the target population

86
Q

what is a pro of stratified and quota sampling?

A
  • more representative than other methods
87
Q

what is a con of stratified sampling?

A
  • time-consuming
88
Q

what is quota sampling?

A

ppts are recruited from strata using a non-random method in proportion to their occurrence in the target population

89
Q

what are the cons of quota sampling?

A
  • time-consuming
  • more likely to be biased (than stratified)
90
Q

what is self-selected/volunteer sampling?

A

ppts volunteer to take part (recruited from an advertisement)

91
Q

what are the pros of self-selected/volunteer sampling?

A
  • access to variety of ppts
  • more representative (than opportunity)
92
Q

what is a con of self-selected/volunteer sampling?

A
  • volunteer bias
93
Q

what is snowball sampling?

A

current ppts recruit further ppts (from among people they know), and so on

94
Q

what is a pro of snowball sampling?

A

enables researchers to recruit difficult-to-access groups of people

95
Q

what is a con of snowball sampling?

A
  • sample likely to be non-representative (unlikely to be good cross-section of society, made up of friends-of-friends)
96
Q

what group does mean, median and mode belong to?

A

measures of central tendency

97
Q

what group does range and standard devotion belong to?

A

measures of dispersion

98
Q

what is the pro of using the mean?

A
  • more representative (uses all data)
99
Q

what is a con of using the mean?

A

doesn’t take into account anomalies/is affected by extreme values

100
Q

what is a pro of using the median?

A

isn’t affected by extreme values

101
Q

what is a con of using the median?

A

not as precise or representative (as the mean) (only takes into account one or two values)

102
Q

what is a pro of using the mode?

A

easy to calculate

103
Q

what are the cons of using the mode?

A
  • could be bi or tri modal (tells us nothing about the average)
  • may not be a mode
104
Q

what is the definition of standard deviation?

A

variation of data around the mean

105
Q

what is a pro of standard deviation?

A

takes into account all data (precise and representative)

106
Q

what is a con of standard deviation?

A

more complex to calculate

107
Q

when is a bar chart used?

A

when data is in categories

108
Q

when is a pie chart used?

A

to show relative sizes of data

109
Q

when is a line graph used?

A

to show information that is connected (eg. a change overtime)

110
Q

when is a scatter graph used?

A

to show the association between two variables (calculates correlation coefficient)

111
Q

what is construct validity?

A

demonstrating the extent to which performance on a test measures an identified underlying construct
- involves deconstructing the term we wish to investigate to better understand, and therefore, measure it

112
Q

What are confounding variables?

A
  • any variable that is not the IV but affects the DV
  • can’t be taken away, so must be controlled

Pyschology (3 decks)

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