Research Methods

Question 1

What are the 4 types of experiment?

Answer 1

Lab
Field
Natural
Quasi

Question 2

Describe Lab experiment

Answer 2

• Manipulated by researcher
• Lab setting

Question 3

Describe Field experiment

Answer 3

• Manipulated by researcher
• Real life setting

Question 4

Describe Natural experiment

Answer 4

• A naturally occurring event
• Real life setting

Question 5

Describe Quasi experiment

Answer 5

• A variable that is set in people e.g gender
• Lab setting

Question 6

What are the 3 experimental designs?

Answer 6

• Independent groups
• Matched pairs
• Repeated measures

Question 7

Independent Groups

Answer 7

Different participants are used in each condition

Question 8

Matched pairs

Answer 8

Different participants are used in each condition but they are methods on relevant characteristics e.g. age and gender

Question 9

Repeated measures

Answer 9

Same participants are used in all conditions

Question 10

What are the 4 types of observation?

Answer 10

• Covert or overt
• Participant or non participant
• Naturalistic or controlled
• Structured or unstructured

Question 11

Covert

Answer 11

Researcher hidden

Question 12

Overt

Answer 12

Participants aware of being observed

Question 13

Participant

Answer 13

Researcher acts like a participant

Question 14

Researcher

Answer 14

Researcher not involved

Question 15

Naturalistic

Answer 15

Carried out in real life environment

Question 16

Controlled

Answer 16

Artificial setting used

Question 17

Structured

Answer 17

Using a tally sheet of behavioural categories

Question 18

Unstructured

Answer 18

Recording all relevant info without a system

Question 19

What are behavioural categories?

Answer 19

They serve the purpose of operationalising the variable being observed

for example if they are observing aggression
- Kicks
- Hits
- Bites
- Verbal

Question 20

Why are behavioural categories good?

Answer 20

• More objective
• Easier to check interobserver reliability
• Creates quantitative data

Question 21

Reliability

Answer 21

Refers to consistency
- Following up studies
- Tests
- Questionaries’
- Between observers (Called observer reliability)

Question 22

Validity

Answer 22

Refers to how true or accurate something
- Ecological
- Population
- Historical

Question 23

What is a pilot study?

Answer 23

It is a preliminary study before the big study which is small scale and tests the original.

Question 24

What are the advantages of a pilot study?

Answer 24

• Gives insight into the work
• Saves time, effort and money
• Allows changes to be made

Question 25

What is a Self Report method?

Answer 25

A method which examines peoples opinions, feelings or own description of their behaviour.

Question 26

What are some examples of Self Report?

Answer 26

• Questionnaires
• Interviews

Question 27

What are the 2 types of question?

Answer 27

Open and Closed

Question 28

Whats a closed question?

Answer 28

Questions for which there is a fixed choice of response that were determined by the question setter

Question 29

What is a structured interview?

Answer 29

Are pre set

Question 30

What is a unstructured interview?

Answer 30

Develops as the interview goes along.

Question 31

What is a Correlation?

Answer 31

Is a relationship between two co variables for example height/weather.

Question 32

How are correlations represented?

Answer 32

A scatter graph

Question 33

What is a Correlation Coefficient?

Answer 33

A numerical value gained from applying a statistical test to correlation data. It is a quantitative value between -1 and +1.

Question 34

Whats a case study?

Answer 34

An in depth study that gathers a lot of detail about one person or a small group. It uses a range of resources and many techniques.

Question 35

What is content analysis?

Answer 35

A form of observations but instead of people their communications are studied instead.

Question 36

Quantitative content analysis?

Answer 36

behavioural categories

Question 37

Qualitative content analysis?

Answer 37

thematic analysis

Question 38

Name some ethical issues?

Answer 38

• Deception
• Informed consent
• Privacy
• Confidentiality
• Protection From Harm

Question 39

Privacy

Answer 39

Not publishing work

Question 40

Confidentiality

Answer 40

Participants should remain anonymous so that data cannot be identified as theirs

Question 41

Sampling Methods?

Answer 41

• Self Selected
• Systematic
• Random
• Stratified
• Opportunity

Question 42

Self Selected Sample

Answer 42

Placing an advert and waiting on participants to respond to take part

Question 43

Systematic Sample

Answer 43

Creating a list of all target population members and then selecting every Nth on the list

Question 44

Random Sample

Answer 44

Putting all target population names into a hat and then pulling out however many are required for the sample

Question 45

Stratified Sampling

Answer 45

Selecting a sample that is proportional to the target population.

Question 46

Opportunity Sample

Answer 46

Using whoever is available at the time of testing

Question 47

Inter Reliability

Answer 47

The level of agreement in scores on a measure between different raters or observers rating the same target

Question 48

Test Retest Reliability

Answer 48

The consistency of scores for the same person across two or more separate administrations of the same measurement.

Question 49

How can we improve inter rater reliability?

Answer 49

• Train observers in the observation techniques
• Ensuring behavioural categories

Question 50

Concurrent Reliability

Answer 50

A way of ensuring validity by examining a measure to make sure that it appears to measure the thing it is claiming to measure

Question 51

Face Validity

Answer 51

A way of ensuring validity by making sure that the test /measure of behaviour is as valid as another which measures the same thing

Question 52

Population Validity

Answer 52

The extent to which findings and conclusions from experiments can be broadly applied to the population because the sample of participants is representative.

Question 53

External Validity

Answer 53

Whether findings from the study can be generalised to other settings over time and to other people.

Question 54

Ecological Validity

Answer 54

Whether the results cannot be generalised to any other settings because the experimental setting the participants had was too artificial and did not reflect real life

Question 55

Temporal Validity

Answer 55

This is concerned with whether the results of an older study still apply today in modern times.

Question 56

Internal Validity

Answer 56

Extent to which a test measures what it set out to test and is uninfluenced by outside variables.

Question 57

Central Tendency

Answer 57

Averages

Question 58

Mean

Answer 58

A measure of central tendency making use of all the data

Question 59

Dispertion

Answer 59

A spread of data

Question 60

Standard Deviation

Answer 60

Spread of data around the mean

Question 61

Things that affect internal validity?

Answer 61

• Social desirability bias
• Demand characteristics
• Extraneous/confounding variables
• Investigator effects

Question 62

Social desirability bias

Answer 62

A tendency for respondents to answer questions in such a way that presents themselves in a better light

Question 63

Demand characteristics

Answer 63

Any clue from the researcher or from the research situation that may be interpreted by participants as revealing the purpose of the investigation. This may lead to a participant changing their behaviour within the research situation

Question 64

Extraneous/confounding variables

Answer 64

Any variable other than the independent variable that may have affected the dependent variable so we cannot be sure of the true source of changes to the dependent variable

Question 65

Investigator effects

Answer 65

Any effect of the investigator’s behaviour on the research outcomes. This may invade everything from the decision of the study to the selection of and interaction with participants during the research process.