research methods Flashcards
what is a correlation
shows a link/relationship between variables, known as co-variable 1 and co-variable 2 and there is no manipulation from the researcher
quasi experiment
positives and negatives
the experiment is based on an IV that already exists between ppts that the researcher has not maniupulated
+ can be in lab/field so use those
- sample bias
correlation coefficient
a number from a statistic test that tells us how strong/weak the corrolation is. they range from +1 to -1 and the closer to 0 the weaker they are
correlation types
strong
weak
positive
zero
negative
sampling methods
random
systematic
stratified
volunteer
opportunity
overt observation
ppts know the observation is being conducted
+ more ethically appropriate
- prone to demand charecteristics
feild experiment
takes place in a natural environment where the researcher maniuplates the IV to see the effect on the DV
+ less prone to demand charecteritics
+ high ecological validity
- ethical issues
- lacks reliablility
behaviour sampling in observations
time
event
experimental methods
lab
field
natural
quasi
naturalistic observation
positives and negatives
natural behaviour in a natural environment where the ppts would usually be and there is no manipulation of variables
+ less prone to demand charecteristics
+ high ecological validity
- ethical issues
- lack of reliability
types of observation
covert
overt
controlled
naturalistic
participant
non-participant
opportunity sample
being there at that moment in time and using the people you find
+ very quick, easy and cheap
- not representative
event sampling
the observer decides on specific events relevant to the investigation, and records every time they happen within a set time period
random sampling
create a list of target population in alphabetical order
put each person on that list on equal sized pieces of paper
put all the paper into a hat
pick out the required number of ppts for condition 1 and codition 2
+ unbaised
- time consuming
controlled observation
the conditions are manipulated by the researcher
+ high in reliability
- lacks ecological validity
- more prone to demand charecterstics
time sampling
the observer tallies specific behaviour at set time intervals and ignores any other behaviour that occurs
systematic sampling
create a sampling frame to organise the targer population into, like alphabetically order all ppts and pick the nth person
+ avoids researcher bias
- may not be representative
stratified sampling
the sample reflects real life proportions of groups in the target population
+ most representative
- most time consuming
natural experiment
the resaercher takes advantage of a natually occuring IV
+ allows for new areas of research that wouldn’t have been experimented due to ethical/practical reasons
+ high ecological validity
- may rarely happen which limits research
- no control over EVs
participant observation
the researcher is involved with the group
+ can gain deep understanding
- increased chance of researcher bias
matched pairs
positives and negatives
ppts are matched together based on a charecteristic
+ no order effects
+ reduces individual differences
- time consuming
- individual differences cannot be fully eliminated
non-participant observation
researcher does not get involved with the group
+ reduced chance of researcher bias
- less likely to gain in-depth understanding
independent groups
positives and negatives
ppts only take part in one condition
+ no order effects
+ can be used when repeated measures in innapropriate (e.g. quasi)
- individual differences
- more ppts needed
covert observation
observation is conducted without the ppts knowing
+ less prone to demand characteristics
- ethical issues
lab experiment
highly controlled envrironment where the reasearcher manipulated the IV to see effect on the DV
+ high control over EVs
+ high in reliability
- lacks ecological validity
- prone to demand charecteristics
volunteer sample
people self-select themselves to be part of the research
+ very quick, easy and cheap
- not representative
correlations AO3
+ no manipulation of variables means appropriate for ethical/practical reasons
+ act as a starting point to assess possible patterns
- difficult to establish cause and effect
- can be misinterprited
experimental design
independent groups
repeated measures
matched pairs
repeated measures
positives and negatives
ppts take part in both conditions
+ individual differences are removed
+ requires fewer ppts
- order effects
- increased chance of demand chareteristics
what is a questionaire
form part of a survey that ask a large sample of people for info on a specific topic
pre-set list of questions
questionaire AO3
+ can tackle sensitive issues as ppts can remain anyonymous, meaning theyre more likely to be honest, increases internal validity
+ reduction of investigator effects, the researcher isn’t present whilst taking the questionaire
+ can be given to a large quantity of people
- social desirability bias, people may try to present themselves in the best light, lowering internal validity
- misinterpretation of questions, ppts may not understand the question and cannot ask the researcher questions and they cannot give clarifications, give invalid information, lowering internal validity
what are open questions
ppts use their words to express their views and responses tend to be in greater detail
what data do we gain from open questions
qualitative = non-numerical
what are closed questions
ppts responses are fixated, usually to yes/no
what do we gain from closed questions
quantitative = numerical
yes/no is NOT quantitative data
AO3 open questions
+ provides in-depth, rich, detailed data which provides greater understanding of the behaviour in context
- open to researcher bias as ppts responses will be open to the subjective interpretation of the researcher
AO3 closed questions
+ easier to analyse and collect data allowing for comparisons to be made
- lacks depth and insight into behaviour
what is a structured interview
all the questions are pre-set and you are less likely to deviate from the topic
every interviewee will be asked the same questions in the same order, cannot be asked extra questions
structured interview AO3
+ all ppts get asked the same questions meaning you can compare responses and identify trends and patterns, unlike unstructured where ppts get different questions and it’s therefore harder to make comparisons
- researcher cannot deviate and follow up to get new lines of enquiry, means they do not get a full understanding of behaviour in context
unstructured interviews
no set questions and each interviewee gets different questions
the questions are based on the responses of the interviewee
AO3 unstructured interviews
+ get more depth, can gain a fuller understanding of the ppts behaviour, increasing internal validity
- can be hard to identify patterns and trends, make the responses harder to analyse
what is a case study
in-depth study conducted on one group/person. can be over a long period of time and are often accompanied with other techniques such as interviews and questionnaires, to produce in-depth qualitative data.
case study AO3
+ offer rich, detailed insights into unusual form of behaviour that would otherwise be difficult to manipulate in an experimental setting.
- low population validity as it was only conducted on a person/small group of people, therefore it would be difficult to generalise the findings to the target population, lowering the external validity
what is a pilot study
a small scale trial run of the research before the main scale research takes place to identify any problems and amend/fix them
what are the aims of a pilot study
check standardised procedures and the general design of the study
check the ppts have enough time for the task
check questions are clear for interview/questionaire
check coding systems and behaviour categories are operationalised for obeservations
any EVs are identified and eliminated
and problems can be identified and amended/fixed
ask ppts to dicuss their experiences of their experiments
when do ethical issues arise
when there is a conflict between the rights of the ppts and the researcher getting their findings
4 types of ethical issues
lack of informed consent
deception
confidentiality
protection from harm
what is deception
when ppts are not told the true aims of the research deliberately, to prevent demand characteristics
what is confidentiality
ppts data and details remain anyonymous so they cannot be identified in the research, the researcher could use fake names
what is protection from participants
ppts should be protected from physchological and physical harm, they must not be placed at more risk than they would experience in everyday life
what is informed consent
ppts give permission to take part in a study after being informed of the true aims of the research , as well as being given the right to withdraw
how to deal with deception
post research interview where the ppts are told the true aims of the research
given the right to withdraw
ppts should be reminded their behaviour is normal/typical of the general public, if they’re embarassed offer counsilling
how to deal with informed consent
- presumptive consent = get consent from a similar sample of ppts who won’t be doing the study
- parental consent = gained from parents if ppts are under the age of 16
- prior informed consent = getting gernal consent from ppts on things that could happen
how to deal with protection from harm
right to withdraw at any point
offer debrief
how to deal with confidentiality
keep everything anyonymous
what is face validity
an independent psychologist in the same field looks at the experimental conditions (questionaire) or behavioural charecteristics (observation) to see if they measure what they intent to measure, if the researcher says yes then the experiment is valid
