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research methods Flashcards

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1
Q

what is a laboratory experiment?

A

an experiment conducted in a well-controlled environment

researcher manipulates the IV and DV

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2
Q

what are the strengths of laboratory experiments?

A
  • easy to replicate (standardised procedure)
  • allow precise control of extraneous and independent variables
  • causal relationships (cause and effect) can be determined
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3
Q

what are the weaknesses of laboratory experiments?

A
  • lacks ecological validity, artificial situation

- demand characteristics/experimenter bias could effect results

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4
Q

what is a field experiment?

A

done in everyday environment of the pts

experimenter still manipulates the IV

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5
Q

what are the strengths of field experiments?

A
  • more likely to reflect real life i.e. higher ecological validity
  • less likelihood of demand characteristics, PTs may not know they are being studied
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6
Q

what are the weaknesses of field experiments?

A
  • less control over extraneous variables, harder to replicate
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7
Q

what are natural experiments?

A

conducted in everyday environment - IV occurs naturally

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8
Q

what are the strengths of natural experiments?

A
  • behaviour is more likely to reflect real life, higher ecological validity
  • less likelihood of demand characteristics
  • can be used in situations it would be unethical to manipulate e.g. stress
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9
Q

what are the weaknesses of natural experiments?

A
  • may be more expensive and time consuming

- no control over extraneous variables

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10
Q

ecological validity

A

The degree to which an investigation represents real-life experiences

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11
Q

experimenter effects

A

the ways that the experimenter can accidentally influence the participant through their appearance or behavior

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12
Q

demand characteristics

A

clues in an experiment that lead the participants to think they know what the researcher is looking for (e.g. experimenter’s body language)

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13
Q

order effects

A

changes in participants’ performance due to their repeating the same or similar test more than once

practice effect: an improvement in performance on a task due to repetition, for example, because of familiarity with the task

fatigue effect: a decrease in performance of a task due to repetition, for example, because of boredom or tiredness.

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14
Q

practice effect

A

an improvement in performance on a task due to repetition, for example, because of familiarity with the task

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15
Q

fatigue effect

A

a decrease in performance of a task due to repetition, for example, because of boredom or tiredness.

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16
Q

what is a case study?

A

in-depth investigations of a single person, group, event or community

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17
Q

what do case studies allow?

A

allow a researcher to investigate a topic in far more detail than might be possible if they were trying to deal with a large number of research participants

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18
Q

Strengths of Case Studies

A
  • Provides detailed (rich qualitative) information.
  • Provides insight for further research.
  • Permitting investigation of otherwise impractical (or unethical) situations
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19
Q

Limitations of Case Studies

A
  • Can’t generalize the results to the wider population
  • Researchers’ own subjective feeling may influence the case study (researcher bias).
  • Difficult to replicate.
    Time consuming.
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20
Q

what are correlational studies?

A

measure of the extent to which two variables are related.

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21
Q

what are the types of correlation?

A

a positive correlation
a negative correlation
no correlation

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22
Q

positive correlation

A

relationship between two variables in which both variables either increase or decease at the same time

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23
Q

negative correlation

A

relationship between two variables in which an increase in one variable is associated with a decrease in the other.

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24
Q

zero correlation

A

there is no relationship between two variables.

25
Q

strengths of correlational studies

A
  • correlation allows the researcher to investigate naturally occurring variables that maybe unethical or impractical to test experimentally
  • correlation allows the researcher to clearly and easily see if there is a relationship between variables
26
Q

weaknesses of correlational studies

A
  • correlation is not and cannot be taken to imply causation
  • could be that the cause of both these is a third (extraneous) variable
  • correlation does not allow us to go beyond the data that is given
27
Q

what are interviews?

A

researchers can ask different types of questions which in turn generate different types of data. For example, closed questions provide people with a fixed set of responses, whereas open questions allow people to express what they think in their own words

28
Q

closed questions

A

provide people with a fixed set of responses

29
Q

open questions

A

allow people to express what they think in their own words

30
Q

what is a structured interview?

A

questions are asked in a set / standardized order and the interviewer will not deviate from the interview schedule

based on structured, closed-ended questions

31
Q

strengths of structured interviews

A
  1. Structured interviews are easy to replicate as a fixed set of closed questions are used, which are easy to quantify – this means it is easy to test for reliability.
  2. Structured interviews are fairly quick to conduct. means a large sample can be obtained
32
Q

weaknesses of structured interviews

A
  1. Structure interviews are not flexible. This means new questions cannot be asked impromptu
  2. The answers from structured interviews lack detail as only closed questions are asked which generates quantitative data
33
Q

what is an unstructured interview?

A

more like a ‘guided conservation’ than a strict structured interview

will contain open-ended questions that can be asked in any order. Some questions might be added / missed as the Interview progresses.

34
Q

strengths of unstructured interviews?

A
  1. more flexible as questions can be adapted and changed depending on the respondents’ answers
  2. generate qualitative data through the use of open questions. This allows the respondent to talk in some depth, choosing their own words.
  3. increased validity because it gives the interviewer the opportunity to probe for a deeper understanding, ask for clarification
35
Q

weaknesses of unstructured interviews

A
  1. It can be time consuming to conduct an unstructured interview and analyze the qualitative data (using methods such as thematic analysis).
  2. Employing and training interviewers is expensive, and not as cheap as collecting data via questionnaires
36
Q

the interviewer effect

A

an interview is a social interaction the appearance or behavior of the interviewer may influence the answers of the respondent

For example, the gender, ethnicity, body language, age, and social status

37
Q

what is a questionnaire?

A

questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series of questions for the purpose of gathering information from respondents. Questionnaires can be thought of as a kind of written interview. They can be carried out face to face, by telephone, computer or post.

38
Q

closed questions

A

structure the answer by only allowing responses which fit into pre-decided categories. e.g. yes/no questions

39
Q

strengths of closed questions

A

the respondent provides information which can be easily converted into quantitative data

the questions are standardized. All respondents are asked exactly the same questions in the same order. easy to check for reliability

40
Q

weaknesses of closed questions

A

They lack detail. Because the responses are fixed, there is less scope for respondents to supply answers which reflect their true feelings on a topic

41
Q

what are open questions?

A

allow people to express what they think in their own words.

enable the respondent to answer in as much detail as they like in their own words

42
Q

strengths of open questions

A

rich qualitative data is obtained

43
Q

weaknesses of open questions

A
  • time consuming to collect the data

- time consuming to analyse the data

44
Q

what are covert observations?

A

researcher pretends to be an ordinary member of the group and observes in secret

45
Q

what are overt observations?

A

when the researcher tells the group he or she is conducting research (i.e. they know they are being observed).

46
Q

what is a controlled observation?

A

behavior is observed under controlled laboratory conditions (e.g. Bandura’s Bobo doll study).

47
Q

what is a natural observation?

A

spontaneous behavior is recorded in a natural setting.

48
Q

what is a participant observation?

A

observer has direct contact with the group of people they are observing.

49
Q

what is a non-participant observation?

A

The researcher does not have direct contact with the people being observed.

50
Q

strengths of controlled observations

A
  • can be easily replicated by other researchers by using the same observation schedule. This means it is easy to test for reliability.
  • the data obtained from structured observations is easier and quicker to analyze as it is quantitative
  • controlled observations are fairly quick to conduct which means that many observations can take place within a short amount of time
51
Q

weaknesses of controlled observations

A

Controlled observations can lack validity due to the Hawthorne effect/demand characteristics. When participants know they are being watched they may act differently.

52
Q

Strengths of Naturalistic Observations

A

By being able to observe the flow of behavior in its own setting studies have greater ecological validity.

Like case studies naturalistic observation is often used to generate new ideas.

53
Q

Weaknesses of Naturalistic Observations

A

Natural observations are less reliable as other variables cannot be controlled

researcher needs to be trained to be able to recognise aspects of a situation that are psychologically significant and worth further attention.

do not have manipulations of variables (or control over extraneous variables) which means cause and effect relationships cannot be established.

54
Q

weaknesses of participant sampling

A

It can be difficult to get time / privacy for recording. For example, with covert observations researchers can’t take notes openly as this would blow their cover. This means they have to wait until they are alone and rely on their memory. This is a problem as they may forget details and are unlikely to remember direct quotations.

If the researcher becomes too involved they may lose objectivity and become bias. There is always the danger that we will “see” what we expect (or want) to see. This is a problem as they could selectively report information instead of noting everything they observe. Thus reducing the validity of their data

55
Q

event sampling

A

observer decides in advance what types of behavior (events) she is interested in and records all occurrences

56
Q

time sampling

A

observer decides in advance that observation will take place only during specified time periods (e.g. 10 minutes every hour, 1 hour per day) and records the occurrence of the specified behavior during that period only

57
Q

Instantaneous (target time) sampling

A

observer decides in advance the pre-selected moments when observation will take place and records what is happening at that instant. Everything happening before or after is ignored.

58
Q

Qualitative Research

A

empirical research where the data are not in the form of numbers

59
Q

Quantitative Research

A

Quantitative research gathers data in a numerical form which can be put into categories, or in rank order, or measured in units of measurement. This type of data can be used to construct graphs and tables of raw data.

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