Research Methods

Question 1

Measures of data

Answer 1

Nominal - data into categories (mode)
Ordinal - data into subjective scales e.g. emotion (median)
Interval - data into objective categories e.g. height (mean)

Question 2

Types of graph

Answer 2

Scattergrams - used for correlation/relationship
Bar chart - categorical data
Histogram - continuous data. Frequency and density.

Question 3

Report writing

Answer 3

1. Title
2. Abstract - summary of research
3. Introduction - where hypothesis comes from
4. Method - ptps, design, materials, procedure and results
5. Discussion - results and conclusion
6. References

Question 4

Researcher effects

Answer 4

Demand characteristics

Investigator effects

Question 5

Peer review

Answer 5

A researcher submits an article to a journal. The choice of journal may be determined by the journal’s audience or prestige.

he peer reviewers assess: the methods and designs used, originality of the findings, the validity of the original research findings and its content, structure and language.

The article may be: Accepted as it is, accepted with revisions, sent back to the author to revise and re-submit or rejected without the possibility of submission.

Peer review is important because it prevent faulty data from entering the public domain, it provides a way of checking the validity of findings and the quality of the methodology and is used to assess the research rating of university departments

Question 6

Role of peer review

Answer 6

Funding - approval of project proposals
Validation - quality check
Improvements - minor revisions or rejections

EV - burying research maintains status quo, there may be a publication bias

Question 7

Features of science

Answer 7

Empiricism 
Objectivity 
Control 
Hypothesis testing 
Replicable
Paradigm 
Theory of construction

Question 8

Content and thematic analysis

Answer 8

CONTENT

• coding system
• analyse data
• repeat and tally

THEMATIC

• qualitative
• themes identified
• refined and left as themes

Question 9

Measures of control

Answer 9

Random allocation - put into groups to reduce bias in ptps characteristics
Counterbalancing - used to deal with order effects (sample is divided - conditions in opposite)
Standardisation - reducing bias in study such as same instructions etc.

Question 10

Psychology and the economy

Answer 10

Mental health and attachment

Question 11

Sampling methods

Answer 11

A sample is the participants you select from a target population (the group you are interested in) to make generalisations about.

A Volunteer sample is where participants pick themselves through newspaper adverts, noticeboards or online.

Opportunity sampling uses people who are available at the time the study is carried out.

Random sampling is when every person in the target population has an equal chance of being selected.

Systematic sampling is when a system is used to select participants.

Stratified sampling is when you identify the subgroups and select participants in proportion with their occurrences.

Question 12

Pilot studies

Answer 12

A pilot study is an initial run-through of the procedures to be used in an investigation; it involves selecting a few people and trying out the study on them. It is possible to save time, and in some cases, money, by identifying any flaws in the procedures designed by the researcher.

A pilot study can help the researcher spot any ambiguities (i.e. unusual things) or confusion in the information given to participants or problems with the task devised.

Sometimes the task is too hard, and the researcher may get a floor effect, because none of the participants can score at all or can complete the task – all performances are low. The opposite effect is a ceiling effect, when the task is so easy that all achieve virtually full marks or top performances and are “hitting the ceiling”.

Question 13

Types of reliability

Answer 13

Internal - method consistent
External - results consistent

Improve - rewrite, standardise and operationalise

Question 14

Tests of reliability

Answer 14

Test-retest reliability – Assessing the same person on two different occasions which shows the extent to which the test produces the same answers. Inferential test - Spearman or Pearson

Inter-observer reliability – the extent to which there is agreement between two or more observers. Inferential test - Spearman or Pearson.

Question 15

Correlations

Answer 15

Correlation means association - more precisely it is a measure of the extent to which two variables are related.

If an increase in one variable tends to be associated with an increase in the other then this is known as a positive correlation.

If an increase in one variable tends to be associated with a decrease in the other then this is known as a negative correlation.

A zero correlation occurs when there is no relationship between variables.

Question 16

Distributions

Answer 16

Normal distribution - bell curve.
mean, median and mode at same point

Skewed
Negative - skews right
Positive - skews left

Question 17

Types of data

Answer 17

Quantitative data is numerical data e.g. reaction time or number of mistakes. It represents how much or how long, how many there are of something. A tally of behavioral categories and closed questions in a questionnaire collect quantitative data.

Qualitative data is non-numerical data expressed in words e.g. an extract from a diary. It can’t be counted but can be turned into quantitative data by placing the data in categories and then counting frequency. Open questions in questionnaires and accounts from observational studies collect qualitative data.

Primary data is first hand data collected for the purpose of the investigation.

Secondary data is information that has been collected by someone other than the person who is conducting the research e.g. taken from journals, books or articles.

Question 18

Types of observation

Answer 18

Covert observations are when the researcher pretends to be an ordinary member of the group and observes in secret. There could be ethical problems or deception and consent with this particular method of observation.

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

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

Natural: Here spontaneous behavior is recorded in a natural setting.

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

Non-participant (aka “fly on the wall): The researcher does not have direct contact with the people being observed.

Question 19

Aims and hypotheses

Answer 19

The aim of the study is a statement of what the researcher intents to investigate.

The hypothesis of the study is an idea, derived from psychological theory which contains a prediction which can be verified or disproved by some kind of investigation, usually an experiment.

A directional hypothesis indicates a direction in the prediction (one-tailed) e.g. ‘students with pets perform better than students without pets’.

A non-directional hypothesis does not indicate a direction in the prediction (two-tailed) e.g. ‘owning pets will affect students’ exam performances’.

Question 20

Validity

Answer 20

Validity is whether the observed effect in genuine and represents what is actually out there in the world.

Concurrent validity – the extent to which a psychological measure relates to an existing similar measure and obtains close results. For example, a new intelligence test compared to an established test.

Face validity – does the test measure what it’s supposed to measure ‘on the face of it’. This is done by ‘eyeballing’ the measuring or by passing it to an expert to check.

Ecological validity – the extent to which findings from a research study can be generalised to other settings / real life.

Temporal validity – the extent to which findings from a research study can be generalised to other historical times.

Improve - stratified sample, standardisation or make more realistic.

Question 21

Observational design

Answer 21

Unstructured 
- researcher records everything 
- more info but hard to analyse
Structured 
- controls what is recorded 
- may miss behaviours 

Behavioural categories - target behaviour broken down to be observable
Sampling - event or time

Question 22

Types of interview

Answer 22

Unstructured (informal) interviews are like a casual conversation. There are no set questions and the participant is given the opportunity to raise whatever topics he/she feels are relevant and ask them in their own way. In this kind of interview much qualitative data is likely to be collected.

Structured (formal) interviews are like a job interview. There is a fixed, predetermined set of questions that are put to every participant in the same order and in the same way. The interviewer stays within their role and maintains social distance from the interviewee.

Question 23

Range and standard deviation

Answer 23

Range - easy to calculate but unrepresentative

Standard deviation - how much scores deviate from mean

Question 24

Case studies

Answer 24

Case studies are in-depth investigations of a single person, group, event or community.

Case studies are widely used in psychology and amongst the best-known ones carried out were by Sigmund Freud. He conducted very detailed investigations into the private lives of his patients in an attempt to both understand and help them overcome their illnesses.

Case studies provide rich qualitative data and have high levels of ecological validity.

Question 25

Questionnaires

Answer 25

Questionnaires can be thought of as a kind of written interview. They can be carried out face to face, by telephone or post.

The questions asked can be open ended, allowing flexibility in the respondent’s answers, or they can be more tightly structured requiring short answers or a choice of answers from given alternatives.

The choice of questions is important because of the need to avoid bias or ambiguity in the questions, ‘leading’ the respondent, or causing offence.

Question 26

Ethical issues

Answer 26

R A P I D

Question 27

Variables

Answer 27

Independent variable (IV) – the variable the experimenter manipulates, aassumed to have a direct effect on the DV.

Dependent variable (DV) – the variable the experimenter measures after making changes to the IV.

We must use operationalisation to ensure that variables are in a form that can be easily tested e.g. Educational attainment → GCSE grade in maths.

Extraneous variables are all variables, which are not the independent variable, but could affect the results of the experiment.There are two types: Situational variables (controlled through standardisation) and Participant variables (controlled through randomisation).

Question 28

Experimental design

Answer 28

In an independent measures design (between groups), a group of participants are recruited and divided into 2. The first group does the experimental task with the IV set for condition 1 and the second group does the experimental task with the IV set for condition 2. The DV is measured for each group and results are compared.

In a repeated measures design (within groups), a group of participants are recruited, and the group does the experimental task with the IV set for condition 1 and then the same for condition 2. The DV is measured for each group and results are compared.

In a matched pairs design, a group of participants are recruited. We find out what sorts of people we have in the group and recruit another group that matches them one for one. The experiment is then treated like an independent measures design and the results are compared.

Question 29

Lab experiment

Answer 29

This type of experiment is conducted in a well-controlled environment – not necessarily a laboratory – and therefore accurate and objective measurements are possible.

The researcher decides where the experiment will take place, at what time, with which participants, in what circumstances and using a standardized procedure.

EV - controlled but demand characteristics

Question 30

Field experiment

Answer 30

These are conducted in the everyday (i.e. natural) environment of the participants but the situations are still artificially set up.

The experimenter still manipulates the IV, but in a real-life setting (so cannot really control extraneous variables).

EV - high ecological validity but low internal validity

Question 31

Natural experiment

Answer 31

Natural experiments are when a naturally occurring IV is investigated that isn’t deliberately manipulated, it exists anyway.

Participants are not randomly allocated and the natural event may only occur rarely.

EV - rare opportunities but high ecological validity

Question 32

Meta analysis

Answer 32

A meta-analysis is a systematic review that involves identifying an aim and then searching for research studies that have addressed similar aims/hypotheses.

This is done by looking through various databases and then decisions are made about what studies are to be included/excluded.

Strengths: Increases the validity of the conclusions drawn as they’re based on a wider range.

Weaknesses: Research designs in studies can vary so they are not truly comparable.

Question 33

Quasi experiments

Answer 33

Independent variable already exists (effect on dependent variable is recorded)

EV - low internal validity but high ecological validity