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Research Methods Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the 5 key ethical issues in psychological research?

A 
Informed consent
Deception
Protection from harm
Privacy
Confidentiality
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2
Q

What are the different sampling techniques?

A 
Random
Strategic
Opportunistic
Stratified
Volunteer
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3
Q

What is correlation by design?

A

A technique which can occur with many different research methods, in particular questionnaires-wherever there is quantitative data that may relate through two scores

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4
Q

What is randomisation?

A

The use of chance in order to control the potential affects of bias

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5
Q

What is the sampling frame?

A

A list of everyone who is in the target population

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6
Q

What is population?

A

The total group of individuals from which a sample is taken

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7
Q

What are co-variables?

A

The variables investigated within a correlation e.g height and weight

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8
Q

What is a positive correlation?

A

As one co-variable increases, so does the other

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9
Q

What is an extraneous variable?

A

Any variable, other than the IV, that may have an effect in the DV if not controlled

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10
Q

What is a directional correlation hypothesis

A

A hypothesis that states that there will be a positive or negative correlation between 2 co-variables

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11
Q

What is counterbalancing?

A

An attempt to control for the effects of order in a repeated measures design: half the participants experience the conditions in one order, and the other half in the opposite order

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12
Q

What are experimenter/investigator effects?

A

Things that the experimenter does that addict the IV such as giving more information to some participants than others.

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13
Q

What is random allocation?

A

An attempt to control for the participant variables in an independent groups design which ensures that each participant has the same change of being put in one condition as in any other.

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14
Q

What is a non-participant observation?

A

The researcher remains separate from the people they are studying

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15
Q

What are open questions?

A

Questions that don’t have a fixed range of answers and respondents are free to answer in any way they wish. These normally produce qualitative data

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16
Q

What is a case study?

A

An in-depth investigation, description and analysis of a single individual group or institution or event.

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17
Q

What is the difference between a correlation hypothesis and a normal hypothesis?

A

In a correlation hypothesis there is no IV or DV

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18
Q

What is a structured interview?

A

An interview where the interviewer has a list of prepared questions which they ask the interviewee

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19
Q

What is inter-observer reliability?

A

Where an observation is carried out by two or more observers so that the results aren’t bias

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20
Q

What happened to Phineas Gage?

A

He was a railway worker who was checking that dynamite was properly in the ground with a pole when the dynamite exploded and the pole went through his cheek and behind his left eye. He survived but had a severe personality change. This showed scientists that different parts of the brain control different things.

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21
Q

What is standardisation?

A

Using exactly the same procedure and instructions for all participants in a research study

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22
Q

What is a sample?

A

A group of people taken from a wider population

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23
Q

What is a non-directional correlation hypothesis?

A

A hypothesis that states that there is a correlation between two co-variables but doesn’t specify weather it is positive or negative

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24
Q

What is an unstructured interview?

A

A lot like a conversation. The interviewer has very few, if any questions prepared in advance although there is a general aim

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25
Q

What are the key points of independent groups?

A

Two different groups of participants go through two different conditions of the experiment

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26
Q

What is a variable?

A

Any ‘thing’ that can vary or change within an investigation.

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27
Q

What is an alternative hypothesis?

A

A statement that shows a relationship between variables. It isn’t the opposite to a null hypothesis.

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28
Q

What is a dependent variable?

A

The variable that is measured by the researcher. Any effect on the DV should be caused by a change in the independent variable.

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29
Q

What is the independent variable?

A

An aspect of the experiment situation that is manipulated by the researcher or changes naturally so that the effect on the DV can be measured

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30
Q

What is a negative correlation?

A

As one co-variable increases, the other decreases.

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31
Q

What is validity?

A

The accuracy of something

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32
Q

What is secondary data?

A

Information that has been gathered by someone other than the researcher before the current investigation.

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33
Q

What is primary data?

A

Information that has been gathered first hand by the researcher for the purposes of a research project

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34
Q

What is a naturalistic observation?

A

Where behaviour is recorded in the place where it would normally occur and nothing is changed in the environment.

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35
Q

What are the key points of repeated measures?

A

All of the participants experience both conditions at different times.

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36
Q

What is a laboratory experiment?

A

An experiment that takes place in an artificial controlled environment where the independent variable is manipulated.

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37
Q

What is a field experiment?

A

An experiment that takes place in a natural setting within which the independent variable is manipulated.

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38
Q

What is a natural experiment?

A

An experiment where the independent variable is not manipulated by the researcher and would have happened even if they had not been there

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39
Q

What is a hypothesis?

A

A clear testable statement that states the clear relationship between variables to be investigated

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40
Q

What is an aim?

A

A general statement of what the researcher intends to investigate.

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41
Q

What is reliability?

A

A measure of consistency. If a measurement is repeated then it is realiable

42
Q

What is a semi-structured interview?

A

A number of questions have arranged in advance but the interviewer will ask follow up questions

43
Q

What is a null hypothesis?

A

A statement that shows no relationship between the variables

44
Q

How do you calculate percentage?

A

(Number of people/total number of People) x 100

45
Q

What is operationalising the variable?

A

Clearly defining variables in terms of how they can be measured

46
Q

What is the median?

A

The central value in a set of data when values are arranged highest to lowest

47
Q

What is the mean?

A

The arithmetic average calculated by adding all of the values In a set of data and dividing by the number of values that there are.

48
Q

What are descriptive statistics?

A

The use of graphs, tables and summary statistics to identify trends and analyse sets of data.

49
Q

What are the key points of matched pairs?

A

Participants are paired together and one participant would be allocated to one condition of the experiment and the other participant to the other condition.

50
Q

What is a participant observation?

A

An observation in which the researcher becomes part of the group they are studying.

51
Q

What is an overt observation?

A

Participants are told in advance that their behaviour will be watched and recorded

52
Q

What is a covert observation?

A

Participants are not aware their behaviour is being recorded.

53
Q

What is a controlled observation?

A

An observation where a researcher may decide they want to control some aspects of the situation

54
Q

What are closed questions?

A

Questions that offer a fixed number of responses. For example a scale from 1 to 10 or a yes/no question. These produce quantitative data.

55
Q

What is representative?

A

People that closely represent the whole population

56
Q

What is zero correlation?

A

Where there is no relationship between the variables

57
Q

What is a situational variable?

A

Any feature of the environment that may influence a participants behaviour

58
Q

What is a participant variable?

A

Any individual difference between participants that may effect the DV

59
Q

What are two strengths of correlation?

A

They are a good starting point for research

They can be used to investigate more complex relationships

60
Q

What are two weaknesses of correlations?

A

They can only tell us how variables are related and not why

Important interviewing variables may be overlooked.

61
Q

What is a correlation?

A

A mathematical technique in which a researcher investigated an association between two variables called co-variables.

62
Q

What are the 3 main types of experimental design?

A

Independent groups
Matched pairs
Repeated measures

63
Q

What are two strengths of laboratory experiments?

A

Evs can be controlled so the researcher can be sure that the IV caused the DV
Uses standardised procedures which means replication is possible.

64
Q

What are two weaknesses of laboratory experiments?

A

The environment is not like everyday life which reduces the normalcy of participant’s behaviour
Participants know they are being tested so may change their behaviour.

65
Q

What are two strengths of field experiments?

A

They are often more realistic than laboratory because they are in a natural environment
There is some control over EVs, because it is possible to use standardised procedures

66
Q

What are two weaknesses of field experiments?

A

The researcher may lose control of some EVs as in a real-life setting it is more difficult to control variables.
There may be ethical issues as people may not know that they are in an experiment.

67
Q

What are two strengths of natural experiments?

A

They usually have high validity because the variables are naturally occurring and relate to everyday life.
The DV is often tested in a lab so the EVs can be well controlled.

68
Q

What are two weaknesses of a natural experiment?

A

May be few opportunities for this kind of research

There may be a greater amount of EVs which could affect the results.

69
Q

What is a strength of independent groups?

A

Order effects are not an issue as the participants only do the task once.

70
Q

What is a weakness of independent groups?

A

There are different participants in each group, causing participant variables to be an issue.

71
Q

What are two strengths of repeated measures?

A

There are no participant variables as each participant is compared to themselves rather than other people
Fewer participants are needed than in an independent groups design.

72
Q

What is a weakness of repeated measures?

A

Order effects often occur when participants are tested twice.

73
Q

What are two strengths of matched pairs?

A

There are no order effects

There are fewer participant variables

74
Q

What is a weakness of matched pairs?

A

Matching participants takes time and effort and might not be worthwhile and it doesn’t control all participant variables.

75
Q

What is random sampling?

A

Putting names of all members of the target population into a hat so that every member has an equal chance of being selected.

76
Q

What is a strength of random sampling?

A

There is no bias which makes it more representative

77
Q

What is a weakness of random sampling?

A

It takes more time and effort than other methods

78
Q

What is opportunistic sampling?

A

Selecting the most readily available group of people

79
Q

What is a strength of opportunistic sampling?

A

It is quick, easy and cheap to do

80
Q

What is a weakness of opportunistic sampling?

A

The sample is likely to be unrepresentative of the population

81
Q

What is systematic sampling?

A

Selecting the nth person from a list of all the people in the target population

82
Q

What is a strength of systematic sampling?

A

It avoids researcher bias. The researcher has no say over who is selected which makes it more representative.

83
Q

What is a weakness of systematic sampling?

A

It may still be biased accidentally, decreasing the representativeness.

84
Q

What is stratified sampling?

A

Selecting participants in proportion to their frequency in the target population

85
Q

What is a strength of stratified sampling?

A

It is the most representative of all the sampling methods.

86
Q

What is a weakness of stratified sampling?

A

It is very time consuming as it may take a while to recruit participants and sort them into subgroups.

87
Q

What are two strengths of interviews?

A

They produce lots of information which could lead to unexpected results.
They can provide insight into a person’s thoughts and feelings so provide a different perspective.

88
Q

What are two weaknesses of interviews?

A

The data can be difficult to analyse which makes it hard to draw clear conclusions.
People may feel less comfortable giving personal information face-to-face. This is especially true If questions are on a sensitive topic.

89
Q

What are two strengths of questionnaires?

A

Lots of information can be gathered because they can be sent to lots of people relatively quickly
The data produced tends to be easier to analyse than interviews, making it easier to draw conclusions.

90
Q

What are two weaknesses of questionnaires?

A

Responders may not always answer truthfully which reduces the validity of the results.
The questions may be unclear or misleading

91
Q

What is a strength of primary data?

A

It suits the aims of the research which makes it more useful

92
Q

What is a weakness of primary data?

A

It takes more time and effort to collect which slows down the process and increases expenses.

93
Q

What is a strength of secondary data?

A

It is easy and convenient to use because it has already been checked and collected.

94
Q

What is a weakness of secondary data?

A

It may not quite fit what the researcher wants

95
Q

Evaluate quantities data

A

Strength - it is easy to analyse so groups of people can easily be compared
Weakness - it lacks depth and detail so doesn’t reflect how complex things are in the real world.

96
Q

Evaluate qualitative data

A

Strength - it is in more depth and detail, increasing the validity of the data
Weakness - it is more difficult to analyse so conclusions may be based on the researcher’s opinion.

97
Q

What are two strengths of observations?

A

They have greater validity as they are based on what people actually do, not what they say they do
They look at real life behaviour

98
Q

What are two weaknesses of observations?

A

There may be ethical issues as you cannot always gain people’s consent if you are observing them in a public place.
Observer’s bias might influence what they see, reducing validity

99
Q

What are two strengths of case studies?

A

Researchers tend not to have a specific aim, meaning they are more open minded about what they hope to discover.
They are a good method for studying rare behaviour that can’t be investigated using experiments

100
Q

What are two weaknesses of case studies?

A

They often only focus on one individual or event so it is difficult to generalise the results
Researcher may be subjective so conclusions drawn may lack validity.

Psychology (8 decks)

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