Research methods Flashcards
naturalistic
take place in a setting or context where the target behaviour would usually occur
controlled
watching and recording behaviour within a structured environement
particicpant
the researcher becomes a member of the group whose behaviour they are watching and recording
non participant
the researcher remains outside of the group whose behaviour they are watching and recording
covert
participants’ behaviour is watched and recorded without their knowledge or consent
overt
participants’ behaviour is watched and recorded with their knowledge or consent
event sampling
a target behaviour or event is first established then the researcher records this event every time it occurs
time sampling
a target individual or group is first established then the researcher records their behaviour in a fixed time frame
questionnaires
a set of written questions used to asses a persons thoughts and/or experiences
structured interviews
made up of pre-determined questions that are asked in a fixed order
unstructured interview
no set questions, there is a general aim that a certain topic will be discussed and interaction tends to be free-flowing
pilot studies
small scale trial runs of a piece of research aims to spot flaws with the research design to improve validity
directional hypothesis
certain of a result
non directional hypothesis
not sure which way the result will occur
null hypothesis
no difference or no relationship or relationship is due to chance
opportunity sampling
involves using anyone who happens to be available at the time and is willing to be involved