Research methods- Aims, Hypothesis, Variables Flashcards
What is an aim?
-All studies begin with an aim.
-An aim states the intended purpose of an investigation.
-E.G. to investigate helping behaviour in bystanders.
What is a hypothesis?
-2 types:
-Alternative hypothesis: a precise testable statement that predicts a difference or relationship will be found in an investigation.
-Null hypothesis: a statement that predicts there will be no relationship or difference found in an investigation.
What are the types of Alternative hypothesis?
-Directional: states the direction of predicted difference/ relationship between two conditions. Previous research. Consistant.
-Non- directional: states that there will be a difference/ relationship between two conditions but not what they will be. Previous research. Inconsistent/ no findings.
What is the structure of a Directional hypothesis?
-Participants who X (IV) …DV operationalised and directional word… than those who Y (IV).
-Participants who complete work in the morning will produce more pages of work than those who work at night.
What is the structure of a Non-directional hypothesis?
-There will be a difference between X and Y (substitute the X and Y for IV) and the.. (DV).
-There will be a difference between the presence of an audience and no audience and the amount of honey produced by bees.
What is an independent variable?
This is the variable manipulated by the researcher, it is thought to directly affect the dependent variable.
E.G. The operationalised independent variable of the statement “To see whether an audience affects how hard a bee will work” is with/ without an audience.
What is a dependant variable?
This is the variable measured by the researcher.
E.G. The operationalised dependant variable of the statement “To see whether an audience affects how hard a bee will work” is the amount of pollen collected by the bees.
What is operationalising?
Making it very clear the key variables were manipulated/ measured so that the hypothesis can be written in a way that can be tested by many psychologists in exactly the same way.
E.G. The operationalised form of “Lack of sleep affects concentration” would be “Participants who sleep for seven hours or more will complete the puzzle quicker than those who sleep for five hours or less”.
