Research methods - Chapter 1 Flashcards
define ‘bar chart’
A graph used to represent the frequency of data; the categories on the x-axis have no fixed order and there is no true zero
define ‘closed questions’
Questions that have a predetermined range of answers from which respondents select one. Produces quantitative data
define ‘Confidentiality’
Concerns the communication of personal information from one person to another, and the trust that the information will be protected.
define ‘Continuous variable’
A variable that can take on any value within a certain range. Liking football (on a scale of 1-10) is continuous whereas the football team a person supports isn’t. The latter could be arranged in any order
define ‘control group’
A group of which any variable is held constant or regulated by a researcher.
define ‘controlled observation’
A form of investigation in which behaviour is observed but under conditions where certain variables have been organised by the researcher.
define ‘Correlation coefficient’
A number between -1 and +1 that tells us how closely the co-variables in a correlation analysis are associated.
define ‘cost-benefit analysis’
A systematic approach to estimating the negatives and positives of any research
define ‘counterbalancing
An experimental technique used to overcome order effects when using a repeated measures design. Counterbalancing ensures that each condition is tested first or second in equal amounts
define ‘co-variable’
Co-variables are variables that are used when looking at correlations. Correlations are common relationships that two variables have.
define ‘covert observation’
Observing people without their knowledge. Knowing that behaviour is being observed is likely to alter a participants behaviour.
define ‘Curvilinear correlation’
A non-linear relationship between co-variables
define ‘deception’
A participant is not told the true aims of a study (e.g what participation will involve) and thus cannot give truly informed consent.
define ‘Dependent variable [DV]’
A measurable outcome of the action of the independent variable in an experiment
define ‘effect size’
A measure of the strength of the relationship between two variables.
define ‘Ethical guidelines (code of conduct)’
A set of principles designed to help professionals behave honestly and with integrity.
define ‘ethics committee’
A group of people within a research institution must approve a study before it begins.
define ‘event sampling’
An observational technique in which a count is kept of the number of times a certain behaviour (event) occurs.
define ‘experimental design’
A set of procedures used to control the influence of factors such as participant variables in an experiment.
define ‘field experiment’
A controlled experiment conducted outside a lab. The IV is still manipulated by the experimenter, and therefore casual relationships can be demonstrated. Field experiments tend to have low internal validity (more difficult to control extraneous and confounding variables) and higher external validity (greater mundane realism). Participants are usually unaware that they are participating in an experiment; thus their behaviour may be more natural and they are less likely to respond to cues from the experimenter.
define ‘fraction’
A method of expressing parts of a whole.
define ‘histogram’
Type of frequency distribution in which the number of scores in each category of continuous data are represented by vertical columns. There is a true zero and no spaces between the bars.
define ‘Independent groups design’
Participants are allocated to two (or more) groups representing different levels of the IV. Allocation is usually done using random techniques.
define ‘Intervening variable’
A variable that comes between two other variables, which is used to explain the association between those two variables. For example, if a positive correlation is found between ice cream sales and violence this may be explained by an intervening variable - heat - which causes the increase in ice cream sales and the increase in violence
define ‘interview’
A research method or technique that involves a face-to-face, ‘real-time’ interaction with another individual and results in the collection of data.
define ‘Laboratory experiment’
An experiment carried out in a controlled setting. Lab experiments tend to have high internal validity because good control over all variables is possible. They tend to have low ecological validity because participants are aware they are being studied and also the tasks involved tend to be more artificial.
define ‘linear correlation’
A systematic relationship between co-variables that is defined by a straight line.
define ‘matched pairs design’
Pairs of participants are matched in terms of key variables such as age and IQ. One member of each pair is allocated to one of the conditions under test and the second person is allocated to the other condition.
define ‘mean’
The arithmetic average of a data set. Take the exact values of all the data into account.
define ‘measure of dispersion’
A descriptive statistic that provides information about how spread out a set of data are.
