RESEARCH METHODS (definitions) - Year 2

Question 1

coding

Answer 1

the process of placing quantitative or qualitative data in categories

Question 2

content analysis

Answer 2

a kind of observational study in which behaviour is usually observed indirectly in visual, written or verbal form (can involve either qualitative or quantitative data, or both)

Question 3

thematic analysis

Answer 3

a technique used when analysing qualitative data. themes/categories are identified and then data is organised accordingly

Question 4

case study

Answer 4

a detailed study of a single individual, constitution or event

Question 5

strengths of case studies

Answer 5

offers in-depth data with new insights into complex factors - as opposed to experiments where variables are held constant
they can be used to investigate rare human behaviour/ instances (e.g. Phineas Gage)

Question 6

limitations of case studies

Answer 6

difficult to generalise, as each one has unique characteristics
lack of confidentiality and informed consent (e.g. HM or LIttle Hans are not able to give informed consent)a

Question 7

inter-observer reliability

Answer 7

the extent to which there is an agreement between two or more observers involved in observations of behaviour

Question 8

reliability

Answer 8

consistency of measurements from a study

Question 9

test-retest reliability

Answer 9

where the same test/interview is done with the same participants on two occasions to see if the same results are obtained (questionnaires)

Question 10

concurrent validity

Answer 10

researcher compares their method of measurement (within experiment/questionnaire) with a similar, previously validated

Question 11

face validity

Answer 11

an intuitive measurement whether a self-report measure looks like it is measuring what the researcher intended to measure
(e.g. a stress questionnaire the questions are related to stress)

Question 12

empirical

Answer 12

a method of gaining knowledge which relies on direct observation/testing - not rational argument etc

Question 13

falsifiability

Answer 13

the possibility that a statement/ hypothesis can be proved wrong

Question 14

paradigm

Answer 14

Kuhn’s definition of science having a unified set of assumptions and methods

Question 15

alternative hypothesis

Answer 15

a testable statement about the relationship between two or more variables

Question 16

null hypothesis

Answer 16

an assumption that there is no relationship between the variables being studied

Question 17

probability (p)

Answer 17

a numerical measure of chance that certain events will occur

Question 18

type one error

Answer 18

when a researcher REJECTS a null hypothesis that is TRUE

Question 19

type two error

Answer 19

when a researcher ACCEPTS a null hypothesis which is FALSE

Question 20

calculated value

Answer 20

the value of a test statistic calculated for a particular data set

Question 21

critical value

Answer 21

the set of values of the test statistic that lead to a rejection (or acceptance) of the null hypothesis

Question 22

one-tailed test

Answer 22

form of test used with a directional hypothesis

Question 23

significance

Answer 23

statistical term indicating that the research findings are sufficiently strong (enabling researcher to reject the null hypothesis)

Question 24

statistical test

Answer 24

procedures for drawing inferences about the population from which samples are drawn

Question 25

test statistic

Answer 25

the value calculated using a statistical test

Question 26

two tailed test

Answer 26

form of test used with a non-directional hypothesis

Question 27

objectivity

Answer 27

whether the data is affected by the expectations of the researcher (important in empirical methods)

Question 28

replicability

Answer 28

whether a researcher gains the same results when an experiment is repeated

Question 29

theory construction

Answer 29

the idea that explanations of theories must be constructed to make sense of the facts (facts alone are meaningless)

Question 30

nominal data definition

Answer 30

discrete and categorical data (e.g. what’s your favourite animal: dog, cat, hamster)

Question 31

ordinal data definition

Answer 31

categorical data that’s in an order (e.g. how much do you like football: hate, don’t mind, like, really like)

Question 32

interval data definition

Answer 32

scale or continued data that can be subdivided (e.g. how much do you like football on a scale of 1-10)

Question 33

ratio data definition

Answer 33

proportional or continuous data (like percentages or volumes of research etc)

Question 34

which methods of data are non-parametric

Answer 34

nominal and ordinal

Question 35

which methods of data are parametric tests

Answer 35

interval and ratio