Research Methods - Extraneous Variables

Question 1

What are extraneous variables?

Answer 1

Any variable that isnt being investigated that can potentially affect the outcomes of the research study

Question 2

What are the 2 main sources of extraneous variables?

Answer 2

Participant variables & Situational variables

Question 3

What are participant variables?

Answer 3

Variables that are connected with the research participant
E.g. gender/age/intelligence

Question 4

What are situational variables?

Answer 4

Variables that are connected with the research situation
E.g. time of day/temperature/noise

Question 5

What are participant effects?

Answer 5

When the participants behaves in a way that may bias the validity of the research findings

Question 6

What are the 4 participant effects?

Answer 6

Participant reactivity
Evaluation Apprehension
Social Desirability bias
The Hawthorne effect

Question 7

What is participant reactivity?

Answer 7

When behaviours & reactions are impacted by the participant’s knowledge that they are part of a study

Question 8

What is evaluation apprehension?

Answer 8

When the participant’s behaviour is distorted as they fear being judged by observers/other group members

Question 9

What is social desirability bias?

Answer 9

Occurs when participants give answers/act in a way that they believe will make them look good to others

Question 10

What is the Hawthorne effect?

Answer 10

When participants act differently because they become aware that they’re being observed

Question 11

What are demand characteristics?

Answer 11

When a participant will try an act in a way that they believe aligns with what they guess is expected of them or acting in the opposite of what they think is expected (the ‘screw you’ effect)

Question 12

What are investigator effects?

Answer 12

When the investigator may bias the results of a study consciously/unconsciously due to

Non verbal communication - e.g. raised eyebrows
Physical characteristics - gender
Bias in the interpretation of data - interpreting the data in a way they see as ‘correct’

Question 13

What is expectancy bias?

Answer 13

occurs when an individual’s expectations about an outcome influence perceptions of their own/others’ behavior

Question 14

What are confounding variables?

Answer 14

Factors other than the IV that may cause a result & consequently have an effect on the IV & DV

Question 15

How do we control extraneous variables?

Answer 15

Use a pilot study

Question 16

What is a pilot study?

Answer 16

A small scale prototype of a study carried out in advance to the full research

Question 17

Why is a pilot study carried out?

Answer 17

To find out problems in the experimental design, instructions for participants & measuring instruments

Question 18

What kind of things do you do in a pilot study?

Answer 18

Give a questionnaire for a small number of people to complete & ask them to rate it an give critisms

Question 19

What is standardisation?

Answer 19

Where all of the situational variables are kept identical

Question 20

How might the researchers standardise the experiment?

Answer 20

Keep the experiment at the same time of day, same temperature etc.

Question 21

What is mundane realism?

Answer 21

To what extent are the experimental findings generalisable to the real world.
A measure of external validity

Question 22

How might researchers keep mundane realism?

Answer 22

Do a field experiment

Question 23

What is a single blind technique?

Answer 23

When only the researcher knows the aim of the experiment

Question 24

How may the researchers do the single blind technique?

Answer 24

Use a placebo which only the researcher knows about

Question 25

What is the double blind technique?

Answer 25

When the participants & the researcher dont know who is receiving a particular treatment

Question 26

How might the researcher use the double blind technique?

Answer 26

Using a placebo to test a specific medication

Question 27

What is randomisation?

Answer 27

When the trials are presented in a random order to avoid any bias the order of the trials may present