Research methods (topic 11) Flashcards
what is an independent variable
a variable in an experiment that is manipulated and is assumed to have a direct effect on the dependent variable
what is a dependent variable
a variable in an experiment that is being measured and is dependent on the independent vaiable
ecological validity
the degree to which an investigation represents real life experiences
what is an extraneous variable
–factors in a study that could interfere with the IV and DV and that could affect the results of the study (e.g., noise)
–may affect the validity
–of these factors are not controlled they become cofounding variables
extraneous variables
situational factors
–aspects of the environment that can affect the ppt’s bahviour
–how the study is conducted could also introduce situational variables, e.g., ppt may improve if they repeat the study. this is called the order effect
extraneous variables
participant variables
–refers to the ways in which each ppt varies from the other and how this could effect the results e.g., mood, intelligence, etc.
extraneous variables
investigator effect
–when the experimenter unconsciously conveys to ppt how they should behave - experimenter bias.
extraneous variables
demand characteristics
–the clues in an experiment which convey to the ppt the purpose of research which may lead to the ppt altering their behaviour.
how to control situational variables
–standardised procedure:
enduring that the situation and procedure are exactly the same for each ppt.
–counterbalancing:
giving half of the ppt condition ‘A’ and the condition ‘B’ and giving the other half of the ppts condition ‘B’ and then condition ‘A’
–randomisation:
assigning the ppts randomly to avoid bias
how to control ppt variables
–random allocation:
randomly allocating ppt to the condition of the study to prevent only a certain type of person being in one condition
demand characteristics
the clues in an experiment that lead the ppt to think they know the aims of the study
how to control demand characteristics
–single-blind technique:
when the information of the study is withheld from the ppt
–double-blind technique:
when both of the ppt and researcher are unaware of the aims of the study
what is a null hypothesis
–hypothesis that states that there is no or very little effect
–states that there is no relationship between the variables
–any difference is due to chance
what is an alternative hypothesis
–states that there is a relationship between two variables
–not due to chance
what is non-directional hypothesis
–it is used when a theory cannot make a clear prediction and the evidence is mixed
–there will be a difference in how many numbers are recalled correctly by adults and children
what is a directional hypothesis
–it issued when a theory makes a clear claim, so the direction of the hypothesis can be predicted
–e.g., adults will correctly recall more words than children
random sampling
–when everyone in the entire target population has an equal chance of being selected
–requires a way of naming or numbering the target population then using a raffle method in choosing
random sampling
strengths
–provides the best chance of an unbiased representative sample
–helps control ppt variables (demand characteristics)
random sampling
weakness
–time-consuming
–some people may refuse to take part in the study
volunteer smapling
–putting together a sample of ppt who have volunteered to take part in a research
–ads can be used
volunteer sampling
strength
–easy to arrange
–most ethical option, as they will apply if they want to
volunteer sampling
weakness
–not representative of the target population (compared to stratified and random sampling)
–not everyone in the target population will apply
–biased sample- volunteers can be considered as having a particular personality type
stratified sampling
–the researcher identifies the different types of people that make up the target population and works out the proportions of each type of people in it
–once different types of people are identified, a random sample will be selected from each group so that they are represented proportionately
stratified sampling
strength
–deliberate effort to ensure that the sample is completely representative
stratified sampling
weaknesses
–time consuming (subgroups need to be identified and calculations made)
–people can refuse to take part
opportunity sampling
–based on convenience
–an opportunity sample is obtained by asking the members if they would take part in the study.
opportunity sampling
strengths
–quick and convenient method
–economical
opportunity sampling
weaknesses
–can lead to biased sample
–not representative sample as the researcher is likely to choose people who are ‘helpful’
–findings are likely not generalisable
independent measures design
–different ppts are used in each condition of the IV
–each condition of the experiment includes a different group of ppts
–ppt cannot be in both conditions
–can be done by random allocation to ensure that each ppt has an equal chance of being assigned to one groups or the other
independent measures design
strengths
–ppt won’t guess the aims of the study. prevents demand characteristics
–there are no order effects as ppts only take part in 1 condition. this means participant variables. (mood)
independent measures design
weaknesses
–not economical as more time, money and ppts are needed to repeat the other conditions
–individual differences affect the results of the study. participant variables
repeated measures design
–the same ppts take part in each condition of the independent variable
–this means that each condition of the experiment includes the same group of ppts
repeated measures design
strengths
– no individual differences between the conditions of the study since all the ppts are the same
–economical as fewer ppts are needed making it easier and cheaper
repeated measures design
weaknesses
–ppt will work out the aim and alter their behaviour - demand characteristics
–strong chance of order effects
matched pairs design
–each condition uses different but similar ppts
–effort made to match the ppts in each condition in terms of any important characteristic which may affect the results of the study
–one member of the matched pair must be randomly assigned to the experimental group ad the other to the control group
matched pairs design
strengths
–small chance of working out the aim of the study - no demand characteristics
–fair comparisons can be made between the groups as they can be equally matched -less ppt variable
matched pairs design
weakness
–time-consuming - not economical as it takes more time and money
what are the ethical guidelines
- informed consent
- confidentiality
- deception (researchers should not mislead the ppts. If deception cannot be avoided a debrief must be given)
- right to withdraw
- protection of ppts
naturalistic observation
–studying spontaneous behaviour in an everyday environment
–a researcher watched what people do and record what they see
–suitable for studying everyday unaltered behaviour
controlled/structured observation
–done when it’s not practical for a researcher to wait for a behaviour to occur naturally
–normally takes place in. a lab
participant observation
-when the researcher joins in the group they are researching to get a deeper insight
non-participant observation
when researcher doesn’t join in and simply watches the group
covert observations
when the ppts don’t know that they are being watched (cover)
overt observations
when ppts know that they are being watched
(ppts may alter their behaviour. this will affect the results)
strengths of observations
–cheap and easy to conduct
–controlled o0bservations can be replicated so they can test for reliability
–naturalistic observations can have greater ecological validity (real life)
weaknesses of observations
–can be unreliable
-observers may not detect behaviour
-observers’ interpretations may differ
–may lack validity
-observer Bias: different observers will have different interpretations according to their personal experiences
–unethical - no informed consent
strengths of case studies
–useful way of studying a particular behaviour that cannot be obtained by other means
–provides insight for further research
–rich qualitative information obtained
weaknesses of case studies
–cannot be replicated
–cannot generalise the results as it is unique
–researchers’ own subjective feelings may influence the case study (researcher bias)
what is correlation
–technique that measures the relationship between two variables
–it is done without manipulating the variables
positive correlation
–relationship where there is a positive relationship between the variables (proportional)
negative correlation
–relationship where there is a negative relationship between variables (inverse)
zero correlation
–no relationship between the variables
strengths of using correlations
–more economical than experiments - less money and time needed
– can be used when its unethical to conduct an experiment
–allows the researcher to see if there is a relationship between variables
weakness of using correlations
–cannot establish cause and effect
lab experiment
–conducted under highly controlled conditions where accurate measurements are possible
–standardised procedure is used
–extraneous variables are controlled
lab experiments
strengths
–easy to replicate 0 reliable
–allows precise control of extraneous variables
–most scientific
–cause and effect acan be established - high internal validity
lab experiments
weaknesses
–artificial setting - unnatural behaviour - low ecological validity
–demand characteristics
field experiments
–conducted in an everyday environment
–IV is still manipulated
field experiments
strengths
–more likely to reflect real life behaviour - higher ecological validity
–cause and effect between IV and DV
–if covert, demand characteristics are less likely
field experiments
weaknesses
–less control over extraneous variables
–difficult to replicate - not reliable
–if covert unethical - informed consent
natural experiment
–conducted in everyday environment
–IV is not manipulated
natural experiment
strengths
–real life - high ecological validity
–demand characteristics are less likely as ppts probably don’t know they are taking part
–can be used in unethical situations
natural experiment
weaknesses
–unethical - no informed consent
–not economical - time consuming and expensive
–no control over extraneous variables
–issues with ppt variables as random allocation not possible
structured intreview
–questions are asked in a standardised order and the interviewer will not stray from the interview schedule (not flexible)
–based on structured, closed-ended questions
structured interview
strengths
–easy to replicate - reliable
–economical - less time consuming - more time for large sample - more representative - generalisable
-quantitative - scientific - easy to analyse
structured interview
weaknesses
–not flexible
–quantitative - lacks detail
semi-structured interview
–combination of pre-prepared questions and open-ended questions
-has a bit of flexibility
semi-structured interview
strengths
–allow the interviewer to investigate the interviewee if relevant
–both qualitative and quantitative data is collected
semi-structured interview
weaknesses
–not economical as it is time-consuming
unstructured-interview
–contains open-ended questions that can be asked in any order. some questions might be added/ missed as the interview progresses
unstructured-interview
strengths
–more flexible
–qualitative data is gathered - helps to understand a real sense of the person’s understanding of the situation
–increased validity
unstructured-interview
weakness
–not economical - time-consuming to analyse the open-ended questions + employing and trainig intreviewers are expensive
weakness of using interviews as a research method
–social desirability bias - ppt may answer in a way that is sociably acceptable
–interviewer bias: ppt may answer the way they think the interviewer wants them to
strength of using questionnaires as a research method
–good for gathering information from a large sample
–economical
–ethical
–researcher not present - reduced social desirability effect
–closed-ended questions produce quantitative data - easy to analyse
weaknesses of using questionnaires as a research method
–low response rate
–ppts may not be honest when completing, they may want to make themselves look better or worse - low validity
–open-ended questions are hard to analyse
