research methods (year 1) Flashcards
what is a laboratory experiment
experiment that takes place in controlled environment where experimenter manipulates IV and measures DV
what is a field experiment
takes place in natural setting in which researcher manipulates IV and measures DV
what are 2 strengths of lab studies
high control over confounding + extreneous variables so cause and effect easily identified
High in reliability as can easily be replicated due to high control so can check for validity
what are 2 limitations of lab studies
environment is artificial so low in external validity and generalisability.
possible demand characteristics as pps aware they are in lab experiment resulting in unatural behaviour.
2 strengths of field experiments
high mundane realism as natural environment so high external validity.
participants often unaware they are being studied so low risk of demand characterstics.
3 limitations of field experiments
less control over confounding + extreneous variables so difficult to distinguish cause and effect.
ethical issues as pps unaware they are being studied
low in reliability
what is a natural experiment
naturally occuring IV, researcher records the DV
two strengths of natural experiment
high external validity and ecological validity producing realistic behaviour
less likelihood of demand characteristics as pps do not know they are being studied
two limitations of natural experiments
reduced oppotunities for research as naturally occuring IV’s are rare
no control over extreneous variables so difficult to distinguish cause and effect.
what is a quasi experiment
naturally occuring IV that is predetermined (age, gender) researcher measures DV
name one strength of quasi experiment
often carried out under controlled conditions. so high in internal validity
limitation of quasi experiment
may be confounding variables as IV is not manipulated by researcher so difficult to distinguish cause and effect.
What is a naturalistic observation
takes place in setting or context where target behaviour would naturally occur.
strength of naturalistic obseration
high external and ecological validity so can be generalised.
limitation of naturalistic observation
lack of control over confounding variables so replication is difficult.
what is a controlled observation
watching + recording behaviour within structured environment where variables are controlled
strength of controlled observation
high in reliability as standardised observation
limitation of controlled observation
low in ecological validity so hard to generalise to natural everyday life
what is a covert observation
observation that occurs without pps knowledge and consent
what is an overt observation
observation that occurs with pps knowledge and consent
what is a participant observation
researcher becomes member of group whose behaviour is being recorded
what is a strength of participant observation
increased insight into lives of people being studied
what is a limitation of partcipant observation
danger of researcher ‘going native’
what is non participant observation
researcher remains outside of group whose behaviour is being recorded
what is a strength of non participant observation
research remains objective (not biased)
limitation of non participant observation
may lose valuable insight that could be gained in pps observation
what is a questionnaire
preset list of written questions to which pps responds, can be open ( qualitative ) or closed (quantitative)
what are 3 strengths of questionnaires
cost effective
gathers large amounts of data quickly
can be completed without researcher present
what is 3 limitations of questionnaires
responses may not be truthful due to social desirability bias
possibility of leading questions distorting answers
not everyone will answer if postal so low in population validity - mainly those who answer will believe they will benefit the researcher ( demand characterstics)
what is a structured interview
pre-determined questions that are asked in fixed order and conducted face-face.
what is 2 strengths of a structured interview
straightforward to replicate
reduces differences between interviews so easy to compare.
what is a limitation of structured interviews
participants can not deviate or explain their answers which may limit the richness of data collected.
what is a non structured interview
no predetermined set of questions, participants encouraged to expand and elaborate their answers.
what is a strength of non structured interviews
better rapport can be built between interviewer and pps, resulting in more natural answers that are higher in validity and truthfulness
what is 2 limiations of non structured interviews
large amount of irrelevant information produced so difficult to analyse and draw conclusions + time consuming.
low in reliability as not standardised so difficult to compare interviews.
what is a correlation
A measure of the strength of a relationship between two variables
what are 3 strengths of correlations
provide a precise and quantifiable measure of how 2 variables are related
useful as a starting point to assess possible patterns between variables before researcher commits to experimental study
quick + economical as no need for controlled environment
what is a limiation of correlations
does not tell us why relationship occurs/does not, no cause and effect. Could be due to third variable which is not identified.
what is difference between experiment and correlations
experiment involve manipulating iv and measuring dv- cause and effect established.
correlations you measure variables without manipulating to see if they are linked.
what is a hypothesis
testable precise statement of what researcher predicts will be the outcome of the study
what is a difference between extreneous and confounding variables
An extraneous variable is any variable that you’re not investigating that can potentially affect the dependent variable of your research study. eg. lighting in lab or age of pps
A confounding variable is a type of extraneous variable that not only affects the dependent variable, but is also related to the independent variable. eg. time of day memory test is completed - later may mean pps are more tired.
what is difference between population and sample
population is entire group you want to draw conclusions about, a sample is the specific group you collect data from.
what is sampling bias
occurs when some members of population are systematically more likely to be selected in a sample than others.
what is random sampling
all members of target population have equal chance of being selected. names usually assigned a number and randomly picked by lottery method
what is a strength of random sampling
free from bias + confounding variables equally divided among population increasing validity
what is two limitions of random sampling
people may refuse to take part, sample may not truly represent population
what is systematic sampling
every nth member of target population is selected
what is a strength and limitation of a systematic sample
objective as researcher has no influence on who is picked , however is time consuming
what is stratified sampling
the composition of the sample reflects the varying proportions of people in particular strata within the wider population.
Firstly you identify the strat, then you calculate the recquired proportion needed for each stratum, based on the target population. Then select the sample at random from each stratum using a random selection method.
what is a strength and limitation of stratified sampling
representative sample, generalisation is possible, however cannot reflect all differences in people so complete representation is not possible.
oppotunity sampling
when researchers select anyone who is willing and available
strength and a limiation of oppotunity sampling
convenient and less costly, unrepresentative of target population + researcher has complete control over who is selected
what is volunteer sampling
involves pps selecting themselves eg. from advert or newspaper
strength and limitation of volunteer sampling
pps are more likely to be engaged and interested however possible demand characteristics as pps view themselves as being able to benefit research in some way.
what are co-variables
variables that have a relationship. when one icnreases the other decreases
what is a pilot study and why is it done
small scale trial run of actual investigation to check that procedures, measuring scales ect. work and allows researcher to make any necessary modifications.
experimental design: independant groups
pps allocated to different groups , where each group represents one experimental condition
what are 2 strengths of independant groups design
reduces chances of demand characteristics
reduces chance of order effect so reduces unatural behaviour displayed
what is a limitation of independant groups design
pps who occupy different groups will have different participant variables resulting in confounding variables so reduced validity of findings
what is a repeated measures design.
all pps take part in all conditions of experiment
what are 2 strengths of repeated measures design
less pps needed so less time spent recruiting pps. Participant variables are eliminated due to same pps in each condition
what are 2 limitations of repeated measures design
increased chance of order effects resulting in unatural behaviour and low internal validity
can increase chance of demand characteristics
what is a matched pairs design
pairs of pps are matched on key variables ( eg age, IQ) and then one is allocated to condition A, the other allocated to condition B
what is a strength of matched pairs design
reduced influence of participant variables so high internal validity + avoids order effects
what is a limitation of matched pairs design
requires twice the number of pps needed so makes more expensive + still difficult to match people exactly unless they are twins.
what is counterbalencing
technique used to deal with order effects when using a repeated measures design. With counterbalancing, the participant sample is divided in half, with one half completing the two conditions in one order and the other half completing the conditions in the reverse order.
what is random allocation
attempt to control participant variables in an independant groups design. when the researchers divide the participants and allocate them to certain groups using a random method. each pps has equal chance at being in a condition
what is time sampling
dividing the observation period into equal intervals and recording whether behaviour occurs or not within each interval. eg. they record each participant behaviour for 20 seconds every 3 minutes over a 2 hour observation
what is a strength of time sampling
effective in reducing the number of observations that have to be made by using an objective means of sampling. less likely to miss behaviour as observing for shorter periods.
what is a limitation of time sampling
instances where behaviour is sampled may be unrepresentative of observation as a whole.
what is event sampling
The researcher records/tallies every time a behaviour (from the behaviour categories) happens
The researcher observes these behaviours on target individuals
All behaviours that are included in the behaviour categories are on a list then that behaviour will be recorded
However, behaviours that are not on the categorised list are not recorded, which means relevant behaviours could be missed
what is a strength of event sampling
useful when target behaviour is infrequent and could be missed if time sampling is used
what is a limitation of event sampling
observer may miss some observations if too many things happen at once. Hard to record multiple behaviours all at once. reduces validity of findings
what are the 6 codes of ethics
informed consent
avoidance of deception
debriefing
right to withdraw
confidentiality
incentives to take part
what is deception
deliberately misleading or withholding information at any stage of the investigation
how should deception be dealt with
pps should be given full debrief, should be made aware of true aims of study, told what data will beused for and be given the right to withdraw and withhold information
how should informed consent be dealt with
pps should be issues with a consent letter detailing all relevant information that might affect their decision to participants, if informed consent is not gained at beginning of study then pps should be fully debriefed at end.
what is an empiracle method
when data is collected directly through observation or experiment, does not rely on argument of belief.
what is falsifiability
principle that a theorey could only be considered scientific if it is possible to establish it as true or false.
how can we minimise investigator effects
using a double blind experiment technique
what is qualitative data
non numerical data
what is quantitative data
numerical data
strength of qualitative data
can provide more detailed information about pps thoughts feelings and motivation
limitation of qualitative data
more difficult to analyse as doesnt fit neatly into categories
strength of quantitative data
data can be consistent, precise and reliable
limitation of quantitative data
data may not be robust eneough to explain complex issues.
what is primary data
first hand data gathered by researcher
what is a meta analysis
where researchers combine the findings from multiple studies to draw an overall conclusion.
what is nominal, ordinal and interval data
Nominal: the data can only be categorised. (mode) Ordinal: the data can be categorised and ranked (median) . Interval: the data can be categorised and ranked, and evenly spaced (mean).
what is a strength of the mean
most sensitive measure as includes all scores so most representative of data set
what is a limitation of the mean
can easily be distorted by extreme values resulting in low representation
what is a strengh of the mode
useful for putting data into categories + easily calculated
what is a limitation of the mode
crude measurment that is not very representative
what is a limitation of the mode
crude measurment that is not very representative
what is a strength of the median
extreme values do not distort median
what is a limitation of the median
does not include extreme values which may be important.
what is a limitation of calculating the range
only takes into account the two most extreme values so may be unrepresentative of data set
what is standard deviation
measure of dispersion within a data set tells us how far each score deviates from mean. High SD means more variation in scores Low SD means more consistency in scoresn
how would laboratory information be displayed
on a bar chart
what type of data are histograms used for
continuous
what type of data should a frequency polygon be used for
ordinal or interval data (correlational data)
the correlation coefficient is always a number between….
-1.0 and +1.0
a positive correlation is shown by a ….. correlation coefficient
+1.0
what number of correlation coefficient would depict no correlation
0
where is the distribtution of information on a positive skew
to the right of the graph
where is the distribution of information on a negative skew
to the left of the graph
what is the result of an inferential statistic known as
the calculated/observed value
what is the calculated/observed value compared to
the critical value
what are the 3 conditions that have to be met to use the sign test
- research method is an experiment
- experimental design is repeated measures
- nominal data is used
what is a likert scale
indicates agreement with statement
what is acquiescence bias
tendancy of a respondant to a survey to constantly agree with a statement.
