Research Methods Year 2 P2 Flashcards
what is nominal data?
data that appears in categories
what is ordinal data?
data that is ordered but the intervals between each value are unequal e.g. times in a race
what is interval data?
data that can be ordered and between each value is equal
what are the three parametric tests?
unrelated t-test, related t-test & persons
Draw out or imagine the inferential statistical test table.
.
define what is meant by a case study
involve a detailed study of one particular group or individual
what 2 strength of there of a case study
- detailed data is collected
2. allow in sight into situations that could not be created by researchers
what 2 weaknesses of there of a case study
- cannot replicate
2. impossible to generalise findings to a wider population
what is content analysis
a form of indirect observation not observing people directly, observing artefacts they have produced
what is an example of content analysis
analysing graffiti from toilet
what are two ways the data could be collected in content analysis
coding - if quantitive or by themes if qualitative
how is quantitive analysis carried out?
look on sheet
how is qualitative analysis carried out?
through thematic analysis
what are 2 strengths of content analysis?
- very ethical way to conduct research
2. high ecological validity as observations are based on real artefacts produced by people
what are 2 weaknesses of content analysis?
- possible observer bias - different observers may interpret data in different ways
- cultural bias - different cultures may interpret different behavioural categories differently
what is meant by reliability?
refers to whether a set of findings are consistent
what are 2 ways of testing reliability?
- test-retest - repeated by the same pps
2. inter-observer reliability - whether researchers get consistent and similar observations
how do we assess if results are similar
correlation - statistical test - if more than 0.8 it is considered similar
how can reliability be improved through experiments?
use standardised procedures
how can reliability be improved through questionnaires?
avoid leading and ambiguous questions
use closed questions instead of open questions
how can reliability be improved through interviews?
use sam interviewer
use structured interview
how can reliability be improved through observations?
make sure behavioural categories have been operationalised & behavioural categories should cover all possible categories
what is meant by validity?
whether findings from a study are genuine or accurate - whether the researcher is measuring what they’re claiming to measure
give 2 types of validity
- internal validity - extraneous variables e.g. demand characteristics and investigator effects
- external validity - e.g. ecological validity or temporal validity
what are 2 ways we could assess validity?
- face validity - experts to look at test to confirm it is measuring what it is supposed to
- con-current validity - comparing a test measure or scale with an already established one pps take both tests and if results have a strong correlation - high validity
how can validity be improved through experiments?
standardised procedures - reduce investigator effects
how can validity be improved through questionnaires?
allow pps to remain anonymous
how can validity be improved through interviews?
only include questions that measure what its supposed to measure
how can validity be improved through observations?
ensure behavioural categories have been operationalised and do covert observations
how can validity be improved through case studies?
use several methods to collect data e.g. interviews from parents and friends, observations, diary methods
what are the 7 features of science
- empiricism
- objectivity
- replicability
- falsifiability
- theory reconstruction
- hypothesis testing
- paradigms
what is meant by empiricism?
data gathered directly through observation or experience
what is meant by objectivity?
minimising all sources of bias e.g. double blind design, standardisation, random sampling
what is meant by replicability?
the extent findings and procedures can be repeated - how consistent are the findings
what is meant by falsifiability?
cannot be a science if it cannot be proven untrue - where the null hypothesis comes from
what is meant by theory reconstruction?
theories must be open to testability - hypothesis testing
what is meant by hypothesis testing?
a theory must be able to generate hypothesises where be can test them
what is meant by paradigms?
a shared set of assumptions and agreed assumptions within a scientific discipline
what is a paradigm shift?
a fundamental change in the belief we hold
what is the point of the abstract in the psychological investigation report?
allows the reader to make a decision as to whether they want to read on or not.
overview of aims and hypothesises
what is the point of the introduction in the psychological investigation report?
to show the line of logic in reaching the aims &
background research that is relevant
what is the point of the method in the psychological investigation report?
step by step account of what was done and how design/pps/materials/procedure/sampling happened
what is the point of the results in the psychological investigation report?
check calculations and data & descriptive tables and graphs and inferential statistics
what is the point of the discussion in the psychological investigation report?
offer opportunities for other researchers critic or improve
if asked to write a discussion what 4 paragraphs would you write?
- explanation of findings
- relationship to background research
- improvements
- suggestions for further research
what is the point of the references in the psychological investigation report?
avoid plagiarism
what is the point of the appendices in the psychological investigation report?
includes all original data and calculations
for replicability
what is meant by a type 1 error?
level of significance is 0.10 - researcher has been too lenient - rejecting the null hypothesis
what is meant by a type 2 error?
level of significance is too stringent at 0.01 - researcher has been too cautious
why are histograms used?
to represent continuous data
what does one tailed mean?
you are stating the direction of effect the result will have e.g. go up or down
what does two tailed mean?
when you do not state the direction of difference
