Research Methods.2

Question 1

What is meant by replicability. Why is it an important feature of science?

Answer 1

Replication is repeating an experiemnt to confirm its validity. if a finding from a research study is valid then it should be possible to obtain the same results when the study is repeated; so confirms the validity of the finding.

Replicability is an important part of the scientific process as the scientific method involves defining a problem and formulating a hypothesis that can be tested with empirical research. if we wish to draw conclusions from research studies, the procedures and findings should be repeatable. unrepeatable studies imply flaws or lack of control so are of limited use.

Question 2

what is internal validity

Answer 2

whether a study has tested what it set out to test; the degree to which the observed effects was due to experimental manipulation rather than extraneous variables

Question 3

What is external validity

Answer 3

the extent to which the research findings are generalisable to other situations, especially ‘everyday’ settings.

also known as ecological validity or mundane realism

Question 4

how can internal validity be measured

Answer 4

• Concurrent validity: assessing hoe closely the scores of measurement match a different score of measurement on the same participants.
• Content validity: involves asking experts in the field to check the content of the measurement to see how accurate its measurement is.

Question 5

what is meant be peer review?

Answer 5

A practice of research assessments of using experts to assess other experts.

Question 6

Why is peer review an important part of the scientific process

Answer 6

peer review is an essential part of the scientific process by which scientific quality is judged. it is in the interest of all scientists that research is held up for scrutiny and that fraudulent work is stopped.
peer review will help researchers as they may not be able to notice their own mistakes so problems can be addressed and means their research may be taken seriously because it has been independently scrutinised by experts.

Question 7

what is content analysis

Answer 7

a technique for analysing Qualitative data. data can be placed into catagories or themes then counted. this turns the data into Quantitative data.

Question 8

what id meant by validity

Answer 8

Validity is the legitamacy of the study., the extent to which the observed effects was due to experimental manipulation rather than extraneous variables and the extent to which the research findings are generalisable to other situations, especially ‘everyday’ settings.

Question 9

Outline the ‘Scientific process’

Answer 9

Identify a problem and formulate an aim

Develop a clear and testable hypothesis

choose and appropriate experimental method to test the hypothesis

analyse the results and draw conclusions

replication of the originla study to different situations

formulate general laws and theories of human behaviour

Question 10

what ethical issues should researchers consider when dealing with child participants?

Answer 10

1) Any research task must be age appropriate
2) parents must give consent and be fully informed
3) any interview must be undertaken by two interviewers to protect both child and researcher
4) any research task must be enjoyable and rewarding.

Question 11

Outline one advantage and one disadvantage of correlational research

Answer 11

ADV: correlational analysis shows the direction and strength of relationships so the findings can be used to generate ideas for future research

DISADV: correlational research only explains the two variables that are being studied, but other factors may be involved that were not known of, or accounted for.

Question 12

What are the main features of an interview in psychological research

Answer 12

An interview is a one-to-one conversation collecting information about personal thoughts, feelings and behaviours.

• Structured interviews: this method has a standardised format of questions, meaning the same questions are asked everytime.
• Semi-structured interviews: this method includes set questions but the order is not fixed
• Unstructured: this method is participant led and questions are based on the answers given.

Question 13

Type 1 Error

Answer 13

Reject the null hypothesis (therefore accepting the alternate hypothesis) because the level of significance was set too generously.

e.g. accepting that women are better than men at reading, when infact there is no difference.

Question 14

Type 2 Error

Answer 14

Accepting the null hypothesis (therefore rejecting the alternate hypothesis) because the level of significance was set too strictly (e.g. 1%)

e.g. we accept that there is no difference, when in fact women are better than men

Question 15

When should you use Spearman’s Rho

Answer 15

1) When the hypothesis states that there is a test of relationship (correlation) between the two variables
2) when the data is ordinal or interval

Question 16

When should you use Chi-Squared

Answer 16

1) When the hypothesis states that there is a difference or association between the two variables
2) When independent groups design is used
3) when the data is nominal

Question 17

When should you use Mann-Whitney

Answer 17

1) When the hypothesis states that there is a difference between the two variables
2) When independent groups design is used
3) When the data is ordinal or interval

Question 18

When should you use Wilcoxon

Answer 18

1) When the hypothesis states that there is a difference between the two variables
2) When matched pairs is used
3) When the data is ordinal or interval

Question 19

What does the expression ‘a statistical test was significant at 0.01’ mean

Answer 19

There is a less than 1% probability that the results were obtained due to chance

Question 20

Why might a researcher use a 0 .01 level of significance compelled to 0 .10

Answer 20

0.01 level is used when psychologist want to be more certain

Question 21

Investigator effect

Answer 21

Anything that the investigator does (directly or indirectly) which has an effect on the participants performance in the study other than what was intended.