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reserch methods Flashcards

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1
Q

observation techniques - participate

A

involves the observer becoming actively involved in the experiment they are studying eg zimbardo

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2
Q

what is observation

A

measurement of naturally occurring behaviour

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3
Q

unstructured observation

A

all relevant behaviour is recorded but no system is used

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4
Q

structured observation

A

use a system to organise the data being collected eg behaviour categories sampling method

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5
Q

observation techniques - non-participate

A

involves study of behaviour from a distance in the natural environment

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6
Q

observational techniques - overt

A

has knowledge they are being observed

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7
Q

observational technique - covert

A

no knowledge of observation

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8
Q

observational technique - naturalistic observation

A

behaviour is observed in a situation where everything is left as it is normally eg animal in its natural environment

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9
Q

observational technique - inter-observer reliability

A

the extent to which there is agreement between 2 or more observers involved in observations of a behaviour

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10
Q

observational technique- controlled observation

A

usually involves the study of spontaneous behaviour but under conditions manipulates by the experimenter

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11
Q

observational technique - observer bias

A

observers’ expectations affect what they see or hear. this reduces the validity of the observers

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12
Q

what is a lab experiment

A

-Takes place in a controlled environment with an IV manipulated by the experimenter and a dependant variable which is measured by the experiment

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13
Q

evaluation of lab expirement

A

strengths
+establishes cause and effect relationships
-allows for replication
-good control of confounding variables
weaknesses
- lacks ecological validity due to artificial environment
-demand characteristics
-expensive to set up

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14
Q

what is a field experiment

A

-involves direct manipulation of an IV but done in a natural environment eg school or park still uses an IV and measure DV

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15
Q

evaluate field experiment

A

strengths
+higher ecological validity
+reduced demand characteristics
weaknesses
-less control of extraneous variables
-more time consuming

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16
Q

what is a natural experiment

A

-uses a naturally occurring IV
for example testing the effect of the introduction of Tv on aggression on St helena island

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17
Q

evaluate natural experiments

A

+higher ecological validity
+reduced demand characteristics weaknesses
-little control of extraneous variables such as individual differences personality education home life etc
-little opportunity to use this method

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18
Q

what is a quasi experiment

A

investigates the relationship between an IV and a DV when the IV cannot be directly manipulated and participants cannot be allocated to conditions for example where the IV is a trait eg gender

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19
Q

evaluate quasi experiment

A

+allows research where the IV cant be manipulated for ethical reasons
+ enables psychologists to study real world problems
- cant demonstrate cause and effect
- less control of extraneous variables

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20
Q

evaluate participant observation

A

+researcher can gain greater understanding of groups behaviour
-researcher loses objectivity becoming part of the group

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21
Q

evaluate non participant observation

A

+researcher can remain objective throughout the study
- researchers loses a sense of the group’s dynamic by being separate

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22
Q

evaluate overt observation

A

+much more ethically sound because participants are aware of the research
-people may change their behaviour if they know are being observed

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23
Q

evaluate covert observation

A

+ pps more likely to behave naturally
-gaining ethical approval is difficult

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24
Q

evaluate naturalistic observation

A

+ ecological validity behaviour natural
-extraneous variables can’t control variables that may affect behaviour
- ethics limitations of situations where u can do naturalistic observation

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25
Q

evaluate controlled observation

A

+ more controlled
-lower ecological validity and behave differently if they know they are being observed

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26
Q

what are questionaires

A
  • a questionarie is set of written questions designed to collect information about a topic
    -they are composed of a variety of different questions and scales to measure them
    -the aim is to uncover what people think and feel about a topic
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27
Q

evaluate questionnaires

A

+partical, large volume of info quickly and cheaply
- leading questions
- social desirability bias

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28
Q

what are interviews

A

face-to-face discussion between participants and interviewer using a range of structured or open - ended questions

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29
Q

types of interviews

A

structured - follow a fix set of questions same for all participants pp’s respond verbally
semi-structures - no fixed questions but topic areas are guided order etc can vary across pp’s
unstructured - the interviewee takes the conversation in the direction that they want the interviewer often starts with a few pre-determined questions and the aim

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30
Q

evaluate interviews

A

+ pilot study - useful way to get info before a study
-social desirability bias
-impractical time consuming and skilled researchers
- data analysis can be hard

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31
Q

what is correlation how is it different to an experiment

A

-looks at relationship between 2 variables arnt manipulated may be caused by a third unknown variable or coincidence

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32
Q

evaluate correlational research

A

+ethics you can study variables that would be unethical to manipulate
-casual relationship can’t assume correlation may be caused by a third unknown variable

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33
Q

what is a case study and evaluate

A

case study - intensive descriptions of a single individual or case they allow researchers to analyse unusual cases in a lot of detail eg milner et al study
+unique cases can challenge existing ideas and suggest future ideas for research
-cause -effect relationship can’t be established

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34
Q

the different types of hypotheses and examples

A

-null hypothesis- a prediction that there will be no relationship between key variables if data doesn’t support you challenge it
alternative hypotheses- when data forces you to accept an alternative hypothesis to show variables are linked
-directional hypothesis- stating that one group will do BETTER or HIGHER data than another USED WHEN PAST RESERCH SUGGESTS THE FINDINGS WILL GO IN A PARTICULAR DIRECTIONAL
-non- directional- predict no difference eg just saying there will be a difference in exam results compared to those who revised and don’t USED WHEN THERE IS NO RELEVANT PAST RESEARCH OR CONTRADICTORY RESEARCH
-experimental hypothesis testable statement or prediction more words will be remembered when learning in silence than when TV is on

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35
Q

what is oppurtunity sampling and evaluate

A

recruiting people who are most convient or avliable eg people walking in the street or students at school and fir the criteria you are looking for
+ easiest method and less time consuming
-biased small smaple of population exculded certain populations eg people at work or children at school

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36
Q

what is random sampling

A

every member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen identifying everyone in target population and selecting amount of people needed which gives everyone equal chance
+ unbiased all members of the target population have a equal chance of selection
- takes time to create a list of all members and contact them

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37
Q

stratified sample

A

identifies subgroups in accordance to their frequency in the population and then are randomly selected in the same proportion as they occur in the real population
+more representative because there is proportional selection
-very time consuming to identify subgroups and contact them etc

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38
Q

systematic sample

A

use a predetermined to select participants for example choosing every nth person from a phonebook
+unbiased because it uses a objective system
-only random if number is selected randomly before

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39
Q

volunteer sample

A

advertise in a newspaper or on a noticeboard or on the interent and is self selected sampling
+gives access to a variety of participants who may read the advertisesment
-sample biased in some ways eg those who arehighly motivated and have time on their hands or need money this results in volunteer bias

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40
Q

pilot study

A

is a small scale test run of the reserch design to investigate if certain aspects of the experiment work to see to what extent the procedure needs fine tuning eg if participants dont understand the experiment

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41
Q

repeated measures

A

all participants recieve all levels of the IV and compare the performance of DV of the participants on the two tests eg all pp’s tries every brand of chocolate
-order effect some may be better on second test due to practice effect or get bored boredom effect or may guess what the experiment is about demand characteristics practice effect
ways of dealing - counterbalancing Each condition of IV occurs first and last equally which disrupts order effects

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42
Q

independant group designs

A

participants are placed in independant groups each group does one level of the IV we compare the performance DV of the two groups USES DIFFERENT PP’S IN EACH CONDITION EG ONE GROUP 1ST BRAND ONE GROUP 2ND BRAND
-individual differences may impact on the DV rather than the IV itself
TO OVERCOME = random allocation each pp’s a number put all in a hat draw one no at a time and allocate 1st to condition 1 continue until all are allocated

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43
Q

matched pairs design

A

match participants on key characteristics believes to affect performance of DV eg IQ
- very time consuming and difficult to match and not able to fully control eg history
ways of dealing resistrict number of variables
conduct poliet study

44
Q

behavioural categories

A

observers agree on a list of specific behaviours they want to observe
-this ensures clear exactly what is being measured and observers are looking for same behaviour
-for example aggressive behaviour eg shouting hitting kicking and screaming

45
Q

sampling procedures

A

event sampling - counting the number of times a certain behaviour occurs in a individual in a certain time period
time sampling - recording behaviours in a given time frame eg every 30 seconds and may tick one or more categories from a checklist

46
Q

what is a closed question

A

in an interview where the questions have a predetermined range of answers from which respondents select one tend to produce quantitive data ed yes/no and mutiple chose

47
Q

what is a open question

A

questions that invite respondants to provide their own answers and produce qualitative data eg describe how you feel about psychology
+avoids biasing answers
+provides richer more accurate information
+gives opportunity to respond freely

48
Q

what is a confounding variable

A

variables that interfere with the effect of IV you could explain the results of the study change in DV with a factor other than IV
eg more intelligent better memory or eyesight

49
Q

what are extraneous variables

A

for example reserchers dont know if participants ability is distrubted evenly which makes it more difficult to detect the effect because other factors have an effect often called nuisance variables and make it difficult to detect a significant effect
eg age, lighting, noise in background things that make it harder to detect a result they dont confound the findings of the study

50
Q

types of extraneous variables

A

participant variables = to do with differences between the pp’s
situational variables = features of the experimental situation

51
Q

what is operationalised

A

define a variable to specify how it is measured or manipulated make it very clear exactly what was measured and how eg intelligence IQ test score

52
Q

procedure of random allocation

A

-obtain all the people in the population that wants testing
-put all the names in a lottery barrel or hat
-select the number of names required without looking

53
Q

procedure of counterbalancing

A

way 1 AB or BA
divide group into 2 groups
-each particpant does A then B
-each participant does B then A

54
Q

standardised procedure

A

a set od procedures that are the same for all participants in order to be able to repeat the study. this includes standarised instructions which tell participants how to perform the task

55
Q

what is demand characteristics

A

a cue that makes participants unconscouisly aware of the aims of the study or helps participants work out what the resercher expects to find and may change how they would naturally behaviour
way to deal with… single blind design that participants are unaware of the researchs aim/hypothesis this prevents them from seeking cues and reacting to them
experimental realism if the experimental task is suffciently encaging participants are less likely to pay attention to the fact they are being observed

56
Q

what is the investigator effects

A

unwanted influence that the investigator does that has an effect on a particpants performance in a study other than what is intended which may affect participants natural behaviour
ways to deal with… both the resercher and partipant dont know the aim or hypothesis and therefore less likely to produce cues about what he/she expects

57
Q

The BPS code

A
  • respect upkeeping the dignity and worth of participants eg confidentiality
    -competence psychologists should maintain high standards in their professional work
    -responsibility psychologists have responsibilty over physical and psychological harm eg protection from harm and debriefing
    -integrity psychologists should be honest and accurate
58
Q

ethical issues

A

-informed consent
given comprehensive info concerning the nature and purpose of research and their role in it
-deception
not given the real aims of the study eg being ied to and therfore cannot do informed consent
-the right to withdraw
participants can stop if they feel uncomfortable and can withdraw their results
-protection from psychological and physical harm
should not experience negative effects
-confidentiality
no communication of personal information and info protected
-privacy
a persons right to control the flow of information about themselves

59
Q

ways to deal with ethical issues

A

-informed consent = gain presumptive consent
deception = being fully debriefed
right to withdraw = informed at the start they have the right to withdraw
protection from harm = stop the study is harm is suspected offer follow up counselling if neccasary
confidentiality = not record names use numbers or false names use pseudonyms
privacy = dont study anyone without their informed consent

60
Q

what is peer review

A

the practise of using independant experts to assess the quality and validity of scientific research and academic reports

61
Q

evaluation of peer review

A
  • finding an expert in some fields is not easy
    -publication bias journals tend to publish positive results less likely to agree to publish negative findings
    -anonymity reviewed anonymously to enable objectivity and honesty
    -preserving status quo publishes what applies to current theory science is resistant to shifts
62
Q

the role of peer review

A

-publication of research in scientific journals and books ensures what is published is reliable and accurate prevents faulty or incorrect data enetering public domain
-allocation of research funding
paid for by government and charities
-assessing research rating of university departments rates quality of research conducted by university which influences funding received by university

63
Q

intra observer reliability

A

the extent to which there is an agreement between 2 or more observers involved in observations of a behaviour kappa score 1 would be perfect agreement

64
Q

features of a science

A

objectivity - being subjective
empirical - observation to reach logical judgement
replicability - being able to do the test multiple times improves reliablity
falsifiability - hypothesis can be proven wrong by the experiment

65
Q

quantitative data

A

which represents how much or how long there are of something deals with numbers and which can be measured using behaviour categories or frequency tabled
+easy to analyse conclusions easily withdrawed
- data may over simplify reality

66
Q

qualitative data

A

deals with descriptions concerns attitudes beliefs and emotions using collection of videos or written dairy
+ can provide rich detailed info of peoples experiences
- more difficult to analyse and draw conclusions

67
Q

primary data

A

information observed or controlled directly from first hand experience collected for the study currently being undertaken
+data collected can be designed so it fits the aims and hypothesis of the study
-is a very lengthy and expensive process

68
Q

secondary data

A

information used in a reaserch study that was collected by someone else or for a purpose other than the current one for example published data collected from the past
+simplier and cheaper to access someones else data significantly less time and equipment needed
-data may not the needs of the study

69
Q

meta analysis

A

a resercher looks at the findings from a number of different studies and produces a statistic to represent the overall effect
+may increase the validity of conclusions reached because they are based on a larger sample
-different studies can vary considerably and not truly vomparable therefore calculating the effect may not be appropriate

70
Q

measures of central tendency

A
  • gives a typical value for data set where the middle of data set is
    -mean adding all the data and diving by the number of numbers
    -median middle value in an ordered list
    -mode (most common)
71
Q

measures of dispersion

A
  • range
  • standard deviation shows the amount of variation in a data set. it asscess the spread of data around the mean
72
Q

bar chart

A

-uses data which comes in categories (discrete data)
-vertical axis = score of DV
-horizontal = individual categories or IV
-bars should be drawn separately with equal gaps

73
Q

histogram

A

-use continuous data
-varitical axis = frequency of something
-horizontal axis = scale of something eg length or mass
-they don’t have gaps between bars

74
Q

line graph

A

-contineous data on the x axis
-points are the top of where a bar would be
-highlights continuous nature of variable on x axis

75
Q

scatter gram

A

-when doing correctional analysis
-involves plotting 2 scores on the x axis and one on y axis

76
Q

normal distribution

A

population scores are evenly distributed around the mean. a symmetrical classic bell shaped curve
- the mean median and mode are all in the exact mid point

77
Q

positive skewed distribution

A

looks like a slide mode eg is closer to the x axis

78
Q

negative skewed distribution

A

looks like a rollacoaster mode etc are closer to the right end of the graph

79
Q

when to use a sign test

A

-used when looking at related data
-the hypothesis states a difference between 2 sets of data
-2 sets of data are related
-nominal data
-matched pairs

80
Q

why do we use 5% probability level in psychology

A

so we are certain that there is less than a 5% possibility that the results occurred by chance

81
Q

how to calulate the sign test method

A
  1. state the hypothesis
    if directional = one tailed test
    non-directional = 2 tailed test
  2. calculated difference (after-before) the directional factor away from the other factor eg After holiday - before holiday recored each score as a + or -
  3. find s value
    added up the total number of + and - the less frquent sign is X and thefore the calculated value
  4. Find critical value of S
    N= number of participants - exclude any 0 differences and use 0.05
  5. results?
    we can accept the hypothesis if the s value is equal to or lower than the critical value to show significance
82
Q

what is the experimental method

A

-observe = identify problems and trends
-hypothesis
-test and collect data
-analyse results against dependant variable
-accept or reject hypothesis

83
Q

define self report

A
  • a person reports and describes their own attitudes, thoughts and feelings usually through answering questions on a questionnaire (expressing answers to open or closed questions) or via an interview which can be structured or unstructured
84
Q

writing a good question

A

-clarity
key terms are operationalised and are non-ambiguous
-bias
be prepared for social desirability
reverse your questions so pp’s cant just tick the same end of scale regularly
-analysis
questions need to be written so easy to analyse
use similar types of questions to enable a score to be generated

85
Q

questionnaire construction

A

-filler questions include some irrelevant questions to distract from main purpose of the study
-sequence of questions put easier / less challenging questions first
-sampling technique stratified
-pilot study test questionnaire on small group first

86
Q

rank order

A

please indicate in rank order your preferred type of animal 1 next to you favourite 5 for your least faviourite
rabbit, dog, gerbil, cat and lion

87
Q

likert scale questions

A

indicate the strength of agreement with a statement eg psychology is the best subject in the world do you agree or disagree 1 agree 10 disagree

88
Q

checklist questions

A

pp’s indicate which items from a list apply eg choose 3 adjectives which best describe your personality eg grumpy happy smiley

89
Q

test- retest

A

test - retest relatability is a measure of consistency of a psychological test or assessment and is measured by administering a test twice at 2 different points in time this type of reliability assumes there will be no change in the quality or construct being measured

90
Q

face validity

A

the extent to which a self-report measure looks like it is measuring what it claims to measure it requires the researcher to ask people whether they intuitively think that the measure it accurate

91
Q

concurrent validity

A

the extent to which a new questionnaire produces the same result as a pre existing questionnaire if it doesn’t it has high concurrent validity pp’s complete new and pre-existing questionnaire there scores are compared looking at similarity and correlation

92
Q

interviewer bias

A

the effect of an interviewer’s expectations,communicated unconsciously on a respondents behaviour

93
Q

social desirability bias

A

a distortion in the way people tend to answer questions they tend to answer in a way that presents them in a better light

94
Q

correlation

A

a systematic association between 2 continuous variables
- a method used to analyse data not strictly a research method
-variables are simply measure no manipulation or change made
-represented using a scattergram

95
Q

correlation values

A

-range from -1 to +1
-positive correlation co-efficient as one variable increases so does another eg taller people have bigger feet
-a perfect positive correlation would be represented by +1
-negative correlation co efficient as one variable increases other decreases perfect negative correlation= -1

96
Q

evaluate correlation

A

+correlation can be used to investigate trends in data if correlation is significant then further investigation is justified
+the procedures in a correlation can be easily repeated to test its reliability
-correlations cannot show a cause and effect relationship no manipulation of IV

97
Q

evaluate methods of central tendency

A

mean +uses all values in data set most sensitive to variations in the data - artificially raised or lowered by extreme values
median + not distorted by extreme values -less sensitive to variations in data
mode +summarsing frequency data -serval modes

98
Q

evaluate methods of dispersion

A

range + easy to calculate takes into consideration extreme scores
-ignores rest of results
standard deviation +uses every score in calc +not heavily distorted by extreme scores
-laborious to calculate

99
Q

stages of content analysis qualitative data —-> quantitive data

A

-ask a specific reserch question
-data is collected
-resercher reads through and examines data familiarising themselves
-resercher identifies coding units
-test the coding on sample material and assess reliability
-tally is made of number of times that a coding unit appears

100
Q

content analysis evaluation

A

+high ecological validity
+ can be replicated and tested for reliability
-observer bias reduces objectivity and validity os results
-culture bias

101
Q

thematic analysis

A

-a qualitative content analysis summarises data descriptively and identifies underlying themes in data allows themes to emerge from the data and maintain pp’s pov

102
Q

steps two thematic analysis

A
  • read and reread data transspricts
    -break data down into meaningful units assign a label or code to each unit
    -combine codes into larger themes
    -ensure that these emerging themes represent all the data
103
Q

type 1 error

A

FALSE POSITIVE rejecting null hypothesis that is true -eg positive covid test when you’re actually negative

104
Q

type 2 error

A

FALSE NEGATIVE accepting null hypothesis that is not true eg negative covid test when you’re actually positive

105
Q

which criteria choosing a statistical tests

A

-data (nominal,ordinal, interval)
-design (independent groups, repeated measures, matched pairs)
-difference (correlation or test of difference)

106
Q

data levels of measurement statistical test

A

nominal= pp’s are categorised into groups
ordinal= data ordered in some way eg ratings or ranking often based on subjective attitudes
interval= data measured using formal units of equal distance eg weight and height

107
Q

memory aid to remember the testistical tests

A

Carrots = chi -squared
scare = sign test
me = mann-whitney
when = wilcoxon
served = spearmans
under = unrelated t-test
roast = related t-test
potatoes = pearson’s
Data up to down = nominal, ordinal, interval
test of difference left to right design IG, design RM/MP

a level psychology (14 decks)

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