RM: controlling variables Flashcards
What is the relationship between control and realism in experiments?
-high control (internal validity- only IV affects the DV=low realism (external validity)
What is the cyclical process?
-experiment is first held in a lab, then tested in the real world
-results must be found in the lab first (highly controlled) and the causality must be established
What is mundane realism and what validity does it threaten?
-ability to generalise the findings of an experiment
-external validity
What is experimental validity and what validity does it threaten?
-whether an experiment ‘feels real’ to a ppt
-internal validity
What are EVs?
-variables which may affect the DV, but are not the EVs
What are confounding variables?
-uncontrolled variables apart from the IV, which have had an effect on the DV
What are uncontrolled variables?
-variables that cannot be controlled for, they will become confounding
What is a situational confounding variable?
-features of the experimental situation
What is a ppt confounding variable?
-differences between the ppts
What are some EVs?
-researcher bias
-demand characteristics
-order effects (practice/fatigue)
What are demand characteristics?
-ppts changing their behaviour to fit/affect the aims of the study
-please you: doing what’s expected
-screw you: doing the opposite of what’s expected
What are investigator effects?
-where a researcher acts in a way to support their prediction (conscious or unconscious)
-might make ppt fulfill expectations
What is random allocation and which EV does this help to control?
-ppts are assigned randomly
-each has the same opportunity to be in a group, individual differences are less likely to affect results
-ppt EVs
What is a standardised procedure and which EV does this help to control?
-a general way an experiment is carried out, allows replication to determine the reliability of the results.
-practice effects
