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Research Methods > Scientific process > Flashcards

Scientific process Flashcards

1
Q

What is the difference between an aim and a hypothesis?

A

An aim - developed from theories and is a general statement that describes the purpose of an investigation.
A hypothesis - a testable statement which predicts the outcome at the start of the study.

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2
Q

Whats the difference between a directional and non-directional hypothesis?

A

Directional - states direction of relationship/difference and is used when there is previous research.
Non-directional - doesn’t state direction of relationship and is used when there is no previous research.

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3
Q

What are the 5 types of sampling?

A 
Random
Systematic
Stratified
Opportunity 
Volunteer
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4
Q

What is a population?

A

A group of people who are the focus of the researchers interest, from which a smaller sample is drawn.

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5
Q

Give an example of a population.

A

Women in their thirties.

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6
Q

What is random sampling?

A

Every member of the target population has an equal chance of being selected.

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7
Q

Give a positive of random sampling.

A

Free from researcher bias.

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8
Q

Give 3 negatives of random sampling.

A
  • Time consuming
  • Sample may be unrepresentative
  • Selected participants may refuse to take part
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9
Q

What is systematic sampling?

A

Every nth person is chosen from a list.

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10
Q

State 2 positives of systematic sampling.

A
  • Avoids researcher bias.

- Usually fairly representative.

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11
Q

What is stratified sampling?

A

The proportions of people in a population sub-groups are reflected in the sample.

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12
Q

Give 2 positives of stratified sampling.

A
  • Avoids researcher bias.
  • Representative sample because it is designed to accurately reflect the composition of the popularity so generalisation becomes positive.
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13
Q

State a negative of stratified sampling.

A

Stratification isn’t perfect and identified state cannot reflect all the ways people are different, so complete representation of target population is not possible.

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14
Q

What is opportunity sampling?

A

Whoever is available at the time of sampling will be included.

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15
Q

State a positive of opportunity sampling.

A

Convenient - saves time and effort.

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16
Q

State 2 negatives of opportunity sampling.

A
  • Unrepresentative of target population as it’s drawn from a very specific areas so cannot be generalised.
  • Researcher bias - researcher has complete control over the selection of participants.
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17
Q

What is volunteer sampling?

A

Participants ‘self-select’.

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18
Q

State a positive of volunteer sampling.

A

Easy, minimal input from researcher and less time consuming.

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19
Q

State a negative of volunteer sampling.

A

Volunteer bias - may attract a certain ‘profile’ of a person.

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20
Q

Name 3 experimental designs.

A

Independent groups design
Repeated measures
Matched pairs

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21
Q

What is independent groups design?

A

Participants are allocated to different groups where each group represents one experimental condition (control and experimental).

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22
Q

State a positive of independent groups design.

A

Order effects aren’t a problem - participants are less likely to guess the aims of the study.

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23
Q

State 2 negatives of independent groups design.

A
  • Participants who occupy the different groups aren’t the same so if a researcher finds a mean difference between the groups on the DV this may be more to do with individual differences than the effect of the IV.
  • Random allocation used to deal with this.
  • Less economical than RM as each participant contributes to a single result and twice as many participants are needed to produce equivalent data to that collected in a RM design.
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24
Q

What is repeated measures?

A

All participants take part in all conditions of the experiment.

25
Q

State 3 negatives of repeated measures design.

A
  • Order effects as participant’s have to tale part in all conditions - to prevent this researchers use counterbalancing.
  • Order effects also arise because repeating 2 tasks could create boredom/fatigue that might cause deterioration in performance in the 2nd task - so order acts as a confounding variable.
  • Participants are more likely to work out the aim of the study when they experience all the conditions of the experiment so demand characteristics tend to be more of a feature in RM.
26
Q

State a positive of repeated measures design.

A

Less participants needed.

27
Q

What is matched pairs design?

A

Pairs of participants are first matched on some variable(s) that may effect the DV. Then one member of the pair is assigned to condition A and the other to condition B.

28
Q

State a positive of matched pairs design.

A

Order effects and demand characteristics are less of an issue due to participants only taking part in one condition.

29
Q

State 2 negatives of matched pairs design.

A
  • Participants will never be matched exactly so only reduces participant variables.
  • Time consuming and expensive - less economical.
30
Q

What are ethical issues?

A

Ethical issues arise in psychology when a conflict or dilemma exists between participants rights and researchers need to gain valuable and meaningful findings.

31
Q

Name 4 ethical issues.

A

Informed consent
Deception
Protection from harm
Privacy and confidentiality

32
Q

What is informed consent?

A

Participants should be made aware of the aims, procedures and their right to withdraw before they agree to take part.

33
Q

What is deception?

A

Means deliberately misleading or withholding information from participants at any stage of the investigation.

34
Q

What is protection from harm?

A

Participants should not be exposed to any more risk than they would be in everyday life.
Should be protected from physical and psychological harm (humiliation, stress, pressure).
Should be reminded of their right to withdraw.

35
Q

What is privacy and confidentiality?

A

Participants anonymity and privacy must be respected and any personal data protected.

36
Q

How does the BPS code of conduct help deal with ethical issues?

A

BPS code of ethics - set of ethical guidelines that attempt to ensure that all participants are treated with respect and consideration.

37
Q

How do we deal with informed consent?

A
  • Consent letter - detailing all relevant information that might affect their decision to participate.
  • Parental consent needed if the participant is under 16.
  • Presumptive consent
  • Retrospective consent
  • Prior general consent
38
Q

How do we deal with deception and protection from harm?

A
  • Debrief - made aware of aims and any details they were not supplied during the study.
  • Told what their data will be used for and must be given the right to withhold data.
  • Researcher should supply counselling if needed.
39
Q

How do we deal with confidentiality?

A
  • Personal details protected.

- Maintain anonymity - used participant numbers or initials for case studies (e.g. KF, HM).

40
Q

What is a pilot study?

A

A small scale version of an investigation that takes place before the real investigation is conducted.
The aim is to check procedures, materials, measuring scales etc work, to allow the researcher to make changes and modifications if necessary.

41
Q

What is a single-blind procedure?

A
  • Participants are not aware of some details of the investigation to reduce demand characteristics.
42
Q

What is a double-blind procedure?

A
  • Both the participants nor the researcher who conducts the study is aware of the aims of the investigation.
43
Q

What is a control group?

A

Used for the purpose of comparison with the experimental group so the researcher can be more certain of the effect of the IV on the DV.

44
Q

What is a unstructured observation?

A

The researcher writes down everything they see.

45
Q

What is a structured observation?

A

Use a predetermined list of behaviours and sampling methods.

46
Q

What is a strength of an unstructured observation?

A

Rich and in-depth in detail.

47
Q

What is a negative of an unstructured observation?

A

Researcher bias - the researcher may only record behaviours that catch their eye and these may not be the most important or useful.

48
Q

What is a strength of a structured observation?

A

Behavioural categories can make the recording of data easier and more systematic.
Quantitative data - analysing and comparing behavioural categories is more straight forward.

49
Q

What are behavioural categories?

A

Break the target behaviour up into behavioural categories.

Behavioural categories must be precisely defined and made observable and measurable.

50
Q

Name 2 sampling methods for observations.

A

Event sampling

Time sampling

51
Q

What is event sampling?

A

A target behaviour is first established and then the researcher records this event every time it occurs.

52
Q

What is time sampling?

A

A target individual/group is first established and then the researcher records their behaviour in a fixed time, e.g. every 60 seconds.

53
Q

State a positive of event sampling.

A

Useful when the target behaviour happens quite infrequently and may be missed if time sampling was used.

54
Q

State a positive of time sampling.

A

Effective at reducing the number of observations that need to be made.

55
Q

State a negative of time sampling.

A

May be unrepresentative.

56
Q

Explain inter-observer reliability.

A
  • Observations should be carried out by at least 2 researchers.
  • Must familiarise themselves with the behavioural categories used.
  • Observe the same behaviour at the same time and then compare the data they recorded.
57
Q

When designing a questionnaire, what should be considered?

A 
Open questions
Closed questions
Likert scale
Rating scale
Fixed choice option
58
Q

When designing an interview, what should be considered?

A

Interview schedule
List of standardised questions to prevent interviewer bias
Can be single or group interview

Research Methods (4 decks)

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