Self report Flashcards
Self report
A way psychologists can collect data by asking people about their behaviour, thoughts, feelings and attitudes
2 main self report techniques
Questionnaires
Interviews
Questionnaires
Written methods of gaining data, composed of sets of questions
Questionnaire answerer name
Respondent
When would questionnaires be used?
If researcher wishes to gain quantitative data from a large sample of participants fairly quickly
Advantages of using questionnaires
Respondent can answer anonymously so more likely to be truthful
Quicker to complete, usually more closed Qs
Large amount of data can be collected faster
Ps may consider questions more carefully and not be self conscious of judgment
Disadvantages of using questionnaires
People may not return or submit the test = low response rate
Interviewer not present so no one there to further explain the question if they misunderstand it
Interviews
Usually a face to face meeting where the interviewer asks interviewee questions to answer(direct verbal questionning)
Answer can be taped then transcribed or notes made during it
3 types of interviews
Structured
Semi structured
Unstructured
Structured interview
Interviewer asks same question to every interviewee in the same order. Often uses closed questions
Strengths of structured interview
Easier to gather quantitative data because questions are closed and same for every interviewee = easier to analyse and compare
Weaknesses of structured interview
Being asked questions this way is unnatural so low ecological validity
Participant may not feel free to expand so limited data
Semi structured interview
Interviewer has set of pre prepared questions to ask and may develop extra follow up questions dependant on responses given
Semi structured interview strengths
Interviewee feels slightly more comfortable to go into detail since interviewer seems more interested = more personalised
Both qualitative and quantitative data collected
Semi structured interview weaknesses
Gives some qualitative data which can be harder to analyse and compare against each participant
Unstructured interview
Researcher has topics to discuss but these aren’t in order for each interviewee, and more Qs developed dependant on answers
More conversational
Unstructured interview strengths
Lots of detailed data because interviewees given a lot of room to talk, descriptive of thought processes etc
Feels like a regular conversation so higher ecological validity
Unstructured interview weaknesses
Very difficult to analyse the detailed and qualitative data
Hard to make trends and compare amongst interviewees
When would an interview be used?
Gain in depth qualitative data from representatives of a narrow target population