Tecniques

Question 1

What is a lab experiment?

Answer 1

Done in a controlled environment, using standard procedures.

Question 2

What are the advantages of a lab experiment?

Answer 2

1. Experimenters can control extraneous variables meaning that we can be confident that the IV changes the DV.
2. It can be easily replicated due to its high control. This can be used to check if the results occur every time which increases reliability.

Question 3

What are the disadvantages of a lab experiment?

Answer 3

1. There is a high possibility of demand characteristics as the participants know they are being studied.
2. High control and unnatural environment make it artificial and unlike real life and therefore lacks external validity.

Question 4

What is a field experiment?

Answer 4

An experiment conducted in the ‘real world’ but where the experimenter still manipulates the IV.

Question 5

What are the advantages of field experiment?

Answer 5

1. Participants will act more natural and realistic so there will be high external validity.
2. There is a lesser chance of demand characteristics as they don’t know they are being studied.

Question 6

What are the disadvantages of a field experiment?

Answer 6

1. More difficult to replicate and so the reliability is reduced.
2. Extraneous variables are less easy to control, as the experiment is taking part in the real world and thus reduces the internal validity.

Question 7

What is a natural experiment?

Answer 7

The experimenter does not manipulate any of the variables but simply observes a naturally occurring IV.

Question 8

What are the advantages of the field experiment?

Answer 8

1. Participants will act more natural and realistic and therefore the experiment has high external validity.
2. Allows research to be conducted where it is not possible for the IV to be manipulated for ethical or practical reasons.

Question 9

What are disadvantages of the field experiment?

Answer 9

1. As you are measuring naturally occurring variables it is not possible to recreate the situation and so reduces the internal validity.
2. Because its is not possible to control any extraneous variables it is impossible to determine cause and effect of the results and thus reduces internal validity.

Question 10

What is an observation?

Answer 10

It can be participant (where the observer becomes involved in the situation) or non-participant (where the observer is stood at a distance)

Question 11

What are the advantages of an observation?

Answer 11

1. As the observer is watching natural behaviour in a real life situation and not manipulating the situation it has high ecological validity.
2. The psychologist can collect a large amount of rich data.

Question 12

What are the disadvantages of an observation?

Answer 12

1. It can be observer bias as what they expect to see will influence what they actually see.
2. There are practical problems e.g. the observer could miss things, find it difficult to get a true picture, only be looking at a representative sample or not be able to get close enough without being seen.

Question 13

What is a self-report?

Answer 13

The participant gives information about themselves, including questionnaires and interviews.

Question 14

What are the advantages of self- report?

Answer 14

1. A questionnaire is easily repeated, so is easy, quick and cheap.
2. An interviewer is able to clarify any misunderstanding of the questions and can follow up interesting answers. They can also detect body language.

Question 15

What are the disadvantages of self-report?

Answer 15

1. For both the questionnaires and interviews, participants maybe influenced by social desirability bias and so the answers may not reflect the truth.
2. In questionnaires, the participant may be misinterpreted by the question.
3. In interviews, the interviewer can influence the answers unknowingly e.g. by nodding, smiling, frowning.

Question 16

What is a case study?

Answer 16

In depth detailed investigations of one individual or a small group.

Question 17

What are the advantages of a case study?

Answer 17

1. They provide rich detailed data which gives us greater depth and understanding than other methods.
2. They allow psychologists to test hypothesis that would be impossible to test in a lab for things such as ethics.

Question 18

What are the disadvantages of a case study?

Answer 18

1. Criticised for being unreliable and impossible to generalise to other people as every case study is unique.
2. Case studies also rely on retrospective memories of individuals which may be inaccurate.