the relationship between researchers and participants

Question 1

What are demand characteristics?

Answer 1

They happen when a participant guesses what a study is about and what’s expected of them.

Question 2

What can demand characteristics lead a participant to do?

Answer 2

• social desirability bias
• screw you effect
• try to please the researcher
• act unnaturally out of fear

Question 3

What technique reduces demand characteristics?

Answer 3

The single blind procedure- participants have no idea which condition of the study they’re in e.g. if they’re taking the drug or placebo

Question 4

What are experimenter effects?

Answer 4

Investigators may inadvertently influence the results in their research

Question 5

What are some investigator effects?

Answer 5

• physical characteristics
• accent, tone of voice, eye contact and smiling
• investigator may also be biased in their interpretation

Question 6

What reduces experimenter effects?

Answer 6

A double blind procedure- neither the participant nor the investigator knows which condition the participant is in- prevents the investigator accidentally giving away clues and reduces demand characteristics