types of data

Question 1

what is primary data

Answer 1

information collected for the specific purpose of the investigation directly by the researcher

Question 2

what is secondary data

Answer 2

data previously collected by another researcher, not specifically for specific purpose of the investigation

Question 3

what is qualitative data

Answer 3

descriptive data recorded in words based on subjective interpretation of language

Question 4

what is quantitative data

Answer 4

numerical data, measured objectively

Question 5

strengths of primary data

Answer 5

it is directly relevant to the aim of the study and the psychologist can be confident about the conditions in which the data was collected (e.g. how controlled it is)

Question 6

limitations of primary data

Answer 6

• requires time and effort - researcher will have to design their research study, recruit participants, develop resources and carry out the study
• this process can be costly compared to secondary data

Question 7

strengths of secondary data

Answer 7

less time and effort than using primary data. psychologists don’t have to design their research study, recruit participants, develop resources or carry out the study

Question 8

limitations of secondary data

Answer 8

• may not be directly relevant to the aim of the study
• the psychologist cannot be confident about the conditions in which the data was collected

Question 9

strengths of qualitative data

Answer 9

• gives more insight into behaviour (more so than quantitive data)
• it is more in depth and the psychologist can be confident about the validity of a persons response (honestly, understanding)

Question 10

limitations of qualitative data

Answer 10

• time consuming and difficult to analyse
• possible that lots of irrelevant information/detail is collected
• subjective interpretations raises issues for internal valdiity
• generally uses small sample sizes - not representative, and methods cant normally be replicated
• not usually scientific

Question 11

strengths of quantitative data

Answer 11

• scientific because it doesn’t depend on any interpretation, thus gives it a high internal validity
• easy to analyse so psychologists can draw conclusions and establish general laws of behaviour
• quantitative research methods are replicable so psychologists can test the reliability of data
• generally large amount of quantitative data are collected this makes it less affected by individual differences than qualitative data

Question 12

limitations of quantitative data

Answer 12

• quantitative data is usually collected under controlled lab based conditions that don’t represent real life, so data only gives a snap shot of behaviour that isn’t likely to be in the context of everyday behaviour