types of experiment Flashcards
What are the types of experiments?
Laboratory, Field, Natural, Quasi
Define a laboratory experiment.
An experiment that takes place in a highly controlled environment where the researcher manipulates the IV and records the effect on the DV while controlling extraneous variables.
What is a strength of laboratory experiments?
High control over confounding and extraneous variables leading to high internal validity.
Why are laboratory experiments considered highly replicable?
They are highly controlled and standardized.
What is a field experiment?
An experiment that takes place in a natural setting where the researcher manipulates the IV and records the effect on the DV.
What is a strength of field experiments?
High mundane realism producing more valid behavior that is more authentic. Participants are unaware they are being studied, thus having high internal validity.
What is a natural experiment?
An experiment where the change in the IV has already occurred and is not due to the researcher being present.
What is a weakness of natural experiments?
Difficult to control, so unlikely to be replicable.
Very rare to occur, so reduce opportunities.
Lots of extraneous variables.
Participants may not he randomally allocates to their groups, so hard to decipher if IV is the one thay impacted DV.
What is a quasi-experiment?
A study where the IV has not been determined by anyone and exists naturally without manipulation.
What is a weakness of quasi-experiments?
Cannot randomly allocate participants to conditions, so may be confounding variables.
IV is not deliberately changed by the researcher and thus cannot suggest that the IV has caused any observed change.
What is a limitation of a laboratory experiment?
Artifical stimuli and may not reflect true behaviours of humans as opposed to them being in a natural enviornment so cannot be generalised to the whole population. It can also lead to demand characteristics, lacking ecological validity and mundane realism.
What is a limitation of field experiments?
There is no control of confounding variables or extraneous variables, meaning that the IV and DV are more difficult to establish. Ethical issues as participants are not aware that they are being watched and studied and cannot consent - invasion of privacy?
What is a strength of a natural experiment?
May provide opportunities that wouldn’t have been possible if using other designs - e.g., Romanian orphanages.
Real life so high external/ecological validity.
Little bias from sampling or demand characteristics.
What is a strength of quasi-experiments?
Carried out under controlled conditions so there is some replicability, high control over extraneous variables and has been partially standardised.
