Types of experimental validity

Question 1

Construct validity

Answer 1

Characterizes the quality of the operationalization

Question 2

Internal validity

Answer 2

Characterizes the methodological quality of the experiment. Internal validity is high when confounding variables have been controlled, and we can confirm the change in the DV was caused by the IV. The less there is bias, the higher the internal validity.

Question 3

External validity

Answer 3

Characterizes the generalizability of findings in the experiment. There are two types of external validity:

Population validity: the extent to which findings from the sample can be generalized to the target population.

Ecological validity: the extent to which findings can be generalized from the experiment to other settings or situations.