Validity Flashcards
What is validity?
Whether a measure actually measures what it claims to be measuring. Ensures the findings of the study are meaningful.
Two main types of validity?
Internal and external
Internal validity
A measure of whether results obtained are solely affected by changes in the variable being manipulated (IV) in a cause and effect relationship.
Types of internal validity
Face, construct, concurrent
Face validity
The extent to which a test appears to measure what it claims to measure, based on subjective judgment.
Construct validity
The extent to which a measure successfully measures the concept it was supposed to
Concurrent validity
Whether a measure is in agreement with pre-existing measures that are validated to test for the same concept. Created by correlating them.
External validity
The extent to which data can be generalised to other situations outside of the research environment they were originally gathered in.
The types of external validity
Ecological, population and temporal
Ecological validity
The extent to which data is generalisable to the real world (environment) based on the conditions the research is conducted in and the procedures involved.
Population validity
The extent to which data is generalisable to the population
Temporal validity
The measure of how relevant research findings are in the present day
How can researchers improve internal validity?
Construct
- Random allocation
- Single/double blind procedures
- Pilot testing
- standardised procedures
Concurrent
- Use multiple measures
How can researchers improve external validity?
Ecological
- Naturalistic settings
- Realistic tasks
- Unobtrusive measures
Population
- Large sample sizes
- ensure sample isn’t WEIRD
Temporal
- long term studies
- historical comparisons
