Validity threats

Question 1

Name four validity threats

Answer 1

conclusion validity
internal validity
construct validity
external validity

Question 2

conclusion validity

Answer 2

Low statistical power
* Violated assumptions of statistical tests
* Fishing and the error rate
* Reliability of measures (measurement
error)
Reliability of treatment implementation (if
you use non-standard approaches you will
often underestimate)
Random irrelevancies in experimental
setting (inflates error)
Large random heterogeneity of subjects.
Variation is larger due to individual diff, not
treatment (within research designs)

Question 3

Internal Validity

Answer 3

Single Group Threats
Multiple Group Threats
Social Threats

Question 4

construct validity

Answer 4

Design Threats
Social Threats

Question 5

External validity

Answer 5

Interaction of selection and
treatment
– Is it also applicable to other individuals with
different characteristics?
* Interaction of setting and treatment
– could you apply this program within a different
setting and see similar results?
* Interaction of testing and treatment
– Would your results be the same if implemented
without a pretest?
* Interaction of history and treatment
– Events outside of the study/experiment or between
repeated measures of the dependent variable may
affect participants’ responses to experimental
procedures