research methods

which variable is the variable we measure

which variable is the variable we measure

dependant

which variable is the one we change

independent

what is the name of the process of ensuring variables are defined so they can be easily tested

operationalisation

what is the name of a variable other than the independent variable that we do not intend to measure but may affect the dependant variable if not controlled

extraneous

what is the name of anything other than the independent variable that has an effect on the dependant variable

confounding variable

which term refers to participants acting differently if they are aware of the research aim

demand characteristics

which type of hypothesis is when you don’t state which way you expect the results to go

non directional

which type of hypothesis do you state which way you expect the results to go

directional

how many hypotheses will a study always have

2

which type of validity involves comparing a new test with another established test on the same thing to see if they produce similar results

concurrent

which type of validity involves the extent to which the findings of a research study are able to be generalised to real life settings

ecological

what is the name of an individual in the study who is not a real participant and has been instructed on how to behave by the researcher

confederate

which type of validity involves whether it is possible to generalise the results beyond the experimental setting

external

which type of validity involves determining whether results were due to the manipulation of the IV rather than other factors - such as extraneous variables or demand characteristics

internal validity

what term refers to the extent to which a study, or the tasks within it, mirror the real world

mundane realism

what term refers to a small scale trial run of a study to test aspects of the design - with a view to making improvements

pilot study

which type of validity involves questioning how well the sample represents the wider target population

population

which type of validity involves the likelihood that the time period during which a study was conducted has influenced the findings - affecting how they can be generalised to other points in time

temporal validity

what are the four main principles identified in regards to ethics in experiments

informed consent (including right to withdraw), deception, protection from harm, privacy and confidentiality

what are 3 variations of informed consent - that reduce impact on the study

presumptive, prior general, retrospective

during which type of consent is consent requested not from the participants themselves, but another group made up of similar people

presumptive

during which type of consent is consent requested for a number of studies at once

prior general

during which type of consent is consent requested during the debrief

retrospective

what type of experiment takes place in a highly controlled environment

lab

what type of experiment takes place in natural or ordinary settings

field

what type of validity may lab experiments lack

ecological

what type of study is when the change in IV is not brought about by the researcher, would have happened anyway if the researcher was not there

natural

what type of study is one where the IV is not manipulated - it is based on existing differences between people (such as age, sex)

quasi

what are the experimental methods

lab, field, natural, quasi w

what are the experimental designs

repeated, independent, matched pairs

which design refers to the same participant taking part in each condition of the independent variable

repeated

which design refers to different groups experiencing different conditions

independant

which design refers to different participants matched to a group in terms of characteristics believed to affect the DV

matched Pairs

which observational technique refers to studying behaviour in a natural situation without interfering in any way

naturalistic

which observational technique occurs when the researcher controls some variables

controlled

which observational technique occurs when participants are aware that they are being observed

overt

which observational technique occurs when participants are unaware that they are being observed

covert

which observational technique occurs when the observer is also a participant in the activity being studied (with or without the groups knowledge)

participant

which observational technique occurs when the observer watches from a distance and does not interact with the participants

non participant

what kind of question asked does not have a fixed range od answers with respondents free to answer in any way they wish

open questions

which kind of question offers a fixed number of responses

closed questions

what term refers to a form of demand characteristic when people hesitate to give a genuine response for fear of looking bad

social desirability bias

what are the 3 types of interview

structured, unstructured, semi structured

what type of interview is as set of fixed questions asked in the same order

structured

which type of interview is more of a discussion with the topic predetermined

unstructured

which type of interview is when the questions are likely to have been worked out in advance but follow questions may be asked in response to previous answers

semi structured

what are naturalistic vs controlled, overt vs covert and participant vs non participant observation examples of

observational technique

what are unstructured observations, structured observations examples of

observational design

which type of observational design is when the researchers record every behaviour that they can see

unstructured observation

which type of observational design refers to the use of systems to organise recording of behaviour - such as behaviour categories

structured observation

which type of observer reliability refers to one observer consistently categorising correct behaviour under the relevant code

intra observer reliability

which type of observer reliability refers to agreement between observers

inter observer reliability

what term refers to an observer ticking the relevant category eery time the behaviour occurs

behavioural checklist

which type of observation can sampling take place in

structured only

which type of sampling refers to taking a count of each time a particular behaviour occurs using a behaviour checklist

event sampling

which type of sampling refers to recording observations in a given time frame (eg every 30 seconds)

time sampling

what term refers to a scale used to allow a participant to express how much they agree/disagree with a statement

likert scale

what term refers to a scale that asks participants to identify a value that represents the intensity of their feeling towards a particular topic

rating scale

what term refers to a list of possible options where respondents are required to tick any that apply to them

fixed choice option

what term refers to when the questions on a psychological test are too easy meaning everyone does well

ceiling effect

what term refers to when the questions on a psychological test are too hard meaning everyone does badly

floor effect

which type of sampling consists of taking a sample from whoever is available at the time the study is carried out

opportunity sampling

which type of sampling occurs when every member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen

random sampling

what techniques can be used to obtain a random sample

lottery method, random number table, random number generator

which type of sampling consists of identifying subgroups in the target population and choosing a sample which consists of participants from each category in the same proportion as they are in the population

stratified sampling

which type of sampling consists of the researcher choosing every Nth member of the target population

systematic sampling

which type of sampling consists of participants volunteering themselves

volunteer sampling

which type of data is expressed in words - non numerical

qualitative

which type of data can be counted - numerical

quantitative

which type of data is information that has been obtained first hand by the researcher for the purpose of a project

primary

which type of data has already been collected by someone else, predating the research

secondary

what is the name of the process of combining findings from a number of studies on a particular topic

meta analysis

what numbers is the correlation coefficient between

-1.0 and +1.0

which type of data is categorical

nominal

which type of data are the results of points on a scale

ordinal

which type of data is based on numerical scale including pre existing defined intervals

interval

which measure of central tendency is used for nominal data

mode

which measure of central tendency is used for ordinal data

median

which measure of central tendency is used for interval data

mean

what measure of dispersion is used for ordinal data

range

what measure of dispersion is used for interval data

standard deviation

how can nominal data be presented

tables, tallies, bar charts, pie charts

what type of standard deviation suggests that not all participants were affected by the IV in the same way

large SD

what type of SD suggests that all ppts responded o the IV in a fairly similar way

small SD

what are the 3 features of a normal distribution

asymptotic tails, symmetrical, unimodal

what term refers to there being one peak on a normal distribution - the mean, median and mode at the same point

unimodal

what does ‘significant’ mean in statistics

not due to chance

what does statistical testing tell us

whether results are significant or due to chance

what is the generally accepted significance level

less than or equal to 0.05

which type of error is when the significance level is too lenient - resulting in the null hypothesis being rejected as the researcher claims to find a correlation when one does not exist

type 1 error

which type of error is when the significance level is too stringent - the null hypothesis accepted when the alternative should be

type 2 error

what is the mnemonic for choosing a statistical test

carrots should come mashed with swede under roast potatoes

what becomes the S value during the sign test

the quantity of the least occurring sign, after calculating the difference between 2 sets of data

what part of a psychological report is a short summary covering aims, hypothesis, method and conclusion

abstract

what part of a psychological report starts broadly and narrows down, stating aims and hypothesis

introduction

what part of a psychological report is a detailed description of what the researcher did (eg ppts, design, procedure etc) enough for a replication of the study

method

what part of a psychological report shows descriptive and inferential statistics

results

what part of a psychological report is an interpretation of results, considering implications for future research and real world applications

discussion

what part of a psychological report prevents accusations of plagiarism

referencing

what part of a psychological report contains additional info that would have disrupted the flow of the report

appendices