research methods
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107 Terms
What is a laboratory experiment?
o Controlled artificial setting
o Easily controlled, reliable
o Lacks ecological validity
o High demand characteristics
o Low mundane realism
What is a field experiment?
o Controlled
o Realistic setting
o High ecological validity
o Many extraneous variables
What is a natural experiment?
o Have not controlled the independent variable yourself as it is unethical but someone else has
o Long term manipulation
o Making change obvious
o Hard to measure how much the IV has been manipulated
What is a quasi-experiment?
o Nothing affected the variables
o Personality
o All variables are naturally occurring
o No manipulation has occurred
o Cannot measure the effects of change
What is the aim of research?
o General statement of what the research intents to investigate
What is a hypothesis?
o A clear testable statement that states the relationship between the variables investigated
o Directional
o Non-direction
What are variables?
o Any 'thing' that can change within an investigation
o Used to determine if changes in one thing result in the changes to another
What is an independent variable?
o Aspect manipulated by the researcher or changes naturally
o Effect of DV can be measured
What is a dependent variable?
o Variable that is measured by the researcher
What is operationalisation?
o Specific and measurable
What is a directional hypothesis?
o When there is previous research to suggest a previous outcome
What is the level of the independent variable?
o In order to test the effect of the IV we need different experimental conditions
o We need a comparison
o Control condition
o Experimental condition
What are extraneous variables?
o Any variable other than the independent variable that may have an effect on the dependent variable if it is not controlled
o Unwanted variables
What are confounding variables?
o Any variable other than the IV that may have affected the DV so we cannot be sure of the true source of changes to the DV
o Confounding variables vary systematically with the IV
o Personality is a confounding variable
What are demand characteristics?
o Participants changing their behaviour within the research as they know the purpose of the experiment
o Confounding variable
o Please-u effect
o Screw-u effect
What are investigator effects?
o Any effect of the investigator's behaviour conscious or unconscious on the research outcome Depended variable
o Interaction with participants
o Design of the study
o Leading questions
o Investigator bias
What is randomisation?
o The use of chance in order to control for the effects of bias
o Minimise effects of extraneous variables
o Randomly generated, even the order
What is standardisation?
o Using exactly the same formulated procedures and instructions for all participants in a research study
o Standardised instructions
What is experimental design?
o The way in which the testing of participants can be organised in relation to the experimental conditions
What is independent group design?
o Different groups and each group does only one condition
o Then results are compared
o Individual differences can affect the dependent variable
o Reduced through random allocation
o Less economical and more participants are needed
o No order effects
What are repeated measures?
o All participants take part in all conditions
o Order effects - confounding variable
o Counter balancing
o Boredom or fatigue or effects of practice
o Participant variables are controlled and fewer participants are needed
What are matched pairs?
o Match on some criteria, variables
o Only take part in a single condition
o Controls individual differences and limits confounding variables
o Participants can never be matched exactly even with identical twins
o Matching is time consuming
o Less economical
o Pre-test may be required
What are population and sample?
o A group of people who are the focus of the researchers interest
o From which a smaller sample is drawn
o Target population
o Ideally the sample drawn will be representative of the population
o However all samples will contain a degree of bias
o Over or under represented bias
What is random sampling?
o Equal chance of being selected
o Lottery method
o Random number generator
o Free from research bias
o Difficult and time consuming
What is a stratified sample?
o Sample reflects the proportion of people in a certain subgroup within the target population or the wider population using percentages to help work out proportions
o More representative
o Avoids researcher bias
o Once the target population is sub-divided then the numbers are randomly selected and
o Stratification is not perfect
o A complete representation is not possible
What is a opportunity sample?
o Anyone who happens to be willing and available to take part
o Convenient
o Saves time and effort. Cost effective
o Unrepresentative of the target population as it is drawn from a specific area
o Low generalisability
o Research bias and researcher has complete control over the section
What is a volunteer sample?
o Participants select themselves to be part of the same
o Minimal input from researcher
o Volunteer bias
o Attracts a certain characteristic
o Not representative
What are ethical issues?
o These arise when a conflict exists between the rights of participants in research studies and the goals of research to produce authentic, valid and worth while data
What is informed consent?
o Making participants aware of the aims, the procedures and their rights (Right to withdraw) and what their data will be used for
o Participants should then make an informed judgement whether or not to take part without being coerced or feeling obliged
o However, asking for informed consent can make the study meaningless because participants behaviour will not be natural as they know the aims of the study
What is deception?
o Deliberately misleading or withholding information from participants at any stage
What is protection from harm?
o Participants should not be placed in any more risk than they would be in their daily lives
o Should be protected from physical and psychological harm
o Includes embarrassment, inadequate or being placed under stress or pressure
o Participants need to be reminded that they have the right withdraw from the investigation at any point
What are privacy and confidentiality?
o Right to control information about themselves
o Right of privacy
o Confidentiality refers to out right, data protection act, any personal data is protected
o Privacy extends to the area the study too place such as institutions or geographical locations are not named
What is the BPS code of conduct?
o British psychological society
o Code of ethics, ethical guidelines
o Researchers have a professional duty to observe these guidelines
o They could lose their jobs if they don't follow it
o Ensures all participants are treated with respect and consideration
o Guidelines are implemented by the committee and often use a cost benefits approach to determine whether particular research proposals are ethically acceptable
How do you deal with informed consent?
o Consent letter or form detailing all relevant information that might affect their decision to participate
o Children under 16 must have a parent consent
What are the different types of consent?
o Presumptive: if a similar group of people are asked if the study is acceptable and this group agrees
o Prior general consent: give their permission to take part in a number of different studies
o Retrospective consent: ask for consent after: they may not have been aware of their participation or they may have been subject to deception
How do you deal with deception and protection for harm?
o Full debrief at the end; made aware of aims and all details
o Told right to withdraw
o Researchers should provide counselling should participants have been affected due to stress or embarrassment
How do you deal with confidentiality?
o Personal details should be protected
o Maintain anonymity
o Referring participants to initials when writing up the investigation
o Participants are reminded that their data is protected
o Results and all data can be removed and deleted should they change their mind in the future
What is a pilot study?
o Small scale version of an investigation takes place before the real investigation to check that the procedures, materials, measuring scales work
o Allows the researchers to make changes and modifications if necessary
o Important for self-report methods such as questionnaires or interviews
o Remove or reword ambiguous questions or confusing questions
o Identify potential issues and to make modifications to the design or procedure
o save time and money in the long run
What is a single-blind procedure?
o Attempting to control confounding variables such as demand characteristics
o Doctor is aware that the test is being controlled
o Patients are unaware
o Participants are not told the aim at the beginning of the study
What is a double blind procedure?
o Neither the participant or researcher is aware of the aims of the investigation
o Often having a third party conducting the investigation without knowing the main purpose
o Important in drug trails
o Treatment is administrated by someone independent of the investigation who does not know which drug is real and which is the fake drug
What are control groups and conditions?
o Control condition sets the baseline and is used for comparison
o Therefore, if there is a significant change in the DV, it can be the effects of the IV
What are observations?
o Way of seeing what people do without having to ask them
o Allows researchers to study observable behaviour with a natural or controlled setting
o Allows for greater flexibility to study more complex interactions between variables in a more natural way
o A way of assessing the dependent variable
What are naturalistic observations?
o Watching and recording behaviour in the setting within which it would normally occur
What are controlled observations?
o Watching and recording behaviour within a structured environment
o One where some variables are managed
o Strange situation: used a 2 way mirror
What are covert observations?
o Participants are unaware that they are being studied
o Ethical issues
What are overt observations?
o Know that their behaviours are being observed and has given informed consent
What are participant observations?
o Observer becomes part of the group
What are non-participant observations?
o When the researcher remains separate from those they are studying and records behaviour in a more objective manner
What is the evaluation of naturalistic observation?
o High external validity, generalisation
o Lacks control over research situation which makes replication more difficult
o Uncontrolled extraneous variables make it harder to judge behaviour
What is the evaluation of controlled observation?
o Many findings have low generalisability to real life setting
o Extraneous variables less of a factor, increase replicability
o Demand characteristics
What is the evaluation of covert observation?
o Removes problems of participants reactivity and ensures all behaviour is natural, increase validity of the data generated
o Ethical issues, invasion of privacy
What is the evaluation of overt observation?
o More ethically acceptable, but may have more demand characteristics
What is the evaluation of participant observation?
o Increase insight into their lives
o Rich qualitative data increase validity
o May lose objectivity as the observer may become emotionally attached to the participants
What is the evaluation of non-participant observation?
o Maintain psychological distance from participants
o Lower valuable insight
What is the structured and unstructured observational design?
o Unstructured observation: write down everything they see. Produces rich details of behaviours. Appropriate when observation is small scale and involve few participants. However, there may be too much going on so implication may be needed
o Structured observation: allow researchers to quantify their observations using pre-determined list of behaviours and sampling methods
What are behavioural categories?
o When a target behaviour is broken up into components that are observable and measurable
What are sampling methods?
o Continuous recording of behaviour is a key feature of unstructured observations; however target behaviour becomes harder to be recorded if they are complex behaviours. Less practical and feasible
o Structured interview must use a systematic way of sampling their observations
o Event sampling: counting the number of times a particular behaviour occurs
o Time sampling: recording behaviour within a pre-established time frame. Every n second
What is structured and unstructured evaluation?
o Structured: uses behavioural categories, making the recording of data easier and more systematic. Data produced is numerical, which means that analysing and comparing the behaviour observed between participants is more straight forward
o Unstructured: qualitative data, more difficult to record and analyse. Richest and dept of detail in the data collected. Greater risk of observer bias with unstructured observations. Researcher may only record those behaviours that catch their eye
What is behavioural categories evaluation?
o More structured and objective data collection, needs to be clear and non-ambiguous
o They need to be observable, measurable and self-evident
o They should not require further interpretations
o Check list
o Categories such be exclusive and not overlap
What is sampling method evaluation?
o Event sampling: useful when the behaviour or even happens infrequently and could be missed if time sample was used. If the specified even is too complex the observer may overlook important details if using event sampling
o Time sampling: effective in reducing the number of observations that have to be make. Those moment of behaviour may not be representation of the observation as a whole
What are self-report techniques?
o Explain their own feelings, opinions, behaviours and experiences related to a given topic
What are Questionnaires?
o A set of pre-set list of written questions, used to assess a person's thoughts and/or experiences used to assess the dependent variable
What are open questions?
o Does not have a fixed range of answers and respondents are free to answer in any way they wish
o Produces qualitative data, depth and rich in detail
o May be difficult to analyse
What are closed questions?
o Fixed number of responses
o Yes or no
o 1-10
o Produces numerical quantitative data
o Easier to analyse and put into graphs
o Lacks depth and detail compared to open questions
What are Questionnaire strengths?
o Cost effective
o Can generate large amounts od data because they can be quickly distributed
o Does not need a researcher present, reduces time and effort
o Data is usually straightforward to analyse and this is mainly part of fixed choice questions
o Leads to statistical analysis and comparisons can be shown through graphs and charts
What are Questionnaire limitations?
o May not always be truthful
o Social desirability
o Response bias, where respondents tend to reply in a similar way, always ticking yes
What are Interviews?
o Live encounter or over the phone, where a person asks a set of questions to assess an interviewees thoughts or experiences
o Questions can be pre-set or may develop as the interview goes along
o Structured and unstructured
What is a structured interview?
o Pre-determined set of questions that are asked in a fixed order
o Like a questionnaire but in real time
o The interviewer asks the questions and waits for a response
What is an unstructured interview?
o Works like a conversation, no set questions
o General aim that a certain topic will be discussed and interaction tends to be free flowing
o Interviewee is encouraged to expand and elaborate their answers as prompted by the interviewer
What is a semi-structured interview?
o Like a job interview
o List of questions that have been worked out in advance but interviewers are also encouraged to ask follow up questions when they feel appropriate
What are Interview evaluations?
o Structured: easy to replicate, standardisation. Not able to elaborate and thus may be frustrating for some
o Unstructured: more flexibility. Follow up points as they arise. Gain better insight into the holistic view of the interviewee. Not straightforward. The interviewer must sift through irrelevant information and drawing conclusions may be difficult. Lying for social desirability. However, an experienced interviewer should be able to create a strong rapport to increase more truthful answers
How do you design questionnaires?
o Likert scale: indicate their agreements
o Rating scale: 1-10
o Fixed choice option: includes a list of possible options
How do you design interviews?
o Involve interview schedule
o List of questions intend to cover
o Standardised to reduce interviewer bias
o Interviewer will make notes or record the interview and analyse later
o Quiet room
o Away from other people
o Increase the likelihood that the interviewee will open up
o Begin with neutral questions to make them relaxed and comfortable and establish a rapport
o Ethical considerations with socially sensitive data, topics
What is writing good questions?
o Clarity
o Prevent overuse of jargon: use simple language that are understandable
o Prevent emotive language or leading questions
o Prevent using double barrelled questions and double negatives: 2 questions in one or double negatives
What are Correlations?
o An association between 2 variables
o Co-variables
o Correlations are plotted on a scatter gram X and Y axis
What are Co-variables?
o Not the IV and DV but a cause and effect
What are the different types of Correlations?
o Positive correlation
o Negative correlation
o Zero correlation: no relationship between the co-variables
What is the difference between correlations and experiments?
o Experiment: the researcher controls or manipulates the independent variable in order to measure the effect on the dependent variable
o In correlations: there is no such manipulation of one variable and thus impossible to establish a cause an effect between one co-variable and another
o Even if there was a strong correlation it does not mean that it was the cause, there may have been other intervening variables that influence other variables
What are Correlation strengths?
o Provide a precise and quantifiable measure of how 2 variables are related
o Help suggest future ideas for research
o Quick and economical
o No need for controlled environment and no manipulations are needed
o Secondary data can be used thus less time consuming
What are Correlation limitations?
o Cannot show cause and effect
o There may be intervening variables: third variable problem
o Correlations can be occasionally be misused or misinterpreted especially in the media
What is Qualitative data?
o Words
o Non-numerical
o Interviews, extracts, unstructured observations, interpretations
o Rich in detail
o Broader scope, emotions. Greater external validity more meaningful insight into the participants worldwide view
o Difficult to analyse, hard to undergo statistical analysis
o Hard to see patterns and comparisons with and between data
What is Quantitative data?
o Data that can be counted, usually given as a number
o Experiments. Statistical analysis, graphs and charts
o Depends on the purpose and aims of the research moreover content analysis can convert qualitative into numerical
o Simple to analyse, relationships are easily drawn
o More objective and less open to bias
o Much narrower in scope and less meaningful
o Fail to represent real life
What is Primary data?
o Original data that has been collected specifically for the purpose of the investigation by the researcher
o First hand form participant
o Gathered through, questionnaires, interviews or observations
o Authentic
o Can be designed specifically to target the information they require
o Requires time and can be costly to plan and carry out
What is Secondary data?
o Collected by someone else
o Subject to statistical testing and therefore the significance is known
o Includes: journals, books, websites, statistical information, census
o Quick and inexpensive
o Minimal effort required
o Primary data may not be needed as the information already exists
o May be outdated or incomplete, reduces the quality and validity. The content may not match the researchers need
What is a Measure of central tendency?
o General term for any measure of the average value in a set of data
What is the Mean?
o The arithmetic average calculated by adding up all the values in a set of data and dividing it by the number of values there are
o Mean is the most sensitive measure of central tendency as it includes all scores/ values
o More representative data
o Easily distorted by extreme values, therefore can be less representative
What is the Median?
o Central value in a set of data in ascending order
o In an even number of scores the median is halfway between the 2 middle scores
o Extreme scores do not affect it
o Easy to calculate
o Less scientific than the mean as not all scores are included
What is the Mode?
o Most frequently occurring value in a set of data
o Some sets may be bi-modal or no mode
o Easy to calculate
o Crude in measure and not representation of the data as a whole
o For some data categories mode is the only method you can use
What are Measures of dispersion?
o The general term for any measure of spread or variation in a set of scores
What is the Range?
o Dispersion in a set of scores
o Highest - Lowest
o Easy to calculate
o Only considers the 2 most extreme values
o Unrepresentative of the data set as a whole
What is Standard deviation?
o Shows how much the score deviate from the mean by calculating the different between the mean and each score
o All the differences are squared and all added up then divided by the number of scores, giving the variance
o Larger the deviation the greater the dispersion or spread of data. This could show that not all participants were affected by the IV in the same way
o SD is a more precise way of measuring dispersion than the range as it includes all the values
o Like the mean, it can be distorted by a single extreme value
What are Bar charts?
o Frequency of each variable is represented by the height of the bars
o Data is categorical
o They are separated to show they are dealing with separate conditions
What are Scatter grams?
o Represents the strength and direction of a relationships between co-variables in a correlational analysis
What are Histograms?
o Bars touch as the data is continuous
What is a Line graph?
o Continuous data and uses points connected by a line to show how something changes in value over time
o IV on the X-axis
o DV on the Y-axis
What is a Normal distribution?
o Symmetrical spread of frequency that forms a bell-shaped pattern
o Mean median and mode are all located at the highest peak
o The tails of the curve never touch the horizontal X-axis, never reaches zero as more extreme scores are always theoretically possible
What are Skewed distributions?
o A spread of frequency that is no symmetrical where the data clusters to one end
o Mode median mean
What is a Positive skew?
o Long tail is on the positive (Right) side of the peak and most of the distributions is concentrated on the left
What is a Negative skew?
o Long tail is on the negative (Left) side of the peak and most distributions are concentrated on the right
What is Statistical testing?
o Provides a way of determining whether hypotheses should be accepted or rejected
o It tells us whether differences or relationships between variables are statistically significant or have occurred by chance