science inquiry skills

science as a human endeavour

the science as a human endeavour strand high -lights science as a way of knowing and doing, and explores the purpose, use, and influence of science in society.

society can influence science, and science can influence society

communication and collaboration

• science is a global enterprise that relies on clear communication, international conventions, and review and verification of results

• collaboration between psychologists and stakeholders progresses research, understanding and enterprise. it requires shared evidence from any sources in a multidisciplinary approach

development and application

• developments in research, enterprise and technology lead to advancements in psychological understanding

• the application of psychological understanding can enable scientists to develop solutions, progress discoveries, design action, evaluate and respond to economic, social, cultural, and environmental and sustainable factors

influence

• psychological knowledge and its application are both influenced by, and influences economic, sociocultural, religious, ecological, environmental, sustainable, ideological and political perspectives in a local, national and global context

• the use of psychological knowledge may impact through beneficial or unexpected consequences requiring monitoring, assessment, and evaluation of risk, through ethical considerations

population

a population is any complete group with at least one characteristic in common

sample

a sample is usually a subsection, or smaller group of the population selected from the population

unrepresentive samples

• a sample which does not represent the population due to its size

• biased in term of factors such as gender, age, socioeconomic status or cultural groups

• unrepresentative samples lack internal validity which means that it does not test the hypothesis

• using small or unrepresentative sample doesn’t represent the population therefore it may be inaccurate to generalise results to the wider population

• a small sample usually doesn’t represent all the key interest groups within a population

qualitive designs

focus groups

• group interview technique where data is collected by asking questions from participants

• 8 - 10 participants

• note taker and facilitator are very important

focus group advantages

• rich verbal data can be collected

• open ended complex problems can be studied

• useful for collecting information from people who are illiterate

• may allow formation of further ideas for more specific research

focus group disadvantages

• people may not feel comfortable expressing opinions in front of others

• a few people may dominate the discussion

• interviewer bias may contaminate the results

• cannot establish causation

• the data from a focus group should not be interpreted to be representative of the entire population

quantitative designs

• experimental designs

• observational designs

experimental designs

• researcher purposely manipulates independent variable

• random allocation of participants to control group and experimental group

• comparison of control and experimental group to see if there has been an effect

experimental feautures

experimental group

• are exposed to the independent variable (receives the “treatment”). The treatment (IV) is the hypothesised cause of any variation in the dependent variable

control group

• are not exposed to the treatment (that is the independent variable is absent). they provide baseline data against which the experimental group data can be compared

random allocation

• if allocation is by random assignment, experiments allow conclusions about cause.

experimental advantages

• the experimenter attempts to eliminate unwanted extraneous variables

• control over extraneous variables is usually greater than in other research methods

• involves manipulating the IV to observe the effect on the DV and comparison between experimental and control groups. this makes it possible to determine a cause and effect relationship

• because of strict conditions and control the experimenter can set up the experiment again and repeat or ‘check’ their results

• replication is very important as when similar results are obtained this gives greater confidence in the results, increasing reliability

experimental disadvantages

• elimination of extraneous variables is not always possible

• experimental situation may not relate to the real word (low ecological validity)

• it may be unethical or impossible to randomly assign people to groups

observational designs

allows research to occur that may be unethical or impossible to carry out otherwise.

less control than experimental designs.

in observational investigations, the investigator collects data in a natural setting by means of behavioural observations or self-report methods

• independent variable already exists and naturally varies (pre-existing data)

• observing behaviour in natural environment

observational advantages

• allow variables to be investigated that would be unethical, impossible or too costly under an experimental design

• some kinds of behaviour can only be observed in a naturalistic setting (eg unethical to deprive children in early life to observe effects later in life

• high ecological validity (is true to real life situations)

observational disadvantages

• cannot infer such a strong cause and effect relationship because there is a greater chance of other variables affecting the results (extraneous variables) due to low control.

• cannot replicate the findings as the same situation will not occur naturally again

• observer bias may influence the results

ethics in psychology

• respect for the dignity and wellbeing of individuals

• must work ethically with others, taking into consideration their physical, cultural and emotional safety

• informed consent

• voluntary participants

• confidentiality / anonymity

• right to withdraw

• deception only when necessary

• debriefing

• professional conduct

• accurate reporting