Validity

Validity

The extent to which a study provides a true or legitimate explanation of behaviour

Invalid experiment

When it cannot provide a true explanation of behaviour

Internal validity

What happens inside the study

Control (2)

Did something other than the IV affect the DV?

If there are other extraneous variables that could have had an effect on the DV and they weren’t controlled, the study isn’t internally valid

Construct validity (2)

How accurate is the idea behind the research?

If a different theory can explain results better / if the experiment is wrong, the research lacks construct validity

Mundane realism (3)

Whether the experiment is realistic or not

This means the research materials and environment are realistic to a degree that means the experiences that are encountered in the research environment will occur in the real world

This allows the generalisation of research beyond the unique research setting

External validity

How well you can generalise from research participants (apply the findings of a study) to people, places and times outside of the study

Ecological validity

How well you can generalise a study to different places or settings

Population validity

How well you can generalise a study to different people or populations

Historical validity

How well you can generalise a study outside its historical context

Temporal validity

How well results apply as time goes on

Link between internal and external validity (2)

External validity is affected by internal validity

You can’t generalise the results of a study that lacks internal validity - the results have no meaning for the behaviour that they were studying