Research Loose bits

What is Standard Deviation?

• Measure of spread around the mean.
• Shows how dispersed scores are in a data set.

What Does a Low Standard Deviation Mean?

• Scores are close to the mean.
• Data is more consistent.

What Does a High Standard Deviation Mean?

• Scores are spread far from the mean.
• Data is less consistent.

Why is Standard Deviation Useful?

• Mean alone does not show spread of scores.
• Standard deviation shows variability and consistency of data.

What is a Normal Distribution?

• Symmetrical bell-shaped distribution.
• Most scores cluster around the mean.
• Mean, median and mode are the same.

What is a Positive Skew?

• Distribution where tail extends to the right.
• Most scores are low.
• Mean pulled upwards.

What is a Negative Skew?

• Distribution where tail extends to the left.
• Most scores are high.
• Mean pulled downwards.

Difference Between Positive and Negative Skew

• Positive skew has tail extending right.
• Negative skew has tail extending left.

What is Observer Bias?

• Observer expectations influence recording of behaviour.
• Can reduce validity of observations.

How Can Observer Bias Be Reduced?

• Use behavioural categories.
• Train observers.
• Use inter-observer reliability checks.

What is Inter-Observer Reliability?

• Extent to which different observers agree on observations.
• High agreement increases reliability.

How is Inter-Observer Reliability Calculated?

• Agreements divided by total observations multiplied by 100.

What is Random Allocation?

• Participants randomly assigned to experimental conditions.
• Helps reduce participant variables.

Difference Between Random Sampling and Random Allocation

• Random sampling selects participants from the target population.
• Random allocation assigns participants to conditions in an experiment.

What is Control of Variables?

• Researchers keep variables constant to improve validity.
• Helps reduce extraneous and confounding variables.

What are Standardised Procedures?

• Same instructions and procedures used for all participants.
• Improves reliability and replicability.

What are Behavioural Categories?

• Clearly defined observable behaviours used in observations.
• Must be objective and measurable.

What is Event Sampling?

• Observer records behaviour every time it occurs.
• Useful for studying infrequent behaviours.

What is Time Sampling?

• Observer records behaviour at fixed time intervals.
• Makes observations more manageable.