IB Psychology Paper 3 revision

Deck 1: Sampling Methods

FLASHCARD 1

Front: Random Sampling

Back:

  • Equal Chance: Every member of the defined target population has an equal probability of being selected.

  • Reduces Bias: It minimizes researcher selection bias, making the final sample highly representative if the sample size is large enough.

FLASHCARD 2

Front: Convenience Sampling

Back:

  • Accessibility-Based: Participants are chosen simply because they are easily available and accessible to the researcher at the time of the study.

  • Fast but Biased: It is highly time-efficient and low-cost to execute, though it often leads to high sampling bias and low population validity.

FLASHCARD 3

Front: Volunteer (Self-Selected) Sampling

Back:

  • Participant-Initiated: Participants actively choose to join the study by responding to an advertisement, flyer, or public call.

  • Self-Selection Bias: It easily secures motivated participants, but it risks self-selection bias because volunteers often share unique personality traits or high motivation levels.

FLASHCARD 4

Front: Purposive Sampling

Back:

  • Criteria-Driven: Participants are intentionally selected because they possess specific characteristics, traits, or experiences relevant to the research topic.

  • Targeted Focus: It allows researchers to study specialized or niche groups in-depth, though the findings cannot be easily generalized to the general population.

FLASHCARD 5

Front: Snowball Sampling

Back:

  • Referral-Based: Current participants recruit or refer future participants from their own social or personal networks to join the study.

  • Accesses Hidden Groups: It is ideal for accessing hard-to-reach or hidden populations, but it often creates a highly homogenous sample with limited diversity.

Deck 2: Essential Paper 3 Elements

FLASHCARD 6

Front: Personal Reflexivity

Back:

  • Self-Awareness: The researcher reflects on how their own values, beliefs, identity, and personal background could bias data collection or interpretation.

  • Continuous Monitoring: It requires maintaining a reflective journal throughout the entire study to track subjective influences.

FLASHCARD 7

Front: Epistemological Reflexivity

Back:

  • Methodological Critique: The researcher evaluates how the chosen research design, questions, and theoretical framework limit or shape the findings.

  • Alternative Approaches: It involves considering whether alternative methods would have yielded different results or perspectives.

FLASHCARD 8

Front: Method Triangulation

Back:

  • Multi-Method Approach: Using multiple data collection methods (e.g., interviews alongside observations) to study the same phenomenon.

  • Cross-Verification: It increases the credibility of findings by verifying consistent results across different research techniques.

FLASHCARD 9

Front: Researcher Triangulation

Back:

  • Multiple Observers: Utilizing two or more independent researchers to collect and analyze the same data set.

  • Reduces Subjectivity: It reduces individual researcher bias by comparing independent interpretations to reach an inter-rater agreement.

FLASHCARD 10

Front: Data Triangulation

Back:

  • Diverse Sources: Gathering data from different times, locations, or varied participant groups within the study.

  • Rich Context: It ensures findings are not tied to a single isolated event or specific contextual setting.

FLASHCARD 11

Front: Member Checking (Participant Validation)

Back:

  • Transcript Review: Participants are asked to review transcripts or summary findings to confirm accuracy and intent.

  • Reduces Misinterpretation: It prevents the researcher from misrepresenting or taking participant statements out of context.

FLASHCARD 12

Front: Peer Review

Back:

  • External Audit: Independent colleagues or experts audit the research design, raw data, and analytical conclusions for consistency.

  • Validation Check: It ensures that interpretations are well-grounded in the evidence and methodologically sound.

FLASHCARD 13

Front: Representativeness (Quantitative Focus)

Back:

  • Population Mapping: The extent to which the study sample accurately reflects the demographic characteristics of the target population.

  • Statistical Application: It determines whether statistical findings can be formally generalized to a wider population.

FLASHCARD 14

Front: Transferability (Qualitative Focus)

Back:

  • Contextual Application: The degree to which qualitative findings can be applied to another setting with similar conditions.

  • Thick Description: It relies on the researcher providing detailed descriptions of the context so readers can judge if the results apply to their setting.

FLASHCARD 15

Front: Inductive Content / Thematic Analysis

Back:

  • Bottom-Up Coding: Analyzing raw qualitative data by creating codes and themes that emerge directly from participant responses rather than pre-existing theories.

  • Iterative Process: It involves repeatedly reading transcripts to organize codes into broader, higher-order categories.

FLASHCARD 16

Front: Data Saturation

Back:

  • Completion Threshold: The point during data collection where no new themes, insights, or information are being discovered.

  • Sample Limit: It signals to the researcher that data collection can officially stop because the sample size is sufficient.

Deck 3: Ethics Deep Dive (Applying, Reporting, & Relevance)

FLASHCARD 17

Front: Ethical Consideration: Informed Consent

Back:

  • When Applying: Participants are provided with clear details about the study's aim and procedures before deciding whether to give formal permission to participate.

  • When Reporting: The final report must explicitly confirm that written or verbal informed consent was successfully obtained from all participants or legal guardians.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because every human research project requires voluntary participation and respect for participant autonomy.

FLASHCARD 18

Front: Ethical Consideration: Right to Withdraw

Back:

  • When Applying: Participants are explicitly informed that they can exit the study at any point and request that their collected data be destroyed without penalty.

  • When Reporting: Researchers must document whether any participants chose to withdraw and explicitly state that their data was removed from the final analysis.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because researchers must continuously guarantee that participation remains strictly voluntary throughout the entire research process.

FLASHCARD 19

Front: Ethical Consideration: Protection from Harm

Back:

  • When Applying: Researchers actively structure the experimental or observational environment to prevent any unnecessary physical discomfort, stress, or psychological distress.

  • When Reporting: The report must outline any potential risks involved, explain how they were minimized, and detail the protective support provided to ensure participant well-being.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because the duty of care to protect participant welfare is an absolute baseline ethical obligation in any psychological research.

FLASHCARD 20

Front: Ethical Consideration: Anonymity & Confidentiality

Back:

  • When Applying: Data is collected and stored securely using pseudonyms or identification numbers to ensure individual responses cannot be traced back to real names.

  • When Reporting: The publication must present data in aggregate form or scrub personal details to prevent readers from identifying individual participants.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because safeguarding personal privacy prevents real-world social, personal, or professional repercussions for participants.

FLASHCARD 21

Front: Ethical Consideration: Deception

Back:

  • When Applying: Misdirection or hiding the true aim is used strictly when necessary to avoid demand characteristics, provided it causes no significant distress.

  • When Reporting: Researchers must publish a clear methodological justification for why deception was required and explain how its potential negative impact was mitigated.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because researchers must always evaluate whether withholding information compromises consent or requires alternative research designs.

FLASHCARD 22

Front: Ethical Consideration: Debriefing

Back:

  • When Applying: Participants are given a full explanation of the study's true aims and procedures immediately after data collection to address any confusion, distress, or lingering deception.

  • When Reporting: The research paper must confirm that a comprehensive debriefing was carried out for all participants prior to publishing the findings.

  • Universal Relevance: It applies to all studies because it serves as the final ethical safeguard to ensure participants leave the research environment fully informed and in the same psychological state as when they arrived.