AP PSYCH 1.2 Research Methods in Psychology
Research is done in many ways to solve different problems
All methods listed here may present correlations, but do not imply causation
Two things may follow the same trend, but that does not necessarily mean that one affects the other
Questionnaires that gather data on what people think or have done
Data is raw and needs to be processed before it can become useful
Gathers lots of ‘surface’ data
Gathers large amounts of data quickly
Easy and cheap
Data is processed easily and can be turned into information
Can study sensitive topics because it allows for anonymity
Participants can lie
Participants can misunderstand the question or prompt
Wording effect: Questions can be written in a way that affects the participants perception and therefore response
Cannot easily ask follow-up questions
The opposite of surveys
Gathers lots of deep data about a specific individual or group
Can provide more context
Follows participants through time, not just a moment
Chronological data
Time consuming to gather such detailed data about people’s lives
Hard to conduct and expensive
Hard to get approved
Privacy/ethics concerns
Drop outs can be catastrophic
Can’t assume causality
May not be generalizable
People who know they’re being observed may not act normally
Going into an environment undetected is a good way to gather veritable data
Allows for authentic data
Participants can’t react to observer’s presence, assuming they don’t know they’re being watched
May allow for “real” treatment
Privacy and ethical concerns
May ignore informed consent
Lack of “control”
Results can only be descriptions, not explanations or deeper insight
These studies are not research methods but rather ways in which research can be conducted
Compared different groups
Gathers data from one point in time
Snapshot, doesn’t give full picture or context
Follows one group
Gathers data over a long time
Questions about generalizability
Good for questions of development (Unit 6)
Research is done in many ways to solve different problems
All methods listed here may present correlations, but do not imply causation
Two things may follow the same trend, but that does not necessarily mean that one affects the other
Questionnaires that gather data on what people think or have done
Data is raw and needs to be processed before it can become useful
Gathers lots of ‘surface’ data
Gathers large amounts of data quickly
Easy and cheap
Data is processed easily and can be turned into information
Can study sensitive topics because it allows for anonymity
Participants can lie
Participants can misunderstand the question or prompt
Wording effect: Questions can be written in a way that affects the participants perception and therefore response
Cannot easily ask follow-up questions
The opposite of surveys
Gathers lots of deep data about a specific individual or group
Can provide more context
Follows participants through time, not just a moment
Chronological data
Time consuming to gather such detailed data about people’s lives
Hard to conduct and expensive
Hard to get approved
Privacy/ethics concerns
Drop outs can be catastrophic
Can’t assume causality
May not be generalizable
People who know they’re being observed may not act normally
Going into an environment undetected is a good way to gather veritable data
Allows for authentic data
Participants can’t react to observer’s presence, assuming they don’t know they’re being watched
May allow for “real” treatment
Privacy and ethical concerns
May ignore informed consent
Lack of “control”
Results can only be descriptions, not explanations or deeper insight
These studies are not research methods but rather ways in which research can be conducted
Compared different groups
Gathers data from one point in time
Snapshot, doesn’t give full picture or context
Follows one group
Gathers data over a long time
Questions about generalizability
Good for questions of development (Unit 6)
