research and experimental design Flashcards
what is a research design?
how the participants are allocated to the conditions of the study.
what is an experimental design?
the name given to research design when used in an experiment.
what are the types of research and experimental designs?
independent measures design, repeated measures design and matched pair design.
what is independent measures design?
when participants are split into groups with each group tested in only one condition of the study. An example would be in Zimbardo et al’s prison study where the participants were split into two groups one being prisoners or prison guards and they only stayed in that role.
what is repeated measures design?
this means that the same participants are used in all conditions of the study
what is matched pair design?
when different participants are used in each condition of the study but are matched for likeness on important characteristics. The matching is determined by the aims of the study
what is the strengths and weaknesses of the independent measure design?
s:
there are no order effects (when participants get better or worsen because they practiced or are fatigued) since the participants only take part in one condition.
w:
more participants are needed than repeated measure design
- there may individual differences between the groups
what is the strengths and weaknesses of the repeated measures design?
s:
fewer participants are needed making it more economical
there are no individual differences between the conditions of the study
w:
demand characteristics are more likely as participants are more likely to guess the aim
order effects mean that results may reflect practice or fatigue.
what is the strengths and weaknesses of the matched pairs design?
s:
fair comparisons can be made between the groups as they are equally matched
w:
it is time consuming to match participants and not all characteristics can be equally matched
