2 - social psychology methods

Question 1

what is the best way to test interventions?

Answer 1

using experimental designs
- compare effects to a control group
- participant allocation to control vs intervention

Question 2

why is randomisation important?

Answer 2

reduces allocation bias

randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are the gold standard

differences in outcome between intervention and control can be attributed to intervention

Question 3

how should RCTs be reported?

Answer 3

by using standardised guidelines

• allows for replication
• allows for findings to be used in policy or practice
• allows for findings to be compared

Question 4

why is user / patient / public acceptability also important to consider?

Answer 4

if people don’t accept intervention they won’t engage with it

users should be consulted early on in the research e.g. questionnaire

Question 5

what if there are multiple studies on the same topic?

Answer 5

produce reviews which collate and synthesis the methods and findings of multiple research studies on the same topic

Question 6

what are the three types of reviews?

Answer 6

1. narrative reviews (literature reviews)
2. systematic reviews
3. meta-analyses

all collate and summarise multiple ideas

Question 7

what are narrative reviews?

Answer 7

• provide overview of current knowledge on a general topic
• studies included based on researcher’s judgement
• no new analysis

Question 8

what is the structure of narrative reviews?

Answer 8

includes introduction and separate sub-headings that discuss themes or topic areas (no method)

Question 9

what are systematic reviews?

Answer 9

• have a well defined and precise research question
• strict inclusion and exclusion criteria and clear search for articles that can be reproduced
• assesses quality of research studies

Question 10

what is the structure of systematic reviews?

Answer 10

• introduction
• methods
• results
• discussion

Question 11

what are meta-analysis’?

Answer 11

• same as systematic review but quantifies overall effect across all studies
• assesses effect size from all studies
• provides strongest and most reliable data

Question 12

how did COVID-19 effect social psychology?

Answer 12

social distancing made face-to-face research challenging

choice of method will depend on resources available

increase in online surveys