CHP1: Science skills and research methods (A-D)

Question 1

What are the steps involved in psychological research?

Answer 1

Identify the research problem, construct a research hypothesis, design a method, collect data, analyse data, interpret data, and report;

Question 2

Aim

Answer 2

A statement outlining the purpose of the study.

Question 3

Hypothesis

Answer 3

A testable prediction about the outcome of an experiment which is written as a statement and includes the variables being tested.

Question 4

Operational hypothesis

Answer 4

Is a research hypothesis that states how the variables being studies will be manipulated and measured.

Question 5

Population

Answer 5

The group of people of interest to an experiment, to which the results of the experiment are generalised to (drawn conclusions about).

Question 6

Independent variable (IV)

Answer 6

The variable the experimenter manipulates in order to observe the effect on the dependent variable (think: what are the two groups being tested).

Question 7

Dependent variable (DV)

Answer 7

The variable that is being measured to test the effects of the independent variable (think: what is being measured).

Question 8

Operationalisation

Answer 8

The process of defining the variables in terms of how they will be either manipulated or measured in an experiment.

Question 9

How do you operationalise the independent variable?

Answer 9

Think: What is each group doing or not doing.

Question 10

How do you operationalise the dependent variable?

Answer 10

Think: What is actually being measured and in what units (e.g. percentage, average, centimetres etc).

Question 11

Experiment

Answer 11

A study conducted in a carefully controlled environment to measure the cause-and-effect relationship between variables.

Question 12

Self-report

Answer 12

A participant’s subjective account of an experience through the conduction of questionaries, interviews, or a rating scale.

Question 13

Questionnaire

Answer 13

A list of questions that participants can respond to in a variety of formats.

Question 14

Interview

Answer 14

A type of questionnaire that is usually conducted verbally, involving the researcher asking participants questions and recording their responses. Interviews can be structured (involving a set of predetermined questions) or free form (researcher may change/ adapt/ add questions during the interview).

Question 15

Rating scale

Answer 15

A form of questionnaire, self-reporting in which participants give their numerical score on a scale to indicate their response to a set of questions.

Question 16

Observational studies

Answer 16

A type of study in which data is collected through careful monitoring and recording of participants behaviour.

Question 17

Case studies

Answer 17

An in-depth study focusing on one person or a few individuals looking at the variables relevant to the study in detail. Usually used when large sample sizes are not obtainable or the phenomena being studied is rare and difficult to replicate. Data can be collected in many formats including subjective self-reports, objective quantitative data, interviews, medical records and observations.

Question 18

Longitudinal studies

Answer 18

A study that gathers data from the same participant over an extended time period in order to see differences or changes in specific variables over time. Participants are followed up after specific time intervals.

Question 19

Cross-sectional studies

Answer 19

When data is collected from participants from different segments of the population (pre-existing cohorts) to represent a ‘snapshot in time’ through testing different variables in a population.

Question 20

Likert scale

Answer 20

The Likert scale asks participants to respond to statements with ‘strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree or strongly agree’ and assigns a numerical value (such as a value of 1-5) for each of these responses in order to obtain quantitative data that can be easily measured and compared.

Question 21

Control group

Answer 21

The group used as a basis for comparison as the participants are not exposed to the experimental condition(s), the independent variable.

Question 22

Experimental group

Answer 22

The group within an experiment that is exposed to the experimental conditions, the independent variable.

Question 23

Independent group design (between-group design)

Answer 23

Participants are split into two or more groups typically a control group and an experimental group(s) with every member of the sample randomly allocated to either the controlled or experimental group.

Question 24

Repeated measures design (within-group design)

Answer 24

The same participants are used in every condition of the experiment.

Question 25

Matched participants design

Answer 25

Participants are paired based upon relevant characteristics and then one member of the pair is randomly allocated to be tested in either the controlled or experimental group.

Question 26

Sample

Answer 26

A subset of the population, commonly referred to as the research participant.

Question 27

Representative sample

Answer 27

A subset of a population that seeks to accurately reflect the characteristics of the larger group.

Question 28

Sampling

Answer 28

The process through which the participants for a study are selected from the population of interest.

Question 29

Convenience sampling

Answer 29

When a sample is selected using the quickest and easiest means possible, selecting people who are readily available from the population.

Question 30

Random sampling

Answer 30

When every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected for the sample.

Question 31

Stratified sampling

Answer 31

When the population is divided into groups based on characteristics relevant to the study. The researcher then selects a sample from each of the groups in the same proportion that they occur in the population.

Question 32

Random stratified sampling

Answer 32

Take the population and divide it into strata (groups of similar people). Within each stratum, we take a random sample. Then a combination of all the samples are what makes your stratified random sample.

Question 33

Allocation

Answer 33

The process of assigning participants to conditions in the experiment for research.

Question 34

Random allocation

Answer 34

When every member of the sample has an equal chance of being assigned to each condition in an experiment.

Question 35

Extraneous variables

Answer 35

Variables other than the independent variable that may produce unwanted results in an experiment.

Question 36

Confounding variables

Answer 36

Variables that were not controlled for and did have an effect on the experimental conditions.