Exam 2 Flashcards
(41 cards)
Naturalistic observation
Researcher makes observations of individuals in their natural environments (the field).
Participant observation
Allows researcher to observe the setting from the inside, he or she may be able to experience events in the same way as natural participants
Systematic observation
Refers to the careful observation of one or more specific behaviors in a particular setting
Researcher is only interested in a few very specific behaviors
Coding system
A set of rules used to categorize observations
Reactivity
The possibility that the presence of the observer will affect people’s behaviors
Can be reduced by concealed observation
Case study
An observational method that provides a description of an individual
May be a person or setting
Psychobiography
A type of case study in which the researcher applies psychological theory to explain the life of an individual, usually an important historical figure
Archival Research
Using previously compiled information to answer research questions
Researcher does not actually collect the original data
Instead he or she analyzed existing data such as statistics that are part of public records
Content analysis
Systematic analysis of existing documents
Response set
Tendency to respond to all questions from a particular perspective rather than to provide answers that are directly related to the questions
Social desirability
Faking good
Response set leads the individual to answer in the most socially acceptable way—the way most people are perceived to respond or the way that would reflect most favorably on the person
Yea-saying and nay-saying
When you ask several questions about a topic, a respondent may employ a response set to agree or disagree with all the questions ototiiy
Rating scales
Ask people to provide “how much” judgements on any number of dimensions—
Close-ended questions
A limited number of response alternatives are given
Open-ended questions
Respondents are free to answer in any way they like
Graphic rating scale
Requires a mark along a continuous line that is anchored with descriptions at each end
Not very enjoyable—
Semantics differential scale
Measure of meaning of concepts
Face-to face interviews
Interviewer and respondent meet to conduct the interview
Telephone interviews
Less expensive, allow data to be collected relatively quickly because many interviewees can work on the same survey at once
Computer assisted telephone interview
Interviewers questions are prompted on the compiler screen and the data are entered directly into the computer for analysis
Focus group
An interview with a group of about 6-10 individuals brought together for a period of 2-3 hrs
Virtually any topic can be explored
Interviewer bias
Describes all of the biases that can arise from the fact that the interviewer is a unique human being interacting with another human
Panel study
The same people are surveyed at two or more points in time
Important when the research question addresses one variable at “time 1” and another variable at “time 2”
Sample
Portion of population
