Experiments Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is a lab experiment ?
A controlled experiment with a controlled environment. Where extraneous and confounding variables can be regulated. Participants go to the researcher. The IV is manipulated and the effects on the DV is recorded.
What is one strength of lab experiments ?
P - One strength is that EVs and CVs can be controlled
E - this means that the effect of the EVs and CVs on the DV can be minimised
E - Cause and effect between the IV and DV can be constructed which equals high internal validity Limitations
What is another strength of lab experiments ?
P - One strength is it can be more easily replicated
E - greater control means less chance that new EVs introduced.
E - This means that findings can be confirmed , supporting their validity
What is a limitation of lab experiments ?
P - One limitation is that they may lack generalisability
E - The controlled lab environment may be rather artificial and participants are aware they are being studied
E - Thus behaviour may not be ‘natural’ and can’t be generalised to everyday life (low external validity)
What is another limitation of lab experiments ?
P - One limitation is that demand characteristics may arise
E - These are cues in the experimental situation that invite a particular response from particiants
E - The findings may be explained by these cues rather than the effect of the IV (low maternal validity)
What is a field experiment ?
It is the everyday setting of the participants where the researchers go to the participants. It is in the real world. The IV is manipulated and the effect on the DV is recorded
What is one strength of field experiments ?
P - One strength is it is a more natural environment
E - Participants are more comfortable and their behaviour is going to be more authentic
E - his means that results may be more generalisable to everyday life and applicable
What is another strength of field experiments ?
P - One strength is that participants are unaware they are being studied E
E - they are mor likely to behave as they normally would so the findings can be generalised
E - the study therefore has greater validity due to them being in an actual environment where events like the experiment could occur
What is one limitation of field experiments ?
P - One limitation is that it is more difficult to control CVs and EVs
E - Observed changes in the DV may not be due to the IV , but to the EVs and CVs instead.
E - It is more difficult to difficult to establish cause and effect than in the lab.
What is another limitation of field experiments ?
P - One limitation I that there are ethical issues
E - Participants in a field experiment may not have given informed consent
E - This is an invasion of participant’s privacy . Which raises ethical issues.
What is a natural experiment ?
This is when the researcher takes advantage of the pre-existing IV. The IV does change but the change is not made by the researcher. Someone or something else causes the IV to vary. The Iv would have varied even if the experimenter wasn’t interested. DV may be naturally occurring or may be devised by the experimenter a measured in the field or a lab. Note that it is the IV that is natural not necessarily the setting. An example , is like the pandemic as it will have an effect n our behaviour regardless if it is measured or not
What is one strength of natural strengths ?
P - May be the only practical/ethical option
E - it may be unethical to manipulate the IV, e.g. studying the effects of institutionalisation on children.
E - A natural experiment may e the only way casual research can be done for such topics
What is another strength of a natural experiment ?
P - Greater external validity
E - Natural experiments involve real-world issues, such as the effect of a natural disaster on stress levels.
E - this means the findings are more relevant to real experience
What is a limitation of a natural experiment ?
P - The natural event may only occur rarely
E - Many natural events are ‘one-offs’ and this reduces the oppportunity for research
E - this may limit the scope for generalising findings to other similar situations
What is another limitation of natural experiments ?
P - Participants are not randomly allocated
E - The experimenter has no control over which participants are placed in which condition as the IV is pre-existing
E - May result in CVs that aren’t controlled, e.g. Romanian orphans adopted early may also be the friendlier one.
What is quasi-experimenter ?
IV is based on a pre-existing variable between people e.g. age or gender. No one has manipulated this variable , it simply exists. For instance , if the anxiety levels of phobic and no-phobic patients were compared , the IV of ‘having a phoba’ would not have come about through any experimental manipulation. DV may be naturally occurring or may be devised by the experimenter and measured in the field or a lab
What is a strength of a quasi-experiment ?
P - There is often high control
E - Often carried out under controlled conditions and therefore shares some of the strengths of lab-experiments
E - this means , for example replication is possible
What is another strength of a quasi-experiment ?
P - Comparisons can be made between people
E - In a quasi-experiment the IV is a difference between people, e.g. people with and without autism
E - this means that comparisons between different types of people can be made
