Location Of The Research Flashcards
(17 cards)
Key features of Laboratory Experiments
- Takes placed in a controlled setting to ensure that only the IV is being manipulated, and nothing else could be altering the DV
- Standardised procedures are used, meaning that every participant gets the same experimental experience
- The experimenter will be manipulating at least one IV, measuring at least one DV, therefore, there will be 2 or more conditions
- Often, participants know that they are in a study but they may have been deceived about true aims
- Usually, many participants are tested in a study
Strengths of Laboratory Experiments
- Often the best way to study some behaviour, because the experimenter has control over the experimental situation. Therefore, they can establish cause and effect relationships. In a lab study extraneous variables can be controlled. These are variables which may affect the results, such as time of day, temperature etc. They can be reasonably certain that the change they made to the IV was what caused the change in the DV, and not anything else.
- Often involve accurate measurements and standardised collections of data. Often the data collected is quantitative, therefore, highly objective and less susceptible to subjectivity and interpretation.
- Because they have standardised procedures, they are able to be replicated by other researchers. This means it has high reliability. If the results are shown to be consistent over time, it can show reliability.
Limitations of Laboratory Experiments
- Often have low ecological validity as they take place under artificial conditions.
- Behaviour of the participants may change due to demand characteristics
- Experimenter effects. The experimenter may inadvertently display behaviour which influences the participant to act in a certain way, for example their tone/body language
Key features of Field Experiments
Researcher manipulates at least one IV and at least one DV
Takes place in a natural environment e.g. the street, a school, a hospital
Strengths of Field Experiments
Natural environment, so high ecological validity
More generalised data
Less demand characteristics
Higher mundane realism (less artificial than a lab study)
Experimenter can control the IV to measure the DV, therefore, cause and effect relationships can be discovered
Limitations of Field Experiments
Not a controlled area so other variables could be affected
Extraneous variables can affect data and reduce validity of the experiment
Still a risk of demand characteristics, participants may guess the aim of the study
Ethical issues, people don’t know they’re apart of research so they cannot give consent
Harder to replicate than lab studies, so issues with reliability
Key features of a Natural Quasi Experiment
There is an IV, 2 or more “conditions” and a DV. However, the IV is not in direct control of the experimenter
Usually, the IV is a naturally occurring event (e.g. a natural disaster)
Can take place in the lab or the field, natural experiments are often the only way to investigate certain phenomena, often when it would be impractical or unethical to directly manipulate the variables
Key features of a Difference Quasi Experiment
IV not under direct control of the experimenter
IV is something that is a pre-existing difference between the participants
E.g. looking at the difference between men and women, old and young people, high and low IQs etc
Strengths of Quasi Experiments
High ecological validity
Limitations of Quasi Experiments
Can’t force natural things to occur
Cannot draw definite cause and effect conclusions
Participant variables
Extraneous variables cannot be controlled for
Sample of participants may have low generalisability, biased sample
Strengths of Online Research
Large samples
Diverse participants
Cheaper
Limitations of Online Research
Could be biased
Limited research
Extraneous & confounding variables
Could lie -> social desirability
Ethical issues
Controlling extraneous variables
Standardised procedure: all participants and the researcher do exactly the same during the study
Standardised instructions: all participants are given exactly the same instructions
Randomisation: uses chance to reduce the investigators influence on the design of the investigation to try and control investigator effects
• Random generation of resources
• Randomly ordering conditions when using repeated measures
How can demand characteristics be reduced?
Single blind procedure: Where the participants do not know which condition they’re in so they don’t know how they are supposed to act
Investigator effects
Occur when researchers accidentally influence the results of their research
How can results be influenced by the investigator ?
Physical characteristics of the researcher may consciously change the way participants act e.g. attractive, gender
Other characteristics of the researcher may cause participants to unconsciously be affected e.g. accent
Researchers may be accidentally biased in their interpretation of data
How to reduce investigator effects
Double blind procedure - where neither the participants nor the investigator know which condition the participants are in , so they can’t give clues as to how the participants should act
