Questions Flashcards
What is content analysis?
Content analysis is a technique for analysing qualitative data of various kinds. Data can be placed into categories and counted (quantitative) or can be analysed in themes (qualitative).
In an observational study, 100 cars were fitted with video cameras to record the drivers behaviour. Two psychologists used content analysis to analyse the data from the films. They found that 75% of accidents involved a lack of attention by the driver. The most common distractions were using a hands-free phone or talking to a passenger. Other distractions included looking at the scenery, smoking, eating, personal grooming and trying to reach something within the car. Explain how the psychologists might have carried out content analysis to analyse the film clips of driver behaviour (4 marks)
• The psychologist could have begun by watching some of the film clips of driver behaviour. • This would enable the psychologist to identify potential categories which emerged from the data of the different types of distractions seen in the film • Such categories/themes might include: passenger distractions, gadget distractions, etc • The psychologists would then have watched the films again and counted the number of examples which fell into each category to provide quantitative data.
In an observational study, 100 cars were fitted with video cameras to record the drivers behaviour. Two psychologists used content analysis to analyse the data from the films. They found that 75% of accidents involved a lack of attention by the driver. The most common distractions were using a hands-free phone or talking to a passenger. Other distractions included looking at the scenery, smoking, eating, personal grooming and trying to reach something within the car. Explain how the two psychologists might have assessed the reliability of their content analysis. (3 marks)
The two psychologists could watch the films separately and devise a set of categories. They could compare these and use categories they both agreed on. They could carry out content analysis of the films separately end compare their answers looking for agreement.
The Psychologists designed an experiment to test the effects of using a hands-free phone on driver’s attention. They recruited a sample of 30 experienced police drivers and asked them to take part in two computer-simulated driving tests. Both tests involved watching a three minute film of a road. Participants were instructed to click the mouse as quickly as possible, when a potential hazard (such as a car pulling out ahead) was spotted. Each participant completed two computer-simulated driving tests: Test A, Whilst chatting with one of the psychologists on a hands free phone Test B, in silence, with no distractions. The order in which they completed the computer tests was counterbalanced. Explain why the psychologists chose to use a repeated measures design in this experiment. (3 marks).
A repeated measures design was chosen in this experiment: To remove the effects of individual differences in reaction times which would occur if an independent groups design was used To avoid the potential difficulties involved in matching participants To reduce the number of participants required for the experiment.
The Psychologists designed an experiment to test the effects of using a hands-free phone on driver’s attention. They recruited a sample of 30 experienced police drivers and asked them to take part in two computer-simulated driving tests. Both tests involved watching a three minute film of a road. Participants were instructed to click the mouse as quickly as possible, when a potential hazard (such as a car pulling out ahead) was spotted. Each participant completed two computer-simulated driving tests: Test A, Whilst chatting with one of the psychologists on a hands free phone Test B, in silence, with no distractions. The order in which they completed the computer tests was counterbalanced. Identify one possible extraneous variable in this experiment. Explain how this variable may have influenced the results of this experiment. (3 marks)
There are a range of potential extraneous variables here including: • The nature and content of the conversation with the psychologist on the hands- free phone • Interaction between the sex of the psychologist and sex of participant which could influence the type of conversation • The number of hazards in the computer-based test, hence difficulty of the tests • The presence of the hands-free headset could have produced distraction. Example: The chat with the psychologist was not controlled (1 mark) so the difficulty or number of questions could have varied (2 marks). This would influence the DV as more or less attention would be required (3 marks).
The Psychologists designed an experiment to test the effects of using a hands-free phone on driver’s attention. They recruited a sample of 30 experienced police drivers and asked them to take part in two computer-simulated driving tests. Both tests involved watching a three minute film of a road. Participants were instructed to click the mouse as quickly as possible, when a potential hazard (such as a car pulling out ahead) was spotted. Each participant completed two computer-simulated driving tests: Test A, Whilst chatting with one of the psychologists on a hands free phone Test B, in silence, with no distractions. The order in which they completed the computer tests was counterbalanced. Explain how one factor in this experiment might affect its external validity (3 marks)
External validity refers to how far the findings of the experiment can be generalised to real-life situations. The most likely answer here is that the hazard perception test was done using a computer test, which does not resemble real-life driving situations. (No noise, stress, etc.) Award 1 mark for e brief answer (test lacks ecological validity) and 2 further marks for appropriate explanation contextualised within the scenario.
The Psychologists designed an experiment to test the effects of using a hands-free phone on driver’s attention. They recruited a sample of 30 experienced police drivers and asked them to take part in two computer-simulated driving tests. Both tests involved watching a three minute film of a road. Participants were instructed to click the mouse as quickly as possible, when a potential hazard (such as a car pulling out ahead) was spotted. Each participant completed two computer-simulated driving tests: Test A, Whilst chatting with one of the psychologists on a hands free phone Test B, in silence, with no distractions. The order in which they completed the computer tests was counterbalanced. Explain one or more ethical issues that the psychologists should have considered in this experiment (4 marks)
There are several potential ethical issues here. • Informed consent: Participants should be given full information about the nature of both tasks before deciding whether or not to participate. • Debriefing: A full debriefing should take place at the end of the experiment. This should provide feedback on performance end allow participants to ask questions if they wish to. • Freedom to withdraw: Participants should be made aware of their freedom to withdraw before and during the experiment. They should be made aware of their right to withdraw their data after the experiment • Confidentiality: Individuals should not be identified, but should retain anonymity (use of numbers or initials instead of names).
The Psychologists designed an experiment to test the effects of using a hands-free phone on driver’s attention. They recruited a sample of 30 experienced police drivers and asked them to take part in two computer-simulated driving tests. Both tests involved watching a three minute film of a road. Participants were instructed to click the mouse as quickly as possible, when a potential hazard (such as a car pulling out ahead) was spotted. Each participant completed two computer-simulated driving tests: Test A, Whilst chatting with one of the psychologists on a hands free phone Test B, in silence, with no distractions. The order in which they completed the computer tests was counterbalanced. Write a set of standardised instructions that would be suitable to read out to participants before they carry out Test A, chatting on a hands-free phone. (5 marks)
The standardised instructions should include the following information: a. You will take part in a simulated driving test, which will lest for three minutes. b. Your task will be to identify potential hazards on the road ahead. c. When you see a hazard, you should press the mouse button as quickly as possible. d. Whilst you are doing the test, I will chat to you on a mobile phone and would like you to reply using the hands-free mobile phone headset. e. Do you have any questions?
