research methods

Question 1

what is a hypothesis?

Answer 1

is a precise, testable statement of what the researcher predict will be the outcome of the study. it is stated at the start of a study.

Question 2

what is a non-directional hypothesis (2-tailed)

Answer 2

it predicts that the independent variable will have an effect on the dependent variable, but the direction of the effect Is not specified - it just states that there will be a difference.

e.g. there will be a difference in…

Question 3

what is a directional hypothesis? (one-tailed)

Answer 3

it predicts the nature of the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. it predicts in which direction the change will take place (greater, smaller, less or more)

e.g. adults will correctly recall more!! words than children

Question 4

what are the different types of observation methods?

Answer 4

controlled, naturalistic, participant

Question 5

controlled observation?

Answer 5

they are usually structured observation and are likely to be carried out in a psychology lab.
the researcher decides where the observation will take place, at what time and with which participants, etc.

Question 6

naturalistic observation?

Answer 6

involves observing participants in their natural environment. often used where it would be unethical to manipulate variables.

Question 7

participant observations?

Answer 7

is a variant or natural observation, but here the researcher joins in and becomes part of the group they are studying to get a deeper insight.

Question 8

overt ?

Answer 8

participants know they are being observed.

Question 9

covert?

Answer 9

participants do not know they are being observed.

Question 10

non-participant?

Answer 10

the researcher remains separate from the person they are observing

Question 11

mode?

Answer 11

most frequent occurring number in a data set

Question 12

median?

Answer 12

the middle score when the data set is in numerical order

Question 13

mean?

Answer 13

add all the data set together and divide by how many is in the data set

Question 14

range?

Answer 14

difference between highest and lowest value

Question 15

standard deviation?

Answer 15

shows to what extent the values in a data set deviate from the mean.

Question 16

sign test?

Answer 16

this test is used when investigating a difference, using a repeated measures design and the data is nominal (arranged into categories)