Research Methods

Question 1

Difference between aim and hypothesis

Answer 1

Aim- purpose of the study

Hypothesis- relationship between variables

Question 2

Difference between directional and non directional hypothesis

Answer 2

Directional- states direction
Non directional-doesn’t

USE DIRECTIONAL VARIABLES IF PREVIOUS FINDINGS OUTLINE THE DIRECTION

Question 3

What is a variable

Answer 3

Things that can vary and change within the investigation

Question 4

What’s operationalisation

Answer 4

Clearly defining variables so they can be measured

Question 5

Difference between extraneous and confounding variables

Answer 5

Extraneous- unwanted variables that can affect the IV

Confounding- change within the IV and can change the results of the DV (thing that’s measured)

Question 6

What is participant reactivity

Answer 6

Participants acting a certain way

Question 7

What are investigator effects

Answer 7

Unwanted influence of the investigator on the experiment

Question 8

What is randomisation

Answer 8

Use of chance methods to reduce conscious biases

Question 9

What is standardisation

Answer 9

Make everything the same

Question 10

What is an experimental design

Answer 10

How participants are used to

Question 11

Name the 4 different experimental designs

Answer 11

Independent groups- two separate groups experience different conditions

Repeated measures- all participants experience all conditions

Matched pairs- participants are paired on a variable related to the experiment then separated into one of the conditioned

Counterbalancing- control the order effects

Question 12

What are the 4 different experimental methods

Answer 12

LABORATORY- controlled, manipulated IV, controls EV and records the DV

FIELD- natural setting, IV manipulated, records the DV

NATURAL- natural setting, change in IV natural (happened if researcher not there), records DV

QUASI- IV has not been determined variables just exist

Question 13

What is a pilot study

Answer 13

Small scale trial run of the actual investigation to check questions and identify potential issues

Question 14

What are the two types of pilot studies

Answer 14

Single blind- participants not told about the aims until the end

double blind- neither participants or researcher aware

Question 15

What are the 6 different observation techniques

Answer 15

NATURALISTIC- where the behaviour would naturally occur

CONTROLLED- some control over EV and CV

COVERT- unaware they’re behind watched

OVERT- aware they’re being watched

PARTICIPANT- observer becomes part of group

NON PARTICIPANT- observer stays separate from the group

KEY NOTE- THERE IS NO IV IN OBSERVATIONS

Question 16

What is meant by the population

Answer 16

The group of people who are the focus of the researcher

Question 17

What is meant by the sample

Answer 17

The group of people who take part in the research

Question 18

When can we generalise the sample

Answer 18

When it’s representative of the population

Question 19

What are the 5 different types of sampling

Answer 19

RANDOM- everyone has an equal chance- use randomiser/ names out of a hat

SYSTEMATIC- every nth person

STRATIFIED- composition of sample reflects the subgroups (strata) of the population

OPPORTUNITY- anyone willing n available at the time

VOLUNTEER- participants selecting themselves

Question 20

What is the sampling frame

Answer 20

Lists of people in the target population

Question 21

What is bias

Answer 21

When groups are under or over represented

Question 22

What are the 6 aspects of ethical issues

Answer 22

Informed consent

Right to withdraw

Protection from harm

Debrief

Confidentiality

Deception

Question 23

What is the BPS code of conduct

Answer 23

Has a Code of ethics and ethical guidelines researchers must obey

Question 24

What is a cost benefit analysis

Answer 24

Do the ethical costs outweigh the need for research?

Question 25

What must participants sign (parents of children under 16)

Answer 25

Consent letter

Question 26

What is anonymity

Answer 26

No personal details most he revealed, participants stay anonymous

Question 27

What is presumptive consent

Answer 27

Smaller groups of people are asked if they agree so we presume the sample will agree

Question 28

What is retrospective consent

Answer 28

Participants asked to consent during the debrief

Question 29

What are the two types of observational design

Answer 29

Structured- simplify target behaviours using behavioural categories Unstructured- write down everything they see, rich in detail, small scale

Question 30

What are the two sampling techniques in observational design

Answer 30

EVENT- counting the number of times a event of behaviour occurs TIME- recording behaviour on a pre established time frame (look every 2 minutes for 10 seconds then look away)

Question 31

What is a continuous recording

Answer 31

All target behaviours are recorded- a systematic way of recording behaviour

Question 32

What is an intervening variable

Answer 32

A third variable interfering with the findings of a CORRELATION

Question 33

What are the two report techniques

Answer 33

Questionnaires Interviews

Question 34

What are the two types of questions in a questionnaire

Answer 34

OPEN- no fixed range of answers = qualitative data CLOSED- fixed response = quantitative

Question 35

What are the 3 types of interviews

Answer 35

STRUCTURED- pre determined set of questions asked in a fixed order UNSTRUCTURED- like a convo no set questions just a general area of interest SEMI-STRUCTURED- list of questions set in advance but free to ask follow up questions

Question 36

What are the 4 self report designs

Answer 36

LIKERT SCALE- indicate agreement usually 5 points (strongly disagree- strongly agree) (how much do u LIKE) RATING SCALE- represents strength of feeling (1-10) FIXED CHOICE- list of possible options (do u like dogs cats or horses) INTERVIEW SCHEDULE- standardised questions the interviewer wishes to cover

Question 37

What are descriptive statistics

Answer 37

Measures of central tendency Measures of dispersion

Question 38

What are measures of central tendency

Answer 38

Mean, median and mode (all the Ms)

Question 39

What are the measures of dispersion

Answer 39

Range and standard deviation

Question 40

What happens to cause a smaller deviation

Answer 40

Participants respond in a similar way

Question 41

Difference between primary and secondary data

Answer 41

PRIMARY- original date collected for the study SECONDARY- already exist, been collected by someone else

Question 42

What is a meta analysis

Answer 42

Combining the findings from several studies

Question 43

What are the 4 different ways of presenting quantitative data

Answer 43

Summary tables Bar charts Histograms Scattergrams

Question 44

What is a skewed distribution

Answer 44

Data leans to one side or the other (positive skew= data concentrated to the left negative= to the right)

Question 45

How can psychological research affect the economy

Answer 45

Attachment= research into role of parents affect who works Psychopathology= affect who is absent from work and for how long

Question 46

What must the chance be for it to be significant

Answer 46

Less than 5% (>0.05)

Question 47

What is more powerful? A parametric test or a non parametric test

Answer 47

Parametric

Question 48

What is a type 1 error

Answer 48

False positive Accepts the alternative but should accept the null

Question 49

What is a type 2 error

Answer 49

False negative Accepts the null but should accept the alternative

Question 50

What are the 3 different types of date when it comes to statistical tests

Answer 50

NOMINAL- categorical ORDER- ordered such as 1st or 2nd INTERVAL- on a scale such as temp

Question 51

What is the difference between the calculated value and the critical value

Answer 51

CALCULATED- from the statistical test (s) CRITICAL- found in the table

Question 52

What is a sign test

Answer 52

Convert the data to nominal (put signs like hearts or stars) Count the less frequent sign (S) and compare to the less significant sign (critical value)