Research Methods Flashcards
(15 cards)
Experimental methods
All experiments measure the effect that the IV has on the DV. The two main differences between the various types of experiments are
a) where they are conducted
b) whether or not the IV is manipulated by the researcher or occurs naturally.
Laboratory experiments - conducted under controlled conditions, in which the research and manipulates the IV to measure the effect on the DV.
Field experiments - carried out in natural conditions, in which the research of manipulates the IV to measure the effect on the DV.
Natural experiments - carried out in natural conditions; however, the researcher is unable to manipulate the IV, and therefore examines the effect of a naturally occurring IV on the DV.
Quasi-experiments - contain a naturally occurring IV. However, in a quasi-experiment, the naturally occurring IV is a difference between people that already exists (i.e. gender, age). The researcher examines the effect of this IV on the DV.
Non-experimental methods
Observational studies - involves watching actual behaviours, which is involves watching actual behaviours, which is subsequently recorded by various methods. There are many types of observations, such as naturalistic and controlled observations; covert and over observations; participant and non-participant, and structured and unstructured observations.
Questionnaires - a type of self-report technique, where participants fill in the answers for themselves, providing information on their thoughts, feelings and behaviours.
Interviews - a type of self report technique that involve an interviewer, asking questions and recording responses. They can be structured, semistructured or unstructured.
Case studies - mainly uses interviews and observations and are very detailed investigations of an individual or small group, usually regarding an unusual phenomenon or event of interest. Researchers using this method can conduct an in-depth analysis of the individual or group under examination.
Correlational studies
A non-experimental method used to measure up the relationship between two or more variables
Positive correlation - as one variable increases/decreases, so the other variable increases/decreases (e..g between height and shoe size.
Negative correlation - as one variable increases, so the other variable decreases, e.g. between the school performance of high school students and the amount of time they are absent from school.
Zero correlation - there is no relationship between the co-variables in a correlation study.
Correlation coefficient - psychologists use a statistic called correlation coefficient to measure the strength of a correlation.
Operationalisation
IV and DV - in an experiment, the independent variable is the variable that the researcher manipulates and is assumed to have a direct effect on the dependent variable, and this effect is measured.
Hypothesis - a testable prediction about the variables in a study. It should always contain the IV and the DV. It can be directional (one-tailed) or non-directional (two-tailed).
Operationalisation - hypotheses and variables all need operationalisation: the exact IV that has been manipulated and the exact DV that is being measured need to be stated. For example, the colour of the font in which the words are written, either blue or black will significantly affect the speed in seconds, at which the participant each read the list of 20 words, with the list of black words being read significantly faster than the list of blue words.
Sampling techniques
Random sampling - when every member of the target population has an equal chance of being. This involves a selection method like pulling names from a hat.
Systematic sampling - uses a predetermined system to select the participants. For example, every fourth person in the list could be used in the sample, so not everyone has an equal chance of selection..
Stratified sampling - when the research at stratifies the target group into sections, each representing a key group or characteristic. For example, if a class has 20 students, 18 male and 2 female, a representative sample would be 9 randomly chosen males and 1 randomly chosen female..
Opportunity sampling - the research is select anyone who is available and willing to partake in the study.
Volunteer sampling - participants self select to become part of a study because they volunteer or respond to an advert.
Experimental design
Repeated measures - an experimental design, where the same participants take part in each condition of the experiment.
Independent groups - an experimental design, where different participants are used in each condition of the experiment. Random allocation should be used to decide which condition. Each participant should be allocated, as this ensures that each participant has an equal chance of being assigned to one group or the other.
Matched pairs - an experimental design where pairs of participants are matched in terms of key variables, such as age and IQ. One member of each pair is then placed into the experimental group and the other member into the control group.
Control: Demand characteristics and investigator effects
Demand characteristics - these occur when the participants try to make sense of the research and act to support the aim of the research. They are an issue as the participants may behave in a way to support the hypothesis, making the results less valid. Conversely, the participant may deliberately trying to disrupt the results of phenomenon known as the ‘screw-you’ effect.
Investigator effects - this is when a researcher, either consciously or unconsciously act in a way to support their prediction. This can be a particular problem when observing events that can be interpreted in more than one way. For example, one researcher might interpret children fighting as an act of violence while another might interpret this as rough-and-tumble play.
The BPS code of ethics
The bps code of ethics is a document produced by the British Psychological Society, which details the general principles that apply to the use of human participants in all research contexts. It focuses on for major principles: respect, competence, responsibility, and integrity.
The guiding principles to ensure that research is ethical are:
- Participants should be fully informed of their rights and what the research entails and sign an informed consent form.
- Participants should be caused no physical or psychological harm.
- They should be allowed to withdraw themselves or their data at any time before during or after the research.
- They should be fully debriefed and invited to view and comment on their data and comment on anything they think is inaccurate.
- Their data should be kept confidential and participants should enjoy full anonymity.
The role of peer review in the scientific process
Peer review - the process of subjecting, a piece of research to independent scrutiny by other psychologist, working in a similar field, who consider the research in terms of its validity, significance and originality.
An easy way to remember 5 key points of peer review:
–> Peer - Provide recommendations about whether the research should be PUBLISHED or not, or whether it needs revision.
–> Views - A way to check the VALIDITY of research.
–> Are - Assess the APPROPRIATENESS of the procedure and methodology.
–> So - Judge the impact/SIGNIFICANCE of the research to a wider context (human behaviour).
–> Over-rated - Assess the work’s originality and ensure that other relevant research is cited.
Types of data
Qualitative - non-numerical language-based data collected through interviews, open questions and content analysis. It allows researchers to develop insight into the nature of subjective experiences, opinions and feelings.
Quantitative - numerical data that can be statistically, analysed. Experiments, observations, correlations, and closed/rating scale questions from questionnaires all produce quantitative data.
Primary - Data that has been collected directly by the researcher solely for the purpose of their investigation.
Secondary - information that someone else has collected, e.g. the work of other psychologists that has been published in journals for government statistics. They are sometimes used by other researchers as they are often cheaper and more convenient than gathering one’s own primary data.
Descriptive statistics: Measures of central tendency and Measures of dispersion
Measures of central tendency - descriptive statistics that depict the overall ‘central’ trend of a set of data. There are three key measures: mean, median and mode.
- Mean: calculated by adding all of the schools in a set of data and dividing by the total number of scores.
- Median: calculated by finding the middle school when the dataset is placed in numerical order. If there is an even number of data and the median is the sum of the two middle numbers, divided by two.
- Mode: calculated by reporting the most frequently occurring number in a set of data.
Measures of dispersion - there are two measures of dispersion:
- Range: the lowest score is subtracted from the highest score.
- Standard deviation - the spread of scores around the mean.
Normal and skewed distribution
Normal distribution - an arrangement of data that is symmetrical and form a bell-shaped pattern where the mean, median and/or mode falls in the centre at the highest peak.
Skewed distribution - frequency data are not spread evenly, i.e. normally distributed); the data are clustered at one end. Data that are positively skewed have a long tail that extends to the right. Data that are negatively skewed have a long tail that extends to the left. As a general rule, when data are skewed to the right (positively skewed), the mean will be greater than the median, and when the data are skewed to the left (negatively skewed), the median will typically be greater than the mean.
Reliability
The consistency of research study or measuring test. Reliability can be divided into 2 categories: internal and external.
Internal - the internal consistency of a measure, e.g. whether the different questions (known as ‘items’) in a questionnaire are all measuring the same construct.
External - the consistency of a measure from one use to another. It is assessed by test-retest.
Test-retest - a way of assessing the external reliability of a research tool. It involves presenting the same pps with the same test or questionnaire on two separate occasions, and seeing whether there is a positive correlation between the two.
It is important to establish inter-observer reliability when conducting observational research (when two or more observers observe and record behaviour in the same way).
Validity
Internal validity - a measure of whether results obtained are solely affected by changes in the IV.
External validity - a simple way of assessing whether something measures what it claims to measure, e.g. does an IQ test look like it tests intelligence?
Concurrent validity - assessed by comparing a new test with an existing test of the same nature to see if they produce similar results. If they do, then the new test is said to have concurrent validity.
Ecological validity - a type of external validity that refers to the extent to which the findings can be generalised to a real-life setting.
Temporal validity - a type of external validity referring to the validity of the findings in relation to the progression of time, e.g. do they findings of conformity research (Asch, 1951) still apply today?
Features of science
Objectivity - a feature of science, and if something is objective it is not affected by the personal feelings and experiences of the researcher. The researcher should remain value-free and unbiased when conducting their investigations.
Empirical method - using objective, quantifiable observation in a systematically controlled, replicable situation, in order to test or refine a theory.
Replicability - an important feature of science. It means that a study should produce the same results if repeated exactly, either by the same researcher or by another.
Falsifiability - an important feature of science. It is the principle that a proposition or theory may only be considered scientific if in principle it is possible to establish it as false. One of the criticisms of some branches of psychology, e.g. Freud’s theory, is that they lack falsifiability.
