research methods Flashcards

Question

what are the benefits of a longitudinal study?

Answer 1

Allows researchers to see change and development in behaviour, emotions or beliefs over time because the researcher is studying the participants for an extended period.

Answer 2

Less practical - takes a long time to gather the data, meaning its more costly and it takes a long time to develop conclusions to theories. also suffer from attrition where participants drop out/leave the study over time. can result in a biased sample, as it could be a particular type of person that is likely to drop out.

Answer 3

any method which involves asking a participant about their feelings, attitudes or beliefs and them giving a written or verbal response. Examples of self-reports are questionnaires and interviews.

Answer 4

a type of self-report method in which the participant responds to a set of questions and gives their answers in a written form.

Answer 5

questions which provide a limited choice of responses and no opportunity to expand on answers. Such questions provide quantitative data.

Answer 6

Quick and easy to analyse/interpret and compare findings between groups. consists of numerical data, can be quickly and easily analysed and compared in terms of means/percentages of each group, who have all had the same standardised responses to pick from.

Answer 7

- Lacks detail - it does not allow participants to elaborate on how/why they think/feel/behave the way they do.

Answer 8

questions that allow participants to give full and detailed answers in their own words i.e. no categories or choices are given. They generate qualitative data

Answer 9

Collects rich and detailed data because participants can elaborate on why they behave, think, and feel the way they do. This increases face validity.

Answer 10

Difficult and time consuming to analyse and compare - the data is often rich in detail and each piece might be unique. It can also be influenced by researcher bias because researchers may misinterpret the qualitative data that is collected, reducing validity.

Answer 11

numerical scale on which a participant can indicate the extent, or strength, of some measure. They therefore generate quantitative data.

Answer 12

Easy to analyse/compare because they collect quantitative data. They also show the ‘strength’ of a person’s response rather than a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

Answer 13

Lack detail because they do not allow elaboration on how/why people think in a certain way. They can also be subjective because participants may interpret the scale differently.

Answer 14

type of rating scale question that measures attitudes using a statement to which participants respond by choosing an option.

Answer 15

rating scale where a participant rates their response by marking a cross on a scale, between two opposing words (bipolar adjectives). Depending where the cross is marked, depends on the numerical score the participant is given.

Answer 16

type of questionnaire consisting of many closed questions. These tests are instruments developed for measuring mental characteristics including personality, intelligence, mental health, brain damage etc.

Answer 17

Large amounts of data can be collected because they are quick and easy to administer. + The participants all answer the same standardised questions, increasing reliability.

Answer 18

Suffer from social desirability bias because participants might lie in order to portray themselves in a good light or a socially acceptable way. This reduced the face validity of the findings.

Answer 19

face-to-face conversations (sometimes interviews are conducted over the phone) where participants give information verbally.

Answer 20

asks predominantly closed questions in a fixed order. The questions are pre- determined before the interview and are standardised (same questions, same wording, same order etc.).

Answer 21

Easier to analyse and compare results because each participant has answered a standardised set of questions. Increasing the reliability.

Answer 22

May not reveal full/true extent of people’s beliefs because they do not allow elaboration on the topic, they answer only the standardised questions given. This can reduce face validity.

Answer 23

one in which some specific questions to ask are prepared in advance, whilst others are created at the time of the interview.

Answer 24

allows standardisation of a core set of questions for all participants, increasing reliability and the ability to compare answers. ability to ask new, individual and extra questions as the interview proceeds can allow a greater variety of information about different people’s behaviour/opinions, thereby increasing face validity.

Answer 25

Researcher/Interview bias can occur as the researcher may be biased in what questions they create during the interview, asking questions to further support their own aims/hypothesis/theories.

Answer 26

generally begins with a standard question/topic for all participants, but from there on, questions depend on the participant’s answers. There might be a list of topics for the interviewer to cover, but questions are made up during the interview.

Answer 27

Highly detailed as they can reveal the full extent of people’s beliefs because they allow elaboration on the topic as a set of standardised questions do not have to be followed.

Answer 28

Researcher/Interview bias because standardised questions do not have to be followed, interviewer could unintentionally ask questions that support their own theory/aim/hypothesis. Therefore, reducing validity. difficult to analyse and compare because the questions are not standardised and all participants may have been asked different questions, making comparisons difficult.

Answer 29

Can be highly detailed because interviews tend to collect qualitative data, though open questions and unstructured interviews, which allows elaboration on how/why people think in a certain way. This increases face validity.

Answer 30

May increase social desirability bias because interviews are often face to face, so people may feel embarrassed and give a false answer. This will lower the face validity of the results. - Time consuming because each participant will have to be interviewed one at a time, meaning it takes longer to gather the data.

Answer 31

Researcher bias – different interviewers could interpret results in different ways. Type of question – closed questions are more reliable than open questions, as the same question can be used with all participants. Type of interview – structured interviews are more reliable than unstructured interviews, as the same questions/wording/order can be used with all participants. Unclear/ambiguous questions – if questions are unclear different participants might interpret them in different ways.

Answer 32

- carry out retest - split half

Answer 33

This involves administrating the same questionnaire or interview twice (e.g. Once in January and then again in March) to see if the same results are obtained. If the two tests give the same results this would suggest that the self-report is reliable

Answer 34

Split a questionnaire in half (maybe all odd and then even numbers) and compare the participant’s score on each half of the test. If they are similar the test is reliable.

Answer 35

Remove ambiguous/unclear questions, so all participants interpret them in the same way. Use the same interviewer, and if this isn’t possible, train interviewers, so they use the same ‘style’. Use closed questions or structured interviews.

Answer 36

Demand characteristics – if participants know the aims of the study, they may change their answers Social desirability bias - participants might lie to give a sociably acceptable/’correct’ answer Researcher bias – the research could misinterpret the data Limited range of questions can reduce construct validity Open questions/unstructured interviews have a higher level of validity than closed/structured.

Answer 37

Carry out concurrent validity: This is where you compare the results of YOUR self-report with another self-report on the same topic that we already know is valid. If both self-reports produce the same/similar results, it suggests that your self-report is valid.

Answer 38

Ensure confidentiality / make it anonymous Avoid leading questions and have a wide range of questions on the topic being investigated Use open questions or unstructured interview Include filler/distractor questions so the aim of the study is not obvious

Answer 39

way of collecting data which involves the participants’ behaviour being recorded by a researcher who is engaged with them as part of the social setting (the researcher joins the group they are observing).

Answer 40

Obtains a lot of in-depth data because the research is able to access first-hand information about their participants as they are part of the group. Therefore, increasing the validity. They are also usually high in ecological validity because when the researcher joins the group of participants this is generally in a natural setting. Therefore, the results can be generalised to real life behaviour/settings.

Answer 41

Difficult to record data when part of a real-life group, because this could draw attention to the research and increase demand characteristics. Therefore, making it less practical to carry out.

Answer 42

a way of collecting data which involves the participants’ behaviour being recorded by a researcher who is not engaged with them as part of the social setting. The observer may be overt or covert.

Answer 43

Easier to record data as the researcher is not part of the group. This makes it a more practical method.

Answer 44

Less detailed data as researcher is not getting as much information on the participant’s behaviour because they are not observing from within the group. Therefore, reducing validity.

Answer 45

take place in a real-life settings, without interference from the researchers.

Answer 46

High ecological validity because they are carried out in natural environments and participants will behave naturally. Therefore, the results can be generalised to real life situations.

Answer 47

Difficult to replicate because they are in natural settings, which the research has no control over. Therefore, they have low reliability. It can also be difficult to record data because the research is in a natural setting, often without recording equipment. Therefore, making it less practical.

Answer 48

conducted in a setting specifically created / arranged / set-up for the study.

Answer 49

Easier to replicate because they are in a controlled setting. Therefore, they are reliable. Also, easier to record data because the research is in a controlled setting, often with recording equipment. Therefore, making it more practical. Thirdly, controlled observations usually reduces ethical issues because participants generally give consent as they know they are being observed.

Answer 50

Low ecological validity because they are carried out in artificial environments and participants will not behave naturally. Therefore, the results can’t be generalised to real life situations/ behaviour. There can also be high demand characteristics because if participants are observed in an artificial environment they may guess the aim of the study and change their behaviour. Therefore, this reduces the validity of the findings.

Answer 51

(disclosed observation) is where participants are aware they are being observed.

Answer 52

Reduces ethical issues because consent can be gained and deception can be avoided.

Answer 53

Increases observer effects and/or demand characteristics because participants may change their behaviour as they know they are being observed. This will reduce the validity.

Answer 54

(non-disclosed observation) is where participants are unaware they are being observed.

Answer 55

Reduces demand characteristics and/or observer effects because participants will behave naturally as they don’t know they are being observed. This increases the validity.

Answer 56

Raises ethical issues such as lack of consent, invasion of privacy and deception.

Answer 57

where the observer records everything they see, there are no fixed categories.

Answer 58

Provides rich and detailed qualitative data because any/all data can be recorded, not just behaviours on a coding scheme. Therefore, increasing validity.

Answer 59

Researcher bias may occur because the researcher may only take note of particular behaviours/behaviour that supports their aims. Therefore, this reduces validity. Unstructured observations also lack reliability as they are not standardised and are different for all participants.

Answer 60

where the observer records a specified range of behaviours in pre-defined categories. A behavioural checklist is a table of behavioural categories.

Answer 61

Data is easier to analyse because quantitative data is obtained. This makes the results more reliable.

Answer 62

Data is easier to analyse because quantitative data is obtained. This makes the results more reliable.

Answer 63

Lack of detail because only quantitative data is obtained. There is no further detail on the behaviour, or the context in which it happened. Therefore, reducing validity. Researchers may also miss important behaviours because they may not be on the coding scheme. reducing validity.

Answer 64

the observer keeps a count of each and every time a particular behaviour occurs for the full duration of the observation. For example, ticking a box every time somebody users their mobile phone.

Answer 65

Get a more accurate picture of behaviour as observers are less likely to miss things because behaviour is recorded continuously, and all occurrences of the behaviours being studied.

Answer 66

Easy to miss things when attempting to record all occurrences of the behaviour studied. Also, does not give an indication of the time of the behaviours, so can lack temporal validity (behaviour over time).

Answer 67

the observer decides on a time interval (every 1 minute for 1 hour or every 1 hour for 6 hours). Record what behaviours are displayed during this time period(s) only.

Answer 68

More likely to be representative because a greater period of time can be studied overall - behaviour may be observed every 10 minutes from 1pm until 5pm, increasing temporal validity.

Answer 69

May miss behaviours because there are periods when the observer is not observing/sampling behaviour

Answer 70

Observations tend to collect data that is high in validity. This is because participant’s actual behaviour is being measured, rather than asking people how they think they would behave in a certain situation. This can improve face validity.

Answer 71

Observations can be unethical, due to lack of consent. They can be subject to observer bias – observers could misinterpret what they see. They can also suffer from observer effects/social desirability if participants realise they are being observed and change their behaviour.

Answer 72

involves two or more researchers observing the same behaviour using the same coding scheme and then checking for agreement in their scores. More than 80% agreement is needed to have inter-rater reliability.

Answer 73

by having a clear/unambiguous behaviour checklist. Train the observers so they understand exactly what they are looking for / what ‘counts’ as a behaviour. Use controlled and structured observations. Carry it out in the same place at the same time of day etc.

Answer 74

researchers can carry our covert, naturalistic observations. They can reduce observer/researcher bias by using the double-blind procedure (observers kept unaware of the aims of the investigation)

Answer 75

variable that the experimenter manipulates or changes. The independent variable will always have at least two conditions (groups).

Answer 76

a group of participants (condition) who are not exposed to the independent variable and can be used for comparison with the experimental group.

Answer 77

variable that the experimenter measures.

Answer 78

Operationalising variables means making clear how the independent variable is manipulated and how the dependent variable is measured. Operationalising a variable is the process of clearly outlining what will the participants will do and how the behaviour will be measured.

Answer 79

any variable other than the independent variable, which could have an effect on the dependent variable. can reduce the validity of the findings and are therefore considered a bad thing! Extraneous variables are often classified as participant variables (e.g. age, gender, IQ) and situational variables (e.g. temperature of the environment, lighting, background noise etc.).

Answer 80

an experiment conducted under highly controlled conditions, with the manipulation of an IV. A laboratory is any environment where variables can be well controlled. Such environments are usually artificial but do not have to resemble a science lab at school. Laboratory experiments allow for precise control of variables.

Answer 81

High levels of control over extraneous variables because it is carried out in a controlled environment. Therefore, allowing cause and effect to be established resulting in high internal validity. Easy to replicate because they have standardised procedures. Therefore, they have high reliability

Answer 82

Lack ecological validity because they are carried out in artificial environments and participants may not behave naturally. Therefore, the results can’t be generalised to real life situations/behaviour. Participants may be subject to demand characteristics because they may guess what the study is about and change their behaviour. Therefore, this reduces the validity of the findings.

Answer 83

an experiment that is conducted in a natural environment, still with the manipulation of an IV. In field experiments the participants are often unaware that they are participating in an experiment.

Answer 84

They have high ecological validity because they are carried out in natural environments and participants will behave naturally. Therefore, the results can be generalised to real life situations/behaviour. Reduced demand characteristics because if a participant is unaware they are being studied they can’t guess what the study is about and change their behaviour. Therefore, this increases the validity of the findings.

Answer 85

Low levels of control over extraneous variables because it is carried out in a natural environment. Therefore, reducing internal validity, making it difficult to establish cause and effect. - Difficult to replicate because they often do not have standardised procedures. Therefore, they have low reliability.

Answer 86

where the independent variable is not manipulated by the researcher but occurs naturally. In a quasi-experiment the researcher takes advantage of pre-existing conditions such as age, gender, disability, occupation etc.

Answer 87

High ecological validity due to the lack of manipulation of the researcher; variables are naturally occurring so findings can be easily generalised to other (real life) settings, resulting in high external validity.

Answer 88

Difficult to replicable due to the researcher’s lack of control, they can often not carry out the study in the same way as they have no control over the IV. This reduced reliability. It is also more difficult to establish cause and effect because the researcher has less control, so there could be extraneous variables. Therefore, this reduces internal validity

Answer 89

where participants only take part in one condition of the experiment (participants only take part once). E.g. in an investigation into the effect of noise level on memory, one group was given a memory test while music was playing in the background. A separate group was given a memory test in silence. The two sets of data are then compared.

Answer 90

No order effects (boredom effect or practice effect) because people are only being tested once. This improves validity of the results. It also reduces the chance of demand characteristics because as participants are only being tested once they don’t see the change in the IV. This improves validity of results

Answer 91

Individual differences (participant variables) are likely to affect the results because different people are in each condition, yet they are being compared. This reduces validity of results

Answer 92

where participants take part in both (or all) conditions of an experiment (the same people are used repeatedly). E.g. in an investigation into the effect of noise level on memory, the participants are all given a memory test while music was playing in the background. They are all then given a memory test in silence. The two sets of data are then compared.

Answer 93

Eliminates individual differences (participant variables) because the same participants are being tested in both conditions. This improves the validity of the results

Answer 94

Order effects (boredom effect or practice effect) are likely to affect the results because people are being tested twice and may get bored/practice, which will affect their performance. This would reduce the validity A way to reduce the impact of order effects is to use counterbalancing. This is when half of the participant complete condition 1 first (memory test with music), followed by condition two (memory test in silence). The other half of the participants do condition 2 first, followed by condition 1. Therefore, any order effects should be randomised across both conditions, reducing the impact of them on the results.

Answer 95

where participants only take part in one condition of the experiment, but participants are matched on a key variable(s) e.g. gender, age, IQ etc. Each member of one group is the same age, sex, or social background as a member of the other group.

Answer 96

Individual differences (participant variables) greatly reduced because participants are matched so the comparison groups should be very similar on important characteristics. This should improve validity.

Answer 97

Less practical than the other two designs as it takes longer, and is more complicated, to carry out because participants may need pre-testing in order for matching to be done.

Answer 98

a specific, testable prediction about what you expect to happen in your study/research. Experiments test hypotheses (i.e. does the IV have an effect on the DV) and there are very specific ways to word these hypotheses. If you were testing whether caffeine has an effect on reaction times, you have two outcomes: it does OR it doesn’t! Psychology research sets out to test the null hypothesis.

Answer 99

states the expected results (what you predict will happen). There are two ways to write an alternative hypothesis; directional (or one tailed) and non-directional (or two tailed).

Answer 100

When a hypothesis predicts the expected direction of the results

Answer 101

When a hypothesis does not predict the expected direction of the results

Answer 102

states that there is no difference between two variables.

Answer 103

means that high values of one variable are associated with high values of the other. Or if you like, the variables increase together.

Answer 104

means that high values of one variable are associated with low values of the other. Or if you like, as one variable increases the other decreases.

Answer 105

if there is no correlation between two variables they are said to be uncorrelated.

Answer 106

Enables both variables to be expressed quantitively, minimizing subjectivity and researcher bias. Can lead to further investigation because they can show the researcher if there is an initial relationship between two variables. This can then be researched further in a more controlled way.

Answer 107

Does not establish cause and effect because there is not manipulation of an IV. Gives no insight in to why people have responded/scored the way they have, as the data is quantifiable. people

Answer 108

refers to whether a measuring tool (a test, observation checklist, self-report etc.) will always produce consistent results in the same situation, with similar people. The external reliability can be assessed using the test-retest method (testing the same participant twice over a period of time on the same test). Similar scores would suggest that the test has external reliability (i.e. it’s consistent).

Answer 109

refers to whether a measure is consistent within itself (i.e. in a self-report, all questions are measuring the same thing). The internal reliability can be assessed using the split half method. This involves getting the participant to do the test in two halves (e.g. odd and even numbers). If the two halves of the test provide similar results this would suggest that the test has internal reliability.

Answer 110

refers to the test or measure being used in the study; for example, in an experiment, whether the changes in the DV are caused by the IV, rather than other factors (e.g. the presence of demand characteristics, lack of generalisability, and confounding variables etc.).

Answer 111

is whether a measure appears, on the surface, to test what it claims to measure (most commonly discussed type of validity).

Answer 112

indicates whether a phenomenon measured in one way will relate to, or predict, another (related) measure or variable.

Answer 113

whether a measure will produce a similar score to another test (a test that is known to be effective) that claims to measure the same phenomenon.

Answer 114

a way of assessing validity by investigating if the measure really is measuring the theoretical construct it is supposed to be i.e. is it measuring the ‘big picture’?. E.g. When researching intelligence you must test all of the different aspects of intelligence, rather than just one aspect.

Answer 115

relates to issues beyond the investigation, particularly, whether the findings of a study really can be generalised beyond the study

Answer 116

is the extent to which findings can be generalised to the target population, and to other populations

Answer 117

the extent to which findings can be generalised to real life situations (the situation and the task can affect the ecological validity)

Answer 118

a small-scale trial run of a piece of research. This is carried out before the real research project begins. The purpose of a pilot study is to highlight flaws in the research, which can be improved/changed in the real study, these could be linked with low reliability or validity.

Answer 119

collected by a researcher for the study currently being undertaken.

Answer 120

This means that the validity and reliability of the data collection process can be verified.

Answer 121

It is time consuming to do and therefore an expensive process, so less practical.

Answer 122

information that was collected for a purpose other than the current piece of research, for example government statistics, medical records, census information, driving statistics etc.

Answer 123

This type of data is more practical (quicker to collect and less expensive) as it is already available.

Answer 124

No guarantee that the data was collected in a valid, or reliable, way.

Answer 125

descriptive, in-depth and rich data that can give you an insight into the participants’ thoughts, feelings and beliefs.

Answer 126

Collects rich and detailed data because participants can elaborate on why they behave, think, and feel the way they do. This increases face validity.

Answer 127

Difficult and time consuming to analyse and compare because the data is often rich in detail and each piece of data might be unique. It can also be influenced by researcher bias because researchers may misinterpret data, reducing validity.

Answer 128

data that can be expressed numerically in some way and focuses on numbers and frequencies.

Answer 129

Quick and easy to analyse and compare findings between groups. This because it consists of numerical data, which can be quickly and easily analysed and compared in terms of means/percentages of each group.

Answer 130

Lacks detail because it does not explain why people behave as they do. It does not give an insight into thought, feeling or beliefs. Therefore, the data can lack face validity.

Answer 131

organised into separate categories. E.g. measuring mood as happy or sad.

Answer 132

Easy to generate from closed questions; large amounts of data can be analysed quickly and displayed in a simple bar chart.

Answer 133

Easy to generate from closed questions; large amounts of data can be analysed quickly and displayed in a simple bar chart.

Answer 134

Without linear scale participants may be unable to express degrees of response o does not provide reasons for behaviour; can only use the mode as a measure of spread, so can’t work out the mean or median as participants don’t have individual scores.

Answer 135

where a numerical value/score is used to represent each participant’s performance, but is based on ranks or ratings. All participants scores can be put in order from lowest to highest. Ordinal data is very subjective as it is based on a person’s own personal opinion (e.g. a rating scale).

Answer 136

more informative than nominal data as it indicates relative values on a linear scale instead of just totals.

Answer 137

Gaps between the values aren't equal so a mean cannot be used to assess central tendency.

Answer 138

is in the form of equal units e.g. score on an objective test, or temperature or height. Interval data is objective. The interval (or gap) between each unit is the same.

Answer 139

More informative than ordinal and nominal as the points are directly comparable because they are all of equal value; scientific measures used to record the distance between values are highly reliable.

Answer 140

Some interval scales do not have a baseline (baseline of zero = lowest score), so scoring 0 may not mean the participant doesn't demonstrate the variable but that the scale doesn't measure it.

Answer 141

the middle value. To calculate: place all the numbers in order and find the midpoint/middle score.

Answer 142

the arithmetic average. To calculate: add all the scores together and then divide by the number of scores you have.

Answer 143

best measure of central tendency when the data is roughly symmetric (balanced) and there are no anomalies. This is because the mean takes into account every piece of data, so it gives a good overall summary.

Answer 144

affected by anomalies in the data. These would skew the mean and make it unrepresentative.

Answer 145

best measure of central tendency when there are anomalies in the data. This is because any ‘extreme’ scores are not taken into account when calculating the median.

Answer 146

does not take all of the data into account so might not give a good overall summary of the data.

Answer 147

the most frequently occurring. To calculate: count which number occurs the most in your set of data.

Answer 148

best measure of central tendency when dealing with categorical data. This is because takes into account the frequency of data and can identify the most common score or the most frequently observed behaviour.

Answer 149

it relies of a score occurring more than once. It also does not take into account all of the data.

Answer 150

difference between the smallest and largest scores. To calculate: subtract the smallest number from the largest number.

Answer 151

Quick and easy to calculate.

Answer 152

Affected by anomalies.

Answer 153

the variance and standard deviation both tell us about the dispersion of scores around the mean. A small variance/standard deviation means that all participants have scored similarly, and their scores are all clustered around the mean. A larger variance/standard deviation means participant’s scores are widely spread out around the mean (there was a wide range of scores)

Answer 154

Work out the mean score for the data in that group Then for each number/score, subtract the mean and square the result (multiply it by itself). Add all of these new scores together. Then divided this by the number of scores minus one (if you have 8 participants, divide by 7).

Answer 155

Work out the mean score for the data in that group Then for each number/score, subtract the mean and square the result (multiply it by itself). Add all of these new scores together. Then divided this by the number of scores minus one (if you have 8 participants, divide by 7). This score is the variance. To get the standard deviation, square root the answer (symbol √ on your calculator).

research methods Flashcards

(180 cards)