research methods: 4

Question 1

what is a pilot study and why are they used?

Answer 1

a small scale “trial run” of the investigation a researcher plans to carry out which ultimately saves money by allowing them to check the materials/procedures work well, outline any problems with the study and adapt anything that needs changing before the real thing

Question 2

what are the 6 ethical guidelines researchers must follow when conducting research?

Answer 2

confidentiality and privacy
deception
concent
debrief
the right to withdraw
protection of participants

Question 3

what is confidentiality?

Answer 3

the right to have personal data protected

Question 4

what is privacy?

Answer 4

the right to control information about yourself

Question 5

outline the ethic “confidentiality and privacy”

Answer 5

a legal right that ppts data should be kept safe/secure and they shouldn’t be identifiable by name if research is published

Question 6

what are issues with confidentiality?

Answer 6

data could be accessed by unauthorised people and/or ppts identity are not kept anonymous
other info supplied in research could lead to identification

Question 7

how can you overcome issues with confidentiality?

Answer 7

don’t study anyone without informed concent
ensure data is kept safe and inaccessible to unauthorised sources/people
destroy data when it’s no longer needed
keep ppts anonymous by referring to them as numbers or false names and try to not reveal other information that could lead to identification

Question 8

outline “deception”

Answer 8

deliberately misleading or withholding information from ppts at any stage of the investigation

Question 9

issues with deception

Answer 9

can’t provide fully informed concent (so can only be used where it wouldn’t cause the ppts stress)

Question 10

how to overcome issues with deception

Answer 10

debrief ppts after and tell them the true nature of the study, remind them of the right to withdraw and check up on how they feel after
ask permission from the ethics committee/ask similar people how they would respond to deception

Question 11

outline “concent”

Answer 11

when ppts provide informed concent to be included in the study after being told the true aims and what to expect

Question 12

issues with concent

Answer 12

ppts may not have agreed to participate if they knew the true aims
may cause demand characteristics and won’t behave naturally

Question 13

how to overcome issues with concent

Answer 13

give ppts all details prior to study then sign a waiver to formally provide concent to take part
if concent is an issue the researcher could get retrospective concent (after the study and debriefing) or presumptive concent (asking a similar group hoe they would respond)

Question 14

outline “the right to withdraw”

Answer 14

ppts should be able to withdraw from the study at any point and be reminded of this before/after the experiment

Question 15

issues with the right to withdraw

Answer 15

ppts might feel pressured to continue even if they don’t want to because they don’t want to spoil the study or lose payment

Question 16

how to overcome issues with the right to withdraw

Answer 16

emphasise that they have the right to withdraw at the start and end of the study and assure them it won’t affect rewards

Question 17

outline “protection of ppts”

Answer 17

ppts shouldn’t be subject to physical or psychological harm that exceeds what they would normally experience in everyday life

Question 18

issues with protection of ppts

Answer 18

extent of harm may not be apparent before the procedure and it may be a case of “it’s too late”

Question 19

how to overcome issues with protection of ppts

Answer 19

debrief ppts after the study and ascertain whether there were negative/long-lasting effects of the study and how to fix them
terminate the experiment if it’s apparent ppts are being harmed
avoid experiment that may pose greater risks

Question 20

what’s a cost-benefit analysis?

Answer 20

psychologists judge the costs of doing an experiment against the benefits it will have

Question 21

what’s an ethics committee?

Answer 21

studies must be approved before it takes place - committees will assess possible ethical issues and suggest ways to deal with them (they will do a cost-benefit analysis)

Question 22

what’s an observation?

Answer 22

a technique that allows the researcher to study behaviour in a more realistic setting
good at seeing what people do not what they feel/think

Question 23

what’s a participant observation?

Answer 23

where the researcher becomes a member of the group

Question 24

strengths of participant observation

Answer 24

experience the situation first hand and gives them an increased insight and increases validity

Question 25

weakness of participant observation

Answer 25

researcher may begin to identify too strongly and loose objectivity

Question 26

what’s non-participant observation

Answer 26

where the researcher observes a situation without interacting with the ppts

Question 27

strengths of non-participant observation

Answer 27

allows the researcher to maintain objectivity

Question 28

weakness of non-participant observation

Answer 28

findings may not be valid as they can’t gain a true understanding of ppts feelings

Question 29

what’s a naturalistic observation?

Answer 29

where the observations take place in a natural setting in the same context it would naturally occur

Question 30

strengths of a naturalistic observations

Answer 30

high external/ecological validity as they’re true to real life
can be generalised to real life

Question 31

weakness of naturalistic observations

Answer 31

often difficult to replicate because of lack of control over extraneous various

Question 32

what’s a controlled observation

Answer 32

some aspects of the experiment can be controlled allowing them to investigate effects on certain behaviours

Question 33

strengths of controlled observation

Answer 33

more control over extraneous variables that could make it easier to replicate findings

Question 34

weakness of controlled observation

Answer 34

may produce findings that can’t be as easily applied to real life because the extra control will make the situation more unnatural

Question 35

what’s an overt observation

Answer 35

“open” observations where the ppts know theyre being observed

Question 36

strengths of overt observations

Answer 36

it’s ethical as they’re aware they’re being observed so they haven’t been deceived

Question 37

weakness of overt observations

Answer 37

ppt reactivity/demand characteristics - ppts may change their behaviour because they know they’re being observed which makes results less valid

Question 38

what’s a covert observation

Answer 38

“undercover” where ppts don’t know they’re being observed and they’re unaware of the researcher

Question 39

strength of covert observation

Answer 39

more valid results because their behaviour is more natural

Question 40

weakness of covert observations

Answer 40

ethical issues due to breach of privacy and lack of informed concent
difference between public and private behaviour so you cant observe private behaviour

Question 41

what’s an unstructured observation

Answer 41

where the researcher records all information they think is relevant (small scale)

Question 42

strength of unstructured observation

Answer 42

produces accounts of behaviour rich in detail

Question 43

weaknesses of unstructured observation

Answer 43

tends to produce qualitative data that’s difficult to analyse
greater risk of observer bias because there’s no objective behavioural catagories

Question 44

what’s a structured observation

Answer 44

researcher will simplify behaviours and categorise specific behaviours they want to focus on and allows the researcher to quantify their observations using pre-determined behaviours (large scale)

Question 45

strengths of structured observation

Answer 45

much easier to record and more systematic meaning it’s less likely to be biased
quantitative and easier to analyse

Question 46

weakness of structured observations

Answer 46

lacks in-depth data