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A-Level Psychology > RESEARCH METHODS YEAR 1 > Flashcards

RESEARCH METHODS YEAR 1 Flashcards

1
Q

Aim

A

The purpose of the experiment. Aims are to be stated before the research begins to make it clear what the study intends to investigate.

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2
Q

One-tailed (directional) hypothesis

A

states the directions of the difference or relationship. (more/less,higher/lower,faster/slower).
Is used when there is existing research in the subject

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3
Q

Two-tailed (non-directional) hypothesis

A

states there is a difference between the conditions or groups but the nature of the difference is not specified.
Is used when there is not existing research in the subject.

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4
Q

Null hypothesis

A

When we predict that nothing will happen

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5
Q

Bar chart

A

Used to represent discrete data where the data is in categories which are placed on the x-axis. the mean or frequency is on the y-axis.

they differ from histograms as columns do not touch and they have equal spacing

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6
Q

Histogram

A

used to represent data on a ‘continuous’ scale
columns touch because each one forms a single ore (interval) on a related scale
scores are placed on the x-axis
the height of the columns show the frequency of values

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7
Q

Scatter graph

A

used for measuring relationship between two variables . the pattern of plotted points show the relationship

difference between correlation and experiment:
it is not possible to establish cause and effect using correlation
you may find a strong link between things but that does not necessarily mean one causes another. instead you have found an association.

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8
Q

Independent and dependent variables

A

Independent: is manipulated

Dependent: is recorded

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9
Q

Operationalisation

A

How we measure the variables. We must define how we intend to measure the IV and DV.

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10
Q

Controls

A

Random allocation

Counterbalancing: half of the participants participate in condition A before condition B and vice versa. This means that the first and second condition is not the same for every participant.

Randomisation: means that everyone has an equal chance of doing either condition

Standardisation: everything should be as similar as possible for all of the participants. For example, instructions are the same across the same across the conditions

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11
Q

Extraneous Variables

A

Anything other than the IV which could influence your result. These should have been accounted for before the experiment takes place.

They can be controlled by randomisation or enduring that all participants are the same in a relevant way

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12
Q

Confounding variables

A

Anything other than the IV which has influenced your results which has not been accounted for before the experiment

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13
Q

(Ethics) Informed consent

A

knowing aims and giving your permission to take part in the study (Menges 1973)

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14
Q

(Ethics) Deception

A

Deliberately misleading or withholding information. BPS states that deception is only acceptable of there is a strong scientific justification for the research and there are no alternative procedures available.

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15
Q

(Ethics) Right to withdraw

A

Being able to leave when desired. Participants need to be aware of this.

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16
Q

(Ethics) Confidentiality

A

details should be kept private.

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17
Q

(Ethics) Protection from harm

A

no more harm than daily life (Glass and Singer 1972)

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18
Q

(Ethics) Debrief and how it deals with all other issues

A

it returns the participant to the state they were in before the research

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19
Q

(Design) independent groups

A

There are two separate groups of participants. One group takes part in condition A and the other in condition B.

Adv:

No order effects- only take part in one condition, don’t get bored or practised
Fewer demand characteristics- participants may only know their condition

Dis:

more participants needed
individual differences as the people take part in each condition are different- one group might be better at the task

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20
Q

(Design) Repeated Measures

A

There is only one group of participants which is put in both conditions.

Adv:

No individual differences as the same person does both conditions

Dis:

Order effects- either boredom or practice. Can be helped by counter balancing
Demand characteristics- participants know what the experimenters are expecting and may perform to meet that expectation. Also the measure has to be changed e.g. two sets of words to memorise

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21
Q

(Design) Matched Pairs

A

Two separate groups, but this time they are matched into pairs for certain characteristics. One of each pair takes part in each condition.

Adv:

no order effects

controls for individual characteristics. Can be more sure the IV caused difference in DV rather than big differences between the 2 groups

Dis:

can be difficult to make perfect matches and is costly on money and time

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22
Q

Field Experiments

A

outside of the laboratory but basic scientific procedures are still followed as closely as possible
the independent variable is manipulated

Adv:

less artificial than a lab
represents reality
can be completed in natural environments
avoids participant effects (if they aren’t aware of the study), producing more natural behaviour

Dis:

difficulty controlling extraneous variables so less able to show cause and effect
Ethical issues- participants are unlikely to know that they are being studied

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23
Q

Laboratory Experiments

A

Contolled artificial environment in which the independent variable is manipulated

Adv:

controlled environment
minimises problems caused by extraneous variables
easily repeatable
reliable

Dis:

artificial environment (mundane realism)
participants may behave differently to normal or be effected by the environment
lacks generalisability

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24
Q

Confederate

A

somebody who appears to be a participant but is aware of the aim/method of the experiment and is told how to behave

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25
Q

Demand characteristics

A

Participants trying to guess the nature and purpose of the experiment and thus behaving differently.

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26
Q

Single and Double Blind

A

Double: Neither the participants nor the researchers are aware of the aims of the investigation. This is often used in drug trials, so that the researcher doesn’t know which group gets the placebo. This avoids investigator effects (bias).

Single: Participants are not aware of the condition they are in. Attempts to control for the confounding effects of demand characteristics.

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27
Q

Natural Experiment

A

Takes place in a natural environment and the independent variable is not manipulated, taking advantage of a completely natural event.

Adv:

High ecological validity, providing opportunities for research which otherwise may not be available
enables ‘real’ problems to be studied
objective research method (little influence from the researcher)
few ethical issues

Dis:

the natural event may be one that only happens rarely, limits opportunity and generalisability
many extraneous variables which threaten ‘cause-effect’ conclusion
participants aren’t randomly selected, meaning that there could be bias

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28
Q

Quasi Experiement

A

IV is a naturally existing characteristic between people which has not been manipulated. ‘Quasi’ refers to something that is not quite real, but may work as the real thing does.

Adv:

often carried out under laboratory conditions so therefore high in controls
enables psychologists to study ‘real’ problems.

Dis:

like natural experiments, no random allocation so there may be confounding variables, meaning we cannot come to a cause-effect conclusion

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29
Q

Behavioural Categories

A

devision of component behaviours

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30
Q

Event sampling

A

counting the number of times a certain behaviour (or event) occurs in a target individual or individuals.

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31
Q

Time sampling

A

Recording behaviours in a given time frame. Might be what an individual is doing every 30 seconds

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32
Q

Controlled Observation

A

When the researcher has some measure of control over the environment.

Adv:

control over extraneous variables
inter-observer reliability (agreement between researchers)
easy to replicate

Dis:

Cannot be applied to real life settings
may be subjective towards what the researcher wants to see

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33
Q

Naturalistic observation

A

Studying behaviour in a natural setting where everything is as it normally is.

Adv:
High ecological validity
Natural environment is generalised to everyday life
fewer demand characteristics

Dis:
Replication is difficult due to lack of control
Uncontrolled extraneous variables

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34
Q

Covert observaiton

A

Participants are not aware that the are being watched

Adv:
No demand characteristics

Dis:
ethical issues as they don’t now that they are being observed

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35
Q

Overt Observation

A

Participants are aware that they being watched

Adv:
fewer ethical issues as there is no deception

Dis:
demand characteristics as they know they are being observed

36
Q

Participant observation

A

The observer acts as part of the group being watched

Adv:
first hand experience
insight
increased validity

Dis:
lose objectivity
difficulty in recording observations
ethical issues

37
Q

Non participant observation

A

The experimenter does not become a part of the group being watched

Adv:
more ethical
more objective

Dis:
less insight
not experiencing the same things
lower in validity

38
Q

Structured obsevation

A

The researcher determines precisely what behaviours are to be observed and uses a standardised checklist to record the frequency with which they are observed within a specific time frame

Adv:
easier to gather relevant data as you know what to look for

Dis:
interesting behaviours could go unrecorded because they weren’t predefined as important

39
Q

Unstructured observation

A

The observer recalls all relevant behaviour but has no system

Adv:
all behaviours will be recorded, despite not being what was originally expected

Dis:
it is harder to gather relevant data because you don’t know what you are looking for

40
Q

Measures of central tendency

A

mean, mode, median

41
Q

Mean

A

adding up items and dividing by numbers of items

Adv:
takes account of exact distance between all the values of the data
representative of all the data

Dis:
anomalous values can distort and misrepresent data
cannot be used with nominal data

42
Q

Mode

A

The most common value

Adv:
unaffected by anomalies and is useful for discrete data and the only method which can be used for nominal data

Dis:
sometimes there are so many modes that the data cannot be described using this statistic

43
Q

Median

A

middle value in an ordered list. items must be arranged in order then the central value is the median when there are two central values, they must be added together and divided by two

Adv:
not affected by anomalies
easy to calculate

Dis:
less sensitive as exact values are not reflected

44
Q

Measures of Dispersion

A

how dispersed scores are

45
Q

Range

A

arithmetic distance between the highest and lowest values. it is customary to add 1

Adv:
easy to calculate

Dis:
affected by extreme values
doesn’t take into account the distribution of numbers

46
Q

Standard deviation

A

more precise. a measure of the average distance between each data item above and below the mean ignoring plus and minus values. the smaller the standard deviation, the closer together the values are

Adv:
precise method of dispersion because it takes into account all of the values

Dis:
may hide some characteristics of the data set (extreme values)

47
Q

Quantitative Data

A

uses numbers
-Discrete: data in discrete categories: bar charts use discrete data.
-Continuous: data continues. is measured using a scale of measurement

48
Q

Pilot Study

A

A small scale version of an investigation that taks place before the real investigation is conducted. The aim is to check that procedures, materials, measuring scales etc., work and allow the researcher to make changes or modifications if necessary. Ethics need to be checked beforehand.

49
Q

Sample

A

The group from the population that is selected for the researcher to use in the research.

50
Q

Population

A

The group of people from whom the sample is drawn. We use a target population if we want to investigate specific individual differences.

51
Q

Random Sampling

A

each person has an equal chance of being selected. Chosen from a computer random generator/ picked out of a hat.

Adv:

unbiased: all members of the target population have an equal chance of selection

Dis:

The researcher may end up with a biased sample because the sample is too small
Subgroups of target population might not be selected- does not guarantee a representative sample

52
Q

Volunteer sampling

A

Researcher advertises the study and people who are interested apply to be in the research.

Adv:

quick, convenient and ethical if it leads to informed consent
large response rate
allows more in-depth analysis and accurate results

Dis:

sample is biased because the participants are likely to be more highly motivated (volunteer bias)

53
Q

Opportunity Sampling

A

Asking people who are available at the time to take part in the research

Adv:

the easiest and fastest method because you use the first participants you can find

Dis:

biased because the sample is drawn from a small part of the target population
unlikely to be representative of a target population

54
Q

Stratified sampling

A

Selecting people from every portion of your population in the same proportions

Adv:

more representative than an opportunity sample because there should be equal representation of subgroups

Dis:

it is time consuming because all potential participants need to be assessed and categorised
some groups within a sample may not be represented if a small sample is used

55
Q

Systematic sampling

A

Selecting every nth name from a list

Adv:

it avoids bias as, once the researcher has decided what number they have no control over who is being selected

Dis:

it is not completely objective because the researcher may decide on how people are listed before the selection

there is a small chance of a ‘freak’ sample which would not be representative

56
Q

Informed consent

A

consent letter. Should include aim of the study, nature of the study, offer counselling, must be anonymous (name removed from data), must be signed, allows right to withdraw.

57
Q

Presumptive consent

A

ask similar group of people for consent

58
Q

Prior general consent

A

consent for different studies, including one that may involve deception

59
Q

Retrospective consent

A

asked consent during debrief

60
Q

(levels of measurement) Nominal

A

represented in the form of categories. is discrete and one item can only appear in one category

61
Q

(levels of measurement) Ordinal

A

Data which is ordered in some way
does not have equal intervals between each unit
based on subjective opinion

62
Q

(levels of measurement) Interval/ratio

A

based in numerical scales that include units of equal precisely defined size
(units of measurement for example)

63
Q

Structured interview

A

when questions are decided in advance

adv

can be easily repeated- standardised questions
requires less skill than unstructured interviews
easier to analyse than unstructured interviews

dis

interviewer bias may still occur
social desirability may still occur
data collected will be restricted by a predetermined set of questions

64
Q

Unstructured interview

A

the interview start with some general aims and questions and then lets the interviewee’s answers guide the subsequent questions

adv

detailed and in depth information
access information that may not e revealed from pre-determined questions
deep insights into feelings and thoughts
you can tailor questions to specific responses
good rapport, high in validity

dis

more affected by interviewer bias then structured interviews
requires well-trained interviewers
low reliability, interviewer may behave differently or ask different questions
hard to analyse answers
body language

65
Q

Semi-structured interview

A

combination of both structured and unstructured interview techniques

66
Q

(self report) Questionnaire

A

a set of questions used to assess a person’s thoughts and experiences. Usually gathered from large numbers of people, carried out on selected samples of people, may include a mixture of both open and closed questions

adv

cost effective
no demand characteristics
researcher does not need to be present
straightforward to analyse

dis

leading questions
social desirability bias
misunderstanding questions

67
Q

Question types (questionnaires)

A

Likert: a number of responses to a question which often demonstrate a degree of agreement, quantitative

Open : the participant can give any answer they wish, qualitative

Closed: possible answers are determined by the researcher. various types of these and best asked when factual information is needed

68
Q

Questionnaire design

A

clarity: questions need to be clear so that the reader understands what is being asked

bias: leading questions might lead to desirability bias (when respondents choose to portray themselves in a positive way.

sequencing for the questions: start with easier questions until respondent is more relaxed.

69
Q

(self report) Interview

A

A research method that involves a face to face interaction with another individual and results with the collection of data.

70
Q

Difference between correlation and experiment

A

it is not possible to establish cause and effect using correlation
you may find a strong link between things but that does not necessarily mean one causes another. instead you have found an association.

71
Q

Correlation

A

using to or more variables (co-variables) are measured in order to identify if there is a relationship between them (e.g. height and shoe size).A single numerical value is produced that is used to describe the relationship.

adv:

-can be used when it would be unethical/impractical to conduct an experiment
-if correlation is significant, then further investigation is justified
-if correlation is not significan, you can rule out a causal relationship

dis:

-correlational analysis cannot demonstrate a cause and effect relationship between variables
-there may be other unknown variables that can explain why the co-variables are linked
-extraneous variables may lead to false conclusions

72
Q

Correlation coefficient

A

number between -1 and 1. tells us how strong the correlation is, the nearer to 1 or -1, the stronger the relationship. It has a plus or minus sign in front of the number which tells us whether the correlation is positive or negative.

73
Q

Distributions (normal and skewed)

A

normal distribution: a symmetrical spread of frequency data that forms a bell-shaped pattern. The mean, median and mode are all located at the highest peak.

Skewed distribution: a spread of frequency data that is not symmetrical where the data clusters to one end

74
Q

negatively skewed

A

the long tail is on the negative (left) side of the peak and most of the distribution is concentrated on the right. The mode and the median are greater than the mean

75
Q

positively skewed

A

the long tail is on the positive (right) side of the peak and most of the distribution is concentrated on the left. The mean is greater than the mode and median.

76
Q

Validity (Internal and External)

A

Internal: the study measures or examines what it claimed to measure or examine
External: the extent the results of the study can be generalised to others (also known as ecological validity)

77
Q

7 types of Validity

A

Ecological: generalisable to real life settings- generalising findings from one setting to other settings

Concurrent: results from a new test can be compared to a previously well-established test

Population: whether you can reasonably generalise the findings from your sample to a larger group of people

Temporal: assesses to what degree research findings remain over time

Face: does the test look as though it measures what it intends to measure

Content: involves asking experts in the field to check the content of the study

Predictive: if diagnosis leads to successful treatment then the diagnosis is seen as valid

78
Q

Reliability (Internal and External)

A

reliability is the overall consistency of a measure

Internal: the extent to which a test is consistent within itself

External: refers to the ability of the test to produce the same results each time it is carried out

79
Q

Ensuring/assessing reliability

A

Inter-rater reliability: two or more interviewers/observers must get the same outcome on 80% or more of the behaviours

Split-half method: compare an individual’s performance on two halves of a test

Test-retest method: a person repeats a test a month or after doing the same test the first time

80
Q

Improving reliability

A

Questionnaires: test-retest
-low test-retest might require items to be deselected or rewritten

Interviews: structured interviews are more reliable due to fixed nature

Observations: operationalising the behavioural categories

81
Q

Content analysis

A

A method of quantifying qualitative content via coding/categorisation
data is analysed as typologies, quotations and summaries

hypotheses are grounded in the data
-coding units are identified to analyse data
-see how often that code appears

used with secondary data

82
Q

Evaluation of content analysis

A

a clear summary of the patterns in the data may be established
once a coding system has ben set up, replication is easy
this, in turn, improves reliability

can be subjective
reducing the data to coding units removes detail

83
Q

Thematic analysis

A

Involves making summaries of data and identifying key themes and categories. These themes should be recurrent.
• researcher becomes familiar with the data
• researcher looks for different themes, reviews the themes, defines and names the themes and writes a report

Hypothesis is made after the data is collected and is grounded in the data

84
Q

Evaluation of Thematic analysis

A

qualitative analysis preserves the details in the data
creating the hypotheses during analysis allows for new insights to develop
some objectivity can be established by using triangulation

how do you decide which categories to use and whether something fits a category?
how do you decide what to leave out of the summary
subjective decisions

85
Q

Case studies

A

an in-depth study, using a range of methods on one person or a small group. Because it uses a range of different research methods, this increases reliability, by the process of triangulation. Using a range of different methods is a way of double-checking results.

adv:

rich data- researchers have the opportunity to study rare phenomena in a lot of detail
unique cases- can challenge existing ideas and theories and make suggestion for future research

dis:

causal relationships- cause and effect cannot be established
generalisation
ethics- informed consent

86
Q

Consent form and what to include

A

-outline of what the experiment entails, including aims, time of the experiment, duration of experiment,general purpose of the study

-Ethical guidelines: No pressure to consent, right to withdraw, right to withdraw data, confidentiality and anonymity, they should be able to ask questions at any time, they should receive a full debrief

-Format and style of consent form:
will require participant’s agreement

could be written as a form that participants need to sign, including space to do so

space for the participant to write the date

a space to print their name

A-Level Psychology (32 decks)

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