Research Skills Flashcards
(44 cards)
What is a true experimental design
Pre test/post test control group designs ensures that groups are indeed comparable before the experimental manipulation is administered
What is a Solomon four group design
Ensures that groups are indeed comparable before the experimental manipulation was administered AND that protesting hasn’t affected performance
What is a confounding variable
Variable other than our IV that could have caused the group means to be different
Statistically related/correlated to the IV
What is a between group design
Independent measures
What is a within groups design
Repeated measures
What are some disadvantages of experimental methods
Experimenter effects
Participants know they’re being watched
Can be fairly low in external validity (generalisability)
Not everything can be examined in a lab setting either
What is a quasi experimental design
Similar to experimental designs but lacks random assignment
Sometimes there’s no control group either
It’s more naturalistic but less control
High in external low in internal
What is one group post test design in quasi experimental design
Meaning there’s no pre test so it ain’t really the best design
What is a one group pre test post test designs in quasi experimental design
No control group to compare to
Can tell us about improvements or worsening though
What is an interrupted time series design in quasi experimental design
Only one sample from when you take measurements from on at least 3 different occasions before and after treatment
What is a non equivalent control groups (necg) design in quasi experimental design
Structured like normal (pre test post test) but lacks random assignment therefore hard to compare
Define participants attrition
Participant drop outs
What is a cross sectional design
Collect data at one time point from participants in different conditions such as age cohorts
What is a sequential design
Select samples from a particular condition eg specific age cohort such as 18 year olds but study them at different centuries
Define internal validity
The extent to which you can make a cause and effect statement
Define selection threat
Meaning there’s no random assignment so there may be pre existing differences between your groups that could impact your IV
Define maturation effect
Changes in people as the result of passing of time
Define testing effects
Umbrella term for practice effects and fatigue effects
Also Hawthorne effect
Define history effect
Any changes in the world outside that affect one group but not the other
Define statistical regression towards the mean
Only a problem if you’re looking at extreme scorers (outliers)
Define instrumental effects
Any changes in instruments used in your test
Even changes in people such as interviewer changes
Define compensatory rivalry
Problem with between groups where control group are jealous of experimental group
Define external validity
Extent to which your findings can be generalised
Define multiple treatment interference
Difficulty with repeated measures - effect you see when people are exposed to a series of treatments
