thing Flashcards

Question

What is meant by a 'Internal reliability'

Answer 1

Internal reliability is ensuring that you are measuring what you set out to measure for example: all the questions on a survey, test, or personality scale are measuring the same thing. For example, if designing a test on geometry, then all questions on the test should be about geometry.

Answer 2

External reliability refers to the extent to which a measure varies from one use to another. E.G: Does tutoring improve just English scores or maths scores as well.

Answer 3

* Split half method - The split-half method is a technique used to assess the internal consistency of a measurement scale or test. It involves splitting the items or questions of the scale into two halves and comparing the scores obtained from each half. * Inter-rater - Inter-rater reliability refers to the consistency or agreement between two or more raters or observers when assessing or scoring the same set of data or stimuli. * Test retest – Participants are tested. And then tested again some time later to see if the results are similar.

Answer 4

* Standardised procedures * Operationalising variables * Inter-rater reliability * Control of confounding & extraneous variables

Answer 5

Research that takes place over the internet such as an online questionnaire.

Answer 6

Strength: Allows greater population validity as anyone anywhere in the world can contribute to the research. Weakness: The potential for sampling bias and lack of representativeness. Online research relies on self-selected participants who are willing to participate or have access to the internet, which may introduce sampling biases and limit the generalizability of the findings to the broader population.

Answer 7

Laboratory research – Research that happens in a controlled environment.

Answer 8

Strength: Allows for greater control of extraneous variables as they will use a standardised procedure. Weakness: Lab experiments often lack mundane realism as the procedure is often not something that would occur in day-to-day life.

Answer 9

Field research – Research that happens in a naturalistic environment.

Answer 10

Strength - High external validity. Field experiments are conducted in real-world settings, such as natural environments, workplaces, or communities, allowing researchers to study phenomena in their natural context. Weakness – Lack of control over extraneous variables such as environmental factors. Maybe the day is extremely windy or hot for instance.

Answer 11

A pilot study in psychology is like a practice run or a small-scale version of a larger research project. It's done to test out the methods and procedures that will be used in the main study. Researchers conduct a pilot study to see if their ideas work, to identify any problems or flaws in their methods, and to make adjustments before they start their actual research. It helps them figure out if their study design is feasible and if they need to make any changes before diving into the full study.

Answer 12

One strength of pilot studies in psychology is that they allow researchers to identify and address potential issues or challenges before conducting the main study. By conducting a small-scale pilot study, researchers can test and refine their research design, procedures, and measures. One weakness of pilot studies is that the small sample size used in these studies may limit the generalizability of the findings. Pilot studies typically involve a smaller number of participants compared to the main study. While this sample size is sufficient for the purpose of testing the research procedures, it may not accurately represent the target population of interest. Therefore, any conclusions drawn from the pilot study should be interpreted cautiously and may not be applicable to the larger population.

Answer 13

* Informed consent (knowing they are participating) * Right to withdraw * Deception * Protection from harm (physical or psychological) * Confidentiality (not publishing names of participants) * Privacy * Debrief (end of study) * Working with animals * Vulnerable participants

Answer 14

Ethics committees are normally found in Universities or any places that do research. Their role is to approve the design of research before the researcher completes the research, they are likely to use ethical guidelines like those published by the BPS to assess if the research proposal is ethical or not. If they don’t approve first time, they may ask the psychologist to make changes to their research design, or it may not allow them to conduct their research if their proposal has too many ethical issues. Ethics committees are normally made up of researchers and lay people

Answer 15

Prior-general consent Presumptive consent Gatekeeper consent

Answer 16

Presumptive consent - Presumptive consent is a concept used in research ethics that allows for the inclusion of individuals in a study without obtaining explicit individual consent, based on the assumption that they would likely consent if they were given the opportunity. This is typically gathered by asking participants who are ‘similar’ (in age, sex location etc,) if they would be okay with participating and generalising that to the participants in the study.

Answer 17

Prior general consent - "Prior general consent" refers to a form of consent obtained from individuals in advance, allowing their data to be used for future research purposes without requiring specific consent for each subsequent study. It is also known as "broad consent" or "blanket consent."

Answer 18

Gatekeeper consent - Gatekeeper consent refers to the process of obtaining permission or consent from a person or entity who has the authority over a particular group or population of individuals. In research, gatekeeper consent involves seeking permission from an individual or organization who acts as a gatekeeper to gain access to potential research participants.

Answer 19

A parent or other legally appointed guardian must provide consent on behalf of the child to participate in research if they are aged under 18 years old.

Answer 20

Cost benefit analysis – Does the research have such good societal importance that its worth potentially compromising some ethical issues? These cost benefit analysis must be done to decide if the research is really worth doing in some cases.

Answer 21

Sample: subset of a population of interest that is selected for study with the aim of making inferences to the population.

Answer 22

Target population: the population that a study is intended to research and to which generalizations from samples are to be made. Also called reference population.

Answer 23

Random Quota Systematic Stratified Volunteer Snowball Opportunity

Answer 24

Random - This method gives every member of the target group an equal chance of being selected for the sample. Strengths: No bias as everyone has an equal chance of being selected. Weaknesses: Must already have a list of target population and contact them individually which may take a lot of time. No guarantee they will want to participate either.

Answer 25

Quota – Same as stratified as subgroups matched to target population. Only difference is participants from the subgroups are NOT randomly selected.

Answer 26

Systematic – a system is created to choose participants such as every 4th name on a register. Strengths: Unbiased and objective way of selecting participants. Weaknesses: Not truly random.

Answer 27

Stratified – A sample of participants are randomly selected by identifying subgroups and matching them to the amount in a target population (for instance 50/50 men and women) then randomly choosing participants out of these subgroups to participate. Strengths: Highly representative of overall population. Weaknesses: Takes an extremely long period of time to set up all the subgroups ect.

Answer 28

Volunteer Sample – Participants volunteer to participate through usually seeing an advertisement. Strengths: This often achieves a large sample size through reaching a wide audience, for example with online advertisements. Weaknesses: Those who respond to the call for volunteers may all display similar characteristic.

Answer 29

Snowball Sample – Participants recruit other participants to join the study. Strength: Saves a lot of time as the researcher doesn’t have to gather as many participants himself. Weakness: Not representative as it will favour social people with more friends.

Answer 30

Opportunity Sample – Selects people who are available at the time of the study. Strength – Saves a lot of time as you can use the first suitable participants. Weakness – Not representative as it favours people who have more time e.g. unemployed people.

Answer 31

Experimental Designs

Answer 32

* Independent groups – where each group only participates in one of the conditions. For example. In an experiment seeing if men or women are faster. Obviously, the men can only compete in the men's category. Doesn’t account for participant variables / differences as the participants only take place in one of the conditions.

Answer 33

* Repeated measures where each group participates in both of the conditions. For example. Seeing if people run faster after a red bull or water. The group runs after water then the week after runs after red bull. Doesn’t account for practise element. People might naturally do better on the 2nd condition as they have done the task once already.

Answer 34

* Matched pairs are where participants are matched on characteristics that are believed to affect performance. For instance, height, weight, age, iq. Ect. Can be EXTREMELY time consuming to find participants who fit all the necessary characteristics. And its impossible to match them fully due to participant variables such as amount of sleep.

Answer 35

Counterbalancing is when in a repeated measures we account for the practise element. There are two ways of dealing with this: AB BA method involves having 2 groups who participate in both conditions. One starting in condition A first and B second. And the other group starting with B and doing A after. ABBA involves one group, but each participant takes part in the same condition twice.

Answer 36

Order effects – In a repeated measures design an extraneous variable arises from the order in which tasks are presented due to the element of practise.

Answer 37

Structured observations aim to be objective. This is done by creating systems or organise behaviour. Main ways to structure observations are by using behavioural categories or sampling procedures (event or time sampling)

Answer 38

This is when the observer has no system of recording behaviour and instead just records all behaviour they see as relevant to the study. Obvious disadvantage is the amount of behaviour can become extremely overwhelming. It also can suffer from bias as it will favour behaviours that are the most eye-catching rather than the most relevant.

Answer 39

Behavioural categories – Dividing a target population such as stress or aggression into a subset of specific and operationalised behaviours.

Answer 40

Covert Observation – When a researcher is observing participants who do not know they are being observed / research.

Answer 41

Event sampling is a method of recording behaviour in an observation. The researcher records how many times a particular event occurs

Answer 42

Inter-observer observations – The rate of agreement between 2 or more researchers when observing a behaviour.

Answer 43

Observer Bias – An observers expectations going in may subconsciously alter what they see or hear.

Answer 44

Participant observation. – A research method where the researcher takes on the role of a participant whilst observing other participants’ behaviour around them

Answer 45

Social desirability bias – The affect of people altering their behaviour to appear desirable in research.

Answer 46

Time sampling. – An observational technique where observers record behaviours in a given time frame such as noting what an individual is doing every 30 seconds.

Answer 47

One weakness of observational studies is that they can suffer from observational bias which makes it very difficult to be objective. This means the researcher’s expectations of what they want or are expecting to see may influence how they actually interpret what happens which could potentially compromise the internal validity. However, these affect's can be reduced by using observational techniques such as inter-observer reliability where multiple observers look at the same behaviour and record it.

Answer 48

One strength of Participant observations is that by the researcher taking part in the activity, they can provide useful insight into behaviours that wouldn’t be able to be recorded otherwise. However, one weakness of participant observations is that they are usually overt, this means they are susceptible to extraneous variables such as social desirability bias where participants change their behaviour to appeal and looking desirable in the study.

Answer 49

One strength of non-Participant observations is that they are typically covert, this means the participants do not know they are being studied meaning their behaviour will be natural and not influenced by factors such as demand characteristics. However, one weakness of non-participant observations is that covertly recording the behaviour of unknowing participants breaks the BPS ethical guidelines of informed consent.

Answer 50

A case study is a research method that involves an in-depth and detailed examination of a specific individual, group, or situation. It is a qualitative research approach that aims to gain a comprehensive understanding of the complexities and unique aspects of the case being studied. In a case study, researchers collect and analyse various types of data, such as interviews, observations, documents, and archival records, to develop a holistic and rich description of the case. The focus is often on exploring individual experiences, behaviours, processes, or phenomena within their real-life context.

Answer 51

One strength of case studies is their ability to provide detailed and nuanced insights into complex phenomena. Case studies allow researchers to delve deeply into a specific case and explore intricate details that may not be captured by other research methods. They can provide a more comprehensive understanding of individual experiences, processes, or unique circumstances that may not be easily captured through quantitative or experimental methods. Case studies are particularly useful when studying rare or unique cases where it may be difficult to generalize findings to a larger population. However, a weakness of case studies is the potential lack of generalizability. Due to their in-depth and focused nature on usually very unique or specific cases, the findings of a case study may not be readily applicable to other individuals, groups, or situations. The limited sample size and specific context of the case may restrict the generalizability of the findings beyond the specific case being studied. Additionally, case studies may be susceptible to researcher bias or subjectivity in data analysis, and interpretation, which can impact the objectivity and reliability of the findings.

Answer 52

Self-Report techniques

Answer 53

Questionnaire – a set of written questions designed to collect data about a topic. Strength – Can be used to collect a lot of data in a short period of time cheaply and quickly allowing for a larger sample of participants. Weakness – Very subject to social desirability bias. People may not be truthful in their answers and instead answer in a way to appear socially desirable.

Answer 54

A semi structured interview also has pre-determined questions however, the researcher can deviate from the original questions and instead ask follow-up questions based on the participants responses. Strength - more detail can be obtained as the researcher can ask follow-up questions and gain greater detail. Weakness - requires more interviewer skill making the research less replicable. A weakness of all interview methods is that it is highly time consuming and works better for case studies than gathering large amounts of data about a specific topic.

Answer 55

A structured interview has pre-determined questions. Meaning it is effectively a face-to-face questionnaire. The researcher cannot deviate from the questions in anyway to remain fully structured. Strength – Extremely replicable as it uses a standardised procedure. Weakness – Conversation is not natural and free-flowing which may cause participants to be more cautious of what to say and withhold information.

Answer 56

An Unstructured interview has no pre-determined questions and will just ask questions that come to them on the spot. Strength – Conversations are free-flowing and natural which make people feel more comfortable and therefore give more detail in their answers. Weakness – Unreplaceable, time consuming and often requires a lot of interviewer skill to effectively execute.

Answer 57

Face Validity Content Validity Concurrent Validity Construct validity Predictive Validity

Answer 58

Face Validity – how much at face-value the research measures what it intended to measure.

Answer 59

Content Validity – Looks at the method of measurement and deciding whether it measures the intended content such as all the key aspects of a topic and not just one.

Answer 60

Concurrent Validity – Uses two different measures and see if the results match.

Answer 61

Construct validity – Measures if the questions are relevant to the topic at hand.

Answer 62

Predictive Validity – Do the scores on a test predict what you would expect them to predict. E.G People who score high on stress questionnaires have higher blood pressure.

Answer 63

Positive response bias, refers to a tendency in which individuals consistently provide positive or affirmative responses to items or questions, regardless of their true beliefs or experiences. It is a type of response bias that can affect self-report measures or surveys.

Answer 64

A correlational hypothesis states the expected association between the co-variables.

Answer 65

Correlational studies do not account for the fact that third/extraneous variables might account for the relationship between concern and recycling, and hence the result may be invalid.

Answer 66

1) Positive correlation, directional hypothesis 2) Negative hypothesis, directional hypothesis 3) positive or negative directional hypothesis 4) No correlation. Null hypothesis.

Answer 67

A correlation coefficient is a number between +1 and -1 showing how strong a correlation is. +1 perfect positive correlation. -1 perfect negative correlation. 0 no correlation.

Answer 68

Normal distribution refers to the average for instance, if you got the exact number of the average shoe size of all adults. The average person will either be slightly below or slightly above this number. This is recorded in normal distribution

Answer 69

Highest: Mode Median: Median Lowest: Mean

Answer 70

Abstract Intro Methodology Results Discussion Reference Appendices:

Answer 71

Abstract: The abstract is a concise summary of the main points of the report. It provides an overview of the research question or purpose, the methodology used, the key findings, and the main conclusions.

Answer 72

Introduction: The introduction section introduces the topic or research question, provides background information, previous research, and outlines the purpose and objectives of the study.

Answer 73

Methodology: The methodology section describes the research design, participants, data collection methods, and procedures used in the study. It explains how the data were collected and analysed, including details about the sample, measures or instruments used, and any statistical analyses performed. This section should provide sufficient information for others to replicate the study.

Answer 74

Results: The results section presents the findings of the study in a clear and organized manner. It includes the analysis of data and the presentation of quantitative or qualitative results. The results section often utilizes tables, graphs, or charts to illustrate the data and statistical analyses. It should report the main findings, significant patterns, relationships, or trends observed, and any statistical tests or measures of effect size.

Answer 75

Discussion: The discussion section interprets and analyses the results in the context of the research question and objectives. It explains the implications of the findings, compares them to existing literature, and discusses their limitations and strengths. The discussion may also address any unexpected or contradictory results and propose future directions for research.

Answer 76

References: The references section lists all the sources cited within the report, such as books, journal articles, or other relevant publications.

Answer 77

Appendices: The appendices section includes any supplementary material that is relevant to the report but not included in the main body. This can include additional tables, questionnaires, interview transcripts, or other supporting documentation that enhances the understanding of the research.

Answer 78

Nominal Ordinal Interval Ratio

Answer 79

Nominal: Nominal data is a non-numerical categorical data type where the values represent different categories or groups without any inherent order or numerical meaning. Examples of nominal data include gender and eye colour. It is the only non-numerical data type

Answer 80

Ordinal: Ordinal data is a categorical data type that has a natural order or ranking between the categories. The categories are assigned a rank or position based on some characteristic or attribute. However, the intervals between the ranks may not be equal. Examples of ordinal data include movie score rating out of 10.

Answer 81

Interval: Interval data is a numerical data type where the values are measured on a scale with equal intervals between them. It does not have a true zero point, meaning that the value of zero does not represent the absence of the measured attribute. An Example of interval data is temperature

Answer 82

Ratio: Ratio data is a numerical data type that has a true zero point, meaning that zero represents the absence or complete lack of the measured attribute. It has equal intervals between values and allows for meaningful ratios and comparisons. Examples of ratio data include weight, height, time in seconds, or number of correct answers on a test.

Answer 83

Mean – Adding up all data and dividing by the number of data items. Ratio, Interval Strength – Considers all data values. Weakness – Significantly skewed by extreme values.

Answer 84

Mode – Most common data item. Only type than can be used for Nominal as it does not need to use numbers. Strength - Not affected by extreme scores. Weakness – Not useful is there are several modes.

Answer 85

Median – Middle value in ordered list. Strength – Not affected by extreme scores. Weakness – Doesn’t consider exact values of all the data.

Answer 86

Step 1: Find the mean of the data Step 2: Subtract the mean from each score. Step 3: Square each deviation. Step 4: Add the squared deviations. Step 5: Divide the sum by the number of scores. Step 6: Take the square root of the result from Step 5.

Answer 87

Test of association The observed value has to be equal or greater than the critical value to be significant. Uses numerical data only.

Answer 88

Test of Difference Used for non-numerical data Independent groups design The observed value has to be equal or greater than the critical value to be significant

Answer 89

Mann-Whitney U - Test of Difference The observed value has to be equal or less than the critical value to be significant. Used in independent groups design uses data involving numbers (more than nominal)

Answer 90

Wilcoxon - Test of Difference The observed value has to be equal or less than the critical value to be significant. Used for repeated measures Numerical data (higher than nominal data)

Answer 91

Sign test The observed value has to be equal or less than the critical value to be significant. Used in repeated measures involving data without numbers. (non-numerical)

Answer 92

1. 75 American Boys 2. Longitudinal Study 3. 10-16 at start 4. 22-28 at end 5. Self-Report method 6. Qualitative Interviews 7. Opportunity Sample 8. Investigated Moral development 9. Cross-Cultural 10 Mexico 11. Turkey 12. Great-Britain 13.Canada 14.Taiwan

Answer 93

To assess the participants moral thinking Kohlberg created 9 moral dilemmas which created two moral issues they must decide between. One is ethical but results in a negative outcome for instance. The other is unethical but results in a more positive outcome. (Killing a baby to save people) The boys were re-interviewed every 3 years recording common themes in their answer in order for Kohlberg to gage how our moral thinking changes as we get older.

Answer 94

Should Heinz steal the drug? If Heinz doesn’t love his wife, should he still steal the drug. If it was not his wife but instead a stranger should Heinz still steal the drug?

Answer 95

Kohlberg found that younger children think at the preconventional level and as they get older their reasons for moral decisions become less focused on themselves and instead doing good for other people in the stages of conventional and postconventional. The results in Mexico and Taiwan were the same but the development was slightly slower.

Answer 96

Kohlberg concluded that the key features of moral development are that: Stages are invariant and universal meaning everyone goes through the same stages in the same order. Each new stage represents a more profound form of moral understanding resulting in a more logically consistent and mature form of understanding.

Answer 97

Study was conducted in a laboratory. 40 males between 20 and 50 years old. Volunteer Sample from newspaper advertisement. Paid £4.50 for participation. The men believed that they were to participate in a study of memory and learning (the study was actually studying levels of obedience). The educational levels of the men also varied from one who had not finished elementary school, to those who had doctorates and degrees. The study was a controlled observation that took place in a lab at Yale University.

Answer 98

To start, naive participants were introduced to another participant, Mr Wallace (a confederate). Participants drew slips to decide who would play the role of the teacher and learner (Participants card always ended up as the teacher as the draw was rigged – both slips had ‘teacher’ on)

Answer 99

Immediately after the draw, the teacher and learner were taken to an adjacent room and the learner was strapped to an ‘electric chair’. 4. Instructions Milgram gave to Mr Wallace (confederate) – he was told to give approximately three wrong answers to every correct one. Mr Wallace was also told to make set responses:

Answer 100

The participant / teacher was then taken to an adjoining room which had a shock machine in. The shock machine had 30 switches starting at ‘slight shock’ (15 volts) all the way up to ‘XXX’ (450 volts).

Answer 101

The ‘experimenter’ (a man in a grey coat) acted as the authority figure and gave the teacher a sample shock to demonstrate that the machine was real. The experimenter remained in the same room as the teacher (participant).

Answer 102

he was told to administer a shock when the learner gave a wrong answer and to increase the voltage each time.

Answer 103

Instructions Milgram gave to experimenter – he was told to respond to any hesitation from the teacher with four standard prods: * Please continue. * The experiment requires you to continue. * It’s absolutely essential that you continue. * You have no other choice; you must go on.

Answer 104

After the research was completed, the teacher was thoroughly debriefed, which included the experimenter reuniting the teacher and learner. They were then interviewed about their experience.

Answer 105

all of the real participants went to at least 300 volts and 65% continued until the full 450 volts. There were a number of signs of extreme tension displayed by 14 participants. These were things such as: - nervous laughter and smiling - sweating - stuttering - biting their lip - digging their fingernails into their flesh.

Answer 106

* The obedience task completed in the research isn’t typical of obedience in everyday life, it is more typical of ‘extreme obedience’ situations such as genocide. * The sample in the original study is 40 males so these results may not be applicable to females (only male PP's) * The sample had a variety of ages, occupations and educational backgrounds, so may be quite representative of males in the local area. * Milgram’s own experiences may have led to researcher bias in his interpretation of behaviours.

Answer 107

Peer review in psychology refers to the process of subjecting research articles, studies, or papers to evaluation by experts in the same field before they are published. The purpose of peer review is to ensure that the research meets high standards of scientific rigor and contributes to the existing knowledge in the field.

Answer 108

1. Researcher submits article to journal. 2. Journal assessed by editor of journal. 3. If accepted by editor, article is sent to reviewers (who is also an expert in the field). 4. Reviewers are normally kept anonymous from the article’s author. 5. Reviewers submit their comments to the editor. 6. Editor may reject the article or return it to the author to make revisions. 7. Revised article is re-submitted to editor for publication.

Answer 109

1) Quality control: Peer review helps maintain the quality and integrity of research in psychology. It ensures that studies undergo scrutiny from experts who can identify potential flaws, biases, or errors in the research design, methodology, analysis, or interpretation. 2) Validation and credibility: When a study successfully passes through the peer review process and gets published in a reputable journal, it indicates that the research has undergone rigorous evaluation by experts in the field. This adds to the confidence and trust in the findings for both researchers and the broader scientific community. 3) Promotes rigorous scrutiny of research methodologies and data analysis. This critical examination helps identify potential weaknesses, inconsistencies, or limitations in the research, which can be addressed and improved before publication.

Answer 110

Weakness of Peer Review: One weakness of peer review is the potential for bias or subjectivity in the process. Peer reviewers may have personal opinions, preferences, or conflicts of interest that could affect their evaluation. This subjectivity can sometimes result in biases that may influence the acceptance or rejection of a manuscript. Additionally, the peer review process may introduce delays in the dissemination of research, as the time taken for multiple rounds of review and revision can be lengthy. Consequently, ground-breaking or time-sensitive research findings may be delayed in reaching the wider scientific community.

Answer 111

CONTENT ANALYSIS is a type of indirect observational study as people are not observed directly but rather the artifacts they produce are studied such as written or verbal material such as: magazines, television programmes, websites, advertisements etc. are analysed. The data can be primary or secondary. Behavioural categories are used to analyse content in a systematic manner and a tally is taken each time the material fits a theme. - It can produce both qualitative and quantitative data.

Answer 112

Gets coloured pictures of the brain, first, an individual is injected with radioactive substance called a tracer, once in the bloodstream the amount of tracer in any given region can be monitored, this is because blood flows to any active areas. A computer monitors the movement of the tracer and creates a map of the active and inactive areas of the brain during a given behaviour. These were seen in Raine et al.

Answer 113

A strength of PET scans is that they can reveal chemical information not available with other brain imaging techniques allowing them to distinguish between benign and tumours. However, since the pp must be injected with radioactive substance, this scan can only safely be done a few times. Aditionally they are very costly and less precise than MRI scans.

Answer 114

A person is placed into large circular magnet causing hydrogen atoms to move, when the magnet is turned off they return to their original position. This movement causes an electrical signal to be emitted. These signals are translated by a computer into pictures of brain tissue. Maguire et al (2000) fmri scans used to show taxi drivers had larger hippocampi than non-taxi drivers.

Answer 115

A strength of FMRI scans is that it is safe as it does not expose them to any hazards such as radiation. It is also the most accurate of all the scans. However, they can be long and uncomfortable for patients.

Answer 116

Strength - allow for objective assessment of brain structures Strength - allow for investigation of live brains rather than waiting for post mortem Weakness - May take a long time and be uncomftable Weakness - Extremely costly not readily available in most research Weakness - Limited range of activities can be investigated as the PP are stuck in a machine.

Answer 117

Deception: Milgram informed the participants the research was about memory and learning; the use of a confederate; the lack of actual electric shocks; the use of pre-recorded responses from the Teacher. * Risk of stress, anxiety, humiliation or pain: Signs of extreme tension were observed, participants “were observed to sweat, tremble, stutter, bite their lips, groan, and dig their finger nails into their flesh”. * Risk to the participants’ values, beliefs, relationships, status or privacy: the teachers may have left this research with a negative opinion of their own capabilities which may have had a long-term impact on their own values and beliefs.

Answer 118

* The sample was all male so prone to beta bias, meaning the findings could not be generalised to women but this was acceptable scientific research at the time. * The sample contained a range of ages, occupations and backgrounds, but it was limited by location (New Haven, USA) meaning the findings cannot be generalised to other cultures; cross cultural studies have produced mixed findings. * The sample was self-selecting which may have meant that the participants were more likely to take the research seriously; however, only certain people might volunteer for research.

Answer 119

* In the study several observers were used, increasing the internal reliability of the method but the observers did discuss their surprise at what they were witnessing which could have affected their interpretation of the behaviour. * Objective measures recorded the behaviour of the participant, increasing validity but this does not give an insight as to how they were feeling or what they were thinking.

Answer 120

The research controlled for extraneous variables by using standardised procedures, such as the same confederate and prods. This allowed for the study to be repeated to test for reliability (e.g. Burger 2009) however, critics claim that the standardised procedures were not maintained after the first few trials The study lacks ecological validity as it is not an everyday task to be asked to administer electric shocks on command; but Milgram claimed that events such as the Holocaust were not everyday acts and soldiers were often in a unique situation.

Answer 121

Increasing levels of control in a study raises reliability – using a standardised procedure, instructions and scientific measuring equipment (e.g. PET and MRI scans over self-reported ‘feelings’) Conducting the research in alaboratory environment helps to overcome most reliability issues. The greater the level of control, the lower the risk of extraneous variables effecting results. Order effects can be combatted with counterbalancing. This involves splitting the population/sample into two halves; the first half complete condition one followed by condition two, the second half complete condition two followed by condition one. This in effect negates the impact of order/practice effects, asboth conditions are affected equally, and increases internal reliability.

Answer 122

1. Researcher bias: the researcher directly or indirectly influences the results of a study, through the process of designing the study or through the way the research is conducted/analysed. 2. Demand characteristics: participants unconsciously work out the aim and act differently. 3. Social desirability: participants give the response that they think will show them in the best possible light, meaning they are not a true reflection of their thoughts/feelings

Answer 123

Researcher bias can be overcome with a double blind procedure. This involves neither the researcher collecting the data, nor the participant involved, knowing the true aims of the study. It also reduces demand characteristics, where participants work out the aims and change their behaviour accordingly. Social desirability and demand characteristics can also be overcome via a single blind procedures. This involves the participants being unaware for the research hypothesis until after their role is complete. Alternatively, the use of independent groups would reduce these validity issues. By giving participants anonymity and confidentiality when they give their answers you can also increase validity.

Answer 124

Face Validity Contruct Concurrent Content Predictive

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