Validity Flashcards
(15 cards)
Validity
the appropriateness of a conclusion or decision
external validity
an indication of how well the results of a study generalize to, or represent, individuals or contexts besides those in the study itself. Can results generalize a population (other participants, cultures, gender, age), ecological (from lab situation to real world), or temporal (to other periods of time).
construct validity
an indication of how well a variable was measured or manipulated in a study. Are we measuring what we think we are measuring?
internal validity
Refers to whether the effects observed in a study are due to the manipulation of the independent variable and not some other factor. One of the three criteria for establishing a causal claim. Is there a true causal relationship?
Rorschach lacks construct validity
this test is intended to predict mental disorders but performance is not correlated with mental health problems. Other factors like age or intelligence are correlated with performance on test. This test doesn’t measure personality or mental disorders which is what it’s designed to test.
Convergent validity
show that your operational definition is correlated with another measure of the same construct. A different operational definition of aggression, two measures should be positively correlated.
Divergent validity
show lack of correlation with different (potentially explanatory) construct. Want to rule out the possibility that our measure is measuring a related construct, two measures shouldn’t be correlated.
Face validity
refers to the degree to which an assessment or test subjectively appears to measure the variable or construct that it is supposed to measure.
Confounding variables
A confounding variable is a type of extraneous variable that not only affects the dependent variable, but is also related to the independent variable.
Extraneous variable
An extraneous variable is any variable that you’re not investigating that can potentially affect the dependent variable of your research study
Threats to internal validity
History: uncontrolled events that happen mid-experiment.
Maturation: participant changes overtime.
Instrumentation: change in the ability to use instrumentation or in the measure device itself.
Selection/Assignment: self-selection or improper assignment to condition.
Testing effects: change in performance due to practice or fatigue with the material.
Maturation - threat to IV
participant changes over time.
Example - running a study on relationship quality over time. But some participants break-up throughout the study, This leaves us with only couple who are very satisfied in their relationship.
Instrumentation - threat to IV
changes in the ability to use instrumentation.
Example - running a study on activity, used older cheaper pedometer and halfway through changed to Apple Watch.
Selection/assignment - threat to IV
self-selection or improper assignment to condition.
Example - running a study where I need volunteers to take time out of their day to come complete a battery of measures, only certain people will take up that opportunity.
Testing effects - threat to IV
change in performance due to practice or fatigue with material.
Example - measuring if mindfulness manipulation helps with reading ability. I measure this by seeing if they read a passage of test faster after the intervention. however that person has already read it once so now they have had practice.
