validity Flashcards
(13 cards)
what is validity?
the extent to which the findings of a study are representative (‘real’)
•do they reflect how people really feel
•can the findings be generalised
what is internal validity?
internal validity measures the extent to which the results are due to the manipulation of the IV rather than the influence of uncontrolled confounding variables
what is external validity?
external validity measures the extent to which results can be generalised beyond the research setting
e.g ecological validity
what is mundane realism?
if the task is representative of real life
what is face validity?
a form of validity in which a measure is scrutinised to determine whether it appears to measure what it is supposed to measure
(eg does a test of anxiety look like it measures anxiety?)
what is concurrent validity?
the extent to which a psychological measure relates to an existing similar measure
what is ecological validity?
the extent to which findings from a research study can be generalised to other settings and situations. a form of external validity
what is temporal validity?
the extent to which research findings are still relevant in the current age
what is predictive validity?
this assesses validity by measuring how well a test or study can predict future behaviour
how to improve validity in lab experiments?
•ensuring that controlled conditions and a standardised procedure are in place (control/ experimental group)
•using a single-bind or double-blind procedure to ensure that participants and/or researchers do not know which condition each participant has been allocated to
what are examples of investigator effects?
•being over-friendly
•using body language that suggests what they expected to find per condition
•by bringing their expectations when analysing findings
how could you improve the validity of observations?
•using covert methods in naturalistic observation, both of which mean that participants’ behaviour is likely to be unforced and natural
•ensuring that behavioural categories are clear, unambiguous, and observable with no overlapping
how can the validity of questionnaires be improved?
•using a lie scale to show up inconsistencies in the responses
•using reverse scoring to ensure that participants are answering all questions with the same direction of response, and not just ticking the same number every time (acquiescence bias)
