Year 2 research methods Flashcards Preview

AQA A-Level Psychology Year 2 > Year 2 research methods > Flashcards

Flashcards in Year 2 research methods Deck (74)
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1
Q

What must a psychology report include?

A

Title, abstract, introduction, procedure, results, discussion, references and appendices

2
Q

What is the title?

A

Must be concise, clear, gives the reader an idea of the investigations concerns

3
Q

what is the abstract?

A

a brief summary of the investigation , written last, appears at the front

4
Q

what must be included in the abstract?

A
a one sentence summary
description of participants and sampling technique 
description of procedure 
description of results 
conclusion
5
Q

what is the introduction?

A

a literature review of the general area of investigation
relevant theories, concepts and studies
logical progression - become more specific until aim and hypnosis are presented

6
Q

What is the method?

A
Four sub-sections 
design and overview 
participants and investigators 
apparatus 
procedure
7
Q

What is included in the design and overview?

A
research method used and why
research design use and justified 
state iv and dv
any other variables controlled 
how you delay with ethical issues
8
Q

what is included in participants and investigators

A
who and how were they selected 
sampling procedure 
the investigator
number of participants 
how they were allocated into groups
9
Q

what is included in the apparatus and materials

A

a list of everything used

10
Q

what is included in the procedure?

A

exactly what you did from start to finish
any pilot studies
refer to appendices for standardised instructions, debrief, copies of materials
a verbatim of everything said to participants

11
Q

what is included in the results?

A

summarise key findings
summary table
fully labelled graph
do not include raw data

12
Q

what is included in inferential statistics ?

A

were the results statistically significant?
is it possible to reject null hypothesis?
statistical test must be fully justified

13
Q

what is included in the discussion ?

A

state findings in psychological terms, relating to aims and hypothesis
state whether findings support those of your background study

compare findings to existing research

14
Q

what is included in the discussion of limitations and modifications ?

A
critical look at research 
strengths of study 
weaknesses of research 
look at confounding variables that could have affected the results 
suggest modifications
15
Q

what is included in the discussion: implications and suggestions for further research?

A

suggest ideas for further research

real world applications and implications

16
Q

What is included in references ?

A

background study
any internet resources
in alphabetical order

17
Q

what is included in the appendices ?

A
raw data 
calculations 
stimulus materials 
standardised instructions 
debrief
18
Q

what are descriptive statistics?

A

can not tell us whether the results are significant or not
measures of central tendency
measures of dispersion
graphs and tables

19
Q

what are inferential statistics ?

A

refers to use of statistical tests which tell us whether the relationship found is significantly signficant or not

helps decide which hypothesis to accept and which to reject

20
Q

what is probability ?

A

how likely the results are due to chance factors

21
Q

what is the level of probability used by psychologists?

A

5%

0.05

22
Q

what is a null hypothesis ?

A

any difference between the two conditions is caused by chance

23
Q

what is a type one error?

A

occurs when a null hypnosis is rejected when it is in fact true

overly optimistic

more likely to occur when a less stringent level of significance is applied

24
Q

what is a type two error?

A

occurs when a null hypothesis is retained when it is in fact false

pessimistic

more likely to occur when a more stringent level of significance is applied

25
Q

When do you used a Chi squared test?

A

when it is a test of difference

unrelated data

nominal data

26
Q

when do you use a sign test?

A

test of difference

related data

nominal data

27
Q

when do you use a chi squared test (2)

A

test of correlation/ relationship

nominal

28
Q

when do you use Mann-Whitney test?

A

test of difference

unrelated data

ordinal

29
Q

When do you use a Wilcoxon test?

A

test of difference

related data

ordinal

30
Q

when do you use Spearman’s Rho test?

A

test of correlation

ordinal

31
Q

When do you use an unrelated t-test?

A

test of difference

unrelated data

interval

32
Q

when do you use a related t-test?

A

test of difference

related data

interval

33
Q

when do you use Pearson’s r test?

A

test of correlation

interval

34
Q

What are the parametric tests?

A

unrelated t-test, related t-test, Pearson’s r test

35
Q

what are non-parametric tests?

A

chi-squared

sign test

Mann Whitney

Wilcoxon

Spearman’s Rho

36
Q

What is nominal data?

A

data in separate categories

data is discrete

37
Q

What is ordinal data?

A

the data is ordered in some way

does not have equal measurements between scores

38
Q

What is interval data?

A

data is measured using units of equal measurement

39
Q

How to do a sign test

A

Convert data into nominal data by subtracting one category score from the other - either a + or a -

add up the + and add the -

take the less frequent sign and call this a and the number of participants N

compare calculated value with critical value

40
Q

How to find the critical value using chi squared test

A

Degrees of freedom (df)= (number of rows-1) x (number of columns -1)

41
Q

What is content analysis?

A

the method used to analyse qualitative data

researcher observes indirectly through visual, written or verbal material

42
Q

content analysis

What is coding?

A

involves placing quantitative and qualitative data into catergories

43
Q

What is thematic analysis?

A

a theme in content analysis refers to any idea that is recurrent

44
Q

what is the process of content analysis?

A
  1. make design decisions
  2. read artefacts in an unbiased way
  3. break data into meaningful units
  4. review all data , record
  5. combine simple codes into larger themes
45
Q

strengths of content analysis

A

high ecological validity

can be replicated easily

46
Q

limitations of content analysis

A

observer bias reduces internal validity

culture biased

47
Q

Strengths of case studies

A

in-depth as longitudinal

unique - unusual behaviour can be learnt about

ethics- can study something which wouldn’t usually be ethical

48
Q

weaknesses of case studies

A

ethics- consent

generalisation

49
Q

What is a histogram used for

A

interval/ continuous data

bars touch as data is continuous

50
Q

What is reliability?

A

how consistent the findings from an investigation are

51
Q

how do you asses the reliability of an experiment

A

replication - same conditions but with different participants

52
Q

how do you improve reliability of an experiment

A

strict control of variables

standardised instructions

53
Q

how do you asses reliability of an observation or content analysis?

A

inter- rater reliability - measuring the consistency of scoring between raters, higher is indicated by a significant positive correlation

54
Q

how do you improve reliability of an observation or content analysis?

A

observers should be trained thoroughly

operationalisation of behavioural categories

raters should have the opportunity to discuss problems

55
Q

how do you asses the reliability of a test/ questionnaire/ interview?

A

test- retest method - same ps given same test

correlation to test test retest reliability

56
Q

how do you improve reliability of a test/ questionnaire/ interview?

A

revising questions that may be unclear

rephrasing instructions for clarity

revising test procedures

do a pilot study before

57
Q

what is validity ?

A

whether an experiment produces an effect that is legitimate

58
Q

what is face validity?

A

whether an experiment appears to measure what it claims to measure

59
Q

what is concurrent validity?

A

the extend to which a psychological measure relates to an existing, established measure

60
Q

what are types of internal validity ?

A

face validity

concurrent validity

61
Q

what is ecological validity ?

A

the extend to which findings from a research study can be generalised to other settings and situations

62
Q

what is temporal validity?

A

the extend to which findings can be generalised to other historical times and eras

63
Q

what are examples of external validity?

A

ecological validity

temporal validity

64
Q

how do you asses internal validity

A

threats- demand characteristics, investigator effects and confounding variables.

face - intuitive measurement

concurrent - comparaspm of those results to those previously achieved

65
Q

how to improve internal validity

A

using double blind procedure

change design features

66
Q

how to asses ecological validity

A

replication of study in other settings

more realised tasks if due to mundane realism

67
Q

how to improve ecological validity

A

realistic settings so findings can be generalised

different settings so refined methodology

improve the mundane realism of the tasks

68
Q

how to assess temporal validity

A

replication of study over time and comparing research findings

69
Q

how to improve validity of experiments

A

use a control group

standardise procedures

use single and double blind procedures

70
Q

how to improve the validity of questionnaires

A

lie scale

tell ps they will remain anonymous

71
Q

how to improve validity of observations

A

use covert observation

use more specific behavioural categories

72
Q

how to improve validity of qualitative methods

A

interpretative validity by direct quotes from ps

triangulation - looking for extra evidence from other sources

73
Q

what is the definition of science

A

a means of acquiring knowledge through systematic and objective investigations

74
Q

what are the 7 features of science

A
objectivity 
replicability 
theory construction 
hypothesis testing 
empirical method 
falsifiability 
paradigms