Research Methods

Weaknesses of case study (2)

- Difficult to generalise from individual cases; each has unique characteristics - Ethical issues such as confidentiality and informed consent. Many cases are easily identifiable because of their unique characteristics. Some are not asked to give informed consent, e.g. little hans. Psychological harm could also be induced if individuals are tested repeatedly over long periods of time

Strengths of content analysis (2)

- High ecological validity because it is based on observation of what people actually do - Resources can be retained and accessed by others it can be replicated easily so can be tested for reliability

Demand characteristics

A cue that makes participants unconsciously aware of the aims of a study or helps participants work out what the researcher expects to find

Aims

A statement of what the researcher/s intend to find out in a research study

Cost-Benefit analysis

A systematic approach to estimating the negatives and positives of any research

Laboratory experiment

An experiment carried out in a controlled setting. Lab experiments tend to have high internal validity because good control over all variables is possible. They tend to have low ecological validity because participants are aware of being studied and also the tasks involved tend to be more artificial

Counterbalancing

An experimental technique used to overcome order effects when using a repeated measures design. Counterbalancing ensures that each condition is tested first or second in equal amounts

Confederate

An individual in study who is not a real participant and has been instructed how to behave by the investigator

Ethical issues

Concern questions of right and wrong. They arise in research where there are conflicting sets of values between researches and participants concerning the goals, procedures or outcomes of a research study

Strength of repeated measures

Fewer participants required as they take part in each condition

Example of a confounding variable

If a test was conducted in which pps were tested on the effect of TV on their memory and the people in the 'No TV" condition were tested in the morning and did better, this may be because people are more alert in the morning rather than the TV's effect.

Order effect

In a repeated measures design, an extraneous variable arising from the order in which conditions are presented, e.g. practice effect or fatigue effect

Mundane realism

Refers to how a study mirrors the real world. The research environment is realistic to the degree to which experiences encountered in the research environment will occur in the real world

Repeated measures

Same participants take part in both conditions

Quasi experiment

Studies that are 'almost' experiments. The independent variable is actually not something that varies at all - it is a condition that exists. The researcher records the effect of this 'quasi-IV' on a dependant variable. As with a natural experiment, the lack of manipulation of the IV and the lack of random allocation means that casual conclusions can only be tentatively drawn

External validity

The degree to which a research finding can be generalised to other settings (ecological), other time periods/over time (historical) and other groups of people (population

Identify the key feature of an experiment

The main characteristic of an experiment is that there is an IV which is deliberately changed to see if it has any effect on the DV.

What is the dependant variable?

Variable the experimenter measures, after making changes to the IV that are assumed to affect the DV.

When do researchers use a directional hypothesis?

hen past research suggests that the findings will in a particular direction. It makes sense then to frame the hypothesis in the direction indicated

Pilot study

small-scale trial run of a study to test any aspects of the design, with a view of making improvements

Strength of matched pairs (2)

- Reduces participant variables because the researcher has created pairs - Avoids order effect as participants only take part in one condition

Strengths of Natural experiment (3)

- allow researchers to measure things that may be unethical to set up in a laboratory e.g. adoption studies - When participants are unaware of being observed the behaviour is high in internal validity and more realistic as demand characteristics are minimised. - Natural experiments have high ecological validity as the settings are much more natural.

Strengths of field experiment (3)

- higher ecological validity as they tend to be conducted in more natural settings. - allow researchers to measure more natural behaviour in people due to the more natural environment. Therefore the findings may have high internal validity as the behaviour observed may be more "real" than in laboratory settings. - When participants are unaware of being observed this helps minimise the risk of demand characteristics.

Limitation of independent measures (2)

- more participants are required - Participant variables

Strength of independent measures

-Avoids order effects

Field experiment

A controlled experiment conducted outside a laboratory. The IV is still manipulated by the experimenter, and therefore casual relationships can be demonstrated. Field experiments ted to have lower internal validity as it is more difficult to control extraneous/confounding variables) and higher external validity due to greater mundane realism

Controlled observation

A form of investigation in which behaviour is observed but under conditions where certain variables have been organised by the researcher

Experimental design

A set of procedures used to control the influence of factors such as participant variables in an experiment

Random allocation

Allocating participants to experimental groups or conditions using random techniques

Investigator effect

Anything that an investigator does that has an effect on a participant's performance in a study other than what was intended. This includes direct effects as a result of interaction, and indirect effects as a result of the design of the study. May act as confounding or extraneous variables

Operationalise

Ensuring that variables are in a form that can be easily tested.

Overt observation

Observational studies where participants are aware that their behaviour is being studied

Control

Refers to the extent to which any variable is held constant or regulated by a researcher

Validity

Refers to whether an observed effect is a genuine one

When do researches use a non-directional hypothesis?

When there is no past research or pasta research is contradictory. Non-Directieal hypotheses may be more appropriate if the study is exploring a new area, where informed expectations about how people might behave have yet to be established through research

Content analysis (4)

- A kind of observational study in which behaviour is usually observed indirectly in written, visual or verbal material - Has to consider sampling method, e.g. will they read every page or every 5 pages - Has to consider the behavioural categories - How data will be recorded; e.g. count instances or describe examples in each category

Case study (4)

- A research method that involves a detailed study of a single individual, institution or event. - Provide a rich record of human experience but are hard to generalise from - Often longitudinal - can be observations, interviews, etc.

Weakness of quasi experiment (4)

- Confounding environmental variables are more likely= less reliable - Must wait for the IV to occur - Can only be used where conditions vary naturally - Aware they're studied= less internal validaty

When to use Pearson's R (4)

- Correlation between 2 sets of data - 2 sets of data are pairs of scores that are related - Data are interval - Parametric

When to use Spearman's Rho (3)

- Correlation between two sets of data - 2 sets of data are pairs of scores from one person (related) - Data are ordinal

Examples of ethical issues (5)

- Deception - Right to withdraw - Informed consent - Privacy/confidentiality - Protection from harm

When to use Related-T test (4)

- Difference between 2 sets of data - 2 sets of data are pairs of scores from one person (related) - Data are interval - Parametric test

When to use unrelated t test (4)

- Difference between 2 sets of data - 2 sets of data are scores from separate groups of participants (unrelated) - Data are interval - Parametric test

When to use Mann-Whitney (3)

- Difference between 2 sets of data - 2 sets of data are separate groups of participants (unrelated) - Data are ordinal

When to use wilcoxon (3)

- Difference between 2 sets of data - 2 sets of data are pairs of scores from one person (related) - Data are ordinal

Independent measures (2)

- Different participants used in each condition - Should be done by random allocation

Weaknesses of lab experiment (3)

- Laboratory experiments may result in people behaving in an unnatural way different to what they would really be like in real life settings. Some tasks in laboratory experiments may be contrived hence the resulting behaviours may lack internal validity and not be indicative of real life. - Participants are aware they are being observed and this could lead to demand characteristics and participants behaving in a way that is not representative of true behaviour. Therefore laboratory experiments may lack internal validity as the behaviour being measured is not the real behaviour. - Laboratory experiments lack ecological validity and realism due to the artificial setting.

Parametric criterion (3)

- Level of measurement is interval - Data are drawn from a population with a normal distribution - Variances of the two samples are not significantly different

Weaknesses of natural experiment (3)

- Natural experiments are harder to replicate meaning the reliability of findings cannot be checked. - There is no control over the experiment by researchers as they merely observe. This means a number of extraneous variables could be contributing to the DV resulting in low internal validity. This makes it difficult to infer cause and effect. - There is no control over the allocation of participants between conditions. Therefore individual differences are harder to control for.

Weaknesses of content analysis (2)

- Observer bias reduces the objectivity and validity of findings ; different observers may interpret the meaning of behavioural categories differently - Culture biased; interpretation will be affected by the language and culture of the observer and the behavioural categories used

Strengths of case study (2)

- Offers in-depth information. Such data can provide insights into the complex interaction of many factors - Can be used to investigate instances of human behaviour and experience that are rare or cannot be tested experimentally as it would be inethical

Limitation of repeated measures

- Order effects: order of conditions may have an effect on the participants behaviour - avoid this by counterbalancing

Example of a case study

- Phineas Gage

Key points of peer view (5)

- Published - Valid - Appropriate method - Significant - Originality

Strengths of lab experiment (3)

- There is a high level of control which means that extraneous variables can be minimised and with less outside influences. - Laboratory experiments have high internal validity as the high level of control and the altering of only the Independent variable (IV) between conditions allows researchers to be more sure they are measuring what they wish to measure. - Laboratory experiments are easier to replicate and repeat to check the reliability of findings as procedures are standardised.

Weaknesses of field experiment (3)

- There is less control over field experiments compared to lab experiments meaning extraneous variables might affect the independent variable (IV) or dependent variable (DV). This means researchers cannot always be certain that changes to the DV are due to changes in the IV. - Replication of field experiments are harder and therefore it is more difficult to check the reliability of findings. - Ethical issues arise when participants are not aware of being observed as part of a study and therefore there is deception occurring. Informed consent may not always be possible either which breaches ethical guidelines.

Limitation of matched pairs (2)

- Time consuming and expensive to find matched participants - Impossible to match them exactly unless they are identical twins

Extraneous variables

- Undesirable variables that influence the relationship between the variables that an experimenter is examining. - These are variables the influence the outcome of an experiment, though they are not the variables that are actually of interest.

Strengths of a quasi experiment (2)

- Useful when it's unethical to manipulate the IV - Studies the 'real effects' so there is increased realism and ecological validity

Hypothesis

A precise and testable statement about the assumed relationship between variables. Operationalism is a key part of making the statement testable.

Natural experiment

A research method in which the experimenter has not manipulated the independent variable directly. The IV would vary whether or not the researcher was interested. The researcher records the effect of the IV on a dependant variable -- this DV may be measured in a lab

Experiment

A research method where causal conclusions can be drawn because an independent variable has been deliberately manipulated to observe the causal effect on the dependant variable

Standardised procedures

A set of procedures that are the same for all participants in order to be able to repeat the study. This includes standardised instructions -- the instructions given to participants to tell them how to perform the task

Paradigm

A shared set of set assumptions about the subject matter of a discipline and the methods appropriate to its study - Kuhn

Repeated measures design

Each participant takes part in every condition under test, i.e. each level of the IV

Covert observation

Observing people without their fwnoledge. Knowing that behaviour is being observed is likely to alter a participant's behaviour

Matched pairs

Pairs of participants are matched according to key variables, such as age and then put in a condition each

Matched pairs design

Pairs of participants are matched in terms of key variables such as age and IQ. One member of each pair is allocated to one of the conditions under test and the second person is allocated to the other condition

Independent groups design

Participants are allocated to two (or more) groups representing different levels of the IV. Allocation is usually done using random techniques

Informed consent

Participants must be given comprehensive information concerning the nature and purpose of the research and their role in it, in order that they can make an informed decision about whether to participate

Non-directional hypothesis

Predicts simply that there is a difference between two conditions or two groups of participants, without stating the direction of the difference

Directional hypothesis

States the direction of the predicted difference between two conditions or two groups of participants

peer review

Subjecting research to the scrutiny of other psychologists working in a similar field who consider the research in terms of its validity, significance and originality.

Internal validity

The degree to which an observed effect was due to the experimental manipulation rather than other factors such as confounding/extraneous variables

What is the independent variable?

The variable that is directly manipulated by an experimenter in order to test its effect on the dependent variable

Why is statistical testing used in psychological research?

They are used to determine whether the difference or relationship found is due to chance

Confounding variable

Variables that the researcher failed to control, or eliminate, damaging the internal validity of an experiment.