Research Methods

Experiments
1. Field
  1. Involve manipulating the IV to see the effect on the DV
  2. Takes place in a 'natural' environment
  3. Lack of control over variables
  4. Has ecological validity
2. Natural
  1. Can be difficult to replicate
  2. IV is not manipulated
3. Lab
  1. Controlled conditions
  2. Tests the effect of IV on the DV and controls as many EV's as possible
  3. Involves the comparison of two or more conditions between which only one factor is changed
  4. Doesn't reflect real life - lacks ecological validity
  5. Can create artificial behaviour
Variables
1. IV
  1. Independent variable
  2. Manipulated by researcher
2. DV
  1. Dependent variable
  2. Measred by the researcher
3. EV
  1. Extraneous variable
  2. Other factors that may have an effect on the DV
    1. eg. random errors, situational variables, participant variables, order effects, demand characteristics, experimenter effects
4. Operationalisation
  1. Making a variable precise enough to be manipulated, measured or controlled
Hypothesis
1. A testable statement
2. Experimental/alternative hypothesis predicts there will be a difference or an expected relationship
3. Null hypothesis states that the results will not show a difference or relationship between the two variables
  1. Any difference shown will be due to chance factors
4. Directional or non-directional
  1. Directional (one tailed) - states the direction of the results
  2. Non-directional (two tailed) - doesn't state which direction the results will go in
Ethics
1. Guidelines can be broken if it is justified
2. Consent - don't need consent in a field exp. but do in a lab exp.
3. Debrief - exp. should be discussed w/ participants afterwards and told the full extent of the study
4. Confidentiality - all info about participants should be confidential
5. Deception - should be avoided but sometimes it's necessary
6. Withdrawl - doesn't apply to obedience investigations
7. Protection of participants - participants should be safe from psychological and physical harm
Types of data
1. Qualitative
  1. Consists of words
  2. Strengths
    1. Allows for more depth of analysis
    2. High validity
  3. Weaknesses
    1. Difficult to make comparisons between groups or make a specific conclusion
    2. Low reliability
2. Quantitative
  1. Consists of numbers and quantities
  2. Strengths
    1. High reliability
    2. Possible to analyse data in order to make comparisons between groups and make specific conclusions
  3. Weaknesses
    1. Gives a superficial view of the behaviour being studied
    2. Low validity
Types of Interview
1. Structured
  1. Has a pre-set order of questions , leaves little room for the researcher to follow up on answers
2. Unstructured
  1. Questions are open and structure is flexible
3. Semi-structured
  1. Has an order of questions to be answered but researcher has more freedom to follow up on answers
Sampling
1. Opportunity
  1. Uses whoever is immediately available
  2. Strengths - fast and efficient
  3. Weaknesses - biased results
2. Volunteer
  1. Uses whoever puts themselves forward
  2. Strengths - less biased
  3. Weaknesses - takes longer
3. Stratified
  1. Rarely used
  2. Sample reflects the target population
  3. Strengths - very representative
  4. Weaknesses - difficult to do
4. Random
  1. Every no. of the target population has an equal chance of being selected
  2. Strengths - v. representative
  3. Weaknesses - takes a long time
Participant Designs
1. Independent Measures
  1. Each group takes part in one experiment
  2. Takes less time
  3. No order effects
  4. Large sample sizes
  5. Individual differences
2. Repeated Measures
  1. Each group takes part in all experiments (experiments repeated)
  2. Takes longer
  3. Order effects can occur
  4. Smaller samples
  5. No individual differences
3. Matched Pairs
  1. Similar participants matched together in pairs
  2. Individual differences controlled
  3. No order effects
  4. Takes longer

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	Created by emilyyoung212 almost 11 years ago