Class 3

Question 1

What is Construct validity?

Answer 1

Construct validity = extent to which an
operationalization adequately captures the
psychological construct of interest
➢ “Are you measuring what you think
you’re measuring?”
* Measure should make sense “on its face”
* Should be well grounded in existing
theoretical conceptions of the construct
* Should relate to other measures of
construct & predict future outcome

Ex. u can’t measure relationship compatibility via sock choice

Question 2

What is a fixed-response questionnaire?

Answer 2

specific set of questions and possible responses predetermined by the researchers
➢ E.g., The Love Scale (Rubin, 1970

Question 3

When are open-ended questions used?

Answer 3

Qualitative research

• Examine the broader themes that emerge from participants’ responses

Question 4

Another issue with memory: What is Sentiment override

Answer 4

global beliefs about the partner/relationship may colour perception and memory of specific interactions
➢ E.g., “how many times did your partner kiss you yesterday?”

➢ “I don’t remember, but he loves me and we have a good relationship, so must have been a lot”

Question 4

Pros of self report?

Answer 4

• inexpensive
• easy

Question 5

Cons of self report?

Answer 5

• Social desirability bias
• Sensitive topics (ppl may lie / avoid question)
• May interpret it diff

Autobiographical memory is not
like a video recording
* It is, rather, a constructive process
➢ Pieces of remembered information +
current knowledge = narrative that
makes sense to us now
➢ Can leave out or amplify information to
support our current view of the partner
& relationship (memory bias)

Memories of past feelings guided by current feelings about the relationship
➢ If satisfaction in relationship improved: they’ll remember feeling more positively than they actually did

Question 6

What is behavioural observation?

Answer 6

Gather data about relationship events without having to ask people who are
experiencing those events directly
➢ E.g., how do people in happy and distressed relationships differ in the way
they behave towards each other?

Can be anywhere (lab, at home, etc)

Question 7

What is Inter-rater reliability ?

Answer 7

extent to which different coders agree on whether a specific behaviour has or has not occurred

A lot of behaviours require interpretation
➢ E.g., lighthearted joke vs. hostile sarcasm

Question 8

Behavioural observations: Pros & cons

Answer 8

Pros
* Directly assess behaviours of interest
* Don’t have to rely on faulty memories
* Avoid social desirability bias

Cons
* Expensive, time and labour-intensive
* Reactivity = a change in behaviour caused
by the knowledge one is being observed

Question 9

What is the threat of reactivity

Answer 9

a change in behaviour caused
by the knowledge one is being observed

Question 10

What are Indirect measures?

Answer 10

reaction time = time it takes to respond a stimulus on screen
* Can be used to assess implicit attitudes = the automatic tendency to
associate a given stimulus with positive or negative feeling

Question 11

IAT, What is the NEWLYWED game?

Answer 11

Flash partner and a positive / negative word
- Check their reaction time to both

If quicker with negative = implicit negative attitude

(These will not always align with explicit attitudes)

Question 12

What happens when you run an IAT and then observe behaviour after?

Answer 12

Found that ppl with a more positive IAT also behaved more positively during the discussion (non-verbal behaviour= smiling / nodding)

• AND non verbal behaviours are linked to relationship satisfaction

Question 13

What are the pros and cons of implicit measures?

Answer 13

Pros
* Avoid social desirability & reactivity problems
➢ Could be particularly useful for sensitive topics

Cons
* Big gap between construct of interest and operationalization
➢ Can we be sure that we are studying what we think we are studying