1
Q
Objectivity
A
Data is free from any personal beliefs or opinions to avoid research being bias
2
Q
Empirical method
A
Hypotheses should be tested by carrying out research using a recognised technique e.g experiment or observation
3
Q
Replicablity
A
Studies should be able to be repeated
This allows us to check reliability
4
Q
Falsifiability
A
Studies can be proven right or wrong
5
Q
Theory construction
A
Ideas that are constructed based upon empirical evidence
6
Q
Hypothesis testing
A
Hypotheses should be tested using empirical methods
7
Q
Paradigms
A
Set ways of approaching and understanding something
8
Q
Paradigm shift
A
Occurs when a new idea completely replaces an old one
9
Q
Independent variable
A
The variable that is manipulated
10
Q
Dependent variable
A
The variable that changes as a result of the IV
11
Q
Experimental methods
A
Manipulating IV to cause a change in DV
12
Q
Strengths of experimental methods
A
Easy to replicate
High degree of control IV always affects the DV
13
Q
Weakness of experimental methods
A
Low ecological validity (artificial)
People act different if they know they are taking part in an experiment (demand characteristics)
14
Q
Demand characteristics
A
People act different if they know they are taking part in a study
15
Q
Operationalisation
A
To make testable
Clearly defining the variables
16
Q
Extraneous Variables
A
Variables other than the IV that might affect the DV
17
Q
Confounding variables
A
Cannot be controlled
Researcher couldn’t have account for but have happened
18
Q
Research aim
A
Purpose and starting point of any study
19
Q
Experimental hypothesis
A
The prediction of the results you may find
20
Q
Null hypothesis
A
No relationship exists between the two variables being studied
21
Q
Alternative hypothesis
A
Prediction of results for a non experimental method
22
Q
Directional hypothesis
A
States the direction of relationship that will be shown between the variables
23
Q
Non directional hypothesis
A
Unsure of outcome does not specify a direction
24
Q
Independent groups and evaluation
A
Random allocation to ensure that a range of people end up in each group e.g pick out of the hat
Strengths- less chance of demand characteristics, no order effects
Weaknesses- need more participants, may be unfair to compare results of the two groups e.g one group may be more intelligent
25
Repeated measures and evaluation
Single group of people and make sure they all experience both conditions
Strengths- no individual differences, fewer participants needed
Weaknesses- suffer from order effects but can be counterbalanced
26
Matched pairs and evaluation
Different but similar participants are used in each of the conditions
Participants are matched on characteristics
Strengths- no order effects, problems of individual differences are reduced
Weaknesses- matching is difficult, twice as many participants needed which is more costly
27
Types of extraneous variables
Situational
Participant
28
What are situational variables
Variables connected with research situation e.g temperature, lighting, instructions
29
How to control for situational variables
Standardisation- standardised instructions- set instructions to read to all participants, standardised procedures- all participants have same research experience
30
What are participant variables
Variables connected with the research participants e.g age, gender
31
How are participant variables controlled for
Experimental design e.g using matched pairs
32
What is a lab experiment
Involves the highest level of control, takes place in a controlled environment, all extraneous variables can be controlled
33
Strengths and weaknesses of lab experiment
Strengths- easy to replicate, high degree of control
Weaknesses- low ecological validity, demand characteristics
34
What is field experiment
Takes place in participants natural environment
35
Strengths and weaknesses of field experiment
Strengths- high ecological validity, less chance of demand characteristics
Weaknesses- less control, potential ethical issues
36
What is a natural experiment
The IV is not planned it is naturally occurring
37
Strengths and weaknesses of natural experiment
Strengths- high ecological validity, allows study of sensitive issues
Weaknesses- difficult to replicate, lack of control
38
What is a quasi experiment
IV which forms a part of the participant
39
Strengths and weaknesses of quasi experiment
Strengths- high degree of control, replicable
Weaknesses- random allocation is not possible, may be difficult to find a sample if one condition of IV is rare
40
Random sampling and evaluation
- every member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen
Strengths- unbiased, sample is likely to be representative so results can be generalised
Weaknesses- difficult to get details of everyone in target population due to protection laws, people may refuse if been selected
41
Opportunity sampling and evaluation
- select anybody who is convenient
Strengths- more convenient
Weaknesses- biased e.g researchers approach people with a friendly look, unrepresentative sample making results ungeneralisable
42
Volunteer sampling and evaluation
- researchers advertise for participants and participants volunteer their participation
Strengths- fairly practical, easy method
Weaknesses- lacks generalisability meaning it is unrepresentative of target population, volunteers are more motivated therefore affects behaviour
43
Systematic sampling and evaluation
- every nth person is chosen
Strengths- unbiased
Weaknesses- hard to get everyone names from target population meaning it leads to an unrepresentative sample, results cannot be generalised
44
Stratified sampling and evaluation
- calculate relative proportion of each stratum
Strengths- lead to a more representative and generalisable data
Weaknesses- researcher has to have sufficient information about participants, time consuming method
45
How to control demand characteristics
Single blind procedure
Participants have no idea which condition of study they are in
46
Investigator effects
Investigator may inadvertently influence the results
E.g physical characteristics such as age
47
How to deal with investigator effects
Double blind procedure
Neither the participant nor the investigator knows which condition the participant is in
48
What are the 4 ethical guidelines
Respect
Integrity
Social responsibility
Maximise benefit and minimise harm
49
Respect
Psychologists should show respect for their participants
Should get participants to sign an informed consent
Psychologists should show respect for their beliefs and culture
50
Integrity
Psychologists should demonstrate scientific integrity, researchers need to be sure that these results reflect real patterns
51
Social responsibility
Psychologists aim should always be to improve understanding of human nature
If research doesn’t have beneficial outcomes it is unethical
52
Maximise benefit and minimise harm
Psychologists should aim to ensure that if there is any harm study should be stopped
53
How do deal with ethical issue informed consent
Give participants a consent form including details of purpose, length of time, what participants expect, right to withdraw, reassurance about harm
Prior general consent- ask participants before a study to see if they would say yes
54
How to deal with deception
Deception is any instance where the participant has been lied to
Cost benefit analysis- weigh up the cost to participants vs benefits to the research
Debrief- any untruths highlighted
55
How to deal with protections from harm and abuse
Don’t do anything that could lead to harm
Stop study
56
How to deal with privacy and confidentiality
Don’t record names use initials
Choose location carefully
Debrief- give participants option to withdraw their data at the end
57
What is a pilot study
Small scale trial run of a specific research investigation to test out the planned procedures and identify any flaws and areas for improvement
58
What is internal reliability
Whether a test is consistent within itself
59
How to assess internal reliability
The split half method
Comparing a persons scores from the first half of test to the second
High internal validity if scores are similar
60
How to improve internal reliability
Conducting pilot studies to see if questions are considered equally easy or hard
61
What is external reliability
Whether results are consistently found when study is repeated
62
How to assess external reliability
The test retest method
Involves doing the study again to see if similar results are obtained
63
How to improve external reliability
Control:
- controlling extraneous variables
- same standardised instructions
- eliminate investigator effects
64
What is inter rater reliability
Refers to the consistency between different researchers
65
How to assess inter rater reliability
Researchers will observe the same situation and use same method to record data
Then results will be compared
66
How to improve inter rater reliability
Behavioural categories should be tightened
Observers could receive training in observational techniques
67
What is reliability
Refers to how consistent something is
68
Validity
Whether a researcher is measuring what they’re setting out to measure
69
Internal validity
Concerns the research setting
70
Types of internal validity
Experiments
Questionnaires
Observations
71
External validity
Whether what was measured in the reservation setting is representative of behaviours in the real world
72
Types of external validity
Ecological- extent to which research setting represents real life
Population- extent to which findings apply to groups of people other than the participants
Temporal- extent to which findings apply to other time periods
73
Face validity
Involves looking at questions and making a judgement
E.g do questions measure what they are supposed to
74
Content validity
Involves examining questions
75
Construct validity
Involves structinising the test to see if its testing what its suppose to
76
Predictive validity
Involves seeing whether a score on a test predicts later behaviour
77
Concurrent validity
Involves assessing validity of a new test by comparing it to an already established test
78
Naturalistic observation and evaluation
Takes place in setting where target behaviour would usually occur
Strengths- high ecological validity
Weakness- lack of control, replication is difficult
79
Controlled observation and evaluation
Researcher chooses location and there is control over it e.g in a lab
Strengths- replication is easy
Weakness- low ecological validity, demand characteristics
80
Participant observation and evaluation
When the researcher becomes part of the group they are studying
Strengths- increase external validity
Weakness- lose objectivity
81
Non participant observation and evaluation
The reasearcher remains separate from the group they are studying
Strength- maintain an objective psychological distance
Weakness- lose valuable insight
82
Covert observation and evaluation
When the researcher is unknown to the participant, the researcher is undercover known as undisclosed
Strengths- removes demand characteristics, increases internal validity
Weakness- ethics many be questioned
83
Overt observation and evaluation
When the researchers true identity is known to the participants, known as disclosed
Strength- more ethically acceptable
Weakness- may be demand characteristics
84
Structured data
Data is collected using a pre determined coding system e.g a tally chart
85
Unstructured data
Researcher will watch the behaviour and record anything of interest using notes
86
What questions are qualitative
Open questions
87
What questions are quantitative
Closed questions
88
Open questions
Researcher doesn’t restrict the range of available answers
89
Closed questions
When the researcher determines the range of possible answers
90
What to consider when making a questionnaire
Start with closed questions so participants are not put off
Avoid use of specialist terminology (jargon)
Avoid use of leading questions
91
Strengths of questionnaires
Allow large amounts of data to be collected quickly
Convent as researcher does not have to be present
92
Limitations of questionnaires
Social desirability bias- participants are dishonest in their answers because they want to present themselves in the best possible light
Participants might misinterpret questions
93
Structured interviews
Involves researcher having a set list of questions
94
Unstructured interviews
Researcher starts with vague idea of the topic and then they ask questions
95
Sem-structured interviews
Researcher starts with basic list of questions and is free to ask add on questions
96
Focus groups
Researchers may interview a small group of people at the same time rather than individuals
97
Strengths of interviews
More flexible than questionnaires the researcher can clarify any issues
Encourage honesty- a relationship can be built up between the interviewer and interviewee
98
Weaknesses of interviews
Time consuming
Suffer from investigator effects
99
What are case studies
Gathering detailed information about an individual
Is unique to individual
100
Case studies
Longitudinal
Following a person throughout their life
101
Case studies
Retrospective
Asking people to recollect events in their life
102
Example of a case study
Little Hans has a phobia of horses so a case study was conducted to discover why he had this phobia
103
Strengths of case studies
Produce rich qualitative data which gives us a real insight into human behaviour
High ecological validity
104
Weaknesses of case studies
Impossible to replicate so lacks reliability
Low generalisability as they are only carried out on one person
105
What is quantitative data
Data in numerical from
106
What is qualitative data
Data that is non numerical it is rich in depth data
107
Strengths of quantitive data
Most scientific as it is more objective
Easier to analyse through statistical techniques
108
Weaknesses of quantitative data
Does not offer researchers an in depth picture of a particular topic
Limited in scope
109
Strengths of qualitative data
Offers an in depth picture of a particular topic
Tells us why particular behaviours occur
110
Weaknesses of qualitative data
Less scientific as it is subjective nature
Harder to analyse cannot be represented visually
111
What is primary data
Original data collected specifically for the research
Collect own data
112
Strengths of primary data
All dat is relevant to research aims
Own method of collecting data so is aware of any potential issues in terms of validity of data
113
Weaknesses of primary data
Time consuming and expensive
Sample used is likely to be a lot smaller so results might not be as representative
114
What is secondary data
Data which has been collected by someone else
115
Strengths of secondary data
Quicker and cheaper
More representative sample
116
Weaknesses of secondary data
Data has not been collected with the researchers aims in mind
Researcher wasn’t present so isn’t aware of any validity issues
117
What is meta analysis data
Type of secondary data which involves looking at several studies with the same aim
118
Strengths of meta analysis data
More generalisable data
Conclusions may be more trustworthy because if researchers all find similar results those reflect a trend
119
Weaknesses of meta analysis data
Prone to publication bias only taking into account positive findings
Research designs may vary so impossible to compare results
120
What does a correlation investigate
Relationship between two variables
121
What is a positive correlation
As one variable increases so does the other
122
What is a negative correlation
As one variable increases the other decreases
123
Strengths of correlations
Allow preliminary research to be carried out
Allow the generation of larger amount of data
Fairly quick and easy to carry out
124
Weaknesses of correlations
Only measures what we call linear relationships
It’s impossible to infer cause and effect
125
What is the mean
Advantages and disadvantages
All scores are added up and then divided by number of score
Advantages- very sensitive measure (uses all values), representative of all data
Disadvantages- misleading, often mean score is not one of the original score(may involve decimals)
126
What is the median
Advantages and Disadvantages
Central score when values are arranged in numerical order
Advantages- not affected by extreme scores, easier to work out than mean
Disadvantages- not as sensitive as the mean, not representative of scores obtained
127
What is the mode
Advantages and disadvantages
Most frequent occurring number
Advantages- unaffected by extreme scores, easy to work out
Disadvantages- often there is more than one mode, unreliable
128
What is the range
Advantages and disadvantages
The difference between the highest and lowest score
Advantages- quick and easy, takes into account the full spread of data
Disadvantages- affected by extreme scores, doesn’t take into account full data set
129
What is standard deviation
Advantages and disadvantages
Measure of spread of scores from the mean
Advantages- more sensitive than the range, describes the spread of scores with precision
Disadvantages- complicated to calculate, less meaningful if data aren’t normally distributed
130
How to calculate percentage increase
New number - original number/original x100
131
How to calculate percentage decrease
Original - new/original x100
132
What is a normal distribution
Most people fall in the middle
Mean median and mode are all at mid point
133
What is skewed distribution
Doesn’t have most people in the middle
Mean median and mode are not all at the same point
134
What is nominal data and example
Data that can be separated into discrete categories
E.g eye colour
135
What is ordinal data and example
Data that doesn’t have a standardised and consistent difference
E.g ratings, positions in a race
136
What is interval data and example
Data on a scale whereby the difference between two points is standardised
E.g time, weather degrees
137
Type 1 error
When we accept the the experimental hypothesis when it is not actually correct
138
Type 2 error
When we reject the experimental hypothesis when it’s actually accurate
139
How is peer review done
Reacher sends copy to journal and the journal then sends the research report to one or more peer reviewers
140
Purpose of peer review
To check if it’s of high quality, if research can be replicable, if research has a good research design
141
Strengths and weaknesses of peer review
Strengths- ensures work is of high quality, will enhance researchers career and reputation if their work is published
Weaknesses- reviewer may be biased if they don’t agree with the work, sometimes journalists may struggle to find an appropriate expert to peer review
142
Why is workers not at work negative for the economy
Absences from work costs the government
143
What is content analysis
Involves analysing qualitative data into categories
144
What are the steps of content analysis
Step 1- decide on material that will be analysed
Step 2- decide on categories through pilot studies
Step 3- put categories into a tally chart and not every time you see a particular category
Step 4- add up how many times each category appeared
145
What is thematic analysis
Aims to keep the data qualitative by using quotes from material used
146
What are the steps of thematic analysis
Step 1- data is recorded into a form that means it can be studied
Step 2- material is coded for themes
Step 3- the coding system is analysed to determine common themes
147
What is abstract
Start of the report which gives reader an overview of the study
148
What is the introduction
Overview of past research to give reader context
149
What is the method
Details of how research was carried out split into 4 sub sections: design, participants, materials and procedure
150
What is results
Includes the findings split into two sections: descriptive statistics and inferential statistics
151
What is the discussion
Where the research findings are discussed
152
What are the references
List of all material cited
153
Why do we reference
To give credit where it’s due
It enables the reader to find the research that the psychologist looked at
154
How do we reference in books
Author surname, author initial, year published, book title, place of publication
155
How do we reference in journal articles
Author surname, initial, year published, title of journal article, name of journal edition number, page numbers
156
How do we reference on internet sites
Author surname, author initial, date , title of webpage, URL of webpage
Psychology
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