Research Skills > Week 8 > Flashcards

Week 8 Flashcards

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1
Q

What are behavioural variables?

A

A class of variables. Any observable response produced by a subject.

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2
Q

What are the class of variables called stimulus variables?

A

Environmental factors that have actual or potential effects on behavioural variables.

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3
Q

What are the class of variables, subject variables?

A

Characteristics that can be used to classify a subject for research purposes

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4
Q

What is a dependent variable?

A

A variable that is measured or observed

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5
Q

Can a dependant variable sometimes be measured directly

A

Yes

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6
Q

What are two examples of a dependent variables being measured directly?

A
  1. Physical arousal

2. Virus antibodies

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7
Q

Can a dependant variable sometimes be measured indirectly?

A

Yes

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8
Q

Give three examples of dependent variables being measured indirectly by representing it as a construct

A
  1. pleasure
  2. love
  3. pain
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9
Q

What is an independent variable?

A

A variable that is manipulated by the researcher

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10
Q

How many levels or conditions do independent variables require? Give an example in relation to red cordial and hyperactivity in children:

A

It requires two levels or conditions.
Example:Does red cordial produce hyperactivity?
1. Need at least two levels if the IV - red cordial and non-red cordial
2. If there is more activity after drinking red cordial than non-red-cordial, the activity is DEPENDENT on colour of cordial

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11
Q

Is the independent variable manipulated in a true experiment? Can it ever not be?

A

Yes it is manipulated, but sometimes it cannot be. For example, gender (eg male, female)

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12
Q

Is it sometimes unethical to manipulate the independent variable? if so, when?

A

Yes. For example, smoking or drugs

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13
Q

Can there be more than one independent variable? If so, what are these called?

A

Yes. experiments with multiple IVs are called factorial experiments

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14
Q

What is an operational definition?

A

Procedures or operations that specify how to manipulate or measure a construct.

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15
Q

Does operational definition apply to both IVs and DVs?

A

Yes

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16
Q

Give an example of operational definition in terms of affection towards one’s partner/

A

Does affection toward one’s partner vary with length of the relationship?

  1. How can we operationalise affection?
  2. Must be measurable
  3. ‘Vary’ implies a change in amount (quantitative) of affection, not type (qualitative) affection
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17
Q

Give a two-step example of using operational definition to explore the research: does stress level affect long term memory?

A
  1. What is a reasonable operational definition of anxiousness (IV) that allows us to manipulate.
    - heart rate, blood pressure
    - could manipulate by changing environmental noise
  2. What is an operational definition of long-term memory?
    - participants learn list of words
    - recall them approx 24 hour (a proxy of LTM)
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18
Q

What are three examples of the operational definition of anxiety?

A
  1. a physiological measure
  2. self-report anxiety level
  3. avoidance behaviour
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19
Q

What are three operational definitions of aggression in children?

A
  1. ratings of aggression by teacher
  2. child hits, bites etc how many times
  3. no. of acts of aggression in stories written by childnre
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20
Q

What are three operational definitions of obesity?

A
  1. pinch test
  2. volume of water displaced
  3. height-weight ratio
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21
Q

What are three operational definitions of intelligence?

A
  1. score on IQ test
  2. Others judgement on ability to solve problems
  3. number of school grades complete
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22
Q

What are three benefits of using multiple operational definitions?

A
  1. different aspects of concept can be measured
  2. convergent validity
  3. allows for multiple ways to design studies
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23
Q

What will multiple operational definitions show in respect to convergent validity?

A

That it has good convergent validity is different operational definitions yield common findings

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24
Q

Are most constructs multi-dimensional?

A

Yes

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25
What are two aspects of extraneous variables?
1. variables other than IV that can affect the DV | 2. Contribute random (unexplained) error (variability) to the data
26
What is the control variable? What is an example of it?
Extraneous variables that are held constant to avoid confounding e. g learning can be affected by wakefulness - control time of day study takes place
27
What are the three goals of science and the types of research they call for?
1. description - observational research 2. prediction - correlational research 3. explanation - experimental research
28
What are the three goals of experimental designs?
1. Maximise (hypothesised) causal effect 2. Minimise influence of extraneous variables 3. Control confounding variables
29
What are the four presumptions of experimental designs?
1. true experiments have high control 2. IVs are manipulated (operational definitions) 3. Potential systematic effects of extraneous variables/noise are deliberately managed (sampling and random assignment) 4. Confounding variables are held constant
30
Control in experimental design allows researchers to partition variance into what two things?
1. Between groups variance | 2. within-groups variance
31
What is between group variance in experimental design?(2)
1. variance caused by an IV | 2. systematic
32
What is within group variance in experimental design? (2)
1. variance caused by unknown factors | 2. random (error) variance
33
In experimental designs, experiments want to maximise what, and minimise what?
1. maximise between-groups variance | 2. Minimise within-groups variance
34
What can between-groups variance in experimental design be affected by?
Confounding variables | -variables other than IV(s) may act simultaneously
35
What can confounding variables do in between group-variance? (2)
1. Increase difference between groups (IV appears more important than it is) 2. Decrease differences between groups (IV appears less important than it is. Masks effect of IV)
36
What are the two problems with within-group variance? (2)
1. random (error variance) - extraneous variables - individual differences - measurement error because of unreliable instruments 2. isn't accounted for IV (s)
37
What do non-experimental designs closely resemble?
Experimental designs
38
What are 5 aspects of a quasi-experimental, non=experimental design?
1. unable to manipulate IV(eg. sex or medical condition) 2. unable to control all confounding variables 3. can have control variables 4. same statistical methods as experimental designs 5. Be alert to differences
39
What are the four steps of a single-group, post-test-only study (one shot case study)
1. identify a sample 2. introduce intervention (IV) 3. measure DV after intervention 4. Compare sample with cases casually observedand assume any different with already known cases that did not have IV reflects effect of IV
40
What are the three problems of a single-group, post-test-only one shot case study?
1. poor quality (no control, not an experiment) 2. Major threats to internal validity (history, placebo, regression to the mean, bias) 3. Low internal validity
41
What are the 5 steps in a single-group, pretes-posttest?
1. identify a sample 2. pretest:measure DV before intervention 3. apply independent variable (in the intervention/treatment) 4. posttest (measure DV after intervention) 5. compare (prestest vs posttest)
42
What are the three aspects of a single-group, pretest-posttest study?
1. simplest form of within subjects design (no control group and not an experiment) 2. major threats to internal validity (bias, history, placebo, pre-test sensitisation) 3. Modest internal validity
43
What are the major threats to internal validity in a single group prestest posttest?
- bias - maturation - history - regression to the mean - pre test sensitisation - placebo effects
44
In true experimental designs, experiments will control extraneous factors. What two things help to acheive this?
1. control groups | 2. random assignment
45
What help are control groups in helping control extraneous factors in a true experimental design?
reduces threats of history, maturation and regression to the mean
46
What help are random assignment of group in helping control extraneous factors in a true experimental design?
random assignment reduces selection bias
47
What are four aspects of a two-group posttest only, control group design?
1. simplest form of between subjects design 2. true experimental design 3. controls most confounding variables 4. random assignment with control group
48
In a two-group, posttest only control group design, what are the steps taken in the control group? (4)
1. Control group is randomly allocated from the sample 2. no treatment of placebo is provided 3. postest, measure the DV after intervention 4. compare to experimental group
49
In a two-group, posttest only control group design, what are the steps taken in the experimental group? (4)
1. randomly allocate from sample 2. apply the IV: intervention/treatment 3. posttest, measure DV after intervention 4. compare to control group
50
What are the three ways to describe a two-group, pretest-postest?
1. simplest form of mixed-design 2. true experimental design (random assignment) 3. good internal validity (controls maturation and history)
51
In a two-group, pretest- posttest only control group design, what are the steps taken in the experimental group? (5)
1. randomly select group from sample 2. measure DV before intervention 3. apply IV during intervention/treatment 4. measure DV after intervention 5. calculate effect before and after test and compare with control group
52
In a two-group, pretest- posttest only control group design, what are the steps taken in the control group? (5)
1. randomly allocate control group from sample 2. measure DV before intervention 3. no treatment or placebo is applied 4. measure DV after intervention 5. calculate effect pretest vs protest and compare with experimental group
53
What are the three benefits of within-subjects designs?
1. every participant is involved in every condition 2. maximises group equivalence 3. allows estimation of variance due to individual differences (increases statistical power and correlation of scores is taken into account)
54
What are four issues for within-subjectts design?
1. order effects 2. carryover effects 3. sequence effects (condition order matters) 4. learning studies are studies of order effects
55
What are three ways to minimise order effects?
1. randomise condition order for each participant (true randomisation might mean some orders never occur) 2. complete counterbalancing (easy with small number of conditions but impractical for large) 3. partial counterbalancing (latin square - each condition occurs once in each possible position, No. of orders =no. of conditions)
56
What is factorial design?
designs with two or more IVs which examines all possible combinations of conditions
57
What is a between-subjects design simply?
each condition has different participants
58
What is a within-subjects design in simple terms
all participants take part in each condition
59
What is a mixed-subject design simply?
One or more groups doing one or more conditions
60
What three effects is variance partitioned in, in a 2x2 factorial design?
1. main effect (factor A) 2. other main effect (factor B) 3. interaction effect of A and B (AxB)
61
What are three ways to describe a main effect?
1. one main effect for each factor in the design (two factor design has two main effects) 2. term is used only in factorial design 3. design with one factor test an effect, not a main effect
62
What are three ways to describe an interaction effect?
1. effect which the effect of one factor depends on the levels of another 2. interactions test differences of differences 3. number of interaction effects depends on number of factors (a 2 factor design has one 2 way interaction, while a 3 way design has 3 two way interactions plus one three way interaction)
63
What does a chi-square test of independence test?
an interaction. test will be significant is there is a large enough interaction
64
Does a chi square test of independence test a main effect?
no. If there is a main effect but no interaction, the test will not be significant.
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