Validity

• The validity of any method of measurement refers to how truly/ realistically it measures something.
• A valid test measures what it is supposed to measure.
• Internal validity is how much the findings of a test or method are due to the manipulation of a variable (like IV) rather than another factor.
• A method or test has good internal validity if the findings do result from the manipulation of the independent variable on the outcome of dependent variable.
• External validity is how much the findings of a test or method can be generalised to different settings.
• External validity includes how much the findings can be generalised to other environments (ecological validity).
• External validity includes how much the findings can be generalised to other people (population validity).
• Face validity is whether the test or measure actually looks like it is measuring what it is supposed to be measuring.
• Construct validity is whether the test or measure, actually assesses the theory that it is supposed to be measuring.
• Concurrent validity is whether there is agreement with an already well-established test or measure that claims to measure the same variable.
• Predictive validity is whether the test or measure can predict a person’s future performance on a test/method as indicated by its results.
• Face validity is a measure of whether a test looks subjectively promising that it measures what it is supposed to.
• Construct validity asks whether a measure successfully measures the concept it is supposed to.
• Concurrent validity asks whether a measure is in agreement with pre-existing measures, that are validated to test for the same/ similar concepts.
• Internal validity is high when there is good control over variables and greater confidence of cause and effect.
• Temporal validity is high when research findings successfully apply across time (valid in today's society).
• Changes in attitude towards gender roles over time could lower the temporal validity of data from past experiments when applied to modern day research.
• Ecological validity is whether the findings are generalisable to the real world, based on the conditions research conducted.
• Laboratory experiments have a high degree of control over extraneous variables that would otherwise vary in a natural environment, so results might be considered too ‘artificial’ and this lowers the ecological validity.
• Population validity refers to the extent to which the sample can be generalised to similar and wider populations.
• Criterion validity refers to the extent to which the results and conclusions are valid compared with other measures.
• Criterion validity is split into two types of validity; predictive validity and concurrent validity.