experiments

• what is the aim of experiments

  to establish cause and effect of the IV and DV
• what are lab experiments

  an experiment carried out in a controlled setting which is unfamiliar to the participants - the experimenter has manipulated the IV
• what are field experiments

  a controlled experiment conducted outside a laboratory- the setting must be natural for the participants
• what are natural experiments 


  this is a research method where the experimenter has not manipulated the independent variable directly- the experimenter can't randomly allocate conditions to Ps
• what are quasi experiments

  a research method where the IV is naturally occurring so the Ps haven't randomly allocated Ps to conditions, but the condition already exists
• what are some strength of lab experiments


  reliable- lab experiments are conducted in a highly controlled setting and has a standardised procedure- this makes the experiment easy to replicate

  high control- experiments are conducted in a highly controlled setting so extraneous variables van be controlled and cause and effect relationships can be established

  ethical- the Ps are likely to have agreed to take part and therefore fewer ethical guidelines will be broken
• What is one weakness of lab experiments related to realism?

  They lack mundane realism.
• Why does the lack of mundane realism in lab experiments reduce external validity?

  Because the tasks are unrealistic and the behavior displayed is not naturally occurring.
• What is another weakness of lab experiments regarding the setting?

  They lack ecological validity.
• How does the artificial setting of lab experiments affect generalizability?

  It means findings cannot be generalized beyond the lab setting.
• What is the experimenter effect in lab experiments?

  It is when the presence of an experimenter alters the behaviour of participants.
• How can the experimenter effect lead to demand characteristics?

  Because the behavior of participants may not be naturally occurring.
• What impact does the experimenter effect have on internal validity?

  It reduces internal validity.
• What does the lack of ecological validity in lab experiments imply?

  It implies that the findings cannot be generalized beyond the lab setting.
• How does high control in lab experiments affect the realism of tasks?

  It makes the tasks unrealistic.
• what is a strength of field experiments 


  high mundane realism- the tasks are similar to real life and the findings can be generalised to everyday behaviour which increases the external
• what is another strength of field experiments


  high ecological validity- the Ps are familiar with the setting and consequently the behaviour is naturally occurring and it can be generalised beyond the setting which increases the external validity
• what is another strength of field experiments 


  less likely to have experimenter effects- the experiment is conducted in the natural setting and this means the Ps are likely to be observed without them knowing - therefore there will be a reduced chance of demand characteristic which increases the external validity
• what is a weakness of field experiments 


  less reliable- they are conducted in a natural setting, and it is harder to ensure that the exact same experience is given to all Ps - this makes it harder to replicate
• what is another weakness of field experiments


  less control- Ps are conducted in a natural setting and it becomes harder to control extraneous variables, so it is harder to establish cause and effect between the IV and the DV which reduces the internal validity
• what is another weakness of field experiments 


  less ethical- Ps are unlikely to know they are taking part of research, so they are less likely to have given consent- they are less likely to have been given the right to withdraw and more ethical guidelines are likely to be broken
• what is a strength of natural experiments 


  it allows research can't be manipulated for ethical or practical reasons- even if there isn't as much control it is still valuable to conduct such research
• what is another strength of natural experiments 


  high ecological validity- the experiment will be conducted in a natural setting- therefore behaviour displayed will be naturally occuring and it can be generalised to everyday life which increase the external validity
• what is another strength of natural experiments

  ethical-the researchers do not manipulate the IV- this means the researchers do not cause any harm of the Ps- any harm caused is beyond the researchers control- the researchers are breaking less ethical guidelines and makes this more ethical
• what is one weakness of natural experiments 


  they can only be used where conditions vary naturally- experimenters are limited to what the can investigate and the number of questions that the experimenter can ask is limited
• what is another weakness of natural experiments


  less reliable- they make use of a natural setting and the IV is not manipulated- this makes it harder to replicate as the same circumstances will not occur again
• what is another weakness of natural experiments 


  low control- as the IV is not directly manipulated, the Ps are not directly assigned to a group so it is hard to control extraneous variables- it is harder to establish cause and effect
• what is a strength of quasi experiments 


  allows research where Iv can't be manipulated for ethical or practical reasons - it is still valuable to conduct such research
• what is a weakness of quasi experiments 


  potential for biased sample- as Ps are not randomly allocated to conditions, there is more risk for bias and therefore a quasi experiment is not a true experiment