Methodology

• Experimental Hypothesis

  • one tailed - those with... will...
  • two tailed - there will be a significant difference in... between...
• Alternate Hypothesis

  • one tailed - there will be a positive relationship between...
  • two tailed - there will be a relationship between...
• Null Hypothesis

  • Experimental - there will be no difference in...
  • Alternate - there will be no relationship between...
  • any difference/relationship will be due to chance
• Reliability

  If the results of an experiment are replicable
• Validity

  If an experiment succeeds in measuring what it sets out to measure
• Operationalism

  The process of assigning a precise method for measuring a term being examined for use in a particular study
• One-tailed hypothesis

  Only one direction of an effect or relationship is predicted in the alternative hypothesis of the test
• Alternate hypothesis

  Specific claims that an experiment has been designed to test
• Two-tailed hypothesis

  Both directions of an effect or relationship are considered in the alternative hypothesis of the test
• Null hypothesis

  A prediction that there is no difference between groups or conditions
• Pilot survey

  A small scale replica of a survey done to find out if the main survey will work
• Response sets and response biases

  When a person is likely to give the same answer to a series of questions so is more likely to give the same answer in future questions
• What should be avoided in questionnaires?

  Requesting for personal data, negatives in questions, making it too long and going straight into long questions
• Dichotomies

  Yes/no questions
• Likert scale

  Statement followed by tick boxes eg agree/disagree
• Rating scales

  Marking a point in between a scale based on where you fit
• Identifying Characteristics

  Circling words/phrases which they think apply to them
• Strengths of closed ended questions

  Numbers can be generated and statistical analyses can be carried out, they can be reliable if questions are clear and respondents understand then
• Weaknesses of closed ended questions

  Might force a respondent to making a choice when they don't know

  Some of the options can be subjective

  Respondent might make mistakes when answering quickly
• Social desireability bias

  Ppt may lie to seem more desirable, eg answering "no" to are you a racist
• Demand characteristics

  Ppt might guess the purpose of the study so many try to give the "right" answers, this decreases validity
• Strengths of open ended questions

  Data can be more rich and detailed

  Data can be interpreted to discover the real meaning of what respondents thinks
• Weaknesses of open ended questions

  Answers are individual and qualitative so hard to compare and analyse

  Not as reliable as there is more freedom

  Require more effort and time so may not be full answers
• Quantitative data

  Involves numbers and figures
• Qualitative data

  Involves opinions and ideas
• Strengths of qualitative data

  Detailed info on a subject with in depth analysis

  High validity representing what subjects really think instead of forcing them into boxes
• Weakness of qualitative data

  Hard to analyse statistically as it has to be converted to numbers

  Hard to compare as it is open

  Less reliable as responses will be different a lot

  People less willing to respond to open ended questions
• Strengths of quantitative data

  Quickly analysed and communicated

  Reliable if methods for gathering are controlled
• Weaknesses of quantitative data

  May not be valid and respondents are confined to boxes
• Strengths of questionnaires

  If the same questions are asked then you can accurately reflect opinions

  Postal removes researcher bias

  Can be replicated if the same questions are asked
• Weaknesses of questionnaires

  Set questions may not let the ppts answer what they really think

  If the procedure is not standardised eg the researcher differs then the reliability could be low
• Structured interview

  Participant are asked the same questions in the same way
• Semi-structured interview

  There is a list of questions that have been worked out in advance but interviewers are also free to ask follow up questions when they feel it is appropriate
• Unstructured interview

  No set questions so the researcher can explore whatever they feel is appropriate
• Strengths of interviews

  Questions can be explained and explored to obtain in depth and detailed information
• Weaknesses of interviews

  Researcher bias when asking questions

  The researcher may not be objective to certain issues

  Unstructured lacks reliability