Validity

• What is validity in research?

  Measure of accuracy of a study
• What does external validity refer to?

  Applying/generalising study results
• What are the three types of external validity?

  • Ecological validity
  • Population validity
  • Temporal validity
• What is ecological validity?

  Reflects real-life study environment
• How can ecological validity be improved?

  Make setting and task more realistic
• What is population validity?

  Sample's representativeness of target population
• How can population validity be improved?

  Use better sampling methods
• What is temporal validity?

  Generalising results to modern behaviour
• How can temporal validity be ensured?

  Retest new participants on older research
• What is internal validity?

  Accuracy of study conduct and measurement
• What are situational variables?

  Environmental factors affecting study conditions
• How can situational variables be overcome?

  Standardisation of conditions
• What are participant variables?

  Individual differences affecting study results
• How can participant variables be overcome?

  Use repeated measures or matched pairs design
• What is investigator bias?

  Researcher influences participant behaviour unintentionally
• How can investigator bias be overcome?

  Use a double-blind design
• What are demand characteristics?

  Participants guess study aims and alter behaviour
• How can demand characteristics be overcome?

  Use deception to hide study aims
• What is social desirability bias?

  Participants alter answers to appear better
• How can social desirability bias be overcome?

  Make questionnaire anonymous
• What is concurrent validity?

  • Check measuring tool against existing tool
  • Compares participant scores on both measures
• What is face validity?

  Measure appears to assess what it claims
• How is face validity assessed?

  Expert examines the measuring tool