Reliability

• How do you improve the reliability of self report techs?

  Ensure test items and instructions are unambiguous
• How do we assess the reliability of observational techniques?

  • Repeat - eg- watch vid of first observation. If observations are reliable, the second set should be about same as first
  • Inter-observer reliability- extent to which two or more observers agree on observations they record, correlation co efficient- +0.8/more
• How do we improve reliability of observational techniques?

  • Operationalise behavioural categories
  • Pilot study
  • Train observers accurately
• How do you asses the reliability of experiments?

  • DV measured using rating scale/behavioural category
  • Test-retest reliability can be used to asses this
• How do you improve the reliability of experiments?

  Standardise procedures
• what is meant by reliability?

  • consistency of results
  • expecting any measurement to produce the same data if taken on successive occasions
• what is meant by self-report techniques?

  when participants tell the researcher what they think/feel
• how do we asses the reliability of self-report techniques?

  • test-retest reliability- same test is given to a group of people twice. Short interval between tests (1-2 weeks). If reliable, scores in the second tests should be similar to those in the first. Scores for each person should be correlated
  • inter-interviewer reliability- compare answers on one occasion from a pp with the same interviewer a week later. Correlate findings, or assess consistency of two interviewers using same method and correlate findings