Types of data.

• what is qualitative data?

  -data that is expressed in words and may take the form of a written description of the thoughts feeling and opinions of participants.

  -it can also be written account of what the researcher saw-for observations, eg a transcript from an interview.
• what is quantitative data?

  -data that is expressed in numerical form. techniques usually gather numerical data in the from of individual scores from ppts. eg the number of words a ppt can remember.

  -this data can then be analysed statistically and can be easily converted into graphs, charts, etc.
• evaluate qualitative data

  strengths-gives the researcher much more richness of detail than quantitative data

  -it is much broader in scope and gives the ppt/respondent the opportunity to fully report their thoughts feelings and opinions.

  -greater external validity-the researcher is given a more meaningful insight into the ppts worldview.

  weaknesses- difficult to analyse- patterns and comparisons within and between data may be hard to identify

  -conclusions often rely on the subjective interpretations of the researcher and these may be subject to bias.
• evaluate quantitative data

  strengths

  -simple to analyse- therefore comparisons between groups can easily be drawn.

  -tends to be more objective and less open to bias

  weaknesses

  -narrower in meaning and detail. therefore it may not reflect 'real life'
• what is primary data? and examples of it

  -field research

  -refers to original data that has been collected specifically for the purpose of the investigation by the researcher.

  -it is data that arrives first-hand from the ppts themselves.

  examples-experiments, questionaires ,interviews or obersevations
• what is secondary data? and examples

  -refers to data that is collected by someone other than the person who is conducted the research

  -this is data that already exists before the psychologist begins their research of investigation.

  -also known as 'desk research'

  -often secondary data has already been subjected to statistical testing and the significance is therefore known.

  examples-journal articles, nooks, websites, govt statistical info
• evaluate primary data/ strengths+weaknesses

  strengths-

  -authentic data obtained from the ppts themselves for the purpose of a particular investigation.

  -questionaires/interviews can be designed in a way that specifically targets the information required by the researcher.

  weaknesses-

  -it requires time and effort from the researcher

  -conducting an experiment requires considerable planning, preparation and resources.
• evaluate secondary data/strengths+weaknesses

  strengths-inexpensive and easily accessed with minimal effort from the researcher.

  weaknesses-information might first appear as valuable and promising, but on further investigation, may be outdated or incomplete.

  -the data may not match exactly the researchers needs or objectives. this can challenge the validity of any conclusions.
• what is meta-analysis? and an example

  -this uses secondary data

  -a number of studies that are identified as having the same hypothesis or aim are pooled together.

  for example, if multiple experiments measure there independent variable in the same way they can be used to get an overall statistical measure of difference or relationship between variables.
• evaluate meta-analysis/ strength+weaknesses

  strengths- creates a larger, more varied sample and the results can be generalised across larger population, increase validity

  weaknesses-may be prone to publication bias (file drawer problems). the researcher may not select relevant studies, choosing leave out studies with negative or non-significant results. therefore, conclusion will be biased because they only represent some of the relevant data.