research methods

• lab experiment


  experiments that are in a controlled artificial setting
• field experiment


  experiments that occur in the natural environment of the participants
• Quasi


  where the independent variable is naturally occurring
• structured observation


  researcher identifies beforehand which behaviors are to be observed and recorded
• unstructured observation


  the problem has not been specifically defined, so a great deal of flexibility is allowed the observers in terms of what they note and record
• naturalistic observation


  observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation
• controlled observation


  Some control over variables takes place to observe how people may interact/behave. They take place inside and outside of a lab.
• participant observation


  a research method in which investigators systematically observe people while joining them in their routine activities
• non-participant observation


  The researcher is not involved in what is going on. The researcher is external to what is going on/the people being observed.
• overt observation


  Participants know they are being observed
• covert observation


  Participants do not know they are being observed
• questionnaire


  a written set of questions to be answered by a research participant
• structured


  preset question {uses both closed and open questions}
• unstructured


  no pre set questions
• positive correlation


  A correlation where as one variable increases, the other also increases, or as one decreases so does the other. Both variables move in the same direction.
• no correlation


  There is no relationship between data sets.
• negative correlation


  as one variable increases, the other decreases
• research aim


  A statement that sets out the aim of what the researcher is investigating
• research question


  A question that can be answered by an experiment or series of experiments
• null hypothesis


  a statement or idea that can be falsified, or proved wrong
• alternative hypothesis


  The hypothesis that states there is a difference between two or more sets of data.
• one tailed hypothesis

  only one direction of an effect or relationship is predicted in the alternative hypothesis of the test
• two tailed hypothesis


  both directions of an effect or relationship are considered in the alternative hypothesis of the test
• random sampling


  a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion
• snowball sampling


  recruitment of participants based on word of mouth or referrals from other participants
• opportunity sampling


  A sample of participants produced by selecting people who are most easily available at the time of the study.
• self-selecting sample


  participants volunteer themselves for the study, example responding to an advert
• repeated measures design


  The same participants are used in all the conditions in an experiment.
• matched pairs design


  Participants are matched on key characteristics. One participant does control condition and the other does the experimental condition.
• independent measures


  experimental design where separate participants take part in each of the conditions
• independent variable (IV)


  the variable that a researcher actively manipulates, and if the hypothesis is correct, will cause a change in the dependent variable
• dependent variable (DV)


  the research variable that is influenced by the independent variable, and the impact can be measured
• extraneous variable


  In an experiment, a variable other than the IV that might cause unwanted changes in the DV.
• behavioural categories
• coding frames


  A coding frame is used to operationalise behaviour and allow the researcher to record observations. Researchers will categorise behaviour and create a table in order to record the occurrence of each category.
• open questions


  Questions with no fixed answer/response and respondents can answer in any way they wish.
• closed questions


  questions that ask for specific information and elicit a short, one- or two- word answer, a "yes" or "no," or a forced choice
• likert rating scale


  a way for someone to express with numbers the degree to which a particular trait describes him or her
• interval data
• quantitative data