Validity

• Validity


  Asking if something is true, accurate, and can be believed
• Questionability is always important in science, especially in psychology where there is potential for bias</b>
• Internal validity


  Asking if the change in the independent variable actually produced the change in the dependent variable, or if it was something else
• External validity


  Considering if the findings can be generalized beyond the study setting and population
• Ecological validity


  • Considering if the findings from one setting can be generalized to other settings
• Mundane realism


  • How close the task is to real life or naturalistic behaviour
• Population validity


  • Generalizing findings from the sample to the broader population
• Temporal validity


  • Whether a finding can be applied across time as society and technology change
• Face validity


  Whether the measure looks like it's measuring what it's intended to measure
• Criterion validity


  Comparing the data from a test to another measurement or standard
• Concurrent validity


  Comparing a new test to an established test of the same thing
• Predictive validity


  Ability to accurately predict future performance based on the results
• Improving internal validity


  1. Random allocation

  2. Standard procedures

  3. Counterbalancing

  4. Single/double-blind

  5. Peer review
• Improving external validity


  1. Replication in multiple settings

  2. Replication with diverse samples

  3. Modern day replication