Research methods

• 3 types of experiment

  1. lab
  2. field
  3. natural
• Directional hypothesis - predicts the direction of the difference (experimental) or relationship (correlational)

  e.g. males will obey more than females
• non-directional hypothesis - the researcher does not know which way the results will go

  e.g. there is a significant difference…
• null hypothesis - predicts no difference between the 2 groups

  e.g. no difference in memory between males and females
• 3 types of expeRIMental design

  1. repeated measures design
  2. independent groups design
  3. matched pairs design
• repeated measures design - 1 group 2 conditions

  e.g. same groups try different cakes
• independent groups design - comparison between 2 groups

  e.g. 2 groups try the same cake then compared
• matched pairs design - pps are matched based on a characteristic (same gender, age etc.) and are each put into a condition

  e.g. 1 boy group, 1 girl group, compare
• 3 observational methods

  1. naturalistic
  2. controlled
  3. content analysis
• naturalistic observation - behaviour observed by researcher in a natural setting
• controlled observation - researcher controls some elements (e.g. the environment)
• content analysis - indirect observations of behaviour based on things such as the TV
• Open ended questions - allow for qualitative data, not restricted to a set of answers
• closed questions - questions that have a set of answers to choose from, no elaboration
• 3 types of interview

  1. structured
  2. semi-structured
  3. unstructured
• questionnaires AO3 -

  :) cheap and quick

  :) pps can remain anonymous

  :( closed questions
• case study - a detailed investigation of an individual, group or event. uses information from many places (e.g. person involved, family, friends) and uses lots of techniques (e.g. questionnaire, interviews, IQ tests etc)
• 5 sampling techniques

  1. Random sampling
  2. volunteer sampling
  3. opportunity sampling - anyone available
  4. systematic sampling - every 1st & 10th person
  5. stratified sampling - includes subgroups
• ethics

  • protection from harm
  • observations
  • withdrawal
  • consent
  • confidentiality
  • deception
  • debrief
• ethical committee - must approve a study before it goes ahead to make sure it follows the ethical guidelines
• presumptive consent - when the pps cannot be told the aim because it could lead to biased results. people similar to the pp are asked if they would consent
• internal validity - how accurate an experiment is within itself

  external validity - how accurate the results are when applied to different environments / situations
• internal reliability - how consistent an experiments results are (e.g. all pps having the same test)

  external reliability - how consistent findings are over time
• qualitative data - rich, in-depth, detailed data, usually open questions used to explore thoughts/beliefs/feelings rather than facts
• quantitative data - rigid, numerical data from closed questions

  e.g. fractions, percentages, ratios, estimates, significant figures
• 3 measures of central tendency

  1. mean
  2. median
  3. mode
• 2 measures of dispersion

  1. range
  2. standard deviation (bell curves)
• displaying quantitative data

  • table
  • bar chart
  • histogram (bars touch, used to show frequency)
  • line graph
  • scattergraph
• data distribution

  positive skew - ‘long tail’ to the right

  negative skew - ‘long tail’ to the left
• Stages of a psychological study (scientific method) -

  1. Observation
  2. Testable hypothesis
  3. Research testing
  4. Support / rejection
• what makes research scientific?

  • empirical methods
  • Objectivity
  • Replicability
  • Theory construction
  • Hypothesis testing
  • Falsifiability
  • Paradigms
  • Paradigm shifts
• empirical methods - gaining knowledge on something through direct observations & testing, not just beliefs
• objectivity - theories, findings etc are based on observed findings and not influenced by personal beliefs
• replicability - repeating a study to see if the findings are the same both times
• theory construction - general ideas & facts that can be used to understand and predict things
• Hypothesis testing - theories are modified to ensure they can be tested
• falsifiability - the ability for a theory, belief or hypothesis to be proven wrong
• paradigms - a set of assumptions or ideas that are widely accepted by many people
• paradigm shift - a change from one way of thinking to another