Experimental Methods

• Laboratory experiment- A experiment conducted in a artificial experiment
• A strength of a laboratory experiment is that it can be controlled and replicated. This means that the study can be replicated and the experiment can be checked to prove it is correct.
• Another strength of a laboratory experiment is control. This means that that researcher can investigate the effect of confounding variables more accurately.
• One limitation of a Laboratory experiment is that it is a artificial experiment. This means that it cant be applied to real life situations as people behave in unusual ways in unfamiliar circumstances
• Another negative of a Laboratory experiment is that participants are usually aware that they are being tested. This could lead to unnatural behaviour. These are demand charachteristics.
• A field experiment is when the IV(Independent variable) is manipulated in a natural, everyday setting.
• One strength of a field experiment is that it will have higher mundane realism than a lab experiment because the environment is more natural. This means that field experiments may produce behaviour that is more valid and authentic. This also leads to high external validity as participants dont know they are being tested.
• One negative of a field experiment is ethical issues. Participants don't know that they are being tested so they cannot consent to being tested and it is a invasion of privacy.
• Another negative of a field experiment is that there is a loss of control over extraneous variables. This means that cause and effect between the IV and DV cannot be determined.
• Natural experiment is when variables are measured that aren't manipulated by the experimenter.
• One strength of a natural experiment is that it provides opportunities for research that may not be undertaken for practical or ethical reasons.
• Another strength of a natural experiment is that it has a high external validity as it is a real life situation and studies of real life issues and the problems they cause.
• One weakness of a natural experiment is it rare that natural occurring event may happen which reduces the opportunity for research.
• Another weakness is that participants may not be randomly allocated to experimental conditions which means that the researcher cannot be sure if the IV affects the DV
• A Quasi experiment is when they have an IV based on a existence difference between people(Gender or age)
• A quasi experiment shares the same strengths as a lab experiment as it is under control conditions.
• A weakness of Quasi experiment is that you cannot randomly allocate participants which could lead to confounding variables.