True Experiments
What is the key feature of a true experiment that distinguishes it from other methods?
Random allocation of participants to conditions.
What distinguishes a quasi-experiment from a true experiment?
Participants are grouped based on existing traits or characteristics rather than being randomly assigned.
What is the defining characteristic of a natural experiment?
The independent variable is determined by natural or environmental factors, not manipulated by the researcher.
Where are field experiments conducted?
In real-world, natural settings.
What is the main goal of a correlational study?
To measure the strength and direction of the relationship between two variables.
Why are standardized procedures important in true experiments?
They ensure consistency and replicability of the study.
Provide an example of an independent variable in a quasi-experiment.
Gender, age, or having a specific diagnosis like depression.
How do natural experiments typically measure changes?
Through a pre-test and post-test design.
What is one advantage of field experiments?
They have high ecological validity because participants are in their natural environment.
What is a positive correlation?
When both variables move in the same direction, such as studying more hours leading to higher grades.
What is the role of a control group in a true experiment?
It allows researchers to compare outcomes and attribute changes to the manipulation of the independent variable.
Why are quasi-experiments often used in psychological research?
They allow researchers to study variables that cannot be ethically or practically manipulated.
Provide an example of a natural experiment.
Studying the effects of a smoking ban on public health by measuring outcomes before and after the policy change.
Why might extraneous variables be a problem in field experiments?
The real-world setting makes it difficult to control all potential influences on the dependent variable.
Why can correlational studies not determine causation?
They do not involve manipulation of variables, so bidirectional ambiguity or third variables may explain the relationship.
How do demand characteristics threaten the validity of a true experiment?
Participants may alter their behavior simply because they know they are being observed.
What is a limitation of quasi-experiments regarding internal validity?
Lack of random allocation makes it harder to establish cause-and-effect relationships.
What are some ethical advantages of natural experiments?
They avoid directly manipulating variables, reducing ethical concerns like harm or lack of consent.
Evaluate the ethical concerns of field experiments.
Informed consent is often difficult to obtain, and debriefing may be impractical in public settings.
What are the strengths of correlational studies in psychological research?
They are useful for studying relationships between variables that cannot be ethically or practically manipulated.
Evaluate the ecological validity of true experiments.
True experiments often lack ecological validity because they are conducted in highly controlled, artificial environments.
Discuss the generalizability of findings from quasi-experiments.
Findings can be more generalizable to real-world contexts but are often limited by confounding variables and selection bias.
Critique the reliability of natural experiments.
Reliability is often low because the lack of control over extraneous variables makes replication difficult.
Discuss the replicability of field experiments compared to lab experiments.
Replicability is lower due to the difficulty in recreating the exact natural conditions and controlling extraneous variables.
Evaluate the limitations of correlational studies in terms of internal validity.
Internal validity is low due to the inability to control for confounding variables, making causal inferences impossible.