Identifying Variables
What is the independent variable?
The variable in a study being changed
A naturalistic observation
A naturalistic observation includes observing something in the natural habitat= not influenced by observers
eg watching how children act in a classroom through cameras
name all 4 types of measurement scales
nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio
What is informed consent
With individuals incapable of giving informed consent a researcher should:
• provide adequate explanation
• gain participant’s assent
• obtain consent from a legally authorized person
What are reliability and validity
Validity – The extent to which the test measures the construct it attempts to or study adequately addresses the hypothesis
Reliability – Does the variable measure consistently?
What is the dependent variable and what is its relationship to the independent variable
the dependent variable is the one that is being measured. Its relationship to the independent variable is that the measurement of the DV looks at what change has occurred because of the IV
an experiment
looking for causation between the IV and the DV
eg will surveys promising money as a reward get more participants than those without monetary reward?
explain the defining features of 1 scale
NOminal is NO order, labels (categories) only
Natural order= ORDinal ORDER is meaningful
Interval=Can fall below zero
Ratio= That one has a meaningful/true zero.
What are the two types of deception
Omission - withholding information
Commission - presentation of misinformation
Explain 2 methods of reliability
• Internal consistency – in a survey or test with many questions, do responses on similar questions correlate with each other?
• Test-retest reliability – if participants take the same measure twice, do their responses correlate with each other?
• Inter-rater reliability – if two people answer questions about the same thing, do their answers correlate with each other?
Parallel-forms reliability – if one person completes slightly different tests of the same thing do their responses correlate?
In a study examining how the amount of exercise a person has effects the amount of sleep they get at night, which is the IV and which is the DV
IV= amount of exercise
DV= amount of sleep
Correlational research
No causation at all. Only looking at the relationship between
eg the relationship between hot weather and sunscreen used
give an example of nominal and ordinal
NOminal is NO order, labels (categories) only- eye colour, gender
Natural order= ORDinal ORDER is meaningful- police rank, education level
What must occur to ensure there is no sampling bias
Representativeness in the sample
Name all types of validity
internal, external, face, construct, content, criterion
In a study looking how sunlight effects plant growth, what could be some confounding variables
confounding variable= other possible reasons for results. other potential variables that effect the dv
eg water given to the plant, soil
Survey research
Relies on self reported data
DAS-21
explain the defining features of 3 scales
NOminal is NO order, labels (categories) only
Natural order= ORDinal ORDER is meaningful
Interval=Can fall below zero
Ratio= That one has a meaningful/true zero.
explain single blind and double blind studies
single blind: only the researcher doing the study knows which treatment or intervention the participant is receiving until the trial is over
double blind: neither the researcher or the participant knows which treatment or intervention the participant is receiving until the trial is over
List the 4 types of reliability
Inter-rater reliability
Parallel-forms reliability
Test-retest reliability
Internal consistency
in a study examining the relationship between bee pollination and flower growth, which is the DV and which is the IV
there are none. this is a correlational study
A case study
a case study is in depth observation of someone or a group of people
often includes something that you don't /can't influence as a researcher but has happened to someone
eg examining the effects of childhood trauma on employment acquistion
give an example of an interval and ratio scale
Interval=Can fall below zero- tempreture
Ratio= That one has a meaningful/true zero- speed of car, IQ, height
When is it ok to use deception
-debriefing must occur after
we use deception for things such as placebos.
when the knowledge could lead to experimenter effects (demand characteristics)
What are some threats to validity
Selection bias – only participants with certain characteristics end up in sample
Experimental Mortality – If groups lose participants they might not be equivalent anymore