Research Methods

Research Methods Investigating Behaviour Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

What will l be doing in this unit? Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

The Research Process • Is Psychology common sense? • As humans we have a desire to predict behaviour we are in essence ‘amateur psychologists’. But is psychology as simple as that? • Well, the thing that makes psychology more than just common sense is that its assumptions are scientific and a result of research based testing. • It uses scientific research methods to establish whether theories are supported or not. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Student Activity • In groups of 2-3 consider the following questions. • What are common sense explanations of behaviour – give 2 examples. • Why do psychologists consider their explanations to be testable and scientific? http://www.longroad.ac.uk/accreditation/subject_psychology/investigations/booklet 1.pdf Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

So what are Research Methods? Research Methods include all aspects of the research process, from planning, through to implementation and on to the reporting of the findings. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

The Four step research process • Psychologists use a four step process to carry out a piece of research: • Form a hypothesis – a hypothesis is the research question or the idea they wish to study i.e. are women better drivers than men. • Design research study to test hypothesis and collect the data – How am l going to go about and answer this question , how am l going to collect the data, which method? • Analyse results to confirm or refute hypothesis. • Modify theoretical concepts or revise hypothesis and conduct further research. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Diagram of four step research process Form Hypothesis Implications for further research Design research study what methods can l use? Analyse results to confirm hypothesis Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Key terms in research • Aims – Aim of study is to answer research question. • For example – Does alcohol affect driving ability? • Hypothesis – A statement which the experimenter expects to occur. This should be tested and can be supported or rejected. • Alcohol does affect driving ability. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Key Terms Cont…. • There are two types of hypothesis : - Experimental (or alternate or research) hypothesis, so you would predict that if you give alcohol to a driver this will affect their driving ability ie one variable affects another. - Null hypothesis is when one variable does not affect the other ie alcohol did not affect driving another variable did, examples may include lack of sleep, hunger, type of car used etc. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

In summary… So for our experiment : Alcohol affects driving ability, we would use the following two hypothesis: • Experimental Hypothesis – Alcohol does affect driving ability. • Null Hypothesis – Alcohol does not affect driving ability. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Quantative and Qualitative Research • There are two methods used by psychologists in collecting and analysing data: • Quantative – most often used in experiments, observations and surveys. This is used to look at how often, how much, how long behaviour occurs. Results are generally numerical and in graphs and charts. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Quantative and Qualitative Research - Qualitative data is usually the result of interviews and case studies. Here the information gathered is detailed and descriptive. Usually the data cannot be charted in graphs but instead in sentence form. Here you are explaining the ‘why’ to certain behaviours. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Examples of Quantative and Qualitative data in literature • Qualitative – Rawlins, R (1979) Forty Years of Rhesus Research - The Colony of Monkeys. New Scientist, 82, 108-10. • Quantative – Holmes, TH & Rahe, RH (1967) The social readjustment rating scale. Journal of Psychosomatic research, 11, 213-18. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Closed and open questioning • Closed questions Questions that provide alternatives for participants to choose from for example multiple choice, yes or no, true or false questions. Answers do not lead on to further analysis, they are objective, unambiguous and reliable. • Open questions Allow for a wide range of responses, they are not constrained by options given instead in-depth responses given. Answers can be ambiguous and subjective. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Reliability and Validity • Reliability The extend to which the same method produces the same results each time it is used. It is the assurance of consistency and credibility. A test is reliable if if its stable over time and distance ie it produces the same results on the same people each time it is used in a day, week, month etc. • Validity Establishes that a measure is measuring exactly what you expect it to measure ie an IQ test should test intelligence not memory. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Variables • Something open to change. • Independent Variable the experimenter can manipulate or control • Dependent Response being measured • Extraneous Any variable, other than the IV that may effect DV. The researcher should try to minimise their influence. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

An example : Hypothesis: ‘Background noise will have an effect on short term memory performance’ IV : Background noise can be under two conditions: Condition 1 : no loud music (control group) Condition 2 : loud classical music (experimental group) Thus the researcher can manipulate experiment under the two conditions. DV : Short term memory performance Extraneous variables : is participant drowsy, what have they had to eat etc. These factors too can affect short term memory thus it is important to control these factors as much as possible. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Sampling Methods • Control and experimental groups The control group is the group who have not been exposed to the manipulation of the IV. So in the example the control group would not have loud music playing while they complete their short term memory task. The experimental group however do have the music playing whilst completing their task. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Sampling methods • Psychologists generally want their conclusions to apply to members of a particular population ie all 5 year old girls, Scottish voters, obese teens etc. But they cannot study all members of this group thus they select a sample of this population. Their sample should be an accurate representation of the entire population. • So the sample must be representative of the population and each subject must be randomly chosen. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Methods of collecting data • Experiment and Non experiment • Experiment - Most controlled form of study and the only form where you can show that one variable causes another. - Here you are looking at the cause (IV) and effect (DV) relationship. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Types of Experiment • Lab -Completely controlled environment, where variables are monitored and controlled. Replication is a key factor and ethical guidelines is a must. • Field - Study takes place in more everyday surrounding i.e. school, street etc. IV is manipulated but outside extraneous variables may come into play due to lack of control. • Natural - Occurs when researcher exploits a natural event that is about to occur and takes the form of an experimental situation. For example, a volcano, authorities relaxing visiting times at a hospital etc. What effect do these changes have. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Demand Characteristics • A term that is used to describe the process that occurs when people know or think they know what the experiment is about or what the experimenter is looking for. When this happens in experiments it can affect the way people behave. • Also the experimenter may effect the experiment depending on how they interact with the participants , thus experimenters should used standardised instructions in what to do and say to participants. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Non experimental Methods • As you know an experiment is a procedure whereby a researcher systematically varies one or more factors in order to see what effects the changes have on behaviour. Non experimental methods do not involve direct control of any factor (no IV or DV).They simply describe what is happening. For example, noting an individuals co ordination before and after they visit a bar would not tell us anything about how alcohol affects co ordination, but would give us data concerning the changes in co ordination and other characteristics. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Surveys • Umbrella term for a variety of methods that involve asking questions. Based on self report, participants are asked what they think, feel, views, options, experiences etc. This is in contrast to experiments whereby the behaviour of an individual is observed and then inferences are made about underlying thoughts, feelings and attitudes. • Can consist of questionnaires or surveys. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Questionnaires • Questionnaires are sets of questions that can be answered in person or in writing . • Generally they can be highly structured, consisting of predetermined questions with a limited choice of answers to tick. • Can also include open questions for participants to express their opinions and provide feedback. • Used in market research for example online questionnaires, student evaluation forms etc. • Normally the sample is wide as it is a relatively cheap and easy tool to collect data. • Data is usually Quantative . Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Writing a good questionnaire - Tips • The first step is to generate as many ideas as possible that might be relevant to the questionnaire. • Closed and Open questions – decide which to use, most questionnaires have closed questions because the answers are easy to score and analyse. • Ambiguity and bias – Structure of questions should be considered, questions should be unbiased, unambiguous, brief , not emotive (questions should not produce a strong emotional response). Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Interviews • Consists of a set of questions. The number of questions vary and the extent to which these questions are fixed varies. Interviews are normally conducted live ie face to face, telephone etc. • An interview may be structured or unstructured and open ended in which case questions are not predetermined and answers can be free ranging. • Some interviews use flexible approach whereby new questions are generated in response to previous answers. • Data can be quantative (structured interview) and qualitative (unstructured interview). Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Problems associated with surveys Social Desirability Bias – tendency for respondents to provide ‘socially desirable answer's so they appear in a better light. This reduces validity of research findings as they data does not represent what people actually think and do. Response Set – some participants prefer to give the answer ‘yes’ than ‘no’. So it is important to vary questions to get a mixture of yes and no answers. Interviewer Bias – leading questions should be avoided. Inter- Interviewer reliability – if more than one person is interviewing there should be a consistency between them on the type of questions asked. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Case study • A study of a single case, whereby the researcher studies one person, a small group of individuals, a family, school. • The method is used in psychology in the study of atypical behaviour because occurrences of such ‘abnormal’ behaviour are rare. • Examples include ‘little Hans’(Freud, 1909) ‘Anna O’ (Freud, 1910), ‘Genie’ (1970). See class handout. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

The main features of a case study • The case study approach offers a rich amount of detail and insight into a particular person. • It is also grounded in real life. • It is usually longitudinal i.e. carried out over a long period of time, with regular collection of data from individual(s) under study. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Case study involves one or more research methodologies: • Case History - records collected from past about prior history i.e. school, medical records etc • Interviews – The individual might be interviewed to discover information about their past or about present attitudes and feelings. Other people also may be interviewed for additional information. • Psychometric tests – may be used to assess attitudes, ability and personality. • Diaries – can be kept and used by individuals. • Observation – observe participant behaviour. • Experimental Tasks. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Problems • Subjectivity – generally researchers strive to be objective and unbiased. However, case studies involve lengthily, fairly unstructured interviews between the researcher and participant, thus, there is a high likelihood that the researcher will form expectations which will be bias. • Ethical Issues - Case studies are very private thus it is essential to keep details in confidence. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics • Summary of BPS Ethical Principles for Conducting RESEARCH With Human Participants (2000) • Introduction • Participants should have confidence in the investigators • There should be mutual respect between investigators and participants • BPS members should encourage colleagues to adopt these ethical principles and ensure that they are followed by those under their supervision. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics • Investigators should consider all ethical and psychological consequences of their research on their participants. • There should be no threat to participant’s psychological well-being, health, values or dignity. Where investigators are not familiar with participant’s culture, ethnicity, age group, gender or social background, it is suggested that the best judge of whether an investigation may cause offence to the sample are members of population from which the sample is drawn. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics Consent Where possible, participants should be informed of the nature of the investigation prior to taking part, particularly if such information may influence their willingness to take part. • Where research is conducted using children, or with participants who are unable to give consent, special safeguards should be in place. • Where participants are under 16, consent should be obtained from parents or those in loco parentis. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics • Deception • Withholding information about the nature of the research is unacceptable where such information may influence the decision of the participant to take part. • Advice should be sought from disinterested experienced colleagues. • Advice may also be sought regarding the consequences of the research on a minority group from members of the same minority group. • If you feel that deception is necessary: • 1.consider alternative procedures • 2.give sufficient information to participants as soon as possible. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics Debriefing • · Investigators should ensure that participants are given enough information on completion of the research to complete their understanding. • · Investigators should also discuss with the participants, their experience of the research. Withdrawl • · Participants should be informed that they have the right to withdraw from the investigation at any time. • · Withdrawal can take place before, during or after the investigation is complete. Where this occurs afterwards, participant’s data should be destroyed. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics • Confidentiality Participant information is confidential unless otherwise agreed in advance. • Participants have the right to expect that any information about them is confidential and that they will not be identifiable from any written reports on the investigation. • Protection • ·It is the investigators responsibility to ensure that participants are not subjected to any greater physical or mental harm than they would expect in their everyday life. • ·Participants should be given a contact number (school/college) which can be used if they experience any stress following the investigation, or if they have any further questions. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Ethics • ·Participants should be assured that they do not require to give any information that they consider to be private or personal. • Observation • ·Where the observational method is used and consent is not obtained, such observation is only acceptable in circumstances where the participants would reasonably be expected to be observed by strangers. • ·Cultural differences should be considered when applying the above rule. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Quiz – click anywhere on the owl Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

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Question 1 Which phrase best describes psychological research? Assumptions are scientific and a result of research based testing. Assumptions based on common sense explanations. Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

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Question 1 wrong Sorry, try again……. Back to question Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

Question 2 What is the first step of the research process? Analyse results Form hypothesis Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

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Question 3 What is a hypothesis? A way of collecting data A statement which predicts what the experimenter expects to occur Psychology : Investigating Behaviour

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Research Methods