PSYA1: Developmental Psychology: Early Social Development · PSY2: Research Methods - 2017/18 Lutterworth College: Psychology Department Resource Developed By: Mrs A Pepper A hypothesis

Date:

Lutterworth College: Psychology Department Resource Developed By: Mrs A Pepper PSY2: Research Methods -

2017/18

4.2.3 Research methods R A G Content

Experimental method. Types of experiment, laboratory and field experiments; natural and quasi-experiments.

Observational techniques. Types of observation: naturalistic and controlled observation; covert and overt observation; participant and non-participant observation.

Self-report techniques. Questionnaires; interviews, structured and unstructured.

Correlations. Analysis of the relationship between co-variables. The difference between correlations and experiments.

Content analysis & Case studies

4.2.3.1 Scientific processes R A G Content

Aims: stating aims, the difference between aims and hypotheses.

Hypotheses: directional and non-directional.

Sampling: the difference between population & sample; sampling techniques including: random, systematic, stratified, opportunity and volunteer; implications of sampling techniques, including bias and generalisation.

Pilot studies and the aims of piloting.

Experimental designs: repeated measures, independent groups, matched pairs.

Observational design: behavioural categories; event sampling; time sampling.

Questionnaire construction, including use of open and closed questions; design of interviews.

Variables: manipulation and control of variables, including independent, dependent, extraneous, confounding; operationalisation of variables.

Control: random allocation and counterbalancing, randomisation and standardisation.

Demand characteristics and investigator effects.

Ethics, including the role of the British Psychological Society’s code of ethics; ethical issues in the design and conduct of psychological studies; dealing with ethical issues in research.

The role of peer review in the scientific process.

The implications of psychological research for the economy.

Reliability across all methods of investigation. Ways of assessing reliability: test-retest and inter-observer; improving reliability.

Types of validity across all methods of investigation: face validity, concurrent validity, ecological validity and temporal validity. Assessment of validity. Improving validity.

Features of science: objectivity and the empirical method; replicability and falsifiability; theory construction and hypothesis testing; paradigms and paradigm shifts.

Reporting psychological investigations. Sections of a scientific report: abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion and referencing.

4.2.3.2 Data handling and analysis R A G Content

The distinction between qualitative & quantitative data collection techniques.

Primary and secondary data, including meta-analysis.

Descriptive statistics: measures of central tendency – mean, median, mode; calculation of mean, median and mode; measures of dispersion; range and standard deviation; calculation of range; calculation of percentages; positive, negative and zero correlations.

Presentation and display of quantitative data: graphs, tables, scattergrams, bar charts, histograms.

Distributions: normal and skewed distributions; characteristics of normal and skewed distributions.

Analysis and interpretation of correlation, including correlation coefficients.

Levels of measurement: nominal, ordinal and interval.

Content analysis and coding. Thematic analysis.

4.2.3.3 Inferential testing R A G Content

Probability and significance: use of statistical tables and critical values in interpretation of significance; Type I and Type II errors.

Factors affecting the choice of statistical test, including level of measurement and experimental design. When to use the following tests: Sign test, Spearman’s rho, Pearson’s r, Wilcoxon, Mann-Whitney, related t-test, unrelated t-test and Chi-Squared test.

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PSY2: Research Methods - 2017/18

Lutterworth College: Psychology Department Resource Developed By: Mrs A Pepper

Methods and

Techniques o Experimental Method o Laboratory experiments o Field experiments o Natural experiments o Quasi Experiments o Natural Observations o Controlled Observation o Covert Observations o Overt Observation o Participant Observation o Non-Participant Observation o Questionnaires o Structured Interviews o Unstructured Interviews o Correlations o Case studies o Meta Analyses

Scientific Processes o Aims o Independent Variable o Dependant Variable o Operationalise o Directional Hypotheses o Non-Directional Hypotheses o Operationalisation o Target Population o Random Sampling o Systematic Sampling o Stratified Sampling o Opportunity Sampling o Volunteer Sampling o Bias o Generalisation o Pilot Study o Independent Groups o Repeated Measures Design o Matched Pairs Design o Behaviour Categories o Event Sampling o Time Sampling o Open Questions o Closed Questions

o Extraneous Variables o Confounding Variables o Order Effects o Random Allocation o Counterbalancing o Randomisation o Standardisation o Demand characteristics o Informed Consent o Presumptive consent o Deception o Debrief o Confidentiality o Right to Withdraw o Protection from Harm o Reliability o Split Half o Test Retest o Inter-Observer o Ecological Validity o Historical Validity o Population Validity o Internal Validity o Mundane Realism o Investigator effect o Social Desirability Bias o Replicability o Objectivity o Control o Empiricism o Paradigm o Falsifiability o Deductive Reasoning o Inductive Reasoning o Abstract o Introduction o Method o Results o Discussion o References

Data Handling &

Analysis o Quantitative Data

o Qualitative Data o Primary Data o Secondary Data o Graphs o Scattergrams o Tables o Central Tendency o Mean o Median o Mode o Dispersion o Range o Standard Deviation o Positive Correlation o Negative Correlation o Correlation Coefficient o Normal Distribution o Skewed Distribution o Co-Variable o Intervening Variable o Nominal Data o Ordinal Data o Interval Data o Content Analysis o Coding o Thematic Analysis o Peer Review

Inferential Testing o Probability o Significance o Effect Size o Calculated Value o Critical Value o Type I Error o Type II Error o Sign Test o Spearman’s Rho o Pearson’s r o Wilcoxon o Mann-Whitney o Related t-test o Unrelated t-test o Chi-Squared

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Lutterworth College: Psychology Department Resource Developed By: Mrs A Pepper PSY2: Research Methods - 2017/18

*For your exam: you will need to be able to define this, and to pick out what the aim of a piece of research is.

Home Work / Class Work / Voluntary

A1) Dave, a middle-aged male researcher, approached an adult in a busy street. He asked the adult for

directions to the train station. He repeated this with 29 other adults. Each of the 30 adults was then

approached by a second researcher, called Sam, who showed each of them 10 photographs of different

middle-aged men, including a photograph of Dave. Sam asked the 30 adults to choose the photograph of the

person who had asked them for directions to the train station. Sam estimated the age of each of the 30 adults

and recorded whether each one had correctly chosen the photograph of Dave.

Identify one aim of this experiment. (2 marks)

A2) It is thought that colours might affect our performance when carrying out certain tasks. Research in

this area has been inconclusive. Some studies have shown that red improves performance but others have

found the opposite. It could be that these contradictory results have arisen because red is beneficial only for

certain kinds of mental processing. Some psychologists tested this hypothesis in a series of independent-

groups design experiments using students at a Canadian university. The experiments involved computer tasks,

with either a red, blue or neutral background appearing on the monitor. The researchers found that

participants were better at a word-recall task and a spell-checking task when the screen background was red

rather than blue or neutral. However, participants thought of more creative ideas when the screen was blue

rather than red or neutral. The researchers concluded that red is beneficial for tasks that require attention to

detail whereas blue aids creativity.

What were the researchers’ aims in this study? (2 marks)

Define “The Experimental Method”

A Research

Aim Is…

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&source=imgres&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAwQjRwwAGoVChMIhomwy-6RxgIVZ3DbCh3p0gB7&url=http://plpnetwork.com/2013/12/30/interview-marsha-ratzel-talks-teaching-high-gear/&ei=BNt-VYb3COfg7QbppYPYBw&psig=AFQjCNHbui3nlabD5ECXpVlIkZw0RQZa-g&ust=1434463364315135

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What are variables?

Variables are the ‘things’ in an investigation that are manipulated, measured or controlled. The

variables you need to know about are identified below – make sure you have a definition for each.

Before you can write your research hypothesis you must OPERATIONALISE your variables and think

about how you will control any extraneous

variables.

Which of the following variables are

operationalised and which are not ?

For those than are not, what you they need

to say?

Because: Because:

Because: Because:

Because: Because:

Independent

Variable

(IV)

Dependent

Variable

(DV)

This means to be precise and clear about what is

being manipulated or measured. Make it

testable and repeatable. This ensures less

subjectivity and more control.

Number of words

accurately recalled

Resources selected

Reaction time in seconds Punishment given

Intelligence level Number of faces

accurately recognised

Date:


Identify and operationalise the IV and the DV in the following hypotheses:

1) Male participants will throw a rugby ball further than female participants.

Independent Variable =

Dependent Variable =

2) Females with an eating disorder will score lower on a self-esteem questionnaire compared to

females who do not have an eating disorder.



3) Participants will move more counters when completing a counter moving task on their own

compared to when observed by an audience.




B1) A psychologist used an independent groups design to investigate whether or not a cognitive interview

was more effective than a standard interview, in recalling information. For this experiment, participants were

recruited from an advertisement placed in a local paper. The advertisement informed the participants that

they would be watching a film of a violent crime and that they would be interviewed about the content by a

male police officer. The psychologist compared the mean number of items recalled in the cognitive interview

with the mean number recalled in the standard interview. Identify the independent variable and the

dependent variable in this experiment. (2 marks)

B2) A psychologist showed participants 100 different cards, one at a time. Each card had two unrelated

words printed on it, eg DOG, HAT. Participants in one group were instructed to form a mental image to link

the words. Participants in the other group were instructed simply to memorise the words. After all the word

pairs had been presented, each participant was shown a card with the first word of each pair printed on it.

Participants were asked to recall the second word. (a) What is the independent variable (IV) in this study? (2

marks). (b) What is the dependent variable (DV) in this study? (2 marks)

B3) A researcher investigated the effect of age of starting day care on levels of aggression. Four-year-old

children attending a day nursery were used. Each child was assessed by the researcher and given an

aggression score. A high score indicated a high level of aggression. A low score indicated a low level of

aggression. The maximum score was 50. Identify the operationalised independent variable and the

operationalised dependent variable in this study. (2 marks + 2 marks)


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A hypothesis states what you believe is true. It is a precise and testable statement of the relationship

between two variables. It is a statement, not a question or a prediction. Follow the example on the

left to develop the hypothesis on the right into a fully operationalised, testable statement.

Possible Hypothesis

People remember more when they study in short

bursts.

The independent variable needs to have at least two conditions to make a comparison. These conditions

are known as the levels of the independent variable. A good hypothesis should always include two (or

more) levels of the IV or a condition where the IV is absent.

Levels of the IV ‘time spent studying’

Short bursts

Longer session

Possible Hypothesis

People remember more when they study in short

bursts than when studying in longer sessions

Possible Hypothesis

People concentrate more when they are able to

listen to music.

Levels of the IV ‘____________________

Possible Hypothesis

________________________________________

________________________________________

_

A good hypothesis must be in a testable from, i.e. a way that makes clear the specific way the

experiment tests the hypotheses. In particular we need to operationalise the IV and DV.

Operationalising the variables

IV: shorts bursts = 10 minutes repeated three

times over three hours.

IV: Longer sessions = one 30 minute session


IV:

IV:


DV: remember more = will get more questions

right on a test of recall.


DV: =

Fully Operationalised Hypothesis

People get more questions right on a test of

recall when they study in short bursts (ten

minutes at a time repeated three times) than

when studying for longer sessions (one 30-min

session

Fully Operationalised Hypothesis

Date:


Directional hypothesis

“Participants who IV (a) will state how their DV will differ compared to

participants who IV (b)”

Now you have a go…

Write a directional hypothesis for the following research questions – remember to operationalise

your variables!!!

Does the attractiveness of an individual effect the level of punishment they receive for a crime?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

Does the time of day effect performance on a word recall task

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

Non-directional Hypothesis

“There will be a difference in DV performance between IV (a) and IV (b)”

Now you have a go…

Write a non-directional hypothesis for the following research questions – remember to

operationalise your variables!!!

Does the attractiveness of an individual effect the level of punishment they receive for a crime?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

Does the time of day effect performance on a word recall task

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

Deciding on which type of hypothesis you should use:

Psychologists make the decision about which of these to use based on previous research. If the previous

research into a topic all suggests a particular outcome (meaning it all agrees) then a directional hypothesis

will be chosen. If, however, the previous research is contradictory or there is limited research already then a

non directional hypothesis will be chosen.

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C1) Students often claim that listening to music helps them to concentrate. A psychologist was not aware

of any previous research in this area. She decided to investigate this claim. Forty students from a nearby sixth

form centre volunteered to take part in her study. They each answered the following question: ‘Do you think

that you concentrate on your work ‘better’, ‘worse’ or ‘the same’ if you listen to music while working?’ Should

the hypothesis for this study be directional? Explain your answer. (2 marks)

C2) Following previous research indicating the social benefits of green space in urban areas, two

psychology students decided to observe social behaviour in public spaces. They focused on two neighbouring

towns, Greensville where most public spaces were planted with flowers and vegetables, and Brownton where

most public spaces were paved with concrete. Should the hypothesis for this research be directional or non-

directional? Explain your answer. (2 marks)

C3) A psychologist carried out an experiment using an independent groups design. The psychologist

wished to investigate the effectiveness of a strategy for memory improvement. In one condition, participants

were taught a memory improvement strategy. In the other condition, participants were not taught this

memory improvement strategy. All participants were asked to memorise 10 pictures of familiar objects. For

example, the first was a doll, the second was an apple. All participants were then given 50 pictures each, and

asked to select the original 10. Write a directional hypothesis for this experiment. (2 marks)

C4) A researcher investigated whether memory for words presented with pictures was better than

memory for words presented without pictures. The researcher used an independent groups design. In

Condition 1, participants were given a limited time to learn a list of 20 words. They were then asked to recall

the 20 words in any order. In Condition 2, participants were given the same time to learn the same 20 words,

but this time each word was presented with a picture. For example, the word ‘apple’ was presented alongside

a picture of an apple. They were then asked to recall the 20 words in any order. State a non-directional

hypothesis for this experiment. (2 marks)

C5) A psychologist wanted to see if verbal fluency is affected by whether people think they are presenting

information to a small group of people or to a large group of people. The participants were told that they

would be placed in a booth where they would read out an article about the life of a famous author to an

audience. Participants were also told that the audience would not be present, but would only be able to hear

them and would not be able to interact with them. There were two conditions in the study, Condition A and

Condition B. Condition A: 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 5 listeners. Condition B: the

other 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 100 listeners. Each participant completed the study

individually. The psychologist recorded each presentation and then counted the number of verbal errors made

by each participant. Write a suitable hypothesis for this study. (3 marks)


Date:


Experimental Methods Laboratory

Experiment

Field

Experiment

Natural

Experiment

Quasi

Experiment

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D1) A psychologist wanted to test whether listening to music improves running performance. The

psychologist conducted a study using 10 volunteers from a local gym. Half of the participants were assigned to

condition A (without music) and half to condition B (with music). All participants were asked to run 400 metres

as fast as they could on a treadmill in the psychology department. The psychologist recorded their running

times in seconds. The participants returned to the psychology department the following week and repeated

the test in the other condition. Identify the type of experiment used in this study. (1 mark)

A. Laboratory B. Quasi C. Natural D. Research

D2) A psychologist carried out a field experiment to investigate the accuracy of eyewitness testimony. The

participants were pupils and parents attending a school concert. Just before the concert began, two

professional actors had an argument on the stage. During the argument, one actor pushed the other actor.

Both actors then left the stage. Some of the audience were approached as they left the concert and were

asked to take part in an experiment. Those who agreed were taken to a quiet room and were asked some

questions about the argument. For some participants, the questions included, “Did you see the man in glasses

push the other man?” In fact, neither man was wearing glasses. The participants were then asked to describe

the argument in their own words. (a) What is a field experiment? (2 marks) (b) Other than ethical issues,

outline one weakness of using a field experiment in this investigation. (2 marks)

D3) A psychologist assessed the aggressive behaviour of 100 five-year-old children who were starting

school. The children had attended day care for at least 20 hours a week. Fifty of the children had attended

day nurseries. The other fifty children had been looked after by childminders. The children who attended the

day nurseries were more aggressive than the children who had been looked after by childminders. Explain

why this is an example of a natural experiment. (2 marks)

D4) Dave, a middle-aged male researcher, approached an adult in a busy street. He asked the adult for





and recorded whether each one had correctly chosen the photograph of Dave. Suggest one reason why the

researchers decided to use a field experiment rather than a laboratory experiment. (2 marks)

D5) Design an experiment to investigate the effect of indoor plants on mood in office workers. For your

measure of mood you should devise a measure that would give data suitable for testing at the ordinal level of

measurement. In your answer you should provide details of: Design – include reference to the experimental

design, variables and controls. Materials/Apparatus – describe any special materials required. Data analysis

that could be used – include reference to descriptive and inferential analysis. Justify your choices. (12 marks)


Date:


Independent Groups Design Description: Advantages: Disadvantages: Ways of dealing with the disadvantages: Random Allocation Image

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Repeated Measures Design

Description:

Advantages:

Disadvantages:

Ways of dealing with the disadvantages: Counterbalancing

Image

Date:


Matched Pairs Design

Description:

Advantages:

Disadvantages:

Ways of dealing with the disadvantages:

Image

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E1) A Psychology student carried out a laboratory experiment to investigate encoding in STM. She used an

opportunity sample of 20 participants. Two lists of letters were read out to participants. List 1: P V E D B C G T

(letters that sound the same). List 2: Y Z O A N F X R (letters that do not sound the same). All 20 participants

listened to list 1 and then tried to recall the letters. Next, they all listened to list 2 and then tried to recall these

letters. Name the experimental design used in this experiment. Evaluate the choice of this design in this

experiment. (1 + 3 marks)

E2) A researcher investigated whether memory for words presented with pictures was better than

memory for words presented without pictures. The researcher used an independent groups design. In

Condition 1, participants were given a limited time to learn a list of 20 words. They were then asked to recall

the 20 words in any order. In Condition 2, participants were given the same time to learn the same 20 words,

but this time each word was presented with a picture. For example, the word ‘apple’ was presented alongside

a picture of an apple. They were then asked to recall the 20 words in any order. Explain two reasons why it

was more appropriate to use an independent groups design than a repeated measures design. (2 marks + 2

marks)

E3) A psychologist showed participants 100 different cards, one at a time. Each card had two unrelated

words printed on it, eg DOG, HAT. Participants in one group were instructed to form a mental image to link

the words. Participants in the other group were instructed simply to memorise the words. After all the word

pairs had been presented, each participant was shown a card with the first word of each pair printed on it.

Participants were asked to recall the second word. (a) What experimental design was used in this study? (1

mark) (b) Explain one strength of this experimental design in the context of this study. (2 marks)

E4) Participants in an experiment were shown a film of a robbery. The participants were then divided into

two groups. One group was interviewed using a standard interview technique and the other group was

interviewed using the cognitive interview technique. All participants were then given an ‘accuracy score’ (out

of 20) based on how closely their recall matched the events in the film (20 = completely accurate, 0 = not at all

accurate). The experiment used an independent groups design. Explain how this study could have been

modified by using a matched pairs design. (4 marks)

E5) Psychologist obtained a volunteer sample of 10 students aged 17 years from a sixth form centre. Using

a repeated measures design, participants were asked to complete two puzzle tasks as quickly as possible. Task

A was to find 10 differences in a ‘spot the difference’ puzzle while working in silence. Task B was to find 10

differences in another ‘spot the difference’ puzzle while listening to music through headphones. The tasks

were counterbalanced and the time taken to complete each task was recorded for each student. The

psychologist used counterbalancing in the follow-up study. Discuss the purpose of counterbalancing.

(3 marks)


Date:


Jill will always ask questions Jack will always arrive late

I can rely on it!!

How consistently a method measures something…

How accurately a method measures something…

External Reliability

(Over Time)

Test-Retest Method:

If the same questionnaire/interview is

conducted more than once the same results

should be obtained.

Replication:

An experiment should obtain the same results

when repeated if the same standardised

procedures are used. (e.g. standardised

instructions/methods/debrief etc)

Internal Reliability

(Within Itself)

Split Half Method:

Compare half the questions with the other

half of the questions to check for a similar

level of difficulty. E.G. compare the odd

questions with the even questions in Uniboff.

Inter-Observer Reliability:

Compare the observations of the observers to

check they are interpreting behaviour in the

same way

External Validity

(Over Time)

There are three types of external validity:

Ecological Validity: Can you generalise

the results to different places/setting

(outside the lab)

Population Validity: Can you generalise

the results to different people

Temporal Validity: Can you generalise

the results to a different time/era

(sometimes called historical validity)

Internal Validity

(Within Itself)

There are several ways to tell if something is

internally valid:

Did the IV produce the change in the DV?

(this is about control of EVs)

Did the researcher test what they

intended in test?

Did the study have mundane realism?

(this is about the tests being true to what

we do in real life)

Date: Page 17




F1) Twenty depressed patients were treated using cognitive behavioural therapy. Over the course of the

six-week treatment, each patient’s mood was monitored every week using a self-report mood scale (where a

score of 20 = extremely positive mood and a score of 0 = extremely negative mood). Each week they also

completed a quality of sleep questionnaire which was scored from10 = excellent sleep to 0 = very poor

sleep.At the end of the study the researchers correlated each patient’s final mood score with his or her final

sleep score. The sleep questionnaire used by the researchers had not been checked to see whether or not it

was a reliable measure of sleep quality. Explain how this study could be modified by checking the sleep

questionnaire for test-retest reliability. (4 marks)

F2) Researchers were interested in the spatial awareness skills of motorists. They decided to investigate a

possible relationship between different aspects of spatial awareness. Motorists who had between ten and

twelve years of driving experience and held a clean driving licence with no penalty points were asked to

complete two sets of tasks. Set 1: To follow a series of instructions and using a map, to identify various

locations correctly. This provided a map reading score for each motorist with a maximum score of 20. Set 2: To

complete a series of practical driving tasks accurately. This involved tasks such as driving between cones,

driving within lines and parking inside designated spaces. Each motorist was observed completing the Set

2tasks by a single trained observer who rated each performance by giving the driver a rating out of 10. Briefly

outline one problem of using a single trained observer to rate the participants’ driving skills in the practical

task. Briefly discuss how this data collection method could be modified to improve the reliability of the data

collected. (6 marks)

F3) Following previous research indicating the social benefits of green space in urban areas, two



most public spaces were paved with concrete. The students compared the instances of considerate behaviours

in the two towns. Considerate behaviour categories included putting litter in the bin, having a dog on a lead

and riding a bike with care. The observations were carried out in four different areas of a similar size in each

town on weekdays between the hours of 4.30pm and 6.00pm. The students worked together to ensure inter-

observer reliability, recording each target behaviour whenever it occurred. The students thought that having

a dog on a lead was a useful measure of considerate behaviour because it had face validity. Explain what is

meant by face validity in this context. (3 marks)

F4) Identify and briefly outline two other types of validity in psychological research. (4 marks)

F5) Some ways of establishing validity involve the use of a statistical test. Outline how these researchers

could have used a statistical test to establish concurrent validity of the mathematical reasoning ability test.

(4 marks)


Date:


All experiments aim to manipulate an independent variable (IV) in order to see if it causes a change in

the dependant variable (DV). In order for this to happen experimenters have to ensure everything

else is controlled/kept constant/removed so that they are sure it was the IV which caused the

changes they saw in the DV. These ‘other’ variables are known as extraneous variables. There are

two main sources of extraneous variables. Summarise what is meant by each and give some

additional examples.

Participant Effects When following the procedure of research, participants may behave in ways

which might bias the validity of the research findings. Complete a description of the following causes

of participant bias:

Participant Reactivity

Evaluation Apprehension

Social Desirability Bias

The Hawthorne Effect

Date: Page 19



Demand Characteristics These are C _ _ _ which give away the aim of the investigation. They

allow the P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ to guess what is expected of them and this can lead to them

C _ _ _ _ _ _ _ their behaviour. This can have an U _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ effect which can influence the

O _ _ _ _ _ _ of the research findings. Demand characteristics come from the I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _,

the research S _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , the P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ or the M _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ used.

Investigator Effects When conducting research the investigator may bias the final outcome of

the study in a number of ways. Mostly researchers are unaware that this is occurring, very

occasionally however there is deliberate bias caused.

Extraneous variables are essentially nuisance variables and do not vary systematically with the IV.

They are things which we are (largely) able to identify before we conduct our experiment and put

measures in place to reduce or eliminate. However confounding variables do vary systematically

with the IV. Another way this is sometimes described is a variable which changes/correlates with

both the IV and the DV.

Expectancy Bias

Experimental/Mundane Realism

What is meant by experimental realism?

How might the researchers do this?

Standardisation

What is standardisation?


Date:


Conducting a Pilot Study

What is a pilot study?

Why is it carried out?

What kind of things do you do in a pilot study?

Single Blind Technique

What is a single blind technique?


Double Blind Technique

What is a double blind technique?


Randomisation

Date: Page 21




G1) Students carried out an experiment to investigate the effects of organisation on word recall. They

made up a list of 50 items that could be bought in a supermarket. The participants were teachers at their

school. One group of participants saw the words organised into categories such as fruit, vegetables, dairy

products and cleaning materials. The other group saw the same words presented randomly. (a) Suggest one

possible extraneous variable in this study. (1 mark) (b) Suggest one way in which the students could control

for this extraneous variable. (2 marks)

G2) Psychologists carried out a laboratory experiment to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive

interviews. All participants watched the same film of a robbery. They were randomly allocated to Group One

or Group Two. Participants were then asked to recall the robbery. The investigators used a cognitive

interview to access recall of participants in Group One and a standard interview to access recall of participants

in Group Two. What is meant by the term investigator effects? Explain possible investigator effects in this

study. (4 marks)

G3) Dave, a middle-aged male researcher, approached an adult in a busy street. He asked the adult for





and recorded whether each one had correctly chosen the photograph of Dave. Identify one possible

extraneous variable in this experiment. Explain how this extraneous variable could have affected the results

of this experiment. (1 mark + 3 marks)

G4) Empathy is the ability to understand the feelings and emotions of other people. Some studies have

shown that people high in empathy, are more accurate at recognising facial expressions of emotions such as

happy, sad, fearful, angry and surprised. A psychologist wanted to investigate this by presenting participants

with a series of faces showing different emotional expressions. The emotions were happy, sad, fearful, angry

and surprised. There were 20 examples of each emotion. Each of the 100 faces was presented randomly on a

computer screen for 0.5 of a second. After each presentation the participant had to press the appropriate key

to identify the emotion expressed. Once the key was pressed the next face was presented. Explain why it

would be important for the psychologist to carry out a pilot study in this case (4 marks)


Date:


The ethical guidelines were devised in Psychology to provide an outline of the

guiding principles or ‘rules’ by which researchers must adhere to. The BPS

(British Psychological Society) have drawn up a set of ethical guidelines (1993)

which cover the main ethical issues in Psychology. Guidelines about respect

and responsibility are also mentioned but do not apply to the task today.

Consent

Whenever possible, the investigator should inform all participants of the objectives of the

investigation. The investigators should inform the participants of all aspects of the research or

intervention that might influence their willingness to participate. The payment of participants must

not be used to induce them to risk harm beyond their normal life style.

Deception

Withholding information or misleading participants is unacceptable if the participants are likely to

show unease once debriefed. Intentional deception of the participants over the purpose and general

nature of the investigation should be avoided whenever possible.

Debriefing

In studies where the participants are aware that they have taken part in an investigation, the

researcher should provide all necessary information about the investigation to complete the

participants understanding/monitor any unforeseen negative effects.

Withdrawal from the investigation

Investigators should make plain to participants their right to withdraw from the research at any time

and require that their own data be destroyed.

Confidentiality

During an investigation all information obtained about a participant is confidential unless specified by

the law or agreed in advance.

Protection of participants

Investigators have a primary responsibility to protect participants from physical and mental harm

during the investigation. Normally the risk of harm must be no greater than in ordinary life.

Observational research

Studies that are based upon observation must respect the privacy and psychological wellbeing of the

individuals studied. Observational research is only acceptable in situations where those being

observed would expect to be observed by strangers or individuals give their consent to be observed.

Date: Page 23



Lim

its

of

Solu

tio

n

Way

s o

f D

ealin

g

Eth

ical

Issu

es

Gu

idel

ine

C

on

sen

t

De

cep

tio

n

Pro

tect

ion

of

Par

tici

pan

ts

Co

nfi

de

nti

alit

y

Date:


Respect – for the dignity and worth of all persons. This includes standards of privacy, confidentiality and informed consent. Intentional deception is only acceptable when it is necessary to protect the integrity of the research and when the nature of the deception is disclosed to participants at the earliest opportunity. Competence – psychologists should maintain high standards in their professional work. Responsibility – Psychologists have a responsibility to their clients, the general public & to Psychology as a subject which includes protecting their participants from harm. Integrity – Psychologists should be honest & accurate which includes reporting their findings honestly.

It is the responsibility of ethics committees to weigh up the costs and benefits of research proposals to decide whether the research study should go ahead. The costs and benefits may be judged from a participant’s point of view, where we might list distress and loss of time, versus payment for participation and feeling of having contributed to scientific research. Alternatively we can judge costs and benefits in terms of society at large and then can consider the value in improving people’s lives versus the possibility that individuals might be harmed in the process. We can also judge costs and benefits in terms of the group to which an individual belongs – when the research is done to investigate cultural differences, the research may not harm the individual but the findings may lead to biased treatment of the individual’s cultural groups (for good or bad). Imagine you are sitting on an ethics committee should the following investigations go ahead? Do a cost benefit analysis for each. A teacher actively discriminates against children who have blue eyes in her Year 5 class (and encourages the non-blue-eyed classmates to do the same) by withholding privileges and giving them more difficult tasks to do. This was a study to demonstrate the evils of racial prejudice (Elliott, 1968)

Potential Costs Potential Benefits

As a naive participant sits in a waiting room, (fake) smoke is pumped under the door suggesting that the next room is on fire. A group of confederates have been told to remain passive and not raise the alarm. This in an investigation into the factors that influence behaviour in an emergency (Latane and Darley, 1968)

Potential Costs Potential Benefits

* The problem with a cost-benefit analysis is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict both coast and benefits prior to conducting a study. Baumrind (1959) suggest all we do is trade one set of ethical dilemmas for another and legitimatise unethical practices bu suggesting they are for a greater good.

Date: Page 25




H1) A psychologist carried out a research study to investigate the effects of institutional care. To do this,

she constructed a questionnaire to use with 100 adults who had spent some time in an institution when they

were children. She also carried out interviews with ten of the adults. Identify two ethical issues that the

psychologist would need to consider in this research. Explain how the psychologist could deal with one of

these issues. (1 mark + 1 mark + 3 marks)

H2) Psychologists sometimes use case studies to study children. One example was of a boy who was

discovered at the age of six. He had been kept in a darkened room and had had almost no social contact with

people. (a) How could a psychologist maintain confidentiality when reporting a case study? (2 marks)

H3) A psychologist used an independent groups design to investigate whether or not a cognitive interview





with the mean number recalled in the standard interview. Discuss whether or not the psychologist showed an

awareness of the British Psychological Society (BPS) Code of Ethics when recruiting participants for this

experiment. (3 marks)

H4) A researcher wanted to compare the effectiveness of two therapies for young offenders who had been

identified as having anger management issues. Offenders, who were all sentenced to two years in a Young

Offenders’ Institution, were asked to volunteer to take part in an anger management programme. Fifty

volunteers were randomly allocated to Group 1 (Therapy A) or Group 2 (Therapy B). Each participant’s anger

was assessed before and after therapy. For the pre-therapy anger score they completed an Anger Scale

questionnaire and their responses were scored. A high score indicated extreme anger and a low score

indicated mild anger. For the next eight weeks, participants attended weekly sessions for either Therapy A or

Therapy B. For the post-therapy anger score, at the end of the treatment period, participants completed the

same Anger Scale questionnaire. Outline one ethical issue that might have occurred in this study and explain

how the researcher could have dealt with this issue. (4 marks).

H5) A psychologist was interested in testing a new treatment for people with eating disorders. She put up

adverts in several London clinics to recruit participants. Thirty people came forward and they were all given a

structured interview by a trained therapist. The therapist then calculated a numerical score for each

participant as a measure of their current functioning, where 50 indicates excellent, healthy functioning and

zero indicates failure to function adequately. The psychologist then randomly allocated half the participants to

a treatment group and half to a no-treatment group. After eight weeks, each participant was re-assessed using

a structured interview conducted by the same trained therapist, and given a new numerical score. The trained

therapist did not know which participants had been in either group. For each participant, the psychologist

calculated an improvement score by subtracting the score at the start of the study from the score after eight

weeks. The greater the number, the better the improvement. The psychologist needed to obtain informed

consent from her participants. Write a brief consent form which would be suitable for this study. You should

include some details of what participants could expect to happen in the study and how they would be

protected. (5 marks)


Date:


The AS in Psychology requires that 10% of the questions must include mathematical skills. Most of

these at AS are GCSE maths skills but it is important that you are aware you could be tested on the

following skills, for which you are expected to have a calculator:

Recognise and use expressions in decimal and standard form.

Use ratios, fractions and percentages.

Estimate results.

Use an appropriate number of significant figures.

Construct and interpret frequency tables and diagrams, bar charts and histograms

Understand simple probability and statistical tests.

Understand the principles of sampling as applied to scientific data.

Understand the terms mean, median and mode.

Use a scatter diagram to identify a correlation between two variables.

Make order of magnitude calculations.

Know the characteristics of normal and skewed distributions.

Understand measures of dispersion, including standard deviation and range.

Understand the differences between qualitative and quantitative data.

Understand the difference between primary and secondary data.

Understand and use the symbols: =, , ∝, ~.

Translate information between graphical, numerical and algebraic forms.

Plot two variables from experimental or other data.

Quantitative Data Qualitative Data

Primary Data Secondary Data

Nominal Data Ordinal Data Interval Data

Date: Page 27



Measures of Central Tendency:_____________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

Mean: calculated by taking the sum of all scores and

the dividing this by the number of scores.

Disadvantage

Advantage

Median: calculated by taking the middle score when all

scores have been ordered from the smallest to largest.

Disadvantage

Advantage

Mode: calculated by taking the most frequently

occurring score or scores from the set of scores.

Disadvantage

Advantage

Date:


Measures of Dispersion:__________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

* For all of these so far you could be asked to calculate them from raw data.

* You will not be asked to calculate a standard deviation, only interpret it.


I1) Students often claim that listening to music helps them to concentrate. A psychologist was not aware

of any previous research in this area. She decided to investigate this claim. Forty students from a nearby sixth

form centre volunteered to take part in her study. They each answered the following question: ‘Do you think

that you concentrate on your work ‘better’, ‘worse’ or ‘the same’ if you listen to music while working?’ The

data collected in this study is primary data. Explain what is meant by ‘primary data’. [2 marks)

Range: calculated by subtracting the smallest number in

a set of scores from the largest number in the same set.

Disadvantage

Advantage

Standard Deviation: calculated by taking the average that

score deviates from the mean in a set of scores.

Disadvantage

Advantage


Date: Page 29



I2) A child psychologist carried out an overt observation of caregiver-infant interaction. She observed a

baby boy interacting separately with each of his parents. Using a time sampling technique, she observed the

baby with each parent for 10 minutes. Her findings are shown in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Frequency of each behaviour displayed by the infant when interacting with his mother and when

interacting with his father

Gazing at parent Looking away from parent Eyes closed Total

Mother 12 2 6 20

Father 6 10 4 20

Total 18 12 10 40

In what percentage of the total observations was the baby gazing at his mother? Show your calculations. (2

marks)

I4) Which one of the following types of data best describes the data collected in this study? Shade one

box only. (1 mark) A Primary data B Qualitative data C Secondary data D Continuous data

I5) A psychologist wanted to see if verbal fluency is affected by whether people think they are presenting

information to a small group of people or to a large group of people. The psychologist needed a stratified

sample of 20 people. She obtained the sample from a company employing 60 men and 40 women. The

participants were told that they would be placed in a booth where they would read out an article about the

life of a famous author to an audience. Participants were also told that the audience would not be present,

but would only be able to hear them and would not be able to interact with them. There were two conditions

in the study, Condition A and Condition B. Condition A: 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 5

listeners. Condition B: the other 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 100 listeners. Each

participant completed the study individually. The psychologist recorded each presentation and then counted

the number of verbal errors made by each participant. The results of the study are given in Table 1.

Table 1: Mean number of verbal errors and standard deviations for both conditions

Condition A (believed audience of 5 listeners)

Condition B (believed audience of 100 listeners)

Mean 11.1 17.2

Standard deviation 1.30 3.54

What conclusions might the psychologist draw from the data in Table 1? Refer to the means and standard

deviations in your answer. (6 marks)

Date:


The X axis shows the different categories – discrete (nominal) data e.g. gender

The Y axis shows the frequency of each category (number of people)

Bar charts are used when nominal data is collected – data are in separate categories, for example

grouping by hair colour (red, brown, blonde)

In an experiment into the effects of age on the accuracy of eyewitness

testimonies, participants had to watch a video of a kidnapping and were then asked a mixture of non-misleading (truthful) and misleading questions.

Participants Average number of non-misleading

questions answered correctly (/20)

Average number of misleading

questions answered correctly (/10)

Children 9 2

Young adults 17 4

Elderly 8 1

The X axis

shows the measurement – continuous data e.g. height in cm

The Y axis shows the frequency – e.g. 12 people got between 50-59 marks

Frequency histograms are used when ordinal data is collected – data can be put into an order from

smallest to largest.

0

1

2

3

4

5

Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4

Bar Chart

X Axis

Y Axis

Title

Date: Page 31



A study was carried out to investigate the effect of the number of hours of

day care children receive upon their levels of aggressiveness.

Number of hours day care a week

Average number of aggressive acts per week

0-5 1

5-10 3

10-15 2

15-20 4

20-25 2

25-30 3

30-35 9

The X axis

shows the

measurement – continuous data

The Y axis shows the frequency – number of people

Frequency histograms are used when ordinal data is collected – data can be put into an order from

smallest to largest and useful when there’s more than one condition to compare

Many children in Scotland from the start of their school life have all their

lessons in Gaelic. Construct a line graph to plot the data from this study.

Age in years

Score on English language ability scale for Gaelic-educated children

Score on English language ability scale for English-educated children

3-4 3 10

4-5 4 11

5-6 7 12

6-7 9 12

7-8 10 14

8-9 15 17

9-10 20 18

10-11 21 19

11-12 24 20

1.5

2.5

3.5

4.5

Date:



J1) A psychologist used an independent groups design to investigate whether or not a cognitive interview





with the mean number recalled in the standard interview. The psychologist also recorded the number of

correct items recalled and the number of incorrect items recalled in each type of interview. The following

results were obtained: From these results, what might the psychologist conclude about the effectiveness of

cognitive interviews? (2 marks)

Cognitive Interview Standard Interview

Mean number of correct items recalled 45 32

Mean number of incorrect items recalled 8 8

J2) A researcher carried out an experiment to investigate how many numbers could be held in short-term

memory. The participants were 15 children and 15 adults.

Participants were asked to repeat lists of random numbers,

in the correct order, as soon as they were read out by the

researcher. For example, when the researcher said, “3, 4,

2, 8” the participant immediately repeated “3, 4, 2, 8”.

When the researcher then said, “7, 5, 9, 6, 4” the

participant immediately repeated “7, 5, 9, 6, 4”. One

number was added to the list each time until participants

were unable to recall the list correctly. Each participant’s

maximum digit span was recorded.

Write the mode for each group in the table below. (2

marks)

J3) Identify the type of graphical display in Figure 2. (1 mark) A Histogram B Bar graph C Line graph D Scattergram J4) How many children took part in the study? (1 mark) J5) Table 1 Mean number od seconds taken to complete the 400m run and the standard deviation for both conditions

Condition A (Without Music)

Condition B (With Music)

Mean 123s 117ss

Standard Deviation 9.97 14.5

Explain why a histogram would not be appropriate way to display then means shown in table1. (2marks)

Age group Mode

Children

Adults


Date: Page 33



When we plot data the y-axis represents frequency and the x-axis represents the item of interest.

When doing this for large data sets we can see an overall pattern of the data called distribution.

There are two types of distribution: Normal and Skewed.

Normal Distribution

Positive Skewed Distribution

Negative Skewed Distribution

Date:



K1) A psychologist investigating the investment model of relationships, devised a self-report Investment

Scale for use with a group of 100 female participants. The scale gave an investment score for each participant

on a scale of 0–20, with 0 representing no investment in relationships and 20 representing extreme

investment in relationships. The psychologist calculated measures of central tendency for the investment

scores. He found that the mean investment score was 8.6, the median investment score was 9.5 and the

mode investment score was 13.: Sketch a graph to show the most likely distribution curve for the

investment scores in this study. Label the axes of your graph and mark on it the positions of the mean,

median and mode. (3 marks)

K2) What sort of distribution does your graph show? (1 mark)

K3) A psychologist devised a memory test and tested 200 participants. The results are shown in the

distribution graph shown in Figure 1 below

The psychologist decides to modify the memory test so that it will produce a more normal distribution.

Briefly explain how he might achieve this. (4 marks)


Date: Page 35



Target Population

Random Sample

Strengths

Limitations

Opportunity Sample

Strengths

Limitations

Date:


Stratified Sample

Strengths

Limitations

Systematic Sample

Strengths

Limitations

Volunteer Sample

Strengths

Limitations

Date: Page 37




L1) Dave, a middle-aged male researcher, approached an adult in a busy street. He asked the adult for





and recorded whether each one had correctly chosen the photograph of Dave. Name the sampling technique

used in this experiment. Evaluate the choice of this sampling technique in this experiment. (1 mark + 3

marks)

L2) Psychologists often need to select participants to take part in research. The descriptions below are all

types of sampling method. In the table below, write which description, A, B, C, or D, matches each sampling

method. (3 marks)

A The psychologist puts an advert in a newspaper, asking for participants.

B The psychologist uses lists of students in a university and selects every tenth student to take part.

C The psychologist asks some of his psychology students to take part in the research.

D The psychologist gives a number to all students in a university, then selects participants in an unbiased way.

Sampling Method Description

Random Sample

Opportunity Sample

Volunteer Sample

L3) Some psychology students read about an experiment which suggested that organisation is a useful

strategy for improving memory. The students carried out an experiment to investigate the effects of

organisation on word recall. They made up a list of 50 items that could be bought in a supermarket. The

participants were teachers at their school. One group of participants saw the words organised into categories

such as fruit, vegetables, dairy products and cleaning materials. The other group saw the same words

presented randomly. The results are given in Table 1 below. The psychology students decided to use a

volunteer sample. Suggest one way in which this sample could be obtained (2 marks)

L4) A psychologist wanted to see if verbal fluency is affected by whether people think they are presenting

information to a small group of people or to a large group of people. The psychologist needed a stratified

sample of 20 people. She obtained the sample from a company employing 60 men and 40 women. The

participants were told that they would be placed in a booth where they would read out an article about the

life of a famous author to an audience. Participants were also told that the audience would not be present, but

would only be able to hear them and would not be able to interact with them. There were two conditions in

the study, Condition A and Condition B. Condition A: 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 5

listeners. Condition B: the other 10 participants were told the audience consisted of 100 listeners. Each

participant completed the study individually. The psychologist recorded each presentation and then counted

the number of verbal errors made by each participant. Explain how the psychologist would have obtained the

male participants for her stratified sample. Show your calculations. (3 marks)


Date:


Example: Imagine we are researchers interested in finding out whether individuals who are highly

feminine tend to have lower self-esteem than those less feminine.

Q. What does a correlation attempt to measure?

Q. Why are correlational studies considered to be non-experimental?

Q. What is the main limitation of a correlation study?

Q. What do we call the variables that are measured in a correlation?

Operationalise the Variables:

Writing a Non-Directional Hypothesis

There will be a ______________________between ________________

________________________and ________________________________

Writing a Directional Hypothesis

There will be a _____________________________________between

________________________________and ________________________

Writing a Null Hypothesis

Date: Page 39



Rate yourself on each item, on a scale from 1 (never or almost never true) to 7 (almost always true).

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1. Yielding

2. Cheerful

3. Shy

4. Affectionate

5. Flatterable

6. Loyal

7. Feminine

8. Sympathetic

9. Sensitive to other's needs

10. Understanding

11. Compassionate

12. Soft spoken

13. Warm

14. Tender

15. Gullible

16. Childlike

17. Does not use harsh language

18. loves children

19. gentle

Total

Answer the questions as honestly as you can and total your scores at the bottom of the page.

Alw

ays

(2)

Som

etim

es(1

)

Rar

ely(

0)

1. I have a lot of doubts about my abilities

2. I am often unkind about myself

3. I don’t like what I see in the mirror

4. I blame myself when things go wrong

5. I personalise things when someone says something I don’t understand

6. I don’t feel I’m very important in life

7. I don’t have good nurturing relationships with people

8. I feel I am not good enough as a person

9. I think negative thoughts

10.I criticise other people a lot

11. I don’t respect myself

12. I don’t like things I say or do

13. I lack confidence in situations

14. I feel angry with my ‘lot’ in life

15. I don’t value myself

Total

1) Complete each of the

questionnaires and total

your marks separately for

each.

2) Draw a blank graph.

a. X-axis as femininity

(minimum score is 19

and maximum is 133)

b. Y-axis is self-esteem

(minimum score is 0

and maximum is 30)

3) You will then go around

the room and say what

your two scores were so

that everyone can plot the

points on the graph.

4) What do you notice?

Date:


Drawing Scattergrams – The Rules

First draw an axis and label (it doesn’t matter which goes on which axis)

Then plot a paired score using crosses

Don’t add a line of bet fit!

Interpreting Scattergrams

The advantage of drawing a scattergraph is that you can usually tell just by looking at the pattern of

scores what kind of relationship you have got.

Understanding the Correlation Coefficient

When we have completed our descriptive statistic we conduct statistical test on data called

inferential statistics to test the strength of the relationship. In this case the number that is produced

from these tests is called a correlation coefficient. This will always be a number between +1 and -1.

The closer to with +1 or -1 the stronger the relationship is. At 0 there is no relationship at all.

Positive Correlation

Sketch:

Negative Correlation

Sketch:

Sketch:

+0.9

Sketch:

+0.4

Sketch:

-0.05

Sketch:

-0.6

Strength:

____________

Direction:

____________

Strength:

____________

Direction:

____________

Strength:

____________

Direction:

____________

Strength:

____________

Direction:

____________

Date: Page 41



Strengths Limitations


M1) A recent study recorded the amount of time that children spent in day care from birth to four years,

and asked each child’s mother to rate her child for aggression and disobedience. The study found that, as the

time spent in day care went up, the mothers’ rating of aggression and disobedience also went up. (a) What

kind of correlation is this research showing? (1 mark) (b) Outline one strength and one weakness of using

correlational research to investigate the effects of day care. (2 marks + 2 marks)

M2) A researcher studied a group of children who had spent time in an institution before being adopted.

Each child was observed by the researcher in their school playground and given a score for aggression. A high

score indicated that the cild was very aggressive. The research showed that the longer children had spent in

the institution the higher their aggressive score. (a) What kind of correlation is this research showing? (1

mark) (b) Explain one limitation of correlational research (2 marks)

M3) Twenty depressed patients were treated using cognitive

behavioural therapy. Over the course of the six-week treatment, each

patient’s mood was monitored every week using a self-report mood

scale (where a score of 20 = extremely positive mood and a score of 0 =

extremely negative mood). Each week they also completed a quality of

sleep questionnaire which was scored from 10 = excellent sleep to 0 =

very poor sleep. At the end of the study the researchers correlated

each patient’s final mood score with his or her final sleep score. Outline

the type of relationship shown in Figure 1 above and suggest why it

would not be appropriate for the researchers to conclude that better

sleep improves mood. (2 marks)


Date:


Description Strengths Limitations

Naturalistic

Controlled

Overt

Covert

Participant

Non-

Participant

General Points

Date: Page 43



In order to make a systematic and objective observation researchers need to develop behaviour

categories. This method is called a coding system or behaviour checklist. Using a coding system

means that a code is invented to represent easy category of behaviour. A behaviour checklist is

essentially the same thing, though a code for each behaviour may not be given. Behaviour Categories

should be:

1) Objective -

2) Complete -

3) Mutually Exclusive -

When conducting the observation the observer has a choice over the way they record the behaviours

they see. This is known as the sampling procedures. There are times where observers will make

continuous observations/recordings but this is often impractical with large groups in one observation

or large numbers of people to sample overall.

1) Event Sampling –

2) Time Sampling -

Example One: Controlled, Structured

Ainsworth and Wittig (1969) devised the strange situation to be able to test the nature of

attachment systematically. They aimed to identify how infants aged between 9 and 18months

behave under conditions of mild stress (stranger anxiety and separation anxiety) and novelty (a

new situation to encourage exploration). The procedure consisted of eight episodes with a group

of observers recording the infants’ behaviour every 15 seconds. Observers noted down which of

the following behaviours were displayed, and scored each behaviour on an intensity scale of 1 to

7: (1) proximity and contact seeking, (2) contact maintaining, (3) proximity and interaction

avoiding, (4) contact and interaction resisting, (5) search behaviours. From observations of 106

middle class infants, three main types of attachment were identified: Type A (insecure-avoidant),

Type B (securely attached) and Type C (insecure-resistant).

Example One: Naturalistic, Unstructured

Ainsworth (1967) spent two years observing 26 Ugandan women and their infants in a naturalistic

setting. The women and their infants were from six villages surrounding Kampala. She spent

short periods of time noting down specific behaviours. She observed some of the women were

more sensitive to their infant’s needs and these mothers tended to have securely attached

infants.

Date:


Task: To devise a behavioural or coding system to enable you

to carry out an observation withinin the college.

Think about:

The Hawthorne Effect

How will you minimise the

effect your presence has

on those being observed?

Remember:

Ethical Considerations

Are you invading peoples’

privacy? Will your observation

be overt or covert?

Consider:

What Do You Wish To Find

Out?

E.g. Difference in queuing

behaviour between

genders or ages?

Differences in food

choices?

Plan:

How You’ll Record Data?

Event or Time sampling?

Coding System or Checklist?

What categories will you have?

Inter Observer Reliability?

Date: Page 45




N1) One situation in which disruption of attachment can occur is when a mother of a young child is

admitted into hospital. A researcher decided to study the behaviour of a two-year-old boy who experienced

this disruption of attachment. She decided to use naturalistic observation of the boy both before his mother

was admitted into hospital and after she returned home. Each period of observation lasted for one hour.

(a) Suggest two suitable behavioural categories the researcher could use to record the boy’s behaviour.

(2 marks) (b) How might the researcher record the boy’s behaviour during the one-hour observation?

(2 marks)

N2) Studies of attachment often involve observation of interactions between mother and baby pairs.

Researchers sometimes write down everything that happens as it takes place, including their own

interpretation of the events. Explain how such observational research might be refined through the use of

behavioural categories. ([4 marks)

N3) A researcher studied a group of children who had spent time in an institution before being adopted.

Each child was observed by the researcher in their school playground and given a score for aggression. A high

score indicated that the cild was very aggressive. The research showed that the longer children had spent in

the institution the higher their aggressive score. Explain one ethical issue and one methodological issue

associated with using observation to assess children’s aggression? (2 + 2 marks)

N4) Following previous research indicating the social benefits of green space in urban areas, two



most public spaces were paved with concrete. The students compared the instances of considerate behaviours

in the two towns. Considerate behaviour categories included putting litter in the bin, having a dog on a lead

and riding a bike with care. The observations were carried out in four different areas of a similar size in each

town on weekdays between the hours of 4.30pm and 6.00pm. The students worked together to ensure inter-

observer reliability, recording each target behaviour whenever it occurred. Before the observation could begin,

the students needed to operationalise the behaviour category ‘riding a bike with care’. Explain what is meant

by operationalisation and suggest two ways in which ‘riding a bike with care’ could have been

operationalised. (4 marks).

N5) A child psychologist carried out an overt observation of caregiver-infant interaction. She observed a

baby boy interacting separately with each of his parents. Using a time sampling technique, she observed the

baby with each parent for 10 minutes. Her findings are shown in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Frequency of each behaviour displayed by the infant when interacting with his mother and when

Documents

PSYA1: Developmental Psychology: Early Social Development · PSY2: Research Methods - 2017/18 Lutterworth College: Psychology Department Resource Developed By: Mrs A Pepper A hypothesis