Psychology Research Methods

Research methods notes

Research method

Description

Strengths

Limitations

Experimental methods

A research method which enables a researcher to manipulate the situation a person is in and see what effect it has on a person in order to test a theory to see if it’s correct. There are 3 types: laboratory, field and quasi.

      Offer a high level of control over extraneous variables which makes it easier to reliably establish a cause and effect

      If cause and effect is established it is possible to predict and control behaviour making them highly scientific.

      They’re objective because they are not easily influenced by the experimenter once set up therefore results are not bias.

      Most are laboratory based meaning the environment is artificial, therefore findings lack ecological validity.

      They are highly controlled and measure variables in precise ways which gives results that lack construct validity as they are assed more narrowly than they would be in real life.

      Participants are aware they are taking part in experiments therefore they may respond to the demand characteristics differently than normal.

Methods of self-report

This is when the participant explains their views/ideas themselves, without the manipulation of variables. There are 3 key methods: questionnaires, structured interviews and unstructured interviews.

      Unlike observations, it is possible to access people’s thoughts and feelings through asking questions

      Questions allow researchers to find out what people would do in certain situations without having to set them up.

      Methods of questioning need participants to possess a number of qualities to be reliable. They can be ineffective if participants are dishonest, in articulate, lack confidence, lack insight or have poor memory

      It is possible that participants’ responses are influenced by researchers when using interviews or questionnaires. They may feel pressured to give socially desirable responses.

Observational studies

These involve watching and recording people’s behaviour. This can be done in a number of ways including video recording and using a check list of criteria.

      Findings from observations are more reliable as the researchers can see for themselves how participants behave rather than relying on self-reports.

      Most observations take place in a natural setting so have high ecological validity

      It is difficult to make judgements about thoughts and feelings when using this method as these features are not clearly observable.

      Observer bias can be a problem as the researcher may only perceive things from a certain perspective.

      If participants are aware they are being observed then they may act differently giving invalid results: this is known as observer effect.

Correlation studies

These describe a process rather than an actual method. Correlation studies use methods such as self-report or an observation to collect data but it is how data is analysed which is important.

      Correlations can establish the strength and direction of the relationship between variables.

      They allow researchers to statistically analyse naturally occurring phenomenon which could not be set up ethically or practically.

      They…