A statement of what the researchers intend to find out in a research study
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Confounding Variable
Any variable which varies systematically with the independent variable which might potentially affect the dependent variable and thereby confound the results
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Debrief
To inform the participants of the true nature of the study and to restore them to the same state they were in at the start of the study. Debriefing is not an ethical issue; it is a means of dealing with ethical issues
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Dependent Variable
The variable measured by the experimenter
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Ethical Issues
Concern questions of right and wrong. They arise in research where there are conflicting sets of values between researchers and participants concerning the goals, procedures or outcomes of a research study.
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Experiment
A research method where casual conclusions can be drawn because an independent variable has been deliberately manipulated to observe the casual effect on the dependent variable
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Hypothesis
A precise and testable statement about the assumed relationship between variables. Operationalisation is a key part of making the statement testable
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Independent variable
Some event that is directly manipulated by an experimenter in order to test its effect on another variable - the dependent variable
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Operationalise
Ensuring that variables are in a form that can be easily tested. A concept such as 'educational attainment' needs to be specified more clearly if we are going to investigate it. For example, it might be operationalised as 'GCSE grade in maths'
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Standardised Procedures
A set of procedures that are the same for all participants in order to be able to repeat the study. This includes standardised instructions - the instructions given to participants to tell them how to perform the task
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Valid consent
Participants must be given comprehensive information concerning the nature and purpose of the research and their role in it, in order that they can make an informed decision about whether to participate
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Control
Refers to the extent to which any variable is held constant or regulated by a researcher.
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External Validity
The degree to which a research finding can be generalised to other settings (ecological validity) to other groups of people (population validity) over time (history validity)
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Extraneous Variables
Do not systematically with the IV and therefore do not act as an alternative IV but may have an effect on the dependent variable. They are nuisance variables that muddy the waters and make it more difficult to detect a significant effect.
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Internal validity
The degree to which an observed effect was due to the experimental manipulation rather than other factors such as confounding/extraneous variables
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Mundane realism
Refers to how a study mirrors the real world. The research environment is realistic to the degree to which experiences encountered in the research environment will occur in the real world.
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Validity
Refers to whether an observed effect is a genuine one
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Alternative hypothesis
Any hypothesis except the null hypothesis
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Conferderate
An individual in a study who is not a real participant and has been instructed how to behave by the investigator
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Directional Hypothesis
States the directions of the predicted difference between two conditions or two groups of participants
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Experimental Hypothesis
The term used to describe the alternative hypothesis in an experiment
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Non-directional Hypothesis
Predicts simply that there is a difference between the two conditions or two groups of participants, without stating the direction of the difference
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Null hypothesis
The assumption of no relationship between variables being studied
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Pilot study
A small-scale trial run of a study to test any aspects of the design, with a view to making improvements
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Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
Any variable which varies systematically with the independent variable which might potentially affect the dependent variable and thereby confound the results
Back
Confounding Variable
Card 3
Front
To inform the participants of the true nature of the study and to restore them to the same state they were in at the start of the study. Debriefing is not an ethical issue; it is a means of dealing with ethical issues
Back
Card 4
Front
The variable measured by the experimenter
Back
Card 5
Front
Concern questions of right and wrong. They arise in research where there are conflicting sets of values between researchers and participants concerning the goals, procedures or outcomes of a research study.
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