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Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences

Terms in this set (20)

Descriptive Research Strategy
goal is to obtain a description of individual variables. Is intended to answer questions about the surest state of individual variables for a specific group of individuals
Correlation Research Strategy
Observes 2 variables as they exist naturally for a set of individuals. Only attempts to describe the relationship but is not trying to explain the relationship
Experimental Research Strategy
Is intended to answer cause-and-effect questions about the relationship between two variables. The purpose is to explain the relationship determining the underlying cause. It is conducted with rigorous control to ensure an unambiguous demonstration of a cause-and-effect relationship
research strategy
the general approach and goals of a research study
Quasi-Experimental Research Strategy
attempts to answer cause-and-effect questions about the relationship between 2 variables. Can never produce an unambiguous example. Always contains a flaw
Non-Experimental Research Study
intended to demonstrate a relationship between variables, but does not attempt to explain the relationship. Does not try to produce cause-and-effect explanations
Which research strategy attempts to address questions about cause-and-effect relationships but fails to produce an unambiguous answer because the study contains a flaw?
Quasi-Experimental
Which research strategies produces similar data structures that use similar statistical analyses?
Experimental, quasi-experimental, and non experimental
research design
deciding whether a study will compare different groups of individuals or examine changes within the same group of individuals involves a decision about the research.
research procedure
exact step by step description of a specific research study
extraneous variables
any variables in a research study other than the specific variables being studied
independent variable
the thing you change in the experiments
confounding variable
an extraneous variable (usually unmonitored) that changes systematically along with the two variables being studied. It provides an alternative explanation for the observed relationship between 2 variables
confounding variable
a threat to internal validity
external validity
the extent to which the results obtained in a research study hold true outside that specify study. External validity focuses on any characteristic of the study that may raise questions about whether the same results would be obtained under different conditions
Any variable that limits the ability to generalize the results from a research study
threat to external validity
Internal validity
demonstrates that changes in one variable are followed by change in the other variable, and that no other variable provides an alternative explanation for the result
When does a research study have internal validity?
If a research study has one and only one explanation for the results
selection bias
the sampling procedure favors the selection of some individuals over others, is threat to external validity
volunteer bias
volunteers are not perfectly representative of the general population
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