Research Methods and Techniques | OCR A-Level Psychology (H567)

Research Methods and Techniques

85 questions
7 subtopics
Component 01: Research methods
Component 01

Research Methods and Techniques is examined on component 01 of OCR Psychology, Research methods.

85 recall questions across 7 subtopics.

Sample questions from Research Methods and Techniques

Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.

Laboratory, field and quasi experiments

What is a field experiment?

Show the answer
An experiment in which the researcher still manipulates the independent variable, but does so in the participants' everyday natural environment.
Laboratory, field and quasi experiments

Give two examples of a naturally occurring independent variable that would make a study a quasi experiment.

Show the answer
Age group and whether or not a participant has a particular clinical diagnosis.
Evaluating experiments: validity, control and realism

One team studies driver behaviour at a real road junction and another in a driving simulator. Which is the field experiment, and why?

Show the answer
The junction study, because the independent variable is manipulated in the drivers' own everyday environment rather than in a contrived setting.
Evaluating experiments: validity, control and realism

Explain one ethical problem that is particular to field experiments.

Show the answer
People who do not know they are in a study cannot give informed consent or exercise their right to withdraw.
Structured, unstructured, naturalistic and controlled observations

What is an unstructured observation?

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An observation in which the researcher writes a rich, detailed account of everything that seems relevant, with no pre-set categories.
Structured, unstructured, naturalistic and controlled observations

Give one strength of naturalistic observation.

Show the answer
Behaviour is spontaneous and typical, so the findings generalise well to everyday life.
Participant, non-participant, overt and covert observations

Why is a non-participant observer usually the more objective of the two?

Show the answer
Staying separate from the group reduces personal involvement and the chance of the observer influencing what happens.
Participant, non-participant, overt and covert observations

Children are watched through a one-way mirror in a specially arranged playroom while an observer tallies aggressive acts. Classify this observation.

Show the answer
It is a covert, non-participant, structured, controlled observation.

The 7 subtopics

One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.

Subtopic	What it covers	Questions
Laboratory, field and quasi experiments	Recall questions on what makes a study an experiment, the definitions, strengths and weaknesses of laboratory, field and quasi experiments, naturally occurring independent variables, and why random allocation and cause and effect are possible in some designs but not others.	12
Evaluating experiments: validity, control and realism	Recall questions on internal and ecological validity, mundane realism, identifying field experiments, replication, demand characteristics, ethical problems particular to field experiments, and why tighter control can reduce the usefulness of experimental findings.	10
Structured, unstructured, naturalistic and controlled observations	Recall questions on the observational method, structured and unstructured observations, naturalistic and controlled observations, the strengths and weaknesses of each, and why controlled observations are easier to replicate.	11
Participant, non-participant, overt and covert observations	Recall questions on participant and non-participant, overt and covert observations with their strengths, weaknesses and ethical objections, classifying example observations, observer bias, and why observations cannot show cause and effect.	14
Questionnaires, structured interviews and unstructured interviews	Recall questions on self-report techniques, the definition, strengths and weaknesses of questionnaires, structured interviews and unstructured interviews, and why unstructured interviews usually yield richer data.	10
Semi-structured interviews and evaluating self-reports	Recall questions on semi-structured interviews as a compromise, advantages of interviews over postal questionnaires, social desirability bias, interviewer effects, inaccurate recall, choosing a self-report technique for a study, and keeping structured interview wording standard.	10
Correlational research and correlation coefficients	Recall questions on how data is obtained for correlational analysis, co-variables, positive, negative and no correlation, scatter diagrams, interpreting correlation coefficients, the strengths and limitations of correlations, and the third-variable problem.	18

Research Methods and Techniques is 85 of the 3,537 questions in the guide.Get the guide, £8

How the guide is worked

Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.

Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.

Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.