A-level Psychology powerpoint focused on Pilot Studies

A-level Psychology powerpoint focused on Pilot Studies

• 1.
  Pilot Studies (andmore…) Research Methods DO NOW: CHALLENGE: Briefly discuss ethical issues in psychological research. Refer to one or more studies in your answer. Why are control conditions important in psychological experiments?
• 2.
  Pilot Studies (andmore…) Research Methods 1) What are the aims of pilot studies? 2) What is a single-blind procedure and when and why is it used? 3) What is a double-blind procedure and when and why is it used? 4) What is a control condition and why are they important in psychological experiments? KEY QUESTIONS:
• 3.
  The Aims ofPiloting Pilot Studies • A pilot study is a small-scale trial run of the actual investigation – the investigation might be an experiment or any one of the other non- experimental methods you are going to learn about. • A pilot study may involve a handful of participants, rather than the total number of participants required for the sample - in order to ‘test drive’ the procedure and check the investigation runs smoothly. CHALLENGE: Can you name any non-experimental methods? • To summarise, a pilot study allows the research to identify any potential issues and to modify the design or procedure, saving time and money in the long run.
• 4.
  The Aims ofPiloting Pilot Studies • Pilot studies are not just restricted to experiments. • Pilot studies can also be input for self-report methods, such as questionnaires and interviews, it is helpful to try out questions in advance and remove or reword any questions that are ambiguous of confusing. Is a pilot study always necessary? Explain your answer. • In observational studies, a pilot study provides a way of checking coding systems before the real investigation is undertaken – this may be an important part of training others.
• 5.
  Exam Practice: PilotStudies Question 1: A psychologist was interested in finding out whether dream themes differed between males and females, particularly in terms of social interaction. She decided to conduct a pilot study. Twenty undergraduate students (8 male and 12 female) volunteered for the study. For a six-week period the students were interviewed at 9 am each morning when they arrived at university. Interviewers, who did not know the purpose of the study, carried out and recorded the dream interviews. What is meant by a pilot study? Explain one possible reason why the psychologist decided to conduct a pilot study for this investigation. [3 marks]
• 6.
  Exam Practice: PilotStudies Question 1: What is meant by a pilot study? Explain one possible reason why the psychologist decided to conduct a pilot study for this investigation. [3 marks] Marks for this question: AO1 = 1 and A02 = 2 1 mark for a clear and coherent definition of a pilot study. Pilot studies are small- scale investigations conducted before research. Plus 2 marks for a clear, elaborated reason for why the psychologist decided to conduct a pilot study for this investigation. 1 mark for a limited/muddled reason for why the psychologist decided to conduct a pilot study for this investigation.
• 7.
  Exam Practice: PilotStudies Question 1: What is meant by a pilot study? Explain one possible reason why the psychologist decided to conduct a pilot study for this investigation. [3 marks] Marks for this question: AO1 = 1 and A02 = 2 Possible reasons: • To identify whether there needed to be any modifications in the design, e.g. whether the interview questions were sufficiently relevant to dream content • To identify whether it would be feasible to conduct a study on the differences in dream themes across gender. Credit other possible reasons.
• 8.
  Exam Practice: PilotStudies Question 2: A researcher carried out an experiment to investigate misleading information. Participants were shown a photograph in which a man and a woman were talking. The photograph was then taken away and the participants were asked questions about it. Participants were randomly allocated to condition one or condition two. Participants in condition one were asked: Question A “How old was the youth in the photograph?” Participants in condition two were asked: Question B “How old was the man in the photograph?” Explain why it would be appropriate to use a pilot study as part of this experiment. [4 marks]
• 9.
  Explain why itwould be appropriate to use a pilot study as part of this experiment. [4 marks] Marks for this question: A02 = 4 Award 4 marks for an Accurate and reasonably detailed explanation that demonstrated a sound understanding of why a pilot study would be appropriate in this study. Award 3 marks for a less detailed but generally accurate answer that demonstrates sound understanding of why a pilot study would be appropriate in this study. Award 2 marks for a basic answer that demonstrates some understanding of why a pilot study would be appropriate in this study, but lacks detail and may be muddled. Award 1 mark for a very brief or flawed answer demonstrating very little understanding of why a pilot study would be appropriate in this study.
• 10.
  Explain why itwould be appropriate to use a pilot study as part of this experiment. [4 marks] Marks for this question: A02 = 4 Possible application: • In this experiment it could be used to check how long the participant should be given to look at the picture so that the timing could be changed if it was too long or too short. • It could check the participants understand the questions asked and what they are required to do. • It could also be used to ask a few participants about their experience of taking part. Credit any appropriate answer which could apply to this investigation. No marks are awarded for a definition of a pilot study. Explanations which do not relate to this investigation maximum 2 marks.
• 11.
  Control Groups andConditions Control Conditions • Imagine we are running a drug trial to test a new medication to treat anxiety, the group that receives the real drug is the experimental condition and the group that receives the placebo is the control condition. • We use the word ‘control’ in research to refer to the control of variables but we also use if to refer to setting a baseline. Control is used in many experiments for the purpose of comparison. • If the change in behaviour of the experimental group is significantly greater than that of the control group, then the research can conclude that the cause of this effect was the independent variable (assuming all other possible confounding variables have remained constant).
• 12.
  Control Groups andConditions Control Conditions
• 13.
  Exam Practice: ControlConditions Question 3: A study was carried out to test the effectiveness of a new anger management programme. The programme had been designed by a team of psychologists working in a young offenders’ institution. Fifteen male offenders aged 17– 21 years took part in the programme. An anger score for each offender was obtained before the start of the programme. This score was based on a questionnaire designed by the psychologists. The questionnaire had 10 items. The maximum score was 50; the higher the score, the greater the level of anger. The month-long programme of anger management involved 8 two-hour sessions. Throughout the programme, the offenders were told to keep a diary of situations that made them angry and to record their anger in these situations. After the programme had ended, they were told to continue to keep their diary. Two weeks later, after the programme had ended, a second anger score was obtained for each offender. The same questionnaire was used. An independent researcher reviewed the design of the study and noted that there was no control group. Explain how having a control group could have improved this study. [3 marks]
• 14.
  An independent researcherreviewed the design of the study and noted that there was no control group. Explain how having a control group could have improved this study. [3 marks] Marks for this question: A02 = 3 Up to three marks for outlining how a control group could have improved this study: • It is not possible to tell if the programme has caused the improvement; improvement could have been due to the programme or due to spontaneous recovery • By using a control group would make it more scientific; scores can be taken at the same times (pre-programme / post-programme) as in an experimental condition • Post programme differences between the groups can inform if programme is effective; Can be more confident in inferring cause and effect . Allow a maximum of one mark for the general purpose of a control condition: acts as comparison / baseline measure where nothing changes.
• 15.
  Single-Blind Procedures Single andDouble-Blind Procedures • We mentioned, when discussing ethical issues, that participants may not be told the aim of the research at the beginning of a study. • As well as this, other details may be kept from participants, such as which condition of the experiment they are in or whether there is another condition at all. • This is known as a single-blind procedure and is an attempt to control for the confounding effects of demand characteristics. What ethical issues might arise as a result of using a single-blind procedure?
• 16.
  Double-Blind Procedures Single andDouble-Blind Procedures • In a double-blind procedure neither the participants not the research who conducts the study is aware of the aims of the investigation (often a third party conducts the investigation without knowing its main purpose). • Double-blind procedures are often an important feature of drug trials. • Treatment may be administered to patients by someone who is intendent of the investigation and who does not known which drugs are real and which are placebos (‘fake’ drugs). Explain the difference between a single-blind and double-blind procedure.
• 17.
  Exam Practice: Single-Blindand Double-Blind Procedures Question 4: It was recently reported in a newspaper that time spent playing team sports increases happiness levels. A researcher was keen to find out whether this was due to participating in a team activity or due to participating in physical activity, as he could not find any published research on this. The researcher used a matched-pairs design. He went into the student café and selected the first 20 students he met. Each student was assigned to one of two groups. Participants in Group A were requested to carry out 3 hours of team sports per week. Participants in Group B were requested to carry out 3 hours of exercise independently in a gym each week. All participants were told not to take part in any other type of exercise for the 4-week duration of the study. All participants completed a happiness questionnaire at the start and end of the study. The researcher then calculated the improvement in happiness score for each participant. Suggest one way in which the researcher could modify the study to improve the internal validity of the study. Justify your answer. [4 marks]
• 18.
  Suggest one wayin which the researcher could modify the study to improve the internal validity of the study. Justify your answer. [4 marks] Marks for this question: A02 = 2 and A03 = 2 2 marks for a clear, elaborated suggestion of how the study could have been modified to minimise the impact of investigator effects/researcher bias to improve the validity of the study. 1 mark for a limited/muddled suggestion of how the study could have been modified to minimise the impact of investigator effects/researcher bias to improve the validity of the study. Plus 2 marks for a clear justification for their suggestion. 1 mark for a limited/muddled justification for their suggestion.
• 19.
  Suggest one wayin which the researcher could modify the study to improve the internal validity of the study. Justify your answer. [4 marks] Marks for this question: A02 = 2 and A03 = 2 Possible content: • They could ensure neither the participants nor the investigators know which condition the participants are in (double blind procedure). If the researcher did not know what condition the participants were in they would not be able to consciously or unconsciously give clues • The researcher could have asked an assistant to conduct the experiment who was unaware (blind) to the conditions the participants were assigned to. If the assistant did not know the conditions to which the participants were assigned then their presence would not affect the results obtained. Credit other relevant material.
• 20.
  PLENARY: Explainwhya single-blind procedure maybeusefulin reducingtheeffectsof demandcharacteristics.