Research Methods Flashcards
What are the 2 different clarifications of Research?
Basic –> Experiemental, aiming to improve scientific theories for improving understanding or predicition of other netural phenomena (lab based)
Applied –> Draws on theories/developments to apply them into practice
What is the difference between Positivism and Interpretivism?
Postivism –> Says that knowledge is what we can see and observe (scientific methods)
- Eg, Surveys and clinical trials
Interpretivism –> Attempts to understand phenomena by the meanings people assign to them (research done in natural settings)
- Eg, interviews, focus groups and observation
What is a mixed methods design?
A combination of both qualitative (non-numerical) and quantitative (numberical) elements
In terms of validity and reliability, what are qualitative and quantitivate methods high and low in?
Qualitative –> High validity, low reliability
Quantitative –> Low validity, high reliability
When looking into clincial behaviour, what type of method would be best?
Qualitative methods
What are the 2 different types of observation?
Participant –> Immersion of a researcher in a social setting
Non-Participent –> Researcher doesn’t participate
- Validity can be effected by the observers present
What is observer bias?
You may see what you want to see
You could become bored or tired (likely given this unit…..)
Qualitative research sampling is usually what?
Purposive
What’s the difference between a Type 1 and Type 2 statistical error?
Type 1 –> When you are wrong despite a statistically significant difference. Eg, a p value of <0.05….but one person still had the problem
Type 2 –> Concluding a treatment had no effecrt when it really did
- P-values are no help
What kind of test is more likely to show us a true difference, parametric or non-parametric?
Parametric
What’s the difference between probability and non-probability sampling methods?
Probability –> Each member of the public has an equal chance of being picked
Non-probability –> Each member doesnt have an equal chance of being selected (eg, pharmacy customers only)
Name 4 different types of probability sampling methods
Simple random sampling
Systematic sampling
Stratified random sampling
Cluster sampling
What type of sampling is often used for inaccesible groups such as drug misusers?
Snowball sampling
When meeting with one person can lead to meeting with another
Describe the 3 following data types…
Categorical (Nominal)
Ordinal (Ranked)
Interval/Ratio
Nominal –> Based on being a member of a group or not (eg, eye colour)
- Uses the mode to find the most commin response
Ordinal –> Based on ranks of order (Eg, scale of pain)
- Median is used
Ratio –> Has zero origin (eg, height or exam percentage)
Describe the following 3 types of statistics….
Descriptive
Measures of Association
Inferential
Descriptive –> Concerned with the presentation, organisation and summarization of data
Measures of Association –> About how strong the relationship is between 2 variables
Inferential –> Allows us to generalise from our sample data to a larger group of people (eg, exit/opinion polls)
What is Standard Error?
Reflects how close individual scores cluster around their mean
Assumes random sampling
What are the 2 types of inferential tests on nominal data?
Chi-Squared Test
- Yates correction is used if n is greater than 100
Fisher’s Exact Test (used if n is less than 20)
