Research Methods

Steps in Psychology Research Methods

Research methods are the foundation for scientific investigations. They allow scientists and psychologists to investigate the world and advance knowledge in their field. This area of psychology makes up the base of carrying out research. For instance, psychologists can use their knowledge of research methods to determine the most appropriate, reliable and valid method to select participants, design studies or analyse data.

Aims, Hypothesis, and Background Information

Reading background information based on the area the researcher is interested in is a crucial research step. This should be the initial step that the researcher should take so that they:

1. Familiarise themselves with the topic
2. Form an aim: the purpose of their research
3. Give a rationale for their research: how will it add to the existing knowledge? Why are they conducting the study?
4. Form a hypothesis: a predictive statement of the research results the researcher expects to find. This is usually formed by understanding existing theories or previous results found.

Fig. 2 - Understanding the current research on a topic is crucial to understanding what to investigate next for researchers.

Design Research Methods

There are different methods of sampling used in research methods, and these include:

• Volunteer sampling
• Opportunity sampling
• Random sampling
• Snowball sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Self-selected sampling
• Systematic sampling

The aim of using the sampling method is to try and obtain as representative as possible sample of the target population. The research findings can be considered generalisable if the sample is representative of the population.

The research design is determined by the context of where the research is being carried out. The researcher also needs to consider if the research variables are naturally occurring or if they will be manipulated.

Designs usually fall into three categories:

1. Independent groups design
2. Repeated measures design
3. Matched-pair design

Experimental Research Design: Psychology

Experimental designs allow us to test the hypothesis and help us allocate participants to the correct groups. An example of a research method used in psychology is experimental research, which involves a researcher manipulating the independent variable to see how it affects the dependent variable.

This is usually done by measuring the changes that occur due to the manipulation. Then, researchers can identify how and what factors can affect the phenomena that the researcher is interested in.

Types of Research in Psychology

There are various research types in psychology:

• Lab experiment - research is carried out in a controlled, standardised laboratory setting, and the effects of manipulating a variable are observed.
• Field experiment - research is conducted in a natural setting, and the effects of manipulating a variable are observed.
• Natural experiment - research is carried out in a natural setting, and the researcher attempts to observe the effects of naturally occurring variables (there is no manipulation). Participants are randomly allocated to conditions.
• Quasi-experiment - similar to natural experiments. However, the participants are not randomly allocated as the independent variable is a feature of the participants.

Several methods are used to determine how participants will be allocated to experimental conditions. Ideally, your participants represent the target group you're investigating, which is done by taking a sample of participants. They represent your target group, which avoids bias and increases generalisability.

They can be assigned in multiple ways:

• Random assignment - participants are randomly allocated into experimental conditions.
• Selective assignment - sometimes, due to inclusion/exclusion criteria, it is not possible to randomly assign participants to groups.
• Control groups and treatment groups -participants with the illness associated with the treatment are usually allocated to treatment groups, and people who do not would be allocated to the control group. This can also be randomly allocated.

Correlational Research

Correlational research is a form of research carried out in psychology to measure the relationship/association between two variables. From the results of correlational research, researchers can identify if there is a positive, negative, or no relationship between the variables. This essentially provides information on how and if changes in one variable will affect the other.

• Survey research: essentially a questionnaire that is used for data collection. In this data collection method, questions are pre-determined and sent to participants to complete.

Observational Research

Observational research is when a researcher observes and records the behaviour of participants. There are different forms of observational research, such as covert (researcher does not disclose to participants that they are being observed) or participant (researcher integrates and takes part in participants' activities whilst recording their behaviour).

Case Studies

Case studies are a form of research method used to collect in-depth data. This type of research investigates a single person or a sub-group of people who share a common characteristic that the researcher is interested in investigating. Usually, various research techniques such as interviews, questionnaires and observations are used to collect data.

• Interviews: involves a researcher asking participants to answer questions. Similar to other research methods used in psychology, there are different types of interviews.

Ethics in Psychology Research Methods

There are ethical standards that researchers need to make sure that researchers must follow. This is to prevent research from harming participants. Before the revision of ethical standards in research, research was found sometimes to cause harm to participants.

Some examples of ethical standards that research needs to follow:

• Informed consent

Permission to participate in research needs to be asked after knowing what they will do in the research. Before agreeing, researchers must inform participants of any risks. In public settings, consent is not always given; however, as people act naturally, the British Psychological Society (BPS) deems it acceptable.

• Confidentiality: researchers must keep participants anonymous in their reports; they must not be identifiable.
• Rights to withdraw/Debriefing

At any point of the study (including after), participants must have the right to stop being in the research and have their data removed. Once the study has ended, they need to be debriefed, which explains the study thoroughly (especially in the cases of deception).

• Deception: there must be a strong justification for informed consent to be subverted through deception if researchers wish to keep the nature of the study hidden (according to the BPS), and there must be no alternative procedure that allows for informed consent.
• Protection from harm: the risk of the experiment should not be higher than what they would experience in their everyday lives (although this is hard to determine since one participant may work with dangerous machinery for a living, whereas another may work from home).

To ensure that the research can be considered reliable or valid, the researchers need to make sure that the research follows a standardised protocol.

When reporting research, the researcher must report all the materials used in the experiment. This should be written in enough detail so someone else could replicate the study, which is vital in research.

Research Analysis Methods

Research analysis in psychology aims to establish if the null hypothesis should be accepted or rejected. The data analysis method depends on whether the data is qualitative, quantitative or mixed.

Qualitative Research Methods

Qualitative research methods include methods that best collect and analyse non-numerical data and are great for a more detailed, subjective view of topics of interest. The most common methods are content analysis and thematic analysis.

Quantitative Research Methods

Quantitative research methods include methods that best collect and analyse numerical data and are great for establishing causal relationships and generalising results in research. The most common methods are inferential tests to test the hypothesis.

Mixed research methods use a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods for research analysis.

The typical data analysis method uses descriptive and inferential tests; the type used is determined by the conditions of the data collected. Descriptive tests are typically analysed in all quantitative data.