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EnglandPsychology

Research methods

5 dot points across 5 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do psychologists summarise and present their data?

Types of data (quantitative and qualitative; primary and secondary) and descriptive statistics: measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode), the range, percentages and ratios, and ways of presenting data (tables, bar charts and scatter graphs).
A focused answer to the OCR GCSE Psychology J203 research methods topic on data and statistics, covering quantitative and qualitative data, primary and secondary data, the measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode), the range, percentages and ratios, and how to present data in tables, bar charts and scatter graphs.
11 min answer →

How do psychologists make sure their research is ethical?

Ethical issues and guidelines in psychological research: informed consent, deception, the right to withdraw, protection from harm, confidentiality and debriefing, and how researchers deal with these issues.
A focused answer to the OCR GCSE Psychology J203 research methods topic on ethics, covering the key ethical issues and guidelines (informed consent, deception, the right to withdraw, protection from harm, confidentiality and debriefing) and how researchers deal with them.
10 min answer →

What research methods do psychologists use besides experiments, and how reliable and valid are they?

Non-experimental methods: observations, self-report (questionnaires and interviews), case studies and correlations, plus the concepts of reliability and validity used to evaluate all research.
A focused answer to the OCR GCSE Psychology J203 research methods topic on non-experimental methods, covering observations, questionnaires and interviews, case studies and correlations, and the concepts of reliability and validity used to evaluate all psychological research.
10 min answer →

How do psychologists plan an investigation and design an experiment?

Planning research: aims and hypotheses (directional and non-directional, the null hypothesis), experimental methods (laboratory, field and natural experiments), and experimental designs (independent measures, repeated measures and matched pairs).
A focused answer to the OCR GCSE Psychology J203 research methods topic on planning research, covering aims and hypotheses (directional, non-directional and null), the experimental methods (laboratory, field and natural experiments) and the experimental designs (independent measures, repeated measures and matched pairs).
11 min answer →

How do psychologists choose who to study and control the variables in an experiment?

Sampling methods (random, opportunity, systematic, stratified) and variables: independent and dependent variables, operationalisation, extraneous and confounding variables, and controls.
A focused answer to the OCR GCSE Psychology J203 research methods topic on sampling and variables, covering sampling methods (random, opportunity, systematic and stratified), independent and dependent variables, operationalisation, extraneous and confounding variables, and controls.
10 min answer →