Introduction to research methods in psychology

462 Pages·2008·3.514 MB·English

by  Dennis Howitt, Duncan Cramer

Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology second edition
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provides a clear, comprehensive and innovative coverage of n
quantitative and qualitative research methods for psychology tr Introduction to
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students throughout their studies.
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The research process is broken down into manageable steps c Research Methods
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to equip students with the skills to ask intelligent research i
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research design, carry out data collection, and write up their
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Resources including MCQs, ethical dilemmas, and roadmaps to
help with test selection can be found at the accompanying website,
www.pearson-books.com
www.pearsoned.co.uk/howitt
9780132051637_02_COVER.indd 1 15/11/07 11:28:45
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Introduction to Research Methods
in Psychology
Visit the Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology, Second Edition
Companion Website at www.pearsoned.co.uk/howitt to find valuable student
learning material including:
■ Overview: A short introduction to each chapter gives students
a feel for the topics covered
■ Multiple choice questions: A set of MCQs for every chapter allow students to
check knowledge and understanding
■ Essay questions: Between 6 and 8 essay questions for every chapter help
students to plan for coursework and exams
■ Ethical dilemmas: 12 cases, each with different scenarios and questions,
encourage students to consider the wider implications of a research project
■ Guide to statistical computations: A short guide to statistical tools and
techniques for easy reference when online
■ Roadmaps: A set of visual guides to help students find the right test to use
to analyse a set of data

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We work with leading authors to develop the
strongest educational materials in psychology,
bringing cutting-edge thinking and best
learning practice to a global market.
Under a range of well-known imprints, including
Prentice Hall, we craft high quality print and
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To find out about the complete range of our
publishing please visit us on the World Wide Web at:
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INTT_A01.qxd 8/11/2007 13:40 Page iii
Introduction to
Research Methods
in Psychology
Second Edition
Dennis Howitt
Loughborough University
Duncan Cramer
Loughborough University

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Pearson Education Limited
Edinburgh Gate
Harlow
Essex CM20 2JE
England
and Associated Companies throughout the world
Visit us on the World Wide Web at:
www.pearsoned.co.uk
First published 2005
Second edition published 2008
©Pearson Education Limited 2005, 2008
The rights of Dennis Howitt and Duncan Cramer to be identified as authors of this work have
been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without either the prior written permission of the
publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying in the United Kingdom issued by the
Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. The use of any
trademark in this text does not vest in the author or publisher any trademark ownership rights
in such trademarks, nor does the use of such trademarks imply any affiliation with or
endorsement of this book by such owners.
ISBN 978-0-13-205163-7
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
12 11 10 09 08 07
Typeset in 10/12pt Times by 35
Printed by Ashford Colour Press Ltd., Gosport
The publisher’s policy is to use paper manufactured from sustainable forests.
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Brief contents
Contents vii
Guided tour of the book xvi
Introduction xviii
Acknowledgements xxi
Part 1 The basics of research
1
1 The role of research in psychology 3
2 Aims and hypotheses in research 21
3 Variables, concepts and measures 36
4 The problems of generalisation: Chance findings and
sample size 52
5 Research reports: The total picture 69
6 Examples of how to write research reports 97
7 The literature search 120
8 Ethics in research 140

Part 2 Quantitative research methods
157
9 The basic laboratory experiment 159
10 Advanced experimental design 184
11 Cross-sectional or correlational research:
Non-manipulation studies 202
12 Longitudinal studies 214
13 Sampling and population surveys 226
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vi Brief contents
Part 3 Fundamentals of testing and measurement
241
14 Psychological tests: Their use and construction 243
15 Reliability and validity: Evaluating the value of tests
and measures 260
16 Coding data 273
Part 4 Qualitative research methods
283
17 Why qualitative research? 285
18 Qualitative data collection 297
19 Transcribing language data: The Jefferson system 309
20 Data analysis: Grounded theory 318
21 Thematic analysis 333
22 Discourse analysis 349
23 Conversation analysis 361
24 Interpretative phenomenological analysis 372
25 Evaluating and writing up qualitative research 385
Part 5 Research for projects, dissertations and theses
397
26 Developing ideas for research 399
Glossary 413
References 420
Index 428

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Contents
Guided tour of the book xvi
Introduction xviii
Acknowledgements xxi
Part 1 The basics of research
1
1 The role of research in psychology 3
Overview 3
1.1 Introduction 4
1.2 Reading 5
1.3 Evaluating the evidence 6
1.4 Inferring causality 8
1.5 Types of research and the assessment of causality 10
1.6 Practice 17

1.7 Conclusion 17
Key points 18
Activities 19
2 Aims and hypotheses in research 21
Overview 21
2.1 Introduction 22
2.2 Types of studies 23
2.3 Aims of research 25
2.4 Research hypotheses 26
2.5 Four types of hypothesis 28
2.6 Difficulties in formulating aims and hypotheses 31
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viii Contents
2.7 Conclusion 34
Key points 35
Activities 35
3 Variables, concepts and measures 36
Overview 36
3.1 Introduction 37
3.2 The history of the variable in psychology 37
3.3 Types of variable 39
3.4 Independent and dependent variables 41
3.5 Measurement characteristics of variables 42
3.6 Stevens’ theory of scales of measurement 44
3.7 Operationalising concepts and variables 49
3.8 Conclusion 50
Key points 50
Activities 51
4 The problems of generalisation: Chance findings
and sample size 52
Overview 52
4.1 Introduction 53
4.2 Universalism 53
4.3 Sampling and generalisation 53
4.4 Statistics and generalisation 56
4.5 Directional and non-directional hypotheses again 58
4.6 More on the similarity between measures of effect (difference) and
association 60
4.7 Sample size and size of association 63
4.8 Conclusion 67

Key points 67
Activities 68
5 Research reports: The total picture 69
Overview 69
5.1 Introduction 69
5.2 Overall strategy of report writing 71
5.3 The sections of the research report in detail 75
5.4 Conclusion 92
Key points 95
Activities 96
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Contents ix
6 Examples of how to write research reports 97
Overview 97
6.1 Introduction 98
6.2 A poorly written practical report 99
6.3 Analysis of the report 104
6.4 An improved version of the report 112
6.5 Conclusion 117
Key points 118
Activity 119
7 The literature search 120
Overview 120
7.1 Introduction 121
7.2 Library classification systems 122
7.3 Electronic databases 123
7.4 Obtaining articles not in your library 134
7.5 Conclusion 137
Key points 138
Activities 139
8 Ethics in research 140
Overview 140
8.1 Introduction 140
8.2 APA ethics 142
8.3 Research ethics 143
8.4 Ethics and publication 151
8.5 Conclusion 152
Key points 153
Activities 153

Part 2 Quantitative research methods
157
9 The basic laboratory experiment 159
Overview 159
9.1 Introduction 160
9.2 Characteristics of the true or randomised experiment 162
9.3 More advanced research designs 169
9.4 Conclusion 181
Key points 182
Activity 183
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