Smashing Research Methods

"Oh no sir please not research methods"

That phrase is one I hear on a regular basis from my A level Psychologists who at the slightest mention of a lesson involving research methods go into panic mode! 

Arguably, research methods is one of the most demanding parts of the A level Psychology course and that is because, at first glance, no question appears to be the same. There is always a new novel situation you have to figure out, some data or large text to interpret and a lot of application required to get the full marks. But it is super important because it is worth 25% of the overall A level. That`s right 1 in every 4 marks.

The great news is research methods doesn`t need to be something you fear and there is only one way you can change how you feel about it. It is called practise, practise, practise. Here are some tips to help turn that E in to an A!

1.    Get your teacher to do practical lessons. They are fun but also really important because you understand RM much more if you actually do it yourself. If they aren`t doing them do them yourself at home or school. Gather some data, analyse it and then practise evaluating it. I run practical lessons throughout the year and ask my class to write a lab report over the summer holidays that gives them that extra edge.

2.    Practise RM questions. That means reading and writing answers. Do this endlessly from the start of the year and ask your teacher (or me) to mark them. If you don’t you will never build your confidence at approaching the new situations they give you and applying your knowledge. Forget reading your book over and over for RM it doesn’t work.

3.    Use technology to practise - Your teacher might be using exam software called Exampro. If they are they might not realise they can give you links to access to practise questions and mark schemes yourself. Tell them they can do this. I provide all my students with these links. If they don’t have this google AQA psychology past papers and download these and the mark schemes yourself from the AQA website.  

4.    In paper 2 read the little questions first the big question at the top. Look at what each question is asking and bullet point a quick list at the side of the big novel question at the top.

5.    Read the big novel situation second - underline and tick off each item on your little bullet point list as you go. So, look for the answers within the writing to each little question.

6.    RM questions always ask you to do 1 of 5 things so make sure you spot what it is asking for. Sometime a question could involve 2 of the below so read carefully. Underline the key words.   Here is a quick guide.

What/outline

Why/limitation/strength/ advantage/weakness

How

Interpret questions

Design your own study

The easiest kind. You just describe what something is. 

 

This is usually evaluation. What are the strengths and weaknesses of using that method?

 

why a Psychologist picked a certain inferential test. e.g. the sign test

 

These are tricky and most students mistake them for a what question.

 

Describe step by step how a Psychologist would do something practically.

 

 You know these. Look at a graph or table and conclude what is going on.

 

This are usually worth a lot of marks and involve you bringing together everything you know about RM and using it to explain how you would carry out a new study. 

1 mark = briefly define

2 marks = define and elaborate

If it says one limitation just write 1.

2 marks = one limitation plus elaboration

 

Use the marks as a guide.

 3 marks = describe 3 steps.  

Use the marks as a guide.

3 marks = make 3 conclusions

Read the suggest list of things to include and do some maths

 4 suggested things and 8 marks = 2 marks per item on the list.

 So there you have it. Just a few little tips to help smash research methods! Of course, having a teacher to explain what all the concepts mean and to give you feedback on what you are writing is vital to success. If you aren’t getting enough at school get a tutor on Tutorhunt.