Class 11
Psychology
Chapter 2
Notes
Q1. The variables on which the effect of independent variable is observed is called___________.
Ans:dependent variable
2. State two points of difference between Speed tests and Power tests.
Ans
1. In a speed test, there is a time limit within which the test taker is required to answer all the items.
Whereas, Power test assesses the underlying ability (or power) of the individuals by allowing them
sufficient time, i.e. these tests do not have any time limit.
2. In a speed test, all the items are of the same degree of difficulty. And in a power test, the items are
generally arranged in an increasing order of difficulty
Q3. State two points of difference between Structured and Unstructured interview.
Ans:
1. A structured interview is one where the questions in the schedule are written clearly in a particular
[Link], in unstructured interview the interviewer has the flexibility to take decisions about
the questions to be asked and also the sequence in which questions are to be asked.
2. The interviewer has little or no liberty to make changes in the wordings of the questions or the order
in which they are to be asked. However, in unstructured interview the interviewer has the liberty to
change the wording of the questions to be asked.
3. The responses to these questions are also, in some cases, specified in advance. These are called close-
ended questions. And the responses are not specified in such type of interviews, the respondent can
answer the questions in the way s/he chooses [Link] questions are called open-ended questions
Q4. Explain Voluntary Participation as one of the ethical issues.
Ans:
This principle states that the persons on whom you want to conduct the study should have the choice to
decide whether to participate or not to participate in the study.
The participants should have the freedom to decide about their participation without any pressure or
excessive inducement, and the freedom to withdraw from the research without penalty, once it has
begun.
Q5. Scientific observation is different from day to day observation in three respects. Explain.
Ans:
(a) Selection- Psychologist select one particular behaviour for observation instead of considering all. For
example, you may be interested to know how children studying in Class XI spend their time in school.
Based on this example two things are possible at this stage. As a researcher, you might think that you
have a fairly good idea about what happens in school. You might prepare a list of activities and go to the
school with a view to finding out their occurrences. Another aspect is, you do not know what happens in
the school and, by your observation you would like to discover it.
(b) Recording:While observing, a researcher records the selected behaviour using different means, such
as marking tallies for the already identified behaviour whenever they occur, taking notes describing each
activity in greater detail using short hand or symbols, photographs, video recording, etc.
(c) Analysis of data:After the observations have been made, psychologists analyse whatever they have
recorded with a view to derive some meaning out of it.
Q6 State and explain any three goals of psychological enquiry.
Ans:
Following are three goals of psychological enquiry :
a) Description- In a psychological study, we attempt to describe a behaviour or a phenomenon as
accurately as [Link] helps in distinguishing a particular behaviour from other behaviours. An
example, the researcher may be interested in observing study habits among [Link] habits may
consist of diverse range of behaviours, such as attending all your classes regularly, submitting
assignments on time, planning your study schedule, studying according to the set schedule, revising your
work on a daily basis etc. The researcher needs to describe her/his meaning of study habits. The
description requires recording of a particular behaviour which helps in its proper understanding.
b) Prediction- The second goal of scientific enquiry is prediction of behaviour. If you are able to
understand and describe the behaviour accurately, you come to know the relationship of a particular
behaviour with other types of behaviours, events, or phenomena. You can then forecast that under
certain conditions this particular behaviour may occur within a certain margin of error. For example, on
the basis of study, a researcher is able to establish a positive relationship between the amount of study
time and achievement in different subjects. Later, if you come to know that a particular child devotes
more time for study, you can predict that the child is likely to get good marks in the examination.
Prediction becomes more accurate with the increase in the number of persons observed.
c) Explanation- The third goal of psychological enquiry is to know the causal factors or determinants of
behaviour. Psychologists are primarily interested in knowing the factors that make behaviour occur.
For example, what makes some children more attentive in the class? Why some children devote less
time for study as compared to others? Thus, this goal is concerned with identifying the determinants or
antecedent conditions of the behaviour being studied so that cause-effect relationship between two
variables (objects) or events could be established.
Q7. Explain Participant and Non-Participant observation.
Ans:
Observation can be done in two ways. One, you may decide to observe the person or event from a
distance. Two, the observer may become part of the group being observed.
a) Participant Observation- In participant observation, the observer becomes a part of the school or the
group of people being observed. In participant observation, the observer takes some time to establish a
rapport with the group so that they start accepting her/him as one of the group members. The degree of
involvement of the observer with the group being observed would vary depending upon the focus of the
study.
b) Non-Participant Observation- In non participant observation , you decide to observe the person or
event from a distance. An example is you want to observe the pattern of interaction between teachers
and students in a particular class. There are many ways of achieving this goal. You can install a video
camera to record the classroom activities, which you can see later and analyse. Alternatively, you may
decide to sit in a corner of the class without interfering or participating in their everyday activities. This
type of observation is called non-participant observation. The danger with this type of observation is
that when you know someone is sitting and observing that will bring a change in the behaviour of
students and the teacher.
Q 8 Explain Speed and Power tests.
Ans:
Psychological tests are also classified into speed and power tests. In a speed test, there is a time limit
within which the test taker is required to answer all the items. Such a test evaluates the individual on
the basis of time taken to answer the items accurately. In a speed test, all the items are of the same
degree of difficulty.
On the other hand, power test assesses the underlying ability (or power) of the individuals by allowing
them sufficient time, i.e. these tests do not have any time limit. In a power test, the items are generally
arranged in an increasing order of [Link] a person, for example, is unable to solve the 6th item, s/he
will have difficulty in answering the subsequent items. It is, however, difficult to construct a pure speed
or power test. Majority of the tests are a combination of both speed and power.
Q9. What are variables? State any TWO variables.
Ans:
Any stimulus or event which varies, that is, it takes on different values (or changes) and can be
measured is called a variable.
a) Independent variable
b) Dependent variable
Q10. What is correlational method of psychology ?
Ans:
Correlation method is the research method in which researchers attempt to determine whether and to
what extent different variables are related to each other. It is divided into
a) Positive correlation
b) Negative correlation
c) Zero correlation
Q11. Define case study .State any TWO characteristics of a case study.
Ans:
Case studies provide you a narrative or detailed descriptions of the events that take place in a person's
life.
Following are the characteristics of case study:
a) Case study, emphasis on indepth study of a particular person's life.
b) The cases that are selected for study are unique and rich in information.
c) Various methods are used to collect information . for example multiple methods for collecting
information, such as interview, observation, and psychological tests from a variety of respondents.
d) Case studies provide detailed in-depth depictions of people's lives.
Q12 __________ is the tentative answer to a problem.
Ans: hypothesis