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Define quasi-experimental research and identify the specific methodological features of a true experiment that it frequently lacks, as well as its position relative to purely correlational and true experimental research regarding internal validity.
Question: Define quasi-experimental research and identify the specific methodological features of a true experiment that it frequently lacks, as well as its position relative to purely correlational and true experimental research regarding internal validity.
Sample answer: Quasi-experimental research is a methodological design that incorporates some, but not all, of the essential features of a true experiment. Researchers use this approach to introduce a treatment or comparison condition, but they frequently fail to use random assignment to place participants into distinct groups or omit counterbalancing to control for potential order effects. Consequently, quasi-experimental research generally possesses lower internal validity than a true experiment, but it offers more control than purely correlational studies.
Key points:
- Defines quasi-experimental research as a design containing some but not all features of a true experiment.
- Identifies the lack of random assignment to groups as a frequent missing feature.
- Identifies the omission of counterbalancing to control order effects as another frequent missing feature.
- States that internal validity is lower than in a true experiment but higher than in purely correlational studies.
Rubric: Award full points if the student correctly defines the term, explicitly names random assignment or counterbalancing as the missing features, and correctly situates its internal validity between correlational and true experimental designs.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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