Think in relation to a college professor, John, who claims he is a superior teacher because his Introduction to Psychology class performed better than the class taught by another teacher Drew, did on their f i n a l e x a m.
- Briefly describe the need to validate the result of any research study
- Is it important for a study to have high internal validity? What if Drew’s students had to take the e x a m during a time when construction was going on outside the window? What if there is suspicion of cheating on the part of a number of John’s students? Use the concepts of internal validity and discuss the problems with John’s claim.
- Consider the same concept for external validity. What conditions must be met inside the college to be able to have high external validity? What are the advantages of conducting experiments in a laboratory (box-like environment)?
- If John were to use this information to support his teaching strategies in a p u b l i c a t i o n, would this be an example of accurate reporting of information? Why or why not?
