Scientific processes
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Study Description

A sociologist wanted to investigate whether task concentration is affected by the type of working environment (noise level).

The researcher needed a stratified sample of 30 employees. They obtained this sample from a logistics firm consisting of 120 full-time and 80 part-time staff.

Participants were asked to complete a series of complex data entry tasks on a computer system.

There were two conditions in the study, Condition 1 and Condition 2.

  • Condition 1 (Quiet environment): 15 participants completed the tasks in a room with a low background noise level of 35 decibels.
  • Condition 2 (Noisy environment): the other 15 participants completed the tasks in a room with simulated office chatter and ringing phones at 75 decibels.

Each participant was tested individually. The sociologist recorded the performance by counting the total number of data-entry errors made by each participant over a 20-minute period.

Explain one advantage of using a stratified sample of participants in this study.

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Scientific processes Questions

Practise AQA A Level Psychology Scientific processes with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 100 questions, matched to the AQA A Level Psychology (7182) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.

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Scientific processes Questions

  1. A Level
  2. /Psychology
  3. /Scientific processes