IB Psychology 1.1.1 Types of Bias in Psychological Research Key Definitions

A systematic distortion that pushes research findings in one direction.

A systematic error that skews results in a particular direction.

Cues in a study that signal to participants what the researcher expects, leading them to alter their behaviour.

The tendency for journals to publish positive results far more often than null findings or failed replications.

Bias introduced when a researcher's expectations or behaviour push a study's results toward a preferred outcome.

When the sample studied does not represent the population the researcher claims to describe.

The tendency for participants to answer in a way that makes them look good rather than report honestly.