VALIDITY

Validity refers to the accuracy of an assessment -- whether or not it measures what it is

supposed to measure.

E.g.: A scale must measure weight, not height, length, speed

A memory test must your how well you remember things, not how healthy your body
is
Importance of Validity:

If a research does not measure what we want it to measure then the results cannot be
used to answer the research question, which is the main aim of the study. These results
are meaningless.

Internal validity & External validity

Outside the study:

External validity
Does the same thing happen in other settings?

Inside the study:

Internal validity
Was the research done “right”?

Internal validity

- Internal validity is the extent to which you are able to say that within the context of
your study, no other factors except the one you're studying caused the result.
Internal validity is determined by how well a study can rule out alternative
explanations for its findings. (ý này t ko hiểu lắm nên tính bỏ, nếu ông muốn giữ thì
phải giải thích cái alternative explanation)

E.g.: Mr. A works very hard for the KFC company. There are 3 possible reasons
making A work hard: a raise in salary, hard-working is his personality, his passion for
 the job. KFC company makes a test to find out if a raise in salary would make
employee A work harder. This test is considered to have high internal validity if KFC
company is able to say that within the context of the test, high salary is the only
factor (not personality, not passion) that caused the result that A works hard.

External validity

It is important to remember that just because a study is valid in one instance it does not
mean that it is valid for measuring something else.

- External validity is the validity of applying the conclusions of a scientific study

outside the context of that study. In other words, it is the extent to which the results
of a study can be generalized to and across other situations, people, stimuli, and times.

E.g.: B wanted to have a date with her crush, and she asked a group of children about
how to make someone to fall in love with you. She did what the children said but it
didn’t work out, because opinions of children are not applicable to adults.  Her
research is lacked of external validity

 We should keep the best balance we can by selecting procedures which will maximize
both types of validities.

Relationship between Reliability and Validity:

Validity is whether or not you are measuring what you are supposed to be measuring, and
reliability is whether or not your results are consistent.

Both validity and reliability are very important to a research. But is there any relationship
between these two? Let’s take some examples.

E.g.: A scale that consistently tells that you weigh 70kg (reliable), but in fact you actually
weigh 60kg (not valid).

 If a study is reliable, it may be valid or invalid.

E.g.: If that scale gives you different results each time you weigh in (not consistent, no
reliable), then it’s definitely not accurate, either (not valid).

 If a study is not reliable, it is invalid. In other words, if you want a study to be valid,
that study must first be reliable.