2. Methodology: How Social Psychologists Do Research Flashcards
Fundamental Principle
Social influence can be studied scientifically
Why might results of some experiments may seem obvious
-Familiarity with the subject matter
-Social influence
-Social behavior
- Hindsight bias
Hindsight bias
The tendency to exaggerate prediction of an outcome after knowing that it occurred
Like other scientists, social psychologists
Develop theories
Derive hypotheses from theory
Test hypotheses
Test hypotheses
Based on the results, revise theory
Formulate and test new hypotheses
How to: formulate Hypotheses and Theories
Previous theories and research
Science is cumulative
Dissatisfaction with behaviorism (Festinger)
Personal observation
Kitty Genovese (Latané and Darley)
The Observational Method
-Researcher observes people and systematically records behavior
-Used to describe behavior
ie: Ethnography:Description from an “insider’s point of view”
ie: Archival analysis: Researcher examines accumulated documents (archives)
Research Question
How much aggression do children exhibit during school recesses?
Interjudge Reliability
The level of agreement between two or more people who independently observe and code a set of data
Limits of the Observational Method
Certain behaviors difficult to observe
-Occur rarely
- In private
Archival analysis
-Original may not have all information researchers need
-Does not allow prediction and explanation
- Limited to description
The Correlational Method
A statistical technique that assesses how well you can predict one variable from another
Positive Correlation
Increases in the value of one variable are associated with increases in the value of the other variable
neg correlation
Increases in the value of one variable are associated with decreases in the value of the other variable
The Correlation Coefficient
Correlation coefficients range from –1.00 to +1.00
+1.00 perfectly correlated in a positive direction
0 means that two variables are not correlated
–1.00 perfectly correlated in a negative direction
Surveys
Representative sample of people asked about attitudes or behaviors
Correlations computed using responses to questions
Random Selection
A way of ensuring that a sample of people is representative of a population by giving everyone in the population an equal chance of being selected for the sample
Surveys: Disadvantages
Accuracy of responses:
People may not know the answer—but they think they do!
Surveys: Advantages
Investigate relations between variables difficult to observe
Sexual behavior & knowledge of HIV
Sample representative segments of population
Limits of the Correlational Method
Correlation does not equal causation!
Correlational method tells us only that two variables are related
Social psychology’s goal
Identify causes of social behavior
Be able to say that A causes B, not just that A is correlated with B
A Birth Control and STD Correlation
A study conducted in the early 1990s found a correlation between the type of birth control women used and their likelihood of getting a sexually transmitted disease (STD). Those whose partners used condoms were more likely to have an STD than were women who used other forms of birth control. Does this mean that the use of condoms caused the increase in STDs? Not necessarily—see the text for alternative explanations of this research finding.
The Experimental Method
Researcher randomly assigns participants to different conditions
Conditions are identical except for the independent variable (the one thought to have a causal effect on people’s responses).
Use to answer causal questions
Independent Variable (IV)
The IV is what researchers manipulate to see if it has a causal effect
(e.g., type of TV show children watch)
Dependent Variable (DV)
IV and DV Example Using Latané and Darley (1970)
Probability Level (p-value)
A number calculated with statistical techniques
Indicates likelihood results of experiment occurred by chance instead of the IV(s)
The convention in science is to consider results significant when
Probability is less than 5 in 100 that the results might be due to chance factors and not the IV
p< .05
External Validity
The extent to which the results of a study can be generalized to other situations and to other people.
Generalizability across
-Situations
-People
Psychological Realism
Psychological processes triggered by experiments are similar to psychological processes in real life
Cover story
A description of the purpose of a study, given to participants, that is different from its true purpose, used to maintain psychological realism
Random selection of participants from population
Impractical and expensive for most social psychology experiments
Address by studying basic, fundamental psychological processes that may be universal
Improving External Validity
Field Experiments:
Experiments conducted in natural settings rather than in the laboratory
Advantages:
Participants unaware that they are in an experiment
Participants more diverse than typical college sample
Basic Research
Designed to find the best answer to why people behave as they do
Conducted purely for reasons of intellectual curiosity
Applied Research
Designed to solve a particular social problem
Evolutionary Theory
Developed by Charles Darwin to explain how animals adapt to their environments
Natural Selection
How heritable traits that promote survival in a particular environment are passed along to future generations
Organisms with those traits are more likely to produce offspring
Attempts to explain social behavior in terms of genetic factors that have evolved over time according to the principles of natural selection.
Core idea:Social behaviors prevalent today are due, in part, to adaptations to past environments
Impossible to test with experimental method
social Neuroscience
Examines the connection between biological processes and social behavior
Electroencephalography (EEG)
electrodes are placed on the scalp to measure electrical activity in the brain
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
in which people are placed in scanners that measure changes in blood flow in their brains
Ethical dilemma: two goals in conflict
Create experiments that resemble the real world and are well controlled
Avoid causing participants stress, discomfort, or unpleasantness
Informed Consent
Informed Consent
Agreement to participate in an experiment
Full nature of the experiment explained in advance
Sometimes this is not feasible
Deception
Misleading participants about the true purpose of a study or the events that will actually transpire
People do not object to mild discomfort and deception
Not all research in social psychology involves deception!
Debriefing
Explaining to participants, at the end of an experiment, the true purpose of the study and exactly what transpired
Submit to Institutional Review Board
Ensures the safety and dignity of research participants
Must include at least one scientist, one nonscientist, and one person who is not affiliated with the institution
Reviews all research proposals
Approves studies before research conducted
Procedures judged to be overly stressful or upsetting must be changed or deleted before the study can be conducted
Submit to IRB
Ensures the safety and dignity of research participants
Must include at least one scientist, one nonscientist, and one person who is not affiliated with the institution
Reviews all research proposals
Approves studies before research conducted
Procedures judged to be overly stressful or upsetting must be changed or deleted before the study can be conducted
