2. Research Methods: Tools for Discovery

Question 1

case study

Answer 1

A form of research in which investigators study an individual person or group intensely.

Question 2

construct

Answer 2

An idea or concept, especially a complex one such as aggression or love.

Question 3

cortisol

Answer 3

A hormone secreted by the adrenal glands in response to physical or psychological stress.

Question 4

cros-sectional design

Answer 4

A research design in which researchers compare groups of individuals of different age levels at approximately the same point in time.

Question 5

dependent variable

Answer 5

The factor that researchers expect to change as a function of change in the independent variable.

Question 6

direct observation

Answer 6

A research technique in which researchers go into settings in the real world or bring participants into the laboratory to observe behaviors of interest.

Question 7

ecological validity

Answer 7

The degree to which a research study accurately represents events or processes that occur in the real world.

Question 8

effect size

Answer 8

An estimate of the magnitude of the difference between groups or the strength of the association between the factors, averaged across studies in a meta-analysis.

Question 9

ethnography

Answer 9

Use of intensive observations and interviews to gather data about the beliefs, practices, and behaviors of individuals in a particular context or culture.

Question 10

event sampling

Answer 10

Investigators record participants’ behavior only when an event of particular interest occurs.

Question 11

experience sampling method (ESM)

Answer 11

A data-collection strategy by which participants are signaled at random times throughout the day and record answers to researchers’ questions, such as: Where are you? Who are you with? What are you doing? Also called the beeper method.

Question 12

field experiment

Answer 12

An experiment in which researchers deliberately create a change in a real-world setting and then measure the outcome of their manipulation.

Question 13

focus group

Answer 13

A group interview in which an interviewer poses questions that are answered by the participants.

Question 14

habituation

Answer 14

An individual reacts with less and less intensity to a repeatedly presented stimulus until he or she responds only faintly or not at all.

Question 15

hormone

Answer 15

A powerful and highly specialized chemical substance produced by the cells of certain body organs, which has a regulatory effect on the activity of certain other organs.

Question 16

independent variable

Answer 16

The factor that researchers deliberately manipulate in an experiment.

Question 17

informed consent

Answer 17

Agreement to participate in a study based on a clear and full understanding of its purposes and procedures.

Question 18

intervention

Answer 18

A program provided to improve a situation or relieve psychological illness or distress.

Question 19

laboratory analogue experiment

Answer 19

Researchers try to duplicate in the laboratory features or events that occur naturally in everyday life in order to increase the ecological validity of the results.

Question 20

longitudinal design

Answer 20

A study in which investigators follow the same people over a period of time, observing them repeatedly.

Question 21

meta-analysis

Answer 21

A statistical technique that allows the researcher to summarize the results of many studies on a particular topic and to draw conclusions about the size and replicability of observed differences or associations.

Question 22

natural experiment

Answer 22

An experiment in which researchers measure the results of events that occur naturally in the real world.

Question 23

naturalistic observation

Answer 23

Information collected in the child’s natural settings, at home, in child care, or in school without interfering with the child’s activities.

Question 24

observer bias

Answer 24

An observer’s tendency to be influenced by knowledge about the research design or hypothesis.

Question 25

operationalization

Answer 25

Defining a concept so that it is observable and measurable.

Question 26

participant observations

Answer 26

Research strategy used to gain familiarity with a group of individuals by means of involvement in their activities, usually over an extended period of time.

Question 27

psychophysiological

Answer 27

Physiological bases of psychological processes measured by brain activity, brain waves, and heart rate.

Question 28

qualitative study

Answer 28

Research using nonstatistical analysis of materials gathered from a relatively small number of participants to gain an in-depth understanding of behavior and contexts.

Question 29

quantitative study

Answer 29

Research involving statistical analysis of numerical data.

Question 30

reactivity

Answer 30

The change in a person’s behavior because he or she is being observed.

Question 31

representative sample

Answer 31

A research sample in which participants are drawn from strata or categories (e.g., social classes or ethnic groups) in the same proportions as they are found in the larger population.

Question 32

self-report

Answer 32

Information that people provide about themselves either in a direct interview or in some written form, such as a questionnaire.

Question 33

sequential design

Answer 33

A way of studying change over time that combines features of both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs.

Question 34

specimen record

Answer 34

Researchers record everything a person does within a given period of time.

Question 35

structured observation

Answer 35

A form of observation in which researchers create a situation so that behaviors they wish to study are more likely to occur.

Question 36

time sampling

Answer 36

Researchers record any of a set of predetermined behaviors that occur within a specified period of time.