chapter 1 Main Idea notes

Question 1

what is a construct

Answer 1

A construct is a topic that you are actually studying—this is often a variable that cannot be directly observed.
ex: intelligence

Question 1

what is an operational definition?

Answer 1

An operational definition the behaviors that are representative of the construct. Something that displays the construct
ex: if the construct is intelligence it would be IQ

Question 2

population

Answer 2

The entire set of individuals that you purport to study.

Question 3

sample

Answer 3

The relatively small subset of scores or individuals that you have available to observe

Question 4

what is a characteristic that describes a sample

Answer 4

statistic

Question 5

what is a characteristic that describes a population?

Answer 5

parameter

Question 6

sampling error

Answer 6

The discrepancy, or amount of difference, that exists between the results from your sample and what the results would be had you tested the entire population.

Question 7

is a sample ever identical to the population?

Answer 7

no

Question 8

what makes a sample “good”

Answer 8

1. randomly selected from the population of interest.
2. representative of the population: Characteristics of sample reflect those of the population of interest.

Question 9

what sample size is better small or large

Answer 9

large

Question 10

descriptive statistics

Answer 10

Organizing & summarizing the data (“number crunching”).
ex: # of covid cases, Average G.P.A. in this class, Most typical college major in class, Average height etc

Question 11

inferential statistics

Answer 11

techniques, based on probability, that allow us to generalize beyond our sample to the population. Based on probability. ex: Average g.p.a at BU (inferred from this class)
Predictions about elections (b/c they are inferred from a small sample)The effectiveness of a covid vaccine within a population.

Question 12

do most scientific articles include descriptive or inferential statistics?

Answer 12

both

Question 13

does correlation mean causation

Answer 13

NO

Question 14

correlational study

Answer 14

Measure two things and determine whether there is a relationship between them; nothing is manipulated by the researcher

Question 15

third variable problem

Answer 15

A correlation between X and Y may be caused by some other variable (Z) that is not measured.
ex: Ice cream sales and shark attacks are related.

Question 16

directionality problem

Answer 16

Even if two variables are causally linked, you can’t tell which is the cause and which is the effect.
Ex: relationship between violent video games and aggression or between social media use and depression. What is the cause and what is the effect

Question 17

experimental study

Answer 17

1. A researcher manipulates a variable and measures the effect on another variable while holding everything else constant.
2. Control everything else that may impact the variable of interest

Question 18

dependent variable

Answer 18

The behavior that is measured by the experimenter.
Exam score
Reaction Time
Level of Depression
# of covid infections

Question 19

independent variable

Answer 19

The variable that is manipulated by the experimenter to see if it affects the behavior of interest.
ex: hours of sleep
alcohol consumption

Question 20

do correlational studies have independent variables?

Answer 20

no they have 2 dependent

Question 21

whats another word for independent variables

Answer 21

factors

Question 22

conditions

Answer 22

The specific amounts of the IV used in the experiment. sometimes called levels of the IV
ex: for hours of sleep the conditions would be 4hrs, 6hrs. 8hs

Question 23

quasi independent variables

Answer 23

Groups of people that can be compared, but cannot ever be true IVs, because you cannot randomly assign to groups. Need to interpret cautiously (as you would a correlational study)

Question 24

examples of quasi-independent variables

Answer 24

sex, gender identity, age, race, ethnicity, college major, religion

Question 25

quantitive vs qualitative

Answer 25

quantitative is amount, qualitative is a category

Question 26

ratio scale

Answer 26

quantitative there is a 0 point included

Question 27

interval scale

Answer 27

quantitative, ordered categories of the same size, ranking something on a scale from 1 to 10

Question 28

ordinal data

Answer 28

order and ranking, quantitative. distances dont need to be uniform, ex: olympic medals, ice cream, movies

Question 29

what are likert scales

Answer 29

strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, strongly disagree theyre considered interval

Question 30

nominal data

Answer 30

name qualitative doesnt differ in amount only different categories ex: major, race, religion