Chapter 2 - Definitions only

Question 1

define complexity:

Answer 1

the brain is nearly infinitely complex.

it is responsible for producing thoughts, feelings, actions that are core to psychological concerns.

Question 2

define variability:

Answer 2

no two people ever say, do, think, feel exactly the same thing under the same conditions.

people are uniquely different from each other.

Question 3

define reactivity:

Answer 3

people often react differently when they are being watched rather than now being watched

human behavior changes from one context to another.

Question 4

empirical method:

Answer 4

set of rules & techniques for observation.

Question 5

define empiricism:

Answer 5

forms basis of modern science.

“I need to test this idea!”

Question 6

define dogmatism:

Answer 6

belief based on faith.

“I just know”

Question 7

what’s the difference between empiricism and dogmatism?

Answer 7

empiricism is belief based on science; dogmatism is belief based on faith.

Question 8

what was the original word for anxiety disorders?

Answer 8

hysteria; “wondering womb”

Question 9

what is the scientific method?

Answer 9

a method for learning about reality through systematic observation and experimentation

Question 10

what is objectivity? (scientific method)

Answer 10

the practice of basing conclusions on facts without the influence of personal emotion or bias.

Question 11

what are 3 things that make people hard to study?

Answer 11

complexity, variability, reactivity

Question 12

define variable and give an example:

Answer 12

any measurable condition, event, characteristic, or behavior observed or controlled in a study.

ex. heart rate of a person.

Question 13

define operational definition:

Answer 13

specify how the variables are measured or manipulated in a study.

Question 14

define measure (scale/instrument) and give an example:

Answer 14

method for identifying a variable’s quantity.

ex. temperature!

Question 15

define data and give an example:

Answer 15

all measurements on a variable. careful objective observations or numerical measurements of a phenomenon.

ex. heights given by people.

Question 16

define hypothesis:

Answer 16

proposed explanation for a situation, an educated guess about variables or the relationship between variables in a study. (BEFORE STUDY).

Question 17

define theory and give an example:

Answer 17

system of interrelated ideas that explains a set of observations. theories will evolve over time as hypothesis prove or disprove certain aspects of the theory.

ex. theory of relativity.

Question 18

define replication:

Answer 18

repeating the method of a study and collecting comparable data found in the original study.

Question 19

define case study:

Answer 19

an in-depth analysis of ONE person, examining their psychological characteristics in detail.

Question 20

Why would you ever do a case study?

Answer 20

When variable you’re studying is so rare that almost no one else has that variable.

ex. serial killers! They aren’t that many in a given moment :)

Question 21

define population:

Answer 21

large group of people you want the study to apply to.

Question 22

define sampling:

Answer 22

group of participants in a single study.

Question 23

What is the Law of Large Numbers?

Answer 23

the large the size of sample, the more accurate it represents the population.

Question 24

What’s the difference between population and sampling?

Answer 24

A sampling is just PART of a population that is being studied.

Question 25

How does the Law of Large Numbers relate to population and sampling?

Answer 25

When taking samples of a population, the large the sample, the better it represents the population.

Question 26

What is the difference between range and std. deviation?

Answer 26

Range is just max minus min. Std. deviation is different in that it’s how close individual scores cluster around the mean.

Question 27

What’s the difference between mean and mode?

Answer 27

Mean is the average and mode is the most frequent score…

Question 28

What is frequency distribution and what does it represent?

Answer 28

graphic representation of all measurements of one variable in a sample.

Question 29

What is reliability? What is validity? How are they different?

Answer 29

Reliability = consistency! 
Validity = accuracy!

Question 30

Give an example of reliability:

Answer 30

ex. weighing yourself is reliable. If it gives 130 then 240, that’s not reliable.
ex. older MRI scans weren’t reliable.

Question 31

Give an example of validity:

Answer 31

ex. sticking a thermometer inside mouth to weigh yourself is NOT VALID.
ex. someone thought more body fat meant more depressed, but that’s NOT VALID.

Question 32

What is response bias?

Answer 32

tendency to respond a particular way regardless of their actual knowledge or beliefs.

Question 33

What is sampling bias?

Answer 33

occurs when the participants or items are not chosen at random but instead are selected so that an attribute is over-presented or underrepresented.

Question 34

What are experimenter expectancy effects?

Answer 34

occur when an investigator’s expectations lead them (consciously or unconsciously) to treat participants in a way that encourages them to produce the expected results.

Question 35

What is naturalistic observation and how does that reduce bias?

Answer 35

a method of gathering scientific knowledge by unobtrusively observing people in their natural environments (in-depth study of a phenomenon in its natural setting).

ex. person watching at stoplight.

Question 36

List five (5) ways you can reduce bias:

Answer 36

1. Naturalistic observation
2. Anonymous surveys
3. Deception
4. Reflexes
5. Random sampling

Question 37

what is random sampling?

Answer 37

it is a technique for choosing participants that ensures that every member of a population has an equal chance of being included in the sample.

Question 38

what are anonymous surveys?

Answer 38

surveys that don’t tie identifying information with your responses.

Question 39

what are reflexes?

Answer 39

automatic responses from your body (knee tap, heart rate)

Question 40

what is deception?

Answer 40

lying about what is being studied to reduce response bias.

Question 41

define double-blind design:

Answer 41

the participant is “blind” to (unaware of) the predictions of the study and the experimenter is “blind” to the group to which the participant is assigned or the condition that the participant is receiving.

Question 42

list advantages and disadvantages of naturalistic observation:

Answer 42

advantage: reduce response bias.
disadvantage: can only study public areas, only behavior not mind.

Question 43

list advantages and disadvantages of surveys:

Answer 43

advantages: lots of data, on lots of variables, quickly and easily.
disadvantages: surveys are prone to every form of bias.

Question 44

define correlation and give an example:

Answer 44

changes in the measurements of one variable are accompanied by changes in the measurements of another variable.

ex: age and health.
ex. height and weight.
ex. attendance and exam grades.

Question 45

Give advantages and disadvantages of correlation:

Answer 45

advantages:
show mathematical relationship between variables.
do not require a lab environment.
can use correlation to make predictions.

disadvantages: correlation is NOT causation.

Question 46

What is strength?

Answer 46

The closer the correlation is to +1.0 or –1.0, the stronger the relationship.

Question 47

What is direction?

Answer 47

Positive or negative aspect of strength for correlation.

Question 48

Describe what confound is:

Answer 48

other possible variables involved in the study (but not measured) that vary along with one or both variables in a study and could be the actual basis for measured changes between variables.

Question 49

What is a Third-variable problem?

Answer 49

variables that are causally related are correlated but not all variables that are correlated are causally related.

Question 50

What is an experiment?

Answer 50

manipulation of one variable in controlled conditions so that another variable can be observed.

Question 51

What are the advantages of disadvantages of experiments?

Answer 51

advantages:
gold standard of science.
prove cause and effect relationships.

disadvantages:
need to be done in lab conditions.
require more tech, equipment, money.
certain relationships between variables that you cannot do experiments on for ethical or practical reasons.

Question 52

Describe what manipulation is!

Answer 52

a characteristic of experimentation in which the researcher artificially creates a pattern of variation in an independent variable in order to determine its causal powers.

Question 53

What is idea pseudopsychology close to?

Answer 53

dogmatism! “I just know.”

Question 54

What is the difference between informed consent and debriefing?

Answer 54

informed consent: informing on a patient on what they will be asked to do BEFORE formally agreeing to do the study.

debriefing: interviewed AFTER the study about their experience.

Question 55

ALWAYS tie cause and effect with ______:

Answer 55

experiments!

Question 56

if asked about relationships with two or more variables:

Answer 56

look into the moral aspect.

Question 57

if a study IS moral:

Answer 57

do the experiment!

Question 58

if a study is NOT moral:

Answer 58

don’t do an experiment, do a correlation study (surveys and stuff).