Chapter 2: How Psychologists Do Research Flashcards
Correlation Coefficient
A measure of correlation that ranges in value from -1.00 to +1.00.
Correlation Study
A descriptive study that looks for a consistent relationship between two or more phenomena.
Descriptive Methods
Methods that yield descriptions of behaviour but not direct explanations.
Control Condition
In an experiment, a comparison condition in which participants are not exposed to the treatment used in the experimental condition.
Bayesian Statistics
Statistics that involve a formula for calculating the likelihood of a hypothesis being true and meaningful, taking into account relevant prior knowledge.
Experiment
A controlled test of a hypothesis in which the researcher manipulates one variable to discover its effect on another.
Independent Variable
A variable that an experimenter manipulates.
Confirmation Bias
The tendency to look for or pay attention to only information that confirms one’s own belief.
Hypothesis
A statement that attempts to predict or account for a set of phenomena, specifically relationships, among events or variables that can be empirically tested..
Arithmetic Mean
An average that is calculated by adding up a set of quantities and dividing the sum by the total number of quantities in the set.
Inferential Statistics
Statistical procedures that allow researchers to draw conclusions about how statistically reliable a study’s results are.
Case Study
A detailed description of a particular individual being studied or treated.
Correlation
Measure of how strongly two variables are related to one another.
Norms
Rules that regulate social life ,including explicit laws and implicit cultural conventions.
Negative Correlation
An association between increases in one variable and decreases in another.
Cross-Sectional Study
A study in which people (or animals) of different ages are compared at a given time. Example: 25 and 35 year olds drinking habits.
Longitudinal Study
A study in which people (or animals) are followed and periodically reassessed over a period of time. Example: someone’s drinking habits from 20 to 30 years old.
Observational Study
I study in which a researcher carefully and systematically observes and records behavior (naturalistically or in a laboratory) without interfering with the behaviour.
Confidence Interval
A statistical measure that provides, with a specified probability, a range of values within a population mean is likely to lie.
Placebo
An inactive substance or fake treatment used as a control in an experiment.
Positive Correlation
Association between increases in one variable and increases in another or between decreases in one and decreases in another.
Operational Definitions
A specification of precisely how to observe and measure a variable in a hypothesis.
Double-Blind Study
And experiment in which neither the people being studied nor the individuals running the study know who is in which condition (ex: experimental vs control) until after the results are tallied.
Field Research
Empirical evidence conducted in a natural setting outside the laboratory.
Effect Size
A standardized way of describing the strength of the relationship between variables.
Informed Consent
The doctrine that anyone who participates in human research must do so voluntarily and must know enough about the study to make an intelligent decision about whether to take part.
Meta-Analysis
A set of techniques for combining data from a number of related studies to determine the explanatory strength of a particular independent variable.
Experimenter Effects
Unintended changes in participants behaviour as a result of cues that the experimenter inadvertently conveys.
Random Assignment
In an experiment, the practice of placing participants into conditions at random so as to increase the likelihood that the different conditions are equivalent to begin with.
Descriptive Statistics
Statistical procedures is that organize and summarize research data.
Standard Deviation
A commonly used measure of variability that indicates the average difference between scores in a distribution and their mean.
Surveys
Questionnaires and interviews that ask people about their experiences, attitudes or opinions.
Reliability
The consistency of test scores from one time and place to another.
Dependant Variable
A variable than an experimenter measures, predicting that it will be affected by manipulations of the independent variable.
Psychological Tests
Standardized procedures used to measure personality traits, emotional states, aptitudes, interests or abilities.
Variables
Characteristics of behaviour or experience that can be measured or described.
Theory
An organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain a specified set of phenomena and their interrelationships.
Single-Blind Study
An experiment in which participants do not know which condition they are in. Ex: experimental vs control.
Significance Tests
Statistical tests that show how likely it is that a study’s results occurred merely by chance.
Principle of Falsifiabiliy
The notion that a scientific theory must make predictions that are specific enough to expose the theory to the possibility of disconfirmation.
Validity
The ability of a test to measure what it was designed to measure.
Representative Sample
A group of individuals, selected from a population for study, that matches the population on important characteristics.
Standardization
In test construction, to develop uniform procedures forgiving and scoring a test.
