Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

AP Psychology > Chapter 2- Methods > Flashcards

Chapter 2- Methods Flashcards

1
Q

hindsight bias

A

people have the tendency upon hearing research findings (and many other things) to think that they knew it all along

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

applied research

A

research that has clear practical applications

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

basic research

A

research that explores questions that are of interest to psychologists but is not intended to have immediate, real-world applications

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

hypothesis

A

expresses a relationship between two variables

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

dependent variable

A

depends on the independent variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

independent variable

A

manipulated by the researchers, effects the dependent variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

theory

A

aims to explain some phenomenon and allows researchers to generate testable hypotheses with the hope of collecting data to support the theory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

operational definition

A

an explanation of how you will measure a variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

validity

A

measures what it set out to measure

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

reliability

A

can be replicated, consistent

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

sampling

A

the process by which participants are selected for research

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

sample

A

the group of participants

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

population

A

includes anyone or anything that could possibly be selected to be in the sample

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

representative sample

A

representative of the characteristics of the larger population

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

random sampling

A

every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected, best done using a computer, a table of random numbers, or picking names out of a hat

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

stratified sampling

A

a process that allows a researcher to ensure that the sample represents the population on some criteria

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

laboratory experiment

A

experiments conducted in a laboratory, a highly controlled environment

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

field experiment

A

experiments conducted out in the world

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

confounding variables

A

any difference between the experimental and control conditions, except for the independent variable, that might affect the dependent variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

participant-relevant confounding variables

A

differences between the experimental and control groups that are due to the participants (ex. they choose which group to be in)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

situation-relevant confounding variables

A

differences between the experimental and control groups that are due to the situational differences (to control these, the situation must be the same for all participants)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

random assignment

A

each participant has an equal chance of being placed in to any group

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

controls

A

making everything in an experiment the same except for the independent variable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

group-matching

A

a process used to ensure that the experimental and control groups are equivalent on some criterion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

experimenter bias

A

the unconscious tendency for researches to treat members of the experimental and control groups differently to increase the chance of confirming their hypothesis, not a conscious act

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

double-blind procedure

A

occurs when neither the participants nor the researcher are able to affect the outcome of the research

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

single-blind procedure

A

occurs when only the participants do not know to which group they have been assigned

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

response or participant bias

A

the tendency for subjects to behave in certain ways (i.e. circle the midpoint on a scale or pick the right-handed option more than the left-handed option)

29
Q

social desirabliity

A

the tendency for subject to try to give answers that reflect well upon them

30
Q

Hawthorne effect

A

merely selecting a group of people on whom to experiment has been determined to affect the performance of that group

31
Q

placebo method

A

when participants in the experimental group receive a drug and participants in the control group are given an inert but otherwise identical substance

32
Q

correlations

A

expresses a relationship between two variables without ascribing cause

33
Q

negative correlation

A

the presence of one thing predicts the absence of the other

34
Q

positive correlation

A

the presence of one thing predicts the presence of the other

35
Q

survey method

A

involves asking people to fill out surveys

36
Q

response rate

A

the number of people who answer and return a survey

37
Q

naturalistic observation

A

observing participants in their natural habitats without interacting with them at all

38
Q

case study method

A

used to get a full, detailed picture of one participant or a small group of participants

39
Q

descriptive statistics

A

statistics that describe a set of data

40
Q

frequency distribution

A

a organization of data that tells you how many of each dependent variable option there was

41
Q

measures of central tendency

A

attempt to mark the middle of a set of data (mean, median, mode)

42
Q

mean

A

the average of all the scores in a distribution, add up all the data and divide by the total number of data points

43
Q

median

A

the central score in the distribution, write the data down in order and pick the data point in the middle

44
Q

mode

A

the score that appears the most frequently

45
Q

extreme scores or outliers

A

data points that are significantly larger or smaller than the rest of the data

46
Q

positive skew

A

when a distribution contains an extreme score that is very high, the mean is higher than the median

47
Q

negative skew

A

when a distribution contains an extreme score that is very low, the mean is lower than the median

48
Q

measures of variablitity

A

descriptive statistical measures that attempt to describe the diversity of the distribution

49
Q

range

A

the distance between the highest and lowest scores

50
Q

standard deviation

A

the square root of the variance, relates the average distance of any score in the distribution from the mean

51
Q

variance

A

relates the average distance of any score in the distribution from the mean

52
Q

z score

A

a measure of the distance from a score to the mean in units of standard deviation (0=mean, +2=2 SD above the mean, -2=2 SD below the mean)

53
Q

normal curve

A

a theoretical bell shaped curve for which the area under the curve lying between any two z-scores has been predetermined, 68% fall within 1 SD, 95% fall within 2 SD, 98% fall within 3 SD

54
Q

correlation coefficient

A

a statistic that computes the strength of a correlation (+1=perfect positive correlation, -1=perfect negative correlation, 0=no correlation)

55
Q

scatter plot

A

a graph of a correlation using data points on an x,y coordinate plane

56
Q

line of best fit/regression line

A

the line drawn through the scatter plot that minimizes the distance of all the points from the line, slope indicates correlation

57
Q

inferential statistics

A

used to determine whether or not findings can be applied to the larger population from which the sample was selected

58
Q

sampling error

A

the extent to which the sample differs from the population

59
Q

p value

A

gives the probability that the difference between the two groups is due to chance, must be less than 0.05 in order to be considered statistically significant

60
Q

statistical significance

A

p value is less than 0.05

61
Q

institutional review board (IRB)

A

an ethics board of an institution of research, reviews research proposals for ethical violations and/or procedural errors, must approve a research project before researchers can begin collecting data

62
Q

coercion

A

participation must be voluntary

63
Q

informed consent

A

participants must know that they are involved in research and give their consent

64
Q

anonymity

A

participants’ privacy must be protected, researchers do not collect any data that allows them to match a person’s responses with his or her name

65
Q

confidentiality

A

participants’ privacy must be protected, the researcher guarantees that they will not identify the source of any of the data

66
Q

debriefing

A

participants should be told about the purpose of the study and provided with ways to contact the researchers about the results

67
Q

counterbalancing

A

using participants as their own control group

68
Q

percentiles

A

indicate the distance of a score from 0

69
Q

risk

A

participants can not be placed at significant mental or physical health risk

AP Psychology (14 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions