Chapter 2. Research Methodology Flashcards
What are the two basic types of observational studies?
Naturalistic observation & Participant observation
Observational studies or descriptive studies
Involve noting and observing behavior to analyze it objectively
Naturalistic observation
The observer remains separated from or makes no attempt to change the situation
Participant observation
The researcher is involved in the situation
Cross-sectional studies
Compare two different groups. For example, to study intellectual abilities you can take a group of young people and compare it with a group of older individuals.
These studies tend to be cheaper that longitudinal studies but the researcher has to account for unidentified variables.
Observer bias
Systematic errors that occur because of an observer’s expectations
Operational definitions
Identify and quantify variables so that they can be measured
Experimenter expectancy effect
Actual change in the behavior of the pole and animals being observed that is due to observer bias
Correlations a study
A research method at examines how variables are naturally related in the real world, without any attempt by the researcher to alter them.
You can not draw a causal relationship
Directionality problem
When researchers find a relationship between two variables in a correlation all study, they can not determine which variable may have caused the changes in the other variable.
Third variable problem
When the experimenter cannot directly manipulate the independent variable and therefore cannot be confidence that another, unmeasured variable is not the cause of differences In the dependent variable.
Experiment
This is a study in which the researcher manipulates one variable to examine the variable’s effect on a second variable
Control group
The participant in a study that receive no intervention or an intervention different for the one being studied
Experimental group
The participants in the study that received the intervention
Independent variable
In an experiment,the condition that is manipulated by the experimenter to examine its impact on the dependent variable
Dependent variable
In an experiment, the measure that is affected by the manipulation of the independent variable
Confound
Anything that affects the DEPENDENT variable and may unintentionally vary between the experimental conditions of a study
The more confounds and thus alternative explanations that can be eliminated, the more confident a researcher can be that the independent variable produced the change (or effect) in the dependent variable.
For example the amount of money for women who work more and therefore want to have fun
Population
Everyone in the group the experimenter is interested in
Sample
Subset of the population
Selection bias
When participants in different groups in an experiment differ systematically.
For example when we are testing the condition of which women want to have fun and we assign two levels five hours and ten and then mesured, but we do not take into consideration that in our sample there may be older women that are from the start less likely to engage in fun seeking behaviors.
This problem can be circumvent by using random sampling to assign participants to different levels of the independent variables
Random assignment
The procedure for placing research participants into the conditions of an experiment in which each participant has an equal chance of being assigned to any level of the independent variable
What is a meta-analysis
This is an analysis of multiple analyses, or studies that have already being conducted.
Major research categories that span the levels of analysis
- Biological
- Individual
- Social
- Cultural
Culturally sensitive research
Studies that take into account the way culture affects thoughts, feelings and actions.
Observational Technique
A research method of careful and systematic assessment and coding of overt behavior
Reactivity
When the knowledge that one is being observed alters the behavior being observed.
People may feel compelled to make a positive impression on an observer, so they may act differently when they believe they are being observed
Case Studies
Involves the intensive examination of one person or a few individuals or one or few organizations
The researcher is forced to make assumptions about the effects of various life events
The interpretations of case studies is often very subjective
Methods for asking participant questions
- Surveys
- Interviews
- Questionnaires
- Self-report
Socially desirable responding
The person responds in a way that is more socially acceptable
Response performance
A research method in which researchers quantify perceptual or cognitive processes in response to a specific stimulus
Three basic forms to measure response performance
Reaction time
Response accuracy.. Does paying attention improves perception?
Stimulus judgements…presenting stimuli and asking if two objects are the same
Why do psychologist use reaction times?
Because they cannot be faked
What does reaction time measures?
Indirectly Reflects brain processing
What is psychophysiological assessment?
Researchers examine how bodily functions change in association with behaviors or mental states
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
A devise that measures electrical activity in the brain
Too noisy or imprecise to isolate specific responses to particular stimuli
Brain imaging
A range of experimental techniques that make brain structures and brain activity visible
Associated with the changes in the flow of blood carrying Origen and nutrients to the active brain regions
Measure changes on the rate or speed of blood flow
Major imaging technologies
Positron emission tomography (PET)
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
What is a PET Scan?
A method of brain imaging that assesses metabolic activity by using a radioactive substance injected into the blood stream
Enables the researcher to find the brain areas that are using glucose
What is a MRI?
Magnetic resonance imaging is a method of brain imaging that produces high quality images of the brain
It uses a powerful magnetic field
What is a fMRI?
A functional magnetic resonance imaging is a technique used to examine changes in the activity of the working human brain
Whereas PET measures blood flow directly by tracking a harmless radioactive substance, fMRI measures blood flow indirectly by assessing changes in the blood’s oxygen levels
Limitation: the findings are necessarily correlational
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
The use of strong magnets to briefly interrupt normal brain activity a a way to study brain regions
Along with a fMRI, this technique allows researchers to make judgements of brain activity by comparing data when a brain area is working effectively and when it is not. This devise disrupts brain activity long enough to allow researchers to study a particular brain area when the brain is not performing well due to the momentary interruption
When used along with imaging is a powerful method for examining which brain regions are necessary for specific psychological functions.
Who launched the behaviorist movement?
john b. Watson
What is informed consent?
This means that the participants make a knowledgeable decision to participate.
When is it necessary to use deception?
Researchers Need to use deception if the study’s specific goals may alter the participants’ behavior, thereby rendering the results meaningless.
It involves misleading participants about the study’ goals or not fully revealing what will take place.
Debriefing
If deception is used, a careful debriefing , or explanation of the study after it’s completion, must take place to inform participants of the study’s goals and the need for deception and to eliminate or counteract any negative effects produced by the deception.
Validity
The extend to which the data collected address the research hypothesis in the way intended.
For example, court records from children that have been abused in order to asses if children who have been abused as children will grow up to be consumers of drugs.
Reliability
The extend to which a measure is stable and consistent over time in similar conditions
For example, the remote control. A person using a stopwatch to measure time between Chanel changing would be less reliable than if the control was connected to a device that measures precisely when the person changed the channel
Accuracy
The extend to which the experimental measure is error free
Random error
The value of the error differs each time
Opposite to systematic error
Systematic error
The amount of error introduced into each measurements is constant
More problematic than random error because it tend to average out over time and therefore is less likely to produce inaccurate results.
Descriptive statistics
Overall summary of data
Central tendency
A measure that represents the typical behavior of the group as a whole
Summarizes the central tendency and variability in a set of numbers
Mean
A measure of central tendency that is the arithmetic average of a set of numbers
Median
A measure of central tendency that is the value in a set of numbers that falls exactly half way between the lowest and highest values
Mode
A measure of central tendency that is the most frequent score or value in a set of numbers
Variability
In a set of numbers, how widely dispersed the values are from each other and from the mean
Standard deviation
A statistical measure of how far away each value is, on average, from the mean
Inferential statistics
A set of procedures used to make judgements about whether differences actually exists between set of numbers
