Chapter 2 - research methods Flashcards

1
Q

what is science’s basic assumption?

A

events are governed by some lawful order that can be observed, measured and tested

used to predict thing if you manipulate them

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2
Q

what is the scientific method?

A

designed to help the scientific process remain as accurate and precise as possible
psychology uses the scientific method

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3
Q

what is step one of conducting research?

A

make observations, review the literature

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4
Q

what is step 2 in conducting research?

A

develop a testable hypothesis

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5
Q

what is a hypothesis?

A

a tentative statement about the relationship between 2 or more variables
best if variables are operationally defined

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6
Q

what is step three when conducting research?

A

choose participants, select the research method, collect data

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7
Q

what is the best way to choose participants?

A

random sampling from the population

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8
Q

what is a population?

A

the entire group that is of interest to researchers

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9
Q

what is a sample?

A

the portion of the population that is used in the study

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10
Q

what is sampling bias?

A

choosing a sample that does not represent your population

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11
Q

what is random sampling?

A

making sure that every individual in the population has an equal chance of being included in your samples

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12
Q

what are the three methods of data collection?

A

case studies
naturalistic observations
surveys and questionnaires

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13
Q

what is a case study?

A

an in-depth investigation of a single participant using different data collection techniques

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14
Q

what are the advantages of case studies?

A

useful method to study rare behaviours
very detailed
can be sourced of support for the cause of behaviour

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15
Q

what are disadvantages of case studies?

A

results may not generalize to other people
potential for researcher bias
cannot determine cause and effect

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16
Q

what is naturalistic observations?

A

observing and recording the participant’s natural behaviour without influencing the participant

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17
Q

what are the advantages of naturalistic observations?

A

behaviours are studied under natural conditions
good to use in conjunction with lab experiments

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18
Q

what are the disadvantages of naturalistic observations?

A

time consuming
difficult not to influence behaviour
hawthorn effect
can’t determine cause and effect

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19
Q

what are survey and questionnaires?

A

participants are asked a series of questions about certain parts of their behaviour

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20
Q

what are the advantages of survey and questionnaires?

A

quick and cheap data collection
good to study behaviours that cannot be directly observed

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21
Q

what are the disadvantages of survey and questionnaires?

A

careful of wording effect
results depend on what the participants themselves say
potential for participant bias
can’t determine cause and effect

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22
Q

what are the two main types of research methods to test hypothesis with?

A

experimental research
correlational research

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23
Q

what is experimental research?

A

researcher manipulates a variable
there are different groups of participants, and each group are different groups of participants, and each group is exposed to something different
allows cause and effect conclusions

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24
Q

what are variables?

A

any measurable conditions that are controlled or observed in a study

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24
Q

what is an independent variable?

A

the variable that you manipulate

24
Q

what is a dependent variable?

A

the variable that you measure (not manipulated)

25
Q

what are the two types of groups in experimental research?

A

experimental group
control group

26
Q

what is the experimental group?

A

the group of participants that receives the manipulation (independent variable)

27
Q

what is the control group?

A

the group of participants that does not receive the manipulation
used to compare how the manipulation affects behaviour

28
Q

how do you separate the participants into the two groups?

A

random assignment

29
Q

what is random assignment?

A

when each person who is going to participate in your study has an equal chance of going into either of your two groups

30
Q

what are the advantages of experimental research?

A

good control
can identify cause and effect

31
Q

what are the disadvantages of experimental research?

A

ethical concerns
may have practical limitations
artificial conditions

32
Q

what is correlational research?

A

just measures two or more variables
uses statistics to see if the variables are related
nothing is manipulated
does not allow cause-effect conclusions

33
Q

what are the advantages of correlational research?

A

useful for studying topics that can’t be studied using experimental methods due to ethical/practical reasons
can be study behaviuors under more natural conditions

34
Q

what are the disadvantages of correlational research?

A

does not allow causal conclusions

35
Q

how do you collect data empirically without bias?

A

double-blind procedure

36
Q

what is the double blind procedure

A

neither the participant nor the researcher knows who is in which group

37
Q

what is step 4 in conducting research?

A

analyze the data, accept or reject the hypothesis

38
Q

what happens if the hypothesis is supported?

A

confidence in theory increases
consider alternative explanations
inspect data and research methods for possible errors

39
Q

what happens if the hypothesis is not supported?

A

confidence in theory decrease
revise, refine, or discard theory

40
Q

what is a theory?

A

a set of interrelated ideas used to explain a set of observation

41
Q

what is step 5 of conducting research?

A

seek scientific review, publish, and replicate

42
Q

what happens in step 5 of conducting research?

A

allow work to be reviewed, criticized and scrutinized by other experts in the field
ensures that the research you read in the peer-reviewed journals is top notch

43
Q

what is step 6 of conducting research?

A

build a theory
incorporate your results into existing theories or develop a new theory
process starts over again at step 1

44
Q

what is inferential statistics?

A

indicate of the difference between groups is meaningful

45
Q

what is the calculated statistics is called?

A

correlation coefficient (r)

46
Q

what is the correlation coefficient?

A

a numerical resentation of the relation between variables

47
Q

what is a positive correlation?

A

when one variable increases the other increases

48
Q

what is a negative correlation?

A

when one variable increases and the other decreases

49
Q

what is zero correlation?

A

when the variation in one variation has nothing to do with variations in the other variable

50
Q

what does correlation not equal?

A

doesn’t equal causation

51
Q

what is inferential statistics used for?

A

to make inferences about the data set
concludes differences between groups are genuine (significant)

52
Q

what is descriptive statistics?

A

statistics that are used to organize raw data into meaningful descriptions

53
Q

what does descriptive statistics measure?

A

measures central tendency
measures of variability

54
Q

what is central tendency?

A

a numerical value that represents the center of the distribution

55
Q

what is measures of variability?

A

a numerical value that represents how different scores within a group are from each other

56
Q

what happens when you have a very low probability?

A

your findings are due to chance
due to chance if above 5%

57
Q

what test is used for testing two variables?

A

t-test

58
Q

what test do you use when comparing multiple groups?

A

f-test