Chapter 2: Sources of Information: Why Research Is Best and How to Find It

Question 1

Comparison Group

Answer 1

A group in an experiment whose levels on the independent variable differ from those of the treatment group in some intended and meaningful way. Also called comparison condition.

Question 2

Confound

Answer 2

A general term for a potential alternative explanation for a research finding; a threat to internal validity.

Question 3

Confederate

Answer 3

An actor who is directed by the researcher to play a specific role in a research study.

Question 4

Probabilistic

Answer 4

Describing the empirical method, stating that science is intended to explain a certain proportion(but not necessarily all) of the possible cases.

Question 5

Availability heuristic

Answer 5

A bias in intuition, in which people incorrectly estimate the frequency of something, relying predominantly on instances that easily come to mind rather than using all possible evidence in evaluating a conclusion.

Question 6

Present/present bias

Answer 6

A bias in intuition, in which people incorrectly estimate the relationship between an event and it outcome, focusing on times the event and the outcome are present, while failing to consider evidence that is absent and harder to notice.

Question 7

Confirmation bias

Answer 7

The tendency to consider only the evidence that supports a hypothesis, including asking only the questions that will lead to the expected answer.

Question 8

Bias blind spot

Answer 8

The tendency for people to think that compared to others, they themselves are less likely to engage in biased reasoning.

Question 9

Effect size

Answer 9

The magnitude, or strength of a relationship between 2+ variables