Chapter 2 Terms Flashcards
Empiricism
The belief that accurate knowledge can be acquired through observation.
Scientific Method
A procedure for finding truth by using empirical evidence.
Empirical Method
A set of rules and techniques for observation.
Theory
A hypothetical explanation of a natural phenomenon.
Hypothesis
A falsifiable prediction made by a theory.
Operational Definition
A description of a property in terms of some concrete, observable event.
Validity
The extent to which a concrete, observable event indicates the property.
Instrument
Anything that can detect he concrete, observable event to which an operational definition refers.
Reliability
The tendency for an instrument to produce the same measurement every time it s used to measure the same thing.
Power
An instrument’s ability to detect small magnitudes of a property.
Demand Characteristics
The aspects of an observational setting that cause people to behave as they think someone else wants or expects.
Naturalistic Observaton
A technique for gathering scientific information by unobtrusively observing people in their natural environments.
Double-Blind Observation
A technique whose true purpose is hidden from both the observer and the person being observed.
Variable
A property whose value can vary across individuals or over time.
Correlation
Two variables are said to “be correlated” when variations in the value of one variable are synchronized with variations in the value of the other.
Natural Correlation
A correlation observed in the world around us.
Third-Variable Correlation
Two variables are correlated not because one causes the other but because both are caused by a third variable.
Experiment
A technique for discovering the casual relationship between variables.
Manipulation
Changing a variable in order to determine its casual power.
Independent Variable
The variable that is manipulated in an experiment.
Experimental Group
The group of participants who are exposed to a particular manipulation, compared with the control group, in an experiment.
Control Group
The group of participants who are not exposed to the particular manipulation, compared with the experimental group, in an experiment.
Dependent Variable
The variable that is measured in a study.
Self-Selection
A problem that occurs when anything about a participants determines whether he or she will be included in the experimental group.
Internal Validity
A attribute of a experiment that allows it to establish casual relationships.
Random Assingment
A procedure by which participants are assigned to the experimental group or control group by chance alone.
External Validity
An attribute of an experiment in which variables have been defined in a normal, typical, or realistic way.
Population
A complete collection of people.
Sample
A partial collection of people drawn from a population.
Case Method
A procedure for gathering scientific information by studying a single person.
Random Sampling
A technique for choosing participants that ensures that every member of a population has an equal chance of being included in he sample.
Direct Replication
An experiment that uses the same procedures as a pervious experiment but with a new sample.
Informed Consent
A written agreement to participate in a study made by an adult who has been informed of all the risks that participation may entail.
Debriefing
A verbal description of the true nature and purpose of a study.
