Chapter 3 Flashcards
(44 cards)
what are the sources of research ideas?
- Systematic Observations
- Unsystematic Experiences
- Applied issues
- Systematic observations
inspiration from research that has already been done
- will either strengthen or weaken an existing theory
- will replicate and modify an existing study
- contains a limitations paragraph
- potential to contain a failing replication
what happens when you replicate and modify a study
rerun the study and change things slightly
- if the results seem unbelievable then you may rerun the study exactly again
( alot of studies will directly ask for you to rerum their studies)
what is contained in a limitations paragraph?
- how the study could be run better
- is found toward the end of the paper
what is a failing replication?
when the study contains fraudulent data or the study was made up
- Unsystematic Experiences
- draws inspiration from unplanned experiences
ex.) Elon Musk smokes week on live show and Tesla Stock drops,, Why does this happen?
ex.) I prefer starbucks over dunkin… Why?
ex.) I woke up early today… Why?
- applies issues
takes inspiration from a problem with a researchable solution
ex) childhood obesity
- effectiveness of healthy school lunches on weight
- observation of what healthy snacks kids enjoy the most
- survey parents perceptions of sugary drinks
how do we develop good research questions?
your ideas need to be answerable
(bad example: do dogs talk in barks?)
your ideas cannot be too broad
(bad example: do animals communicate with humans?)
questions need to be defined
how do you define a question?
-operational definition
- undefined variables
- operationally defined variables
what is an operational definition?
defining a variable according to how it is measured
what is an example of undefined variables?
do active people sleep better?
what is an example of an operationally defined variable?
does burning more calories help you fall asleep in less time
what should you do once you find a topic you want to research?
review literature
what do you do when reviewing literature?
- read relevant articles about your topic
- avoid studies that need duplication
- gets idea from the study
- operational definition
- data collection methods
- (Google Scholar) - avoid secondary sources
why are secondary sources bad?
you can start here but don’t end here because it the information is very watered down
- can be incomplete, opinionated, or inaccurate
why are primary sources the best way to get information
- they contain all of the information you need to replicate a study
- they are accurate and reliable
- they are edited and checked by independent editors (journals)
What is a Journal?
a themed collection of scientific articles
- not all journals are the same quality
what makes a journal higher quality?
impact factors
what is an impact factor?
how much of a “splash” that the journal makes
- a rating for how often the average article in that journal is cited by other scientists
what is considered a bad impact factor rating?
less than 1
what is considered a good impact factor rating?
1-5
what is considered a great impact factor rating?
above 5
how do scientific journals make their money
they charge thousands of dollars a year for subscriptions
(usually colleges or institutions will pay the fee for all of their students to have access)
what are some electronic databases you can use for research
- google scholar
- Jstor
- centre library pace
-science direct
