Chapter 3

Question 1

Variable

Answer 1

Something that varies (must have 2+ levels/value)

Question 2

Constant

Answer 2

Could potentially vary but has only one level in a study

Question 3

Manipulated Variable

Answer 3

Variable that is controlled by assigning study participants to different levels of the variable
Some variables cannot be manipulated

Question 4

Measured Variable

Answer 4

Levels are observed and recorded

Question 5

Constructs/Conceptual Variables

Answer 5

Name of the concept being studied
Not tangible, cannot be directly observed

Question 6

Conceptual Definition

Answer 6

Careful, theoretical definition of the construct

Question 7

Operational Definition/Operationalization

Answer 7

How the construct is measured or manipulated in a study

Question 8

Claim

Answer 8

Argument someone is trying to make
Research make claims about theories based on data

Question 9

Frequency Claim

Answer 9

Describe a particular rate or degree of a single variable
Claim how frequent or common something is
Focus on only one variable (measured variable)
Variable is always measured (not manipulated)

Question 10

Association Claim

Answer 10

Argues that one level of a variable is likely associated with a particular level of another variable (not causal)
Associated with correlational studies
At least two variables are included
Variables are measured (not manipulated)
Best represented on a scatter plot

Question 11

Correlate/Covary

Answer 11

Variables that are associated (when one variable changes, the other variable tends to change too)

Question 12

Positive Association/Correlation

Answer 12

High goes with high or low goes with low

Question 13

Negative Association/Correlation

Answer 13

High goes with low or low goes with high

Question 14

Zero Association/Correlation

Answer 14

No link between the variables

Question 15

Scatterplot Features

Answer 15

Form (linear or nonlinear)
Direction (positive or negative)
Strength (no, weak, strong)

Question 16

Causal Claim

Answer 16

Argues that one variable is responsible for changing the other variable
Supported by experiments
One variable manipulated (emotion of opponent)
Effect of manipulation on another variable measured (demand level of participant)
Everything else is held constant (same initial offers, same opponent, computer run, same instructions and lab, randomly assigned participants)

Question 17

Validity

Answer 17

Appropriateness of a conclusion or decision (must be reasonable, accurate, and justifiable)

Question 18

Construct Validity

Answer 18

How well the variables in a study are measured or manipulated
Extent to which operational variables in a study are a good approximation of the conceptual variables

Question 19

External Validity

Answer 19

Extent to which the results of a study generalize to some larger population

Question 20

Statistical Validity

Answer 20

How well the numbers support the claim
How strong the effect is and the precision of the estimates

Question 21

Internal Validity

Answer 21

In a relationship between one variable and another, the extent to which one variable and not another variable is responsible for changes in the second variable

Question 22

Covariance

Answer 22

Extent to which two variables are observed to go together

Question 23

Temporal Precedence

Answer 23

Method was designed so that the causal variable clearly comes first, before effected variable

Question 24

Internal Validity

Answer 24

Study’s ability to eliminate alternative explanations for the association

Question 25

Experiment

Answer 25

One variable is manipulated and the other is measured
Gold standard of research
Independent variable: manipulated variable
Dependent variable: measured variable
Ensures temporal precedence and internal validity

Question 26

Random Assignment

Answer 26

Each participant has equal chance of being in each of the conditions

Question 27

Three Criteria For Causation

Answer 27

Covariance
Temporal Precedence
Internal Validity