Chapter 3

Question 1

variable

Answer 1

• anything that can vary

Question 2

measured variable

Answer 2

• observed and recorded

Question 3

manipulated variable

Answer 3

• controlled
• by researcher

Question 4

constant

Answer 4

• something that doesn’t change
• could potentially vary but only has one level in the study

Question 5

Variables must have 2 levels (values). What does this mean?

Answer 5

ex. “most students don’t know when news is fake”

levels: knowing when news is fake and not knowing when news is fake

Question 6

why can some variables only be measured and not manipulated?

Answer 6

• some variables are simply out of the researchers control
• can’t change age, height, etc.
• sometimes it would be unethical to manipulate certain variables (ex. making a group smoke) would be harmful to participants

Question 7

how can some variables be both measured and/or manipulated?

Answer 7

• ex. mood
• probably wouldn’t do both in one study

Question 8

what does it mean to operationalize a concept?

Answer 8

• turn it into a measured or manipulated variable

Question 9

construct, conceptual variable

Answer 9

• name of the concept being studied
• ex. “satisfaction with life”

Question 9

Conceptual definition

Answer 9

• a careful, theoretical definition of the construct
  ex:
  construct “satisfaction with life”
  conceptual definition “a person’s cognitive evaluation of his or her life”

Question 10

operational definition, operationalization

Answer 10

• how the construct is measured or manipulated in an actual study
• ex. questionnaires, observations, etc.

Question 11

claim

Answer 11

• argument someone is trying to make

Question 12

Frequency claims

Answer 12

• involve 1 variable
• describe a particular level or degree of a single variable
• trying to describe the 1 measured variable
• ex. 41% of…

Question 13

Association claims

Answer 13

• one level of a variable is likely to be associated with a particular level of another variable
• supported by studies that have at least 2 measured variables (correlational studies)
• variables that are associated are said to correlate

Question 14

association claims

positive association

Answer 14

• usually represented on a scatterplot
• as 1 variable increases (or decreases), the other does too

Question 15

association claims

negative association

Answer 15

• can’t come up with a theme for how the variables are correlated
• when 1 v goes up, the other goes down (and v/v)
• slope downwards

Question 16

causal claim

Answer 16

• arguing that one variable is responsible for changing the other
• at least one manipulated, one measured

Question 17

What 3 criteria must causal claims satisfy?

Answer 17

1) must establish that the 2 variables are correlated
2) must show that the causal variable came first and the outcome variable came later
3) it must establish that no other explanations exist for the relationship

Question 18

validity

Answer 18

• the appropriateness of a conclusion or decision
• reasonable, accurate, justifiable

Question 19

construct validity

Answer 19

• how well a conceptual variable is operationalized
• must ensure that each variable has been measured reliably

Question 20

generalizability

Answer 20

• how well did researchers choose their participants and how well do they represent the intended population

Question 21

external validity

Answer 21

• how well the results of a study generalize or represent people or contexts besides those in the original study

Question 22

statistical validity

Answer 22

• how well the numbers support the claim
• extent to which a study’s statistical conclusions are precise, reasonable and replicable

Question 23

evaluating statistical validity

point estimate

Answer 23

• a single estimate of some population value (percentage, correlation, or a difference) based on data from a sample

Question 24

confidence interval

Answer 24

• a given range indicated by a lower and upper value that is designated to capture the population value for some point of estimate
• ex. a contractor gives you a price range for your repairs. It could cost less or more but it will be in that range

Question 25

internal validity

Answer 25

• ensures there are no alternative explanations for cause + effect

Question 26

covariance

Answer 26

• the extent to which two variables are observed to go together
• established by the results of a study

Question 27

interrogating causal claims

temporal precedence

Answer 27

• method was designed so that the causal variable clearly comes first in time, before the effect variable
• ex. “pretending to be batman helps kids stay on task” - the study must show that pretending to be batman came before staying on task

Question 28

interrogating causal claims

internal validity (third-variable criterion)

Answer 28

• a study’s ability to eliminate alternative explanations for the association

Question 29

experiment

Answer 29

• at least one variable is manipulated and the other is measured

Question 30

independent variable

Answer 30

• manipulated variable

Question 31

dependent variable

Answer 31

• measured variable

Question 32

what are the 3 criteria for a causal claim?

Answer 32

1) covariance
2) temporal precedence
3) internal validity