Chapter 3- Research Flashcards
what is research
systematic way of finding answers to questions—a method of inquiry that follows certain rules
scientific research strategies can be used to understand children with ____
problems and how they can be helped
what are unscientific aspects of abnormal child psychology
Folklore, home remedies, and fad treatments ranging from chicken soup to swimming with dolphins
why are people skeptical about research in abnormal psychology -5
- Experts on childhood problems frequently disagree
- Research studies that appear in mainstream media are frequently oversimplified
- Findings are often in conflict with one another
- Research has led to different recommendations regarding how children with problems should be helped
- Many parents and professionals may dismiss the findings because they have encountered an exception
what is facilitated communication
facilitator provides manual assistance by lightly holding a child’s hand, wrist, or arm, while the child supposedly communicates by typing on a keyboard or by pointing to letters on an alphabet board
what does the example of facilitated communication show
well-meant but highly controversial and mis-used procedure for teaching children with autism and other impairments to communicate
some of the lessons to be learned when scientific methods and evidence are ignored or dismissed
Research in abnormal child psychology is best characterized as a ___
multistage process involving key decisions at various points
Step one of the research process
researcher(s) developing a hypothesis (research question) on the basis of observation, theory, and previous findings, and deciding on a general approach to research
Step two of the research process
identifying the sample to be studied, selecting measurement methods, and developing a research design and procedures
Step three of the research process
gathering and analyzing the data and interpreting the results in relation to theory and previous findings in an attempt to resolve the problem that initially led to the research
Research questions and topics are often based on ____
theories of atypical development and behavior
Questions regarding the nature and distribution of childhood disorders include how disorders are ___, ___ , and ____ at ____
defined, diagnosed, and expressed at different ages and in different settings
what is Epidemiological research
study of the incidence, prevalence, and co-occurrence of childhood disorders and competencies in clinic-referred and community samples
what are incidence rates
example
reflect the extent to which new cases of a disorder appear over a specified period
(e.g., the number of youths who develop a depressive disorder during the school year)
what are prevalence rates
example
refer to all cases, whether new or previously existing, observed during a specified period of time
(e.g., the number of teens with conduct disorder in the general population during 2012 and 2013)
estimates of prevalance vary due to -2
which definition we use, with estimates based on single symptoms being much higher than those based on patterns of symptoms
whether cases are defined in terms of patterns of symptoms, impairment in functioning (e.g., difficulties at home or at school), or both
about __ to ___ of children worldwide have a clinically diagnosable disorder, and many more exhibit specific symptoms or subclinical problems
10% to 20%
The rate and expression of childhood symptoms and disorders often vary in relation to demographic and situational factors like -5
socioeconomic status (SES) (e.g., the social, economic, and physical environment in which the child lives as reflected in measures such as family income, education, or occupation)
parents’ marital status
child’s age
gender
cultural background
what are the 3 variables of interest in abnormal psychology
correlates, risk or protective factors, and causes of other variables
correlates are variables that are associated at a ___
example
particular point in time with no clear proof that one precedes the other
Whitney’s having no friends is associated with her sadness. Is she sad because she has no friends, or has her sadness prevented her from making friends
risk factor is a variable that ___
example
precedes an outcome of interest and increases the chances of a negative outcome
Whitney’s depressed mood got worse following her parents’ divorce. Do you think parental divorce is a risk factor for the development of depression or other problems in children?
protective factor is a positive variable that ___
example
precedes an outcome of interest and decreases the chances that a negative outcome will occur.
The close relationship enjoyed by Whitney and her mother may serve as a protective factor against future episodes of depression
other variables as causes influence, either directly or indirectly through ___
example
other variables, the occurrence of a behavior or disorder of interest
Tito’s father uses severe punishment when his son misbehaves. Is this punishment a cause of Tito’s aggressive behavior? Is Tito learning aggressive behavior from his father
Research into risk and protective factors often requires that ___
large samples of children be studied
that multiple domains of child functioning—physical, cognitive, and psychosocial—be assessed over long periods of time
why is it necessary for risk and protective factors to have large samples and multiple domains of child functioning to be assessed- 3
- only a small proportion of children at risk for a problem will actually develop the disorder
- the areas of child functioning that will be affected, and how they will be affected, are not known in advance
- the ages at which a disorder may occur or reoccur are also not known in advance. Sometimes the effects of exposure to a risk factor during infancy or early childhood may not be visible until adolescence or adulthood
what are mediating variables
refer to the process, mechanism, or means through which a variable produces a particular outcome
describe what happens at the psychological or neurobiological level to explain how one variable results from another
what are moderating variables
influence the direction or strength of the relationship of variables of interest
The association between two variables depends on or differs as a function of moderating variables, such as the child’s age, sex, SES, or cultural background
what is treatment efficacy
refers to whether the treatment can produce changes under well-controlled conditions. In efficacy research, careful control is exercised over the selection of cases, therapists, and delivery and monitoring of treatment.
what is treatment effectivness
refers to whether the treatment can be shown to work in clinical practice, not just in well-controlled research settings
The study of children’s behavioral and emotional problems requires that the methods we use to measure these problems generate scores that are ___ and ___
reliable and valid
what is standardization
process that specifies a set of standards or norms for a method of measurement that are to be used consistently across different assessments of the construct of interest
what is reliability
the consistency, or repeatability, of results obtained using a specific method of measurement
what is validity
the extent to which it actually measures the dimension or construct that the researcher sets out to measure
what is face validity
extent to which it appears to assess the construct of interest
what is construct validity
what are the 2 components of construct validity
whether scores on a measure behave as predicted by theory or past research
- convergent validity- reflects the correlation between measures that are expected to be related
- discriminant validity- refers to the degree of correlation between measures that are not expected to be related to one another
what is criterion-related validity
2 types
refers to how well a measure predicts behavior in settings where we would expect it to do so
- concurrent validity- at the same time
- predictive validity- in the future
what types of measurement methods in abnormal child psychology
Interviews
Questionnaires
Checklists
rating scales
psychophysiological recordings
brain imaging
performance measures
direct observations of behavior
variety of intellectual, academic, and neuropsychological tests
reporting methods assess the ___
perceptions, thoughts, behaviors, feelings, and past experiences of the child, parents, and teachers
what is a self-report measure
a child or parent will provide information about his or her own behavior, feelings, and thoughts
what is a informant-report method
a person who is well acquainted with the child, usually a parent or a teacher, will provide information about a child’s behaviors, feelings, or thoughts based on his or her observations of the child
what are psychophysiological methods
assess the relationship between physiological processes and behavior to identify which nervous system structures and processes contribute to children’s atypical development and behavior
what are the most common psychophysiological methods
autonomic nervous system activity like:
heart rate
blood pressure
Breathing
pupil dilation
electrical conductance of the skin
what are neuroimaging methods
used to examine the structure, connections, and/or function of the living brain
use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomographic (CT) scans
what are observation methods
Using systematic observational methods, a researcher can directly observe the behavior of the child
what is a naturalistic observation
conditions that range from unstructured observations in the child’s natural environment
what are structured observations
highly structured situations involving specific tasks or instructions usually carried out in the clinic or laboratory
especially useful for studying child behaviors that occur infrequently in everyday life
Research studies may be examined with respect to their __ and ___
internal and external validity
what is internal validity
reflects how much a particular variable, rather than extraneous influences, accounts for the results, changes, or group differences
Extraneous influences that could explain the results are called ___ to internal validity
threats
what is external validity
refers to the degree to which findings can be generalized, or extended to people, settings, times, measures, and characteristics other than the ones in a particular study
what are threats to external validity
characteristics of the participants that apply to some people but not others, the reactivity of subjects to participating in the research, the setting in which the research is carried out, or the time when measurements are made
careful definition of the sample is critical for ___
comparability of findings across studies and for clear communication among researchers
what is comorbidity
simultaneous occurrence of two or more childhood disorders that is far more common than would be predicted from the general population base rates of the individual disorders
Random selection occurs when subjects are drawn from a ___
population in a way that gives each individual in that population an equal chance of being selected for the study
samples of convenience subjects are selected for a ___
study merely because of their availability
The basic distinction between nonexperimental versus experimental research reflects the ___
degree to which the investigator can manipulate the experimental variable
independent variable is
manipulated by the researcher. cause a change in another variable
dependent variable is the
variable expected to be influenced by the independent variable
in a ____ experiment the researcher has maximum control over the independent variable or conditions of interest and can use random assignment of subjects to groups
true
In correlational studies, researchers often examine relationships among variables by using a
correlation coefficient, a number that describes the degree of association between two variables. -1.00 to +1.00
In a retrospective design, a sample of people is identified at the
current time and asked for information relating to an earlier time
In real-time prospective designs, the research sample is identified and
then followed over time, with data collected at specified time intervals
analogue research evaluates a
specific variable of interest under conditions that only resemble or approximate the situation for which one wishes to generalize
what does a case study involve
an intensive, usually anecdotal, observation and analysis of an individual child
what is a single-case experimental design
most frequently been used to evaluate the impact of a clinical treatment, such as reinforcement or stimulant medication, on a child’s problem
what is A-B-A-B reversal design
baseline of behavior is first taken (A), followed by an intervention phase (B), then a return-to-baseline phase during which the intervention is removed (A), and a final phase in which the intervention is reintroduced (B)
what is multiple-baseline design
across behaviors, different responses of the same individual are identified and measured over time to provide a baseline against which changes may be evaluated
what are between-group comparison designs
comparisons between one group of children assigned to one or more conditions and other groups of children assigned to one or more different conditions
Experimental groups vs. Control groups
cross-sectional research
different youngsters at different ages or periods of development are studied at the same point in time
longitudinal research
the same children are studied at different ages or periods of development
what does qualitative research focus on and what is the purpose
narrative accounts, description, interpretation, context, and meaning
purpose of qualitative research is to describe, interpret, and understand the phenomenon of interest in the context in which it is experienced
what does qualitative research focus on and what is the purpose
narrative accounts, description, interpretation, context, and meaning
purpose of qualitative research is to describe, interpret, and understand the phenomenon of interest in the context in which it is experienced
what does qualitative research focus on and what is the purpose
narrative accounts, description, interpretation, context, and meaning
purpose of qualitative research is to describe, interpret, and understand the phenomenon of interest in the context in which it is experienced
Research in abnormal child psychology must meet
certain standards that protect children and families from stressful procedures
Current ethical guidelines for research with children are provided through
institutional review boards, federal funding agencies, and professional organizations such as the American Psychological Association, the Society for Research in Child Development, and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Ethical standards for research with children attempt to strike a balance between
supporting freedom of scientific inquiry and protecting the rights of privacy and the overall welfare of the research participants
what is informed consent
requires that all participants be fully informed of the nature of the research—as well as the risks, benefits, expected outcomes, and alternatives— before they agree to participate
what is assent
means that the child shows some form of agreement to participate without necessarily understanding the full significance of the research, which may be beyond younger children’s cognitive capabilities
In research with children, one of the most frequently encountered challenges to confidentiality occurs when
the child or parent reveals past abuse or information that would suggest the possibility of future abuse of the child
Participation in research is to be
voluntary, yet some individuals may be more susceptible to subtle pressure and coercion than others
