Core Studies Flashcards
Describe the ‘Eyes Task’ created by Baron Cohen
A test of Theory of Mind in adults
Involves looking at a photo of the eye region and choosing between two descriptive words.
State 4 controls used within Baron-Cohens ‘Eyes Task’
- 15 x 10 cm
- Black and white
- All taken from magazines
- All from above the eyebrow to the bridge of the nose
What was the aim of Baron-Cohens study?
To investigate a new test for Theory of Mind in adults as all previous tests were created for children.
Describe the 3 conditions in Baron-Cohens study
- Autism
- Tourettes
- No condition
Describe the sample used in Baron-Cohens study
- 16 Participants in the Autism group
- 50 Participants in the ‘Normal’ group
- 10 Participants in the Tourettes group
Describe the procedure used in Baron-Cohens stud
Participants completed the ‘Eyes task’ where they were shown 25 images for 3 seconds each, they had to choose between the 2 descriptive words for each photo.
Define Concurrent Validity is and how this was checked in Baron-Cohens study
- indicates agreement between 2 different assessments
- Participants completed an existing task (Strange Stories) to check whether the results were similar
State and explain the 2 control tasks used in Baron-Cohens study
Gender Recognition task:
- Tested whether participants could identify the gender of the eyes.
Basic Emotion Recognition task:
- Tested whether participants could identify the 6 basic emotions in pictures of whole faces
State the results found in Baron-Cohens study
There was no significant difference in mean score on the Eyes Task between the ‘Normal’ (20.3) and tourette’s (20.4) conditions
The Autism condition scored significantly lower with a mean score of 16.3
There was no significant difference between genders on the Eyes Task
What did Baron-Cohen find in relation to the ‘Strange Stories task’?
The findings correlated with the results of the ‘Eyes task’, proving concurrent validity and indicating that the ‘Eyes task’ is a suitable test.
What was the conclusion from Baron-Cohens study?
The Eyes Task is a valid advanced Theory of Mind test
What is meant by ‘Bystander effect’?
When the presence of others discourages an individual from intervening
What is meant by pluralistic ignorance?
If one person doesnt help in a situation, the next person isnt likely to help either
What is diffusion of responsibility?
The more people in an emergency situation, the less responsibility each individual feels. Therefore making them less likely to help.
What was the aim of Piliavin’s study?
To investigate situational factors affecting helping behaviour such as the type of victim (drunk/cane) or the race of the victim.
What was the sample in Piliavin’s study?
About 4,450 participants both male and female in New York
45% Black 55% White
Who gathered the data in Piliavin’s study?
4 students/ confederates per team 4 teams 1 x male model helper 2 x female observers 1 x victim (always dressed the same, 1 was black, 3 were white)
Over how long was Piliavin’s data gathered?
2 months
Describe the train journey in Piliavin’s study
- New York subway
- 7.5 min journey with no stops
What is meant by the ‘critical’ and ‘adjacent’ area in Piliavin’s study?
Critical: where the victim falls
Adjacent: where the observers sit at the opposite end of the carriage to the critical area
Explin the Procedure used in Piliavins study
- 4 confederates would board the subway
- 1 was playing either a drunk or using a cane (Victim)
- The victim would stumble and collapse 70 seconds into the journey
- The 2 observers would record behaviour such as Time taken to help the victim, The number of people that helped and the total number of bystanders in the carriage
Explain the role of the model in Piliavin’s study
The model would help the victim after either 70 or 150 seconds to see if this encouraged other bystanders to help too.
On some trials the model did not intervene.
What are the 4 IV’s of Piliavin’s study?
- Type of victim
- Race of victim
- Early or late model intervention
- Number of bystanders
What type of experiment was Piliavin’s study?
Field experiment
Give 4 results of Piliavin’s study
1) The cane victim received spontaneous help 95% of the time as opposed to 50% for the drunk victim
2) White bystanders were more likely to help than black bystanders but there was evidence of same race helping with the black victim
3) The earlier model (70secs) received more help from other bystanders than the late model
4) Diffusion of responsibility was NOT found, the more people present, the more people would help
5) 90% of first helpers were male
What conclusions can be made from Piliavin’s study?
The appearance of a victim can influence helping behaviour - it is influenced by the environment and people around us as suggested by the social area of psychology
When was Piliavin’s study conducted?
The 60’s
What is meant by a ‘Captive audience’ in Piliavins study and how is this unethical?
- The participants could not leave the carriage for the 7.5 minute duration
- They were unable to withdraw
Give 4 ways Piliavin’s study could be considered unethical
- No consent
- Unable to withdraw
- No debrief was given
- Participants were not protected from psychological harm or given help if they had been affected by the study
What is the difference between collectivism and individualism?
(Levines study)
Colectivists focus on the needs of the group the belong to, individualists focus on themselves
What were the 3 aims of Levine’s study?
- To see if tendency to help was stable across 3 different situations
- To see if helping strangers varies across cultures
- To identify characteristics of communities more/less likely to help a stranger
What was the method and design of Levine’s study?
Field experiment
Independent measures
Describe the confederates in Levine’s study
All male, college age, dressed neatly and casually
What were the 3 IV’s in Levine’s study and how were these carried out?
- Dropping a pen: Confederate would walk towards a solitary pedestrian and when 10-15ft away would ‘drop’ a pen
- Victim with an injured leg: Confederate walked with a heavy limp and leg brace, would drop magazines within 20ft of a pedestrian
- Blind victim trying to cross the street:
Wore dark glasses and carried a white cane, just before the light turned green they would step up to the road and hold out the cane
Describe the sample used in Levine’s study
Individuals in each of the cities at the time of the experiment.
Carried out in 23 countries
In the dropped pen and hurt leg scenario, only people walking on their own were selected.
Give examples of controls used in Levine’s study
- Children, disabled/old and people carrying packages were excluded
- Participants were selected by approaching the 2nd appropriate person who crossed a predetermined line
- All confederates were given an instruction sheet and on-site training to learn how to approach and score participants
What results were found in levines study?
Overall helping index ranged from 40.3%(Kuala Lumpur) to 93.3% (Rio de Janeiro)
How can each of the 3 aims of Levine’s study be concluded?
1) Results suggested a modest level of consistency across the three helping measures
2) Amount of help offered differed greatly between countries
3) Cities with lower purchasing power parity (economic well-being) were more helpful
What did Levine find in terms of helping behaviour and gender?
No significant difference between males and females
What is Simpatia?
A cultural Value where being friendly, agreeable and good-natured is prioritised over achievements
What 2 main conclusions can be made from Levine’s study?
Helping behaviour is inversely related to a countries economic productivity.
Countries with Simpatia are more helpful than those without (83% with, 65% without)
What are 3 main factors that can affect memory?
1) Schemas/expectations
2) Information during the event
3) information received after the event
What was the aim of Loftus and Palmers study?
To test the effects of leading questions on memory
What is a leading question?
A leading question is a question that suggests to someone what answer is desired
Describe the sample used in Loftus and Palmers study
45 Students from uni of Washington, both male and female
Describe the procedure of Loftus and Palmers first study
Participants had to watch 7 clips of traffic accidents between 5-30 seconds.
After watching the clip, participants had to fill out a questionnaire that contained a ‘critical’ question. Participants were asked to estimate the speed of the car in mph.
What was the critical question in loftus and palmers first study and what were the 5 verbs?
“About how fast were the cars travelling when they…”
1) Smashed
2) Collided
3) Bumped
4) Hit
5) Contacted
What was the design, method and variables in Loftus and Palmers first study?
- Lab experiment
- Independent measures
- IV: Verb
- DV: Speed estimate
What were the findings of Loftus and Palmers first study?
Smashed = 40.8mph avg estimate
Contacted = 31.8mph avg estimate
Leading questions DID have an effect on the speed estimate.
Possible response bias?
What was the aim of Simons and Chabris study?
To build on previous research into divided visual attention and to further investigate inattentional blindness
Describe the research method/design and sample used in Simons and Chabris research
- Lab experiment
- Independent measures
- Data used from 192 participants, mostly students
Explain the procedure of Simons and Chabris study
P’s were asked to watch a 75 second ‘transparent’ or ‘opaque’ clip, being told to count the passes between the white or black team. Roughly 45 seconds into the clip, a woman carrying an umbrella or a woman in a gorilla suit would cross the screen.
What 3 questions were asked after watching the video in Simons and Chabris study?
1) Did you notice anything unusual?
2) Did you notice anything other than the 6 players?
3) Did you see a gorilla/woman cross the screen?
What results were found in Simons and Chabris study?
- 46% did not see the gorilla or woman
- This suggests people wont always notice something if they are already focusing on something else
What was the aim of Moray’s study?
To see if hearing something meaningful (your name) would break the barrier of selective attention
What is a dichotic listening task?
When you hear two different messages at the same time, one to each ear.
Give 4/5 controls used in Morays study
- Asked p’s if the loudness matched in each ear
- P’s had four ‘shadowing’ practice trials
- Loudness was 60Db above hearing threshold
- 150 words per minute
- All recorded by a male speaker
Explain experiment 1 of Morays study
- P’s were read a list of words 35 times
- At the same time they had to shadow a different passage
- Asked to recall what they heard from the word list
- Given a recognition task of 21 words
What were the results of Moray’s 1st experiment?
Mean number of words recognised from the passage = 4.9
Mean number of words recognised from the word list = 1.9
Explain the 2nd experiment in Moray’s study
- P’s heard passages at the same time (one to each ear) but were told to listen to their right ear.
- At some point, In the left ear it woukd address the participant by name and tell them to switch ears
- In some passages they were told to switch ears but their name wasnt mentioned
What were the results of Moray’s 2nd experiment?
How many times the instruction to change ears was heard:
With name = 20
Without name = 4
What conclusions can be made from Moray’s study?
Important messages such as someones own mame can break the barrier of selective attention
What is:
1) Classical conditioning
2) Operant conditioning
3) social learning theory
1) Learning through association
2) Learning theough rewards and punishments
3) Learning through imitation and modelling behaviour
What was the aim of Banduras study?
To see if aggresion is transferred through a process of social learning (imitation)
Describe the sample of Bandura’s study
- 72 Children aged 3-5
- 36M, 36F
Describe phase 1 of Banduras study
Aggressive condition - the adult modle would be aggressive towards the bobo doll both physically and verbally
Non aggressive condition - the adult model would assemble the tinker toys
Explain Phase 2 of Banduras study
The children were taken to a room of toys where they were allowed to play. After 2 minutes the experimenter would tell them they couldnt play as the toys were reserved for other children.
Explain Phase 3 of Bandura’s study
Children were observed through a one way mirror, they were allowed to play however they wanted and were observed on whether they imitated the role model.
What were the 3 IV’s of Banduras study?
- behaviour of the model
- gender of the model
- gender of the child
What were the findings in Banduras study?
- Male models had more of an influence than female models
- Same gender models made the child more likely to imitate aggression
- Boys imitated more physical aggression than girls.
What was the aim of Chaney’s study?
To investigate ease of use and compliance in children of the funhaler compared with a standard inhaler.
What is the funhaler in Chaneys study an example of?
Positive reinforcement
Describe the IV, Sample, Method and Design of Chaneys study
IV: Type of inhaler
Sample: 32 children from Australia, 1.5-6 years old
Field experiment
Repeated measures
Explain the procedure in Chaney’s study.
Parents gave consent and then filled out a questionnaire about the standard inhaler before being told about the funhaler. P’s were then asked to use the funhaler for 2 weeks. After the 2 weeks the parents were asked to fill out the same questionnaire but this time about the funhaler.
Give 3 findings of Chaney’s study
- 60% of children had used the standard inhaler the previous day when randomly questioned, as opposed to 80% with the funhaler
- Correct usage increased by 30% when using the funhaler
- 10% of parents were always successful with the standard inhaler, with the funhaler 73% of parents said they were always successful at medicating their child
What can we conclude from Chaney’s study?
Operant conditioning/ Positive reinforcement can be effective at improving the adherence of medication in young children
Give the 3 aims of Lee’s study
1) To see if there was a difference between Canadian and Chinese children in how they judge lying
2) To see if Canadian and Chinese children would rate lie telling differently in a pro-social/anti-social setting
3) To investigate if childrens evaluation of lying/truth telling changes from ages 7-11
Describe the sample used in Lee’s study
- 108 Children from Canada, aged 7,9 or 11
- 120 Children from China, aged 7,9 or 11
Give the 4 conditions in Lee’s study
1) Ethnicity of child
2) age of child
3) Social or Physical story
4) Pro-social or anti-social story
Describe the procedure used in Lee’s study
Children were tested individually and had the rating scale explained to them. They would then be read 4 social or physical stories. Read half of the story and were asked to rate on a 7 point scale whether what the child DID good or naughty. They then read the 2nd half of the story and were asked whether what the child SAID was good or naughty.
Explain the social and physical story in Lee’s study
Social : Child takes pages out of a book
Physical : Someone gets hurt or helped
What was the research design and method of Lee’s study?
Independent measures
Quasi/Lab experiment
Give 4 results of Lee’s study
- No differences between genders
- Both cultures saw good/bad deeds the same
- Canadian childrens perception of truth telling did not change with age
- As chinese children aged, they saw it less favourable to tell the truth about good deeds
- Both cultures thought lying about anti-social behaviour was wrong
What conclusions can be drawn from Lee’s study?
- Culture and age has an impact on childrens moral judgement
- Chinese culture’s emphasis on self-effacement impacts their moral development
What is a Commissurotomy and what is its purpose?
Where the corpus callosum is cut in epiliptic patients, to stop the spread of an attack.
The corpus callosum allows the two hemispheres of the brain to share information.
Explain how the two hemispheres perceive visual information and what each hemisphere controls.
Left Hemisphere:
Sees anythjng in the RIGHT visual field
Controls the ability to speak and form words
Right Hemisphere:
Sees anything in the LEFT visual field
Specialises in tasks such as drawing or spatial awareness
What was the aim of Sperry’s study?
To investigate the functions of both hemispheres and to find out the effects of hemisphere-deconnection in split brain patients
Describe the sample and research method used in Sperry’s study
- 11 patients who had undergone a commissurotomy surgery
- Quasi (IV was not manipulated by the researcher)
Explain the visual tests in Sperry’s study
Participants sat in front of a screen where an image would be shown to either of the visual fields for 1/10th of a second
Describe the tactile tests used in Sperry’s study
P’s could reach objects within a ‘grab bag’ but could not see them. They were then asked to identify the object.
What were the results of the Visual Tests in Sperry’s study?
- Information presented to the RVF could be described in speech or writing
- When information was presented to the LVF, the participants would say they had not seen anything, however they could point with their left hand to the correct picture or object
- When a nude pin ip image was shown to the LVF the participants would giggle or blush but couldn’t say why
What were the results of the Tactile tests in Sperry’s study?
- If an object was placed in the right hand they could name what they were holding
- If it was placed in their left hand they couldnt say what they were holding but could point to the object
What conclusions can be made from Sperry’s study?
- There is evidence for lateralisation of brain function
- The left hemisphere is associated with language
- The right hemisphere is associated with emotion
What is the assumption of the Biological area?
Behaviour is influenced by biological processes, E.g. brain structure, hormones, neurochemistry and evolution.
Behaviours are determined by nature.
What is neuro-plasticity?
When experiences reorganise neural pathways in the brain. The brain adapts to the new environment/situation.
What was the aim of Blakemore and Coopers study?
To investigate the biological and behavioural effects of a restricted visual experience and whether brain plasticity occurs due to nurture.
What was the sample in Blakemore and Coopers study?
Kittens - from birth to roughly one year
Explain the procedure of Blakemore and Coopers study
- From 2 weeks old the kittens were placed in a cylinder decorated with either horizontal or vertical lines for 5 hours a day.
- Outside of these 5 hours they were kept in a dark room.
- They were exposed to the stripes for 5 months.
Give 3 findings of Blakemore and Coopers study
- They often bumped into things
- Showed no startle response
- If a rod was shaken horizontally in front of them, only the kittens raised in the horizontal environment would react to it.
Give the IV, design and research method of Blakemore and Coopers study
IV: Rearing in a horizontal or vertical environment
Lab experiment
Independent measures
What conclusions can be made from Blakemore and Coopers study?
The brain can change as a result of experience (the brain does have plasticity)
What is the assumption of the Developmental area?
Assumes that behaviour is a result of external influences as we grow up
What is the assumption of the cognitive area?
Suggests that behaviour is due to our inner mental processes
input - process - output
Give the assumptions of the social area
Assumes our behaviour is a result of the actual, implied or imagined presence of other people and the environment we are in
