Exam 1 Flashcards
Define Statistical validity
Significance and errors in results
What are the three types of claims ?
frequency, association, and causal
Define Regression line
Predicting based on associations
Define Empiricism
Basing conclusions on systematic observations and forming a generalization after many observations
What is deductive reasoning?
Drawing a logical conclusion based on an already proven general statement
Theory-data cycle
How a theory turns into data, a theory begins and turns into a hypothesis which in turn results in the production of data
Give an example of deductive reasoning.
All dogs have four legs, Bella is a dog. Therefore, Bella has four legs.
What is Inductive reasoning?
A logical inference of a fact that is based on observations that creates a generalized statement for the population
Peer-review Cycle
Submitted by the author, assessment by peers, revision of research papers by the author, cycle repeats until publication
Confounding variables
Factors that may influence study outcomes
Confirmatory hypothesis testing
Asking questions to confirm hypotheses
Overconfidence
Confidence is not always accuracy, blindly trusting authorities
Bias blind spot
An inability for us to recognize our own biases
Variable
Something that varies (male vs female) with at least two levels (number of sexual encounters)
Constant
Fixed level in a study (The age range of participants being restricted to 14-18 y/o)
What is a Manipulated/independent variable?
Assigned participants to different levels of a variable (Number of hours allowed to sleep), not constant
What is a Measured variable?
Recorded values or observations, not constant
What is an Abstract Variable?
Conceptually, it is how an abstract concept is defined (extraversion). Operationally, it is how the abstract concept is measured (self-report questionnaire)
How do you operationalize psychological concepts?
subjectively through self-report, observing behavior, or physiological indicators (brain activity)
How do we investigate a frequency claim?
observational research
How do we investigate an association claim?
correlational research
How do we investigate a causal claim?
experimental research
What is Covariance?
The causal and outcome variables do influence each other
What is Temporal precedence?
The causal variable came before the outcome variable
Define External validity
The ability of researchers to generalize results to individuals beyond the study
Define Construct validity
the researchers operationalized variables accurately
Define Internal validity
No other variables explain the relationship, no confounds are present
What is parsimony and what is an example of the principle?
the simple solution (the one with the least assumptions) is often the best.
- Example: Pavlov’s dog salivated when he heard the bell because he knew it meant food another explanation could be complex unseen processes within the dog.
Where do we get our knowledge and beliefs from?
Authority figures, experience, intuition, and empiricism
What makes a theory good quality?
- Supported by data
- Falsifiable (ability to actually test something, not caught in a logic loop)
- Parsimonious (the solution with the least assumptions
How is inductive reasoning used in the scientific method?
To formulate a theory, making a generalization about a population with some facts
How is deductive reasoning used in the scientific theory?
To test a hypothesis, using a proven generalization to ask a question
What is basic research?
Basic research is an attempt at further understanding of a subject while applied research is asking a question (finding ho well new treatments for depression is working)
What is applied research?
Developing ideas found in translational research and building upon topics into more complex research endeavors, such as evaluating the quality a new treatment has
What is translational research?
Taking the information from basic research and beginning the process of finding building ideas
What are imitations to the credibility of making conclusions based on experience?
The credibility can only be applicable in the areas the individual is experienced in, there is no comparison group resulting in confounds, and personal experience can result in bias..
How do you control the presence of confounds?
Accounting for them within an experiment
Why do we need comparison groups?
In order to prevent confounds, the researcher is able to ensure that the changed between groups is due to the independent variable and nothing else
Why should we not rely on our intuition alone?
Our brains love a shortcut “Good story bias,” we are biased (present/present bias: it rains every ti
What is the availability heuristic/pop-up principle?
Easily remembered events will be remembered before less remembered events
- Example: A doctor will diagnose the same illness in trends
What are the sections, in order, of a scientific paper?
Title page, abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion, and references
What is a frequency claim?
a claim describing the prevalence of something and the variable is always measured not manipulated
- Example: 5/10 teens US teens are depressed
What is an association claim?
A correlational claim, one variable is associated with another (ADHD drugs not linked with future drug abuse), and the variable is always measured not manipulated
What is the three criteria for causal claims?
- covariance
- Temporal precedence
- No presence of confounds
What are the four ‘big” validities?
- construct
- external
- statistical
- internal
What types of validity are required for frequency claims to be valid?
construct and external validity
What types of validity are required for causal claims to be valid?
construct, external, statistical , and internal validity
What types of validity are required for association claims to be valid?
construct, external, and statistical validity
Why should we do experiments?
Provides internal validity, temporal precedence, as well as allowing us to control extraneous variables through holding confounds constant and random assignment
What are the three subtypes of ethics?
- Utilitarian
- altruistic
- egoism
Define the utilitarian perspective of ethics.
Ethical decisions should solely be based on the greatest good for the greatest number of people
Define the altruistic perspective of ethics.
Ethical decisions should solely be based on helping without the personal benefit of the volunteer.
Define egoism.
Ethical decisions should solely be based on one’s own self-interest.
Who was Josef Mengele?
A German SS officer who completed an abundance of human research, specifically focused on twins, little-people, and physical abnormalities
What occurred in Japan’s Unit 731?
A human research group, hidden as an ‘energy group’, really they were discovering why we know humans are made of 60% water
Define the Nuremberg Code (1948).
The first attempt at regulating human research, more an attempt at punishing the Nazi researchers
What was the Declaration of Helsinki (1964)?
The second attempt at regulating human research, combined the ideas of the Nuremberg code and the Declaration of Geneva (human rights), not legally binding and unsigned by the USA.
What were some ethically questionable studies?
Little Albert, The Monster Study, Pit of Despair, Milgram Experiment, the Stanford Prison Experiment, and the Tuskegee Syphilis Study
Define the Belmont Report (1976).
A response to the Tuskegee study, the United States’ first legal guideline for conducting human research
Define respect for persons.
A principle of the Belmont Report, people are autonomous agents with informed consent
What are the three main parts of the Belmont Report?
Respect for persons, beneficence, and justice
Define beneficence.
A principle of the Belmont Report, the study is completed for the greater good/benefits outweigh the risks (risk-benefit analysis)
What are the APA’s ethical standards called?
“The 10”/ Belmont + 2
Define justice.
A principle of the Belmont Report, the participants equally benefit as much as the general population
What is the Belmont +2?
Beneficence, justice, respect for persons, plus integrity and fidelity and responsibility
What is “the 10”?
Resolving ethical issues, competence, human relations, privacy and confidentiality, advertising and public statements, record keeping and fees, education and training, research and publication, assessment, and therapy
What is the APA Standard 8?
This is specific to research, the IRB, deception, debriefing, research misconduct, and animal research
What are the two types of deception?
- Omission (withholding information)
- Commission (purposefully misled participants)
What is the function of debriefing?
Following participation, informing the participants what the true intent of the study was
What are some methods of research misconduct?
Data fabrication, data falsification, plagiarism, and misleading representation (purposefully reporting data in a misleading way)
What are “The 3 Rs”?
Defining part of the Animal Welfare Act (1966), replace, reduce, and refine
Define conceptual definition.
How an abstract concept is defined (anxiety)
Who reviews animal research study designs?
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)
What do “The 3 Rs” mean?
Replace (use an alternative), reduce (use as few as possible), and refine (refine the method of studies to be the least stressful/painful)
Define operational definition.
How an abstract concept is measured (heart rate)
Can every conceptual variable be operationalized?
No, some things are very abstract and broad (intelligence. People attempt but it is not fully accurate.
What are the three types of operationalization?
Subjective-report, behavioral/observational, and physiological
What are the scales of measurement within qualitative data?
Nominal or categorial
Define construct validity of measurement.
The validity and reliability of the measurement
What are the scales of measurement within quantitative data?
Ordinal, interval, and ratio
What are the three types of reliability of measurement?
Test-retest reliability, interrater reliability, and internal reliability
What is the correlation coefficient (r)?
When on variable changes, the other also tends to change (correlation of happiness and the weather)
How do you establish causality in a correlational study?
Completing a secondary, experimental study to confirm findings
What are two subjective ways to assess construct validity?
Face and content validity
What are two empirical ways to assess validity?
Predictive validity and concurrent validity
Define predictive validity.
How well a test predicts the future outcome (SAT correlates with college GPA)
Define concurrent validity.
Divergent/Convergent validity, how well a measure is correlated with its present outcome (GPA with IQ)
What is the difference between divergent and convergent validity?
Divergent validity pertains to how your measure differs from unrelated measures while convergent validity pertains to how your measure is similar to related measures
What does the MMR vaccine and autism study have to do with research ethics?
This study was an example of false research reporting, they falsified data, and HARKing.
What are some types of question formats?
open-ended questions, forced-choice format, likert scale, or semantic differential format (multiple types of questions)
What is Cronbach’s alpha used for?
How well the items correlate with one another/internal reliability
What are some problematic question formats?
Leading questions, double-barreled questions, presence of double negatives, and question order
What is a downside to human research?
- Accurate/Inaccurate responses
- nondifferentiation (Christmas treeing)
- acquiescence (bored so uses shortcuts)
- fence sitting (neutral)
- ensuring anonymity (neutral responses in hope of being unnoticeable)
- social desirability (controversial topics)
How do we ensure construct validity of behavioral observations?
Eliminating the reactivity of participants, observer effect, and observer bias
How do we ensure construct validity of surverys?
“Grade” the participants (ensuring proper responses) and make sure that the test does function as it should
Define the observer effect.
Causing effect to the study as an observer (Boys are more talkative in class but the truth was that the professor just tended to pick the boys more than girls)
Define the observer bias.
Seeing what you expect, hearing what you want to hear
How do you prevent observation bias?
Clear rating scales and codebooks, masked/blind experimental design
What is the difference between obersation bias and observation effect?
Observation bias is when you find what you expected to and observation effect is when a researcher directly affects their findings
How do you prevent observation effects/reactivity of participants?
- Masked/blind experimental design
- blend in/hide
Define reactivity of participants.
When an individual knows they are being observed so their behavior changes (why hiding works to prevent this, Hawthorne Effect)
