Issues in Psychology NAMES

Question 1

Open Science Forum Collaboration (2015)

Answer 1

Out of 97 attempts to replicate a significant findings, only 36% of replicated this finding.

Social psychology is the worst - 23%
Cognitive articles were the best (still bad) - 48%

Question 2

Shanks et al (2013)

Answer 2

Football hooligan vs proffessor priming - Failed to replicate

Question 3

Sheilds (2000) (6)

Answer 3

1. Psychology has become too preoccupied with ‘attention grabbing findings’
2. The media has driven a thirst for controversial publications
3. Perhaps the researchers performing the replication studies lack expertise and methodolgical skill
4. The original studies may have had smaller sample sizes (false positive is more likely to have occured). Or the sample was (very unlikely) but out of chance and pure luck, unrepresentative.
5. Junior researchers publish null findings because they need to become ‘known’, but senior academics may ignore null findings because they are uninteresting.
6. The results may have changed over time! E.g., in the 50’s attitudes towards female army officers would be different to today.

Question 4

Cancer Epidemiology

Answer 4

Published all findings (incluing null). Condensed all findings to a single page to improve consumerability. Plus, more likely that null findings will be read if they are not so dense!

Question 5

Sheilds, 2000 (3 facts)

Answer 5

1. Sig findings published faster
2. Sig findings 2x more likely to be published in the first place
3. Smaller sample sizes are likely to last longer as ‘relevant’ and be published

Question 6

Cleophas (1999)

Answer 6

1. If everything is published, it will devaluate the existing literature?
2. May be a waste of time, null findings are unlikely to be read.

Question 7

WHO

Answer 7

1/10 people suffer from some kind of mental illness

Question 8

Keogh & Daly (2009) (avoid mental health p)

Answer 8

1. Difficulty getting ethical approval
2. Need more resources / time
3. May underestimate their cognitive ability and contribution as valid

Question 9

Keogh & Daly (2009) - gatekeepers

Answer 9

1. Act as a middle man
2. Uphold the integrity of the methodology
3. Prevent the participant being over taxed
4. Make sure the research demonstrates an understanding of their responsibilites and provide adequate support

Question 10

Rivers & Sharman (2018)

Answer 10

Using four popular priming methods from both cognitive and social psychology, they found that using a within-subjects design a) required between 12-72 participants and b) was continually replicated.
However, all but one of the same priming methods were replicated when using a between-subjects design, and the N ranged to nearly a thousand.

This highlights that in fact, the priming content is reliable but the experimental design in which it is used is not.
Also highlights the underappreciated importance of experimental design in considering power and reliability of priming effects.