Key Terms

Question 1

Define alternate hypothesis.

Answer 1

A testable statement about the relationship between two variables. Alternate to the null hypothesis.

Question 2

Define ceiling effect.

Answer 2

An effect that occurs when test items are too easy for a group of individuals. Therefore, too many people do well.

Question 3

Define blind test.

Answer 3

A study where some of the people involved are prevented from knowing certain information that might lead to conscious or subconscious bias on their part, which would make the results invalid.

Question 4

Define closed question.

Answer 4

A question that has a range of answers from which the respondents select one.

Gives quantitative data.

Question 5

Define classical conditioning.

Answer 5

Learning that occurs through association. A neutral stimuli is paired with an unconditioned stimulus, resulting in a new stimulus-response (S-R) link.

Question 6

Define concurrent validity.

Answer 6

A means of establishing validity by comparing an existing test or questionnaire with the one you are developing.

Question 7

Define the cognitive approach.

Answer 7

An approach to understanding behaviour which suggests that the key influence on how an individual feels and acts is down to how information is received and processed in the brain.

Question 9

Define cognitive bias.

Answer 9

A distraction of judgement or thinking that occurs in particular situations.

Question 10

Define cognitive development.

Answer 10

The changes in a person’s mental structures, abilities, and processes that occur over their lifespan.

Question 12

Define confederates/stooges.

Answer 12

An individual in an experiment who is not a real participant and has been instructed how to behave by the investigator.

Question 12

Define developmental approach.

Answer 12

An approach that seeks to understand behaviour in terms of the changes which occur as we age, in particular the complementary effects of nature and nurture.

Question 13

Define demand characteristics.

Answer 13

A cue that makes participants unconsciously aware of the aims of a study or helps participants work out what the researcher expects to find.

Question 14

Define ecological validity.

Answer 14

Concerning the ability to generalise a research effect beyond the particular setting in which it is demonstrated to other settings.

Question 15

Define experimenter bias

Answer 15

The effect that the experimenter’s expectations have on the participants and thus on the results of the experiment.

Question 16

Define extraneous variable.

Answer 16

Any variable other than the independent variable that might potentially effect the dependent variable and thereby confound the results.

Question 17

Define event sampling.

Answer 17

An observational technique in which a count is kept of the number a particular behaviour occurs.

Question 18

Define independent variable (IV).

Answer 18

An event that is directly manipulated by an experimenter in order to test its effect on another variable.

(changed)

Question 19

Define inter rater reliability.

Answer 19

When there are two or more observers used in an observation study, and they compare finding at the end to make sure that they are similar in case they missed behaviours or recorded behaviours that did not occur.

Question 20

Define the Individual Differences approach.

Answer 20

An approach understanding behaviour that focuses on the ways that people differ and understanding these differences, for measuring variations in individual scores on tests of intelligence or personality.

Question 21

Define independent measures design.

Answer 21

An experimental design in which participants are allocated to two(or more) groups.
Achieved using random or systematic techniques.

Question 22

Define investigator bias.

Answer 22

The effect that the investigator’s expectations have on participants in a research study and this on the results on the study.

Question 23

Define intervening variable.

Answer 23

A variable that comes between two other variables and can be used to explain the relationship between two variables.

Question 24

Define leading question.

Answer 24

A question that is phrased in a way that it makes one response from a participant more likely than the other.

Question 25

Define matched participants design.

Answer 25

An experimental design in which pairs of participants are matched in terms of variables relevant to the study, such as age, IQ, perceptual ability, and so on.

Question 26

Define field experiment.

Answer 26

A controlled experiment that is conducted outside a lab. The environment is more familiar and therefore participant behaviour may be more ‘natural’.

Question 27

Define Nature-Nurture debate.

Answer 27

The discussion about whether behaviour is due to innate or environmental factors.

Question 28

Define a longitudinal study.

Answer 28

A study conducted over a long period of time it is often a form of repeated measures design in which participants are assessed on two or more occasions as they get older.

Question 29

Define naturalistic observation.

Answer 29

A research method carried out in a naturalistic setting, in which the investigator does not interfere in anyway but merely observes the behaviour(s) in question.

Question 30

Define null hypothesis.

Answer 30

One assumption that there is no relationship (difference, association, etc.) in the population from which a sample is taken with respect to the variables being studied.

Question 31

Define negative correlation.

Answer 31

A relationship between two co-variables such that as the value of one co-variable increases, that of the other decreases.

Question 32

Define open question.

Answer 32

In an interview or questionnaire, a question that invites respondents to provide their own answers, rather than select one provided.

Gives qualitative data.

Question 33

Define operationalise.

Answer 33

Providing variables in a form that can be easily tested.

Question 34

Define operant conditioning.

Answer 34

Learning that occurs when we are reinforced for doing something, which increases the probability that the behaviour in question will be repeated in the future.

Question 35

Define interviewer bias.

Answer 35

The effect of an interviewer’s communications unconsciously on a respondent’s behaviour.

Question 36

Define opportunity sample.

Answer 36

A sample of participants produced by selecting people who are most easily available at the time of the study.

Question 37

Define observer bias.

Answer 37

In observational studies there is a danger that observers expectations affect what they see or hear.

Question 38

Define participant variable.

Answer 38

Characteristics of individual participants that might influence the outcome of a study.

Question 39

Define one-tailed hypothesis.

Answer 39

States the direction of difference between two groups of participants or between different conditions, or the relationship between co-variables.

Question 40

Define participant observation.

Answer 40

Observations made by someone who is also participating in the activity being observed, which may affect their objectivity.

Question 41

Define population validity.

Answer 41

Concerning the extent to which the findings of a study can be generalised to other groups of people besides those who took part in the study.

Question 42

Define positive correlation.

Answer 42

A relationship between two co-variables such that as the value of one co-variable increases, this is accompanied by a corresponding increase in the other co/variable.

Question 45

Define self-report.

Answer 45

Where participants are asked to report their own attitudes and/or feelings, such as a questionnaire, interview, or some psychological tests.

Question 46

Define random sample.

Answer 46

A sample of participants produced by using a random technique such that every member of the target population being tested has an equal chance of being selected.

Question 47

Define repeated measures design.

Answer 47

A type of experimental design in which each participant takes part in every condition under the test.

Question 48

Define the social approach.

Answer 48

The approach to understanding behaviour that focuses on how conspecifics influence what we do and think.

Question 49

Define reliability.

Answer 49

A measure of consistency which means that it is possible to obtain the same results on subsequent occasions when the measure is used.

Question 50

Define quasi experiment.

Answer 50

A research design that is ‘almost’ an experiment but lacks one or more features of a true experiment.

Question 51

Define situational variable

Answer 51

A factor in the environment that could act as an extraneous variable, such as noise, time of day, or the behaviour of an investigator.

Question 51

Define snapshot study.

Answer 51

A study carried out over a short period of time such as hours and days, in comparison to a longitudinal study.

Question 51

Define qualitative data.

Answer 51

Information in words or images that cannot be counted or quantified.
Can be turned quantitative by placing into categories and counting frequency.

Question 51

Define quantitative data.

Answer 51

Information that represents how much or how long or how many etc.
A behaviour is measured in numbers or quantities.

Question 51

Define self-selected sample.

Answer 51

A sample of participants produced by participants themselves determining whether they will take part in a study.

Question 53

Define time sampling.

Answer 53

An observational technique in which the observer records behaviours in a given time frame.

Question 53

Define validity.

Answer 53

Refers to whether an observed effect is a genuine one. To what extent the findings can be applied beyond the research settings.