L04: Methods

Question 1

Braintenberg Vehicles

Answer 1

Machines with a very simple internal structure that were then studied as if they were animals in a natural environment to describe their behaviour.

Question 2

Ockham’s Razor

Answer 2

Given several explanations for a phenomenon, the most simple one should be accepted.

Question 3

Reductionism & Its limits

Answer 3

Describing things in terms of simpler phenomena.

Problem: Very complex behaviour can arise from a small set of simple principles. Simple explanations are easier to test.

Question 4

Rationalism

Answer 4

Observation is not only unnecessary but potentially misleading.

Question 5

Empiricism

Answer 5

Hypothesis & theories need to be confirmed by observation

Question 6

Scientific Method

Answer 6

1. Make observations
2. Ask how/why
3. Form hypothesis
4. Use hypothesis for prediction
5. Run experiment
6. Analyze outcomes
7. Report results
8. Hypothesis proven/disproven

Question 7

Inductivism

Answer 7

Several observations are used to induce theories, which are used to deduce hypothesis, eventually leading to laws.

Question 8

Falsification

Answer 8

Tests are designed to refute the predictions, not to confirm a theory. If the prediction is falsified, the theory is wrong.

Question 9

Kuhn’s Scientific Process (Constructivism)

Answer 9

Paradigm Shift

random fact gathering > puzzle solving research > anomaly > crisis > revolution

Question 10

Observer Effects

Answer 10

Include: experimenter bias, demand characteristics, representativeness, and artificiality

Question 11

Experimenter Bias

Answer 11

The experimenter may subconsciously affect the behaviour of the participants

Question 12

Demand Characteristics

Answer 12

The person being studied might engage in the experiment actively, leading participants to respond in a way to confirm the assumed hypothesis and please the experimenter.

Question 13

Milgram Experiment

Answer 13

Participants were willing to give a fatal shock to an innocent person because they were instructed to do so by the experimenter (demonstrates demand characteristics)

Question 14

Representativeness

Answer 14

Psych research should be representative of the human population

Question 15

Artificiality

Answer 15

Psych research often unfolds inside research labs, where participants are subjected to bizarre, reductionist tasks.

Question 16

Descriptive Methods

Answer 16

Based on observation and case studies

Question 17

Naturalistic observation

Answer 17

Psychologists observe the behaviours of people/animals in their every day environments to avoid interfering with usual behaviour.

Question 18

Hawthorne Effect

Answer 18

Being observed can lead participants to change their behaviour to make a good impression

Question 19

Hawthorne Experiment

Answer 19

Productivity increased when people were being observed

Question 20

Reactivity

Answer 20

Individuals alter their performance or behavior due to the awareness that they are being observed

Question 21

Expectancy Effect

Answer 21

Experimenters’ expectations cause them to give off subtle cues that change behaviour

Question 22

Expectancy Effect Experiment

Answer 22

Rats trained by students who believed their rats were bred to be fast did the task quicker.

Question 23

Response Bias

Answer 23

Tendency to answer survey questions incorrectly for various reasons.

Question 24

Correleation Studies

Answer 24

Explore how variables are naturally related, but cannot detect causal relationships

Question 25

Directionality Problem

Answer 25

Direction of the relationship can appear ambiguous. Causation cannot be inferred

Question 26

Positive Correlation

Answer 26

as x increases y increases

Question 27

Negative Correlation

Answer 27

as x increases y decreases

Question 28

Zero Correlation

Answer 28

variables aren't related

Question 29

Third Variable

Answer 29

Relationship may be depending on a third, not measured variable

Question 30

Independent Variable

Answer 30

Is manipulated

Question 31

Dependent Variable

Answer 31

Affected by the manipulation

Question 32

Confounding Variable

Answer 32

Influences the IV but is not controlled in the experiment

Question 33

Cause and effect relationship

Answer 33

Requires rigorous control to confirm this relationship

Question 34

Experimental Groups

Answer 34

IV is manipulated

Question 35

Control Group

Answer 35

The standard to which comparisons are made in an experiment (IV is left as is)

Question 36

Experimental Hypothesis

Answer 36

Any differences are due to a variable controlled in the experiment

Question 37

Internal Validity

Answer 37

Study is well-designed and free from biases or confounds

Question 38

External Validity

Answer 38

How well the outcome of a study can be expected to apply to other settings

Question 39

Descriptive Stats

Answer 39

Way to organize, summarize, and generally describe raw data.

Question 40

Sample

Answer 40

A subset of the larger population we are interested in

Question 41

Population

Answer 41

A large pool of individuals from which a sample is drawn.

Question 42

Sampling Error

Answer 42

error in a statistical analysis arising from the unrepresentativeness of the sample taken

Question 43

Frequency Distribution

Answer 43

Also known as a histogram. Provides a picture of how the data is distributed across the range of possible values

Question 44

Central tendency

Answer 44

descriptive summary of a dataset through a single value that reflects the center of the data distribution Mean, median, and mode

Question 45

Mode

Answer 45

The value that occurs most often in a dataset

Question 46

Median

Answer 46

Corresponds to the 50th percentile

Question 47

Mean

Answer 47

The average value in a dataset

Question 48

Normal Distribution

Answer 48

Symmetrical and bell shaped curve where the mean, median, and mode are the same. (ex. IQ scores)

Question 49

Variability

Answer 49

Degree of spread in the distribution

Question 50

Standard Deviation

Answer 50

The average distance of all data points from the mean

Question 51

Statistically Significant

Answer 51

Said to occur when the probability that the observed findings are due to chance is very low (less than 5%)