Lesson 1: Experimental Psychology and the Scientific Method Flashcards
research about the
psychological processes underlying the behavior
psychological science
comes from the Latin word Scientia, means knowledge
- has two meanings – content and process.
Science
is the scientific techniques
used to collect and evaluate psychological
data.
Methodology
are the facts and figures gathered in research studies.
Data
psychology examines relationships between human behavior
and the mind. is centered on fact-based, scientific
research and experimentation.
Experimental Psychology
method of studying psychological phenomena
and processes.
Experimental Psychology
According to the American Psychological Association (APA),
experimental psychologists they seek what?
seek to understand which factors
influence human behavior, experiences and thought processes.
The Need for Scientific
Methodology: is a nonscientific data gathering that shapes our expectations and beliefs and directs our behavior toward others.
Commonsense Psychology
beliefs about behavior are
derived from data we collect from our own experience and what we have learned from others.
Commonsense Psychology
________ we draw from them are subject to a number of inherent tendencies, or biases,
that limit their accuracy and usefulness and
often can be _____ and ____..
Conclusion, unreliable and imperfect
is a tendency to accept evidence that confirms our beliefs and to reject evidence that contradicts them.
“Beliefs shape expectations, which in turn shape perceptions, which then shape conclusions”.
Conformation bias
Research has shown that we are
more likely to believe information if it comes from certain kinds of individuals:
Popular
Attractive
High in status
Expert
Highly confident
It can be thought of as a
relatively stable characteristic
that causes individuals to behave
in certain ways.
Traits
According to their theory, three types of traits govern our personality. They named these three categories of traits as
cardinal traits, central
traits, and secondary traits.
These are the dominant traits of one’s personality. They stand at the top of Allport’s trait
hierarchy. These traits are the master controller of one’s personality.
Cardinal Traits
They come second in the hierarchy. According to Allport, every person possesses 5-10 central traits in varying degrees. These are also called the
building block`s of personality.
Central traits
These traits are less generalized, less consistent, and less relevant as compared to cardinal or central traits.These are situational or circumstantial
traits.
Secondary Traits
(1.The Scientific Mentality)
Psychologists’ goal of
prediction .Behavior must follow a
natural order, therefore, it can be
predicted.
Assumption
(1.The Scientific Mentality)
It is in philosophy, theory that all events, including moral choices, are completely determined by
previously existing causes.
Determinism
(2. Gathering Empirical Data)
data that are observable or experienced
can be verified or disproved through investigation
Empirical data
(3.Seeking General Principles)
when principles have the generality to apply to all situations
Laws
(3.Seeking General Principles)
is a fact-based framework for describing a phenomenon
has two key components:
1.It must describe a behavior and
2.Make predictions about future behaviors.
Theory
(3.Seeking General Principles)
a tentative statement about the relationship between two or more variables
a specific, testable prediction about what you expect to happen in your study.
Hypothesis
Organized rational thought, characterized by open mindedness, objectivity, and parsimony; a principal tool of the scientific method
It is the central feature of the scientific method
4.Good Thinking
Another aspect of good thinking is the principle of Parsimony. The simplest explanation is
preferred until ruled out by conflicting evidence; also
known as ________
also called law of economy or law of parsimony, “plurality should not be posited without necessity.”
Occam’s razor
The content of science changes as we acquire new specific information, and
old information is reevaluated in the light of new facts.
5.Self-correction
Scientists also have to “check their work.” The results of an investigation are not likely to be well accepted unless the investigation is repeated—usually many times—and the same result is always obtained. Getting the same result when an experiment is
Replication
(The Objectives of Psychological Science)
(It answers the question what)
-Refers to a systematic and unbiased account of the observed
characteristics of behaviors.
Description
(The Objectives of Psychological Science)
(It answers the question when)
- Refers to the capacity for knowing in advance when
certain behaviors would be expected to occur – to be
able to predict them ahead of time
Prediction
(The Objectives of Psychological Science)
(It answers the question why)
- When we have explained a behavior, we also understand
what causes it to occur.
Explanation
(The Objectives of Psychological Science)
(It answers the question how)
- It refers to the application of what has
been learned about behavior.
Control
(3 Main Tools of the Scientific Method)
A systematic noting and recording of events
Observation
(3 Main Tools of the Scientific Method)
It is the assignment of numerical
values to objects or events or their characteristics according to
conventional rules
Measurement
(3 Main Tools of the Scientific Method)
It is a process undertaken to test a hypothesis that particular behavioral events will occur reliably in certain, specifiable situations
Experimentation
3 Minimum Requirements of Experiment
Must have procedures
The predicted outcome must be
observable
Must be able to measure the outcome
(SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE)
1.Identifying Antecedent Conditions
are the circumstances that come before the event or
behavior that we want to explain
Antecedent Condition
(SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE)
2. creation of specific sets of antecedent conditions
antecedent conditions that we create in an experiment
Treatment condition
(SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE)
is a controlled procedure in which at least two different treatment conditions are applied to subjects
- Psychological Experiment
(SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE)
Within the experiment, we can infer a cause-and-effect
relationship between the antecedent conditions and the
subjects’ behaviors
- Establishing Cause and Effect
(SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE)
- A ____ condition is a condition that must be present for an event to occur. A _____ condition is a condition or set of conditions that will produce the event.
necessary, sufficient
5.Necessary versus Sufficient Conditions
A field of study that
gives the appearance
of being scientific but
has no true scientific
basis and has not
been confirmed using
the tools of the
scientific method.
Pseudoscience
assessing traits and dispositions by measuring the size and location of bumps on the skull. The measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits.
Phrenology
use of facial features, the study of the systematic correspondence of psychological characteristics to facial features or body structure.
Physiognomy
(Animal Magnetism)
believed that fluids in the body ebbed and flowed by magnetic principles and that both physical and mental illness could be cured by realigning these fluids using magnets
Mesmerism
purported contact
with ghost and spirits of the dead.
Spiritualism
