Methods

Question 1

Science is logical

Science is repeatable

Science is vulnerable to disconfirmation

Answer 1

3 Features of science

Question 2

An integrated set of statements that describes, predicts, or explains behavior

Answer 2

theory

Question 3

Specific, testable, and disconfirmable statements about the behavior we want to study or theory we want to test

Answer 3

hypothesis

Question 4

Conceptual representation of behaviors or phenomenon around which research is based; the thing you’re interested in studying

Ex: Love, aggression, and groups– abstract representations that are intangible and do not exist in physical reality

Answer 4

construct

Question 5

Defines a construct in concrete terms

Ex: anger –> throwing a chair at your boss

Answer 5

Operationalization

Question 6

Describe, predict, explain behavior

Answer 6

Goals of research

Question 7

Naturalistic observation/ethnography

Observe behavior where it typically happens

Answer 7

Describing behavior

Question 8

High in external validity

See what people actually do

Answer 8

Strengths of describing behavior

Question 9

Can only describe

No private/rare events

Observer bias

Low in internal validity

Answer 9

Limitations of describing behavior

Question 10

Correlational studies

Determine how much and in what way two pre-existing variables are related

Answer 10

Predicting behavior

Question 11

Study things you can’t or shouldn’t manipulate

Lots of data

Cheap and easy

Answer 11

Strengths of predicting behavior

Question 12

Response bias– people can lie or aren’t aware of their bias

Sampling errors

Cannot interpret causality

Could be other factors that correlate things

• Ex: correlation between coffee and heart attacks- does not include amount of sleep, stress, sugar consumed, etc.
• Ex: positive correlation between ice cream sales and homicide rates- does not include heat, population density, etc.

Answer 12

Limitations of predicting behavior

Question 13

• Experiments
• Manipulate one or more factors while controlling others (holding things constant)

Answer 13

Explaining behavior

Question 14

High in internal validity

Can conclude causality

Answer 14

Strengths of explaining behavior

Question 15

Expensive

Demand characteristics

Low in external validity

Answer 15

Limitations of explaining behavior

Question 16

Variable manipulated or controlled by the researcher

Experimental group: angry participants throw a chair at their boss
Control group: angry participants sit quietly in a chair

Answer 16

Independent variable

Question 17

The measurement of the consequences of/response to the IV

Happiness: do people feel happier as a result of chair throwing?
Measure on a scale from very happy to not happy

Answer 17

Dependent variable

Question 18

Extent to which we can draw cause-and-effect inferences from a study

Answer 18

Internal validity

Question 19

Extent to which we can generalize findings to real-world settings

Answer 19

External validity

Question 20

The extent to which a test yields consistent results

Answer 20

Reliability

Question 21

Control

Random assigment

Answer 21

Two critical features of experiments

Question 22

Basically, let participants know what they’re getting into

Institutional Review Board (IRB) monitors our activities and approves our studies before we can run participants

Answer 22

How do we address ethical concerns in experiments?