Module 2 Flashcards
What three qualities make for a great scientific theory
1) Falsifiable
2) Hypothesis is stated a priori
3) Parsimonious (succinct)
What are descriptive studies
Descriptive studies are those that involve observing behavior in a systematic way in order to accurately and objectively describe that behavior.
What are three examples of descriptive studies
Case studies, observational studies, self-reports/interviews.
What are the strengths of case studies
they provide in depth information
What are the weaknesses of case studies
they can’t be generalized to the wider population and don’t allow for control of variables
What are the two types of observational studies
participant observation and naturalistic observation
What is naturalistic observation and how is it different from participant observation
the the experimenter passively observes the situation, without intervening in any way.
What is participant observation and how is it different from naturalistic observation
The experimenter is actively involved in the situation being observed.
What two issues might affect the outcome of a observational study
observer bias and reactivity (Hawthorne effect)
What is the Hawthorne effect
When people are being studied, their performance usually improves
What two potential concerns could affect the accuracy of a self-report/interview study
Researcher bias and social desirability
What two types of correlational studies are there
- cross-sectional (at one time point)
- longitudinal (across many time points)
Positive r values denote _____ correlations
Positive
Negtive r values denote _____ correlations
Negative
What three things are necessary to demonstrate causation
covariation, temporal precedence, and elimination of spuriousness
What does the Institutional Review Board (IRB) do
makes sure all experiments done are safe and ethical
In order to be valuable, the data collected must be both ________ and ______.
Reliable valid
what is Construct validity
is the extent to which variables measure what they are supposed to measure.
What is External validity
is the extent to which the research findings can be generalized to people beyond the sample.
What is Internal validity
is the extent to which the effects observed are due to changes in the independent variable
A researcher measures extraversion in an experiment by recording the amount of time that a participant spends smiling while interacting with a group of strangers. However, his colleague argues that smiling might reflect a person’s current mood, not how extraverted they are. In doing so, she is questioning the study’s _____.
Construct validity
In a classic study, researchers demonstrated that people will carry out acts that harm others if instructed to do so by a person in authority. However, critics have pointed out that almost all of the participants in the study were men, and have questioned whether or not the results apply to all people. This criticism target’s the study’s ____.
External validity
When a confound is present in an experiment, it threatens the experiment’s _____.
Internal validity
What three things do Descriptive statistics measure
central tendency, variability, and association
What is a measure of central tendency
used to describe the typical response or the behavior of a group as a whole. (Mean, Median, Mode)
What is a measure of variability
Measures of variability describe how different are the scores from each other, and how different they are from the mean (Standard Deviation)
Measures of association describe…
how two variables are related to each other. (Represented with coefficient r)
