Module 2: An Introduction to Research Methods

Question 1

Three types of descriptive methods

Answer 1

1. Observational methods
2. Case study method
3. Survey method

Question 2

Observational methods

Answer 2

Making observations of human or other animal behavior.

Question 3

Two way to approach observational methods

Answer 3

1. Naturalistic observation: how humans and animals behave in natural habitat.
2. Laboratory observation: observing behaviour in a contrives and controlled situation

Question 4

What are advantages and disadvantages of observational methods?

Answer 4

• A advantage is: flexibility to change what we are studying.
• Disadvantage: we have little control.

Question 5

Case study method

Answer 5

In-depth study of one or more individuals.

Question 6

Survey method

Answer 6

Questioning individuals on a topic or tipcs and then describing their responses.

Question 7

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Survey method?

Answer 7

a. Advantage is: it allows researchers to study larger groups of individuals more easily.
b. Disadvantages:
- The question is if the sample (participants in the group) is representative for the whole population. Can be overcome through random sampling.
- Wording of questions:
Are the questions easy to understand? Are they written in such a manner that they bias the respondents’ answers? Such concerns affect the validity of the data collected.

Question 8

What are the two predictive (relational) methods?

Answer 8

1. Correlational method

2. Quasi-Experimental method

Question 9

Correlational method

Answer 9

Assesses the degree of relationschip between two measured variables.
If two variables are correlated with each other, then we can predict form one variable to the other with a certain degree of accuracy.

Question 10

Quasi-experimental method

Answer 10

Allows us to describe and predict by permitting us to compare naturally occurring groups of individuals.

Question 11

Negative relationship (correlation)

Answer 11

A relationship between two variables in which an increase in one is accompanied by a decrease in the other.

Question 12

Positive relationship (correlation)

Answer 12

A relationship between two variables in which an increase in one is accompanied by an increase in the other.

Question 13

Alternative explanation

Answer 13

The idea that another uncontrolled, extraneaous variable may be responsible for an observed relationship.

Question 14

Explanatory method

Answer 14

• It allows researches not only to describe and predict but also to determine whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship between the variables of interest.
• Know when and why a behaviour occurs

Question 15

What can Explanatory method be divided into?

Answer 15

1. Independent variable

2. Dependent variable

Question 16

Independent variable

Answer 16

The variable that is manipulated by the researcher.

Question 17

Which groups has the explanatory method?

Answer 17

1. Control group: the group of subjects who do not receive any level of the independent variable and serve as the baseline in a study.
2. Experimental group: the group of subjects who receive some leve of the independent variable.

Question 18

Dependent variable

Answer 18

The variable in a study that is measured by the researcher.

Question 19

What concerns proof and disproof of a theory?

Answer 19

• Proof of a theory is logically impossible
• We test a hypothesis by attempting to falsify or disconfirm it.
  o Falsifying a hypothesis doesn’t mean the hypothesis is false.

Question 20

Participant (subject) variable

Answer 20

A characteristic of the participants that cannot be changed

Question 21

Random assignment

Answer 21

Assigning participants to conditions in such a way that each has the same probability as any other participant of being placed in any condition.

Question 22

Control

Answer 22

Manipulating the independent variable in an experiment or any other extraneous variables that could affect the results of a study.

Question 23

Phrenology

Answer 23

In the early part of the 19th century many scientists believed that studying the bumps on a person s head allowed them to know something about the mind of the individual.

Question 24

Sample

Answer 24

The group of people in the study

Question 25

Population

Answer 25

Whom the study is meant to generalize to.

Question 26

Random sampling

Answer 26

Through random selection each member of the population is equally likely to be chosen as part of the sample.

Question 27

Sampling error

Answer 27

Deviation error due to random sampling.

Question 28

Criteria for causal interpretations

Answer 28

1 Temporal order (directionality)
2 Statistical association: There must be a correlation between the cause-variable and the consequence variable.
3 Association must be spurious: Relation cannot be attributed to another factor and no third variable problem

Question 29

Temporal order (directionality)

Answer 29

the cause must happen before the consequence/effect

Question 30

3 types of research methods

Answer 30

• Observational
• Predictive (relational)
• Explanatory