Preliminary Flashcards
A method of procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting in systematic observation, measurement, experiment, formulation, testing, and modification of hypothesis.
The Scientific Method
Scientific method offers an objective methodology for scientific experimentation that results in ______ interpretations of the world and refines knowledge.
unbiased
Basic Steps in the Scientific Method
Observe a natural phenomenon and define a question about it
Make a hypothesis, or potential solution to the question
Test the hypothesis
If the hypothesis is true, find more evidence or find counter-evidence
If the hypothesis is false, create a new hypothesis or try again
Draw conclusions and repeat– the scientific method is never ending, and no result is ever considered perfect
Psychology’s Four Goals
Description
What is happening?
Explanation
Why is it happening?
Prediction
Will it happen again?
Control
How can it be changed?
DESCRIPTIVE METHODS
Naturalistic Observation
Laboratory Observation
Case Study
Surveys
Watching animals or humans behave in their normal environment
Each naturalistic setting is unique, and observations may not hold.
Major advantage: realistic picture of behavior
Naturalistic Observation
tendency of people or animals to behave differently when they know they are being observed.
Observer effect
a naturalistic observation in which the observer becomes a participant in the group being observed (to reduce observer effect)
Participant observation
tendency of observers to see what they expect to see
Observer bias
people who do not know what the research question is (to reduce observer bias)
Blind observers
Watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting
Descriptive methods lead to the formation of testable hypotheses
Advantages - Control over environment. Allows use of specialized equipment.
Disadvantages: Artificial situation may be result in artificial behavior
Laboratory Observation
Study of one individual in great detail
Advantage: tremendous amount of detail
Disadvantage: cannot apply to others
Case Study
Famous case study: ________ (iron rod that shot through his skull)
Phineas Gage
Researchers ask a series of questions about the topic under study
Given to representative sample
Representative Sample: randomly selected sample of subjects from a large population of subjects
Population: the entire group of people or animals in which the researcher is interested.
Surveys
Measures of two variables go into a mathematical formula and produce a correlation coefficient ( r), which represents two things:
Direction of the relationship
Strength of the relationship
Correlation
A deliberate manipulation of a variable to see whether corresponding changes in behavior result, allowing the determination of cause and effect relationships.
Experiment
Definition of a variable of interest that allows it to be directly measured
ex: aggressive play
Operational Definition
The variable in an experiment that is manipulated by the experimenter.
Independent variable
The variable in an experiment who is not subjected to the independent variable and who may receive a placebo treatment (controls for confounding variables).
DEPENDENT VARIABLE
The process of assigning subjects to the experimental or control groups randomly, so that each subject has an equal chance of being in either group
Random Assignment
The phenomenon in which the expectations of the participants in a study can influence their behavior
Placebo Effect
Tendency of the experimenter’s expectations for a study to unintentionally influence the results of the study
Experimenter Effect
Neither the experimenter nor the subjects know which subjects are in the experimental or control group (reduces placebo effect and experimenter effect)
Double-blind Study
Subjects do not know whether they are in the experimental or the control group (Reduces placebo effect)
The participants are “blind” to the treatment they receive
Single-blind Study
studies that aim to evaluate interventions but that do not use randomization. Similar to randomized trials
Quasi Experiment
Emphasize internal validity
Assess cause & effect (in relatively artificial environment)
Test clear, a priori hypotheses
TRUE EXPERIMENTS
Emphasize external validity
Describe “real” / naturally occurring events Clear of exploratory hypotheses
QUASI-EXPERIMENTS
– a deliberate manipulation of a variable to see
whether corresponding changes in behavior result,
allowing the determination of cause-and-effect
relationships
Experiment
– definition of a variable of interest that allows it to be
directly measured
– definition: aggressive play
Operational Definition
– the variable in an experiment that is manipulated
by the experimenter
Independent variable (IV)
– the variable in an experiment that represents the
measurable response or behavior of the subjects in
the experiment
Dependent variable (DV)
– subjects in an experiment who are subjected to the
independent variable
Experimental group
– subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to
the independent variable and who may receive a
placebo treatment (controls for confounding
variables).
Control group
– the process of assigning subjects to the
experimental or control groups randomly, so that
each subject has an equal chance of being in
either group
Random assignment
– the phenomenon in which the expectations of the
participants in a study can influence their behavior
Placebo effect
– the phenomenon in which the expectations of the
participants in a study can influence their behavior
Placebo effect
