psychological research (2)

Question 1

Scientific research

Answer 1

is grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed time and time again, regardless of who is observing
Prove if ideas are true or false
Use information to improve daily life and the world around us

Question 2

The Scientific Method

Answer 2

proposing hypotheses, conducting research, and creating or modifying theories based on results

Question 3

Clinical or Case Studies

Answer 3

Study of an individual in great detail
-advantages: Tremendous amount of detail, rich source for hypothesis generation

-disadvantages: Findings may not generalize to others

Question 4

Naturalistic Observation

Answer 4

Observation of behavior in a normal environment
-advantages: Realistic picture of behavior

-disadvantages:
Difficult to set up and control
Observer effect: tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal when they know they are being observed
Observer bias: tendency of observers to see what they expect/want to see
Blind observers: people who do not know what the research question is
Establish clear criteria for recording observations

Question 5

Laboratory Observation

Answer 5

Observing behavior in a laboratory study
-advantages:
Control over environment
Allows use of specialized equipment

-disadvantages:
Artificial situation that may result in artificial behavior
Can be difficult to generalize findings to “real world” situations or others

Question 6

Survey

Answer 6

A technique for identifying the attitudes, opinions, or behaviors of people through a series of questions
-advantages:
Quick, easy to administer
Data from large, diverse groups of people
Data from hard to reach, low base-rate populations
Study private behaviors (ex. Drinking behavior, suicidal thoughts)

-disadvantages:
People are not always accurate
Small variations in wording/ order of questions can affect outcomes
Researchers have to ensure representative sample if interested in generalizing findings to a certain population

Question 7

Archival research

Answer 7

Use past records to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships

Question 8

Cross-sectional research

Answer 8

Compare multiple segments of a population at a single time (such as different age groups)

Question 9

longitudinal research

Answer 9

Study the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time

Question 10

correlation

Answer 10

Relationship between two or more variables; when one variable changes, so does the other

Question 11

correlation coefficent

Answer 11

Range from -1 to +1, Indicates strength and direction of the relationship between variables

Question 12

positive correlation

Answer 12

Two variables change in the same direction, both becoming either larger or smaller
As one variable increases, the other variable increases
As one variable decreases, the other variable decreases

Question 13

negative correlation

Answer 13

Two variables change in different directions, with one becoming larger as the other becomes smaller
As one variable increases, the other variable decreases

Question 14

no/zero correlation

Answer 14

changes in two variables are not related to each other
A negative correlation is not the same thing as no correlation

Question 15

Independent Variable

Answer 15

Variable that is influenced/manipulated by the experimenter

Question 16

Dependent Variable

Answer 16

Variable that the researcher measures to see how much the independent variable has

Question 17

Experimental Group

Answer 17

Participants that experience the manipulated variable

Question 18

Control Group

Answer 18

Participants that do not experience the manipulated variable Serve as a basis for comparison and controls for chance factors (confounds) that might influence the results of the study; may receive a placebo

Question 19

Difference between experimental and control group

Answer 19

Experimental Manipulation is the ONLY difference

Question 20

Population

Answer 20

Entire group of individuals that the researcher is interested in (ex. College students)

Question 21

sample

Answer 21

subset of individuals selected from the larger population

Question 22

Random Sample

Answer 22

subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected

Question 23

Random Assignment

Answer 23

Method of experimental group assignment in which all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to either group (experimental or control)

Question 24

Operational Definition

Answer 24

precise definition/description of what actions and operations will be used to measure the dependent variables and manipulate the independent variables. Intention is that any researcher could use this operational definition to repeat the same experiment.

describes behavior so it is percievable and measurable

Question 25

Confounds

Answer 25

extraneous variable that affect the variables you are interested in studying

Question 26

Experimental Bias

Answer 26

Researcher expectations skew the results of the study

Question 27

Participant Bias

Answer 27

participant expectations skew the results of the study

Question 28

Single-blind Study

Answer 28

experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group, but participants do not (controls for participant bias)

Question 29

Double-Blind Study

Answer 29

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments (controls for both participant and experimenter bias)

Question 30

Placebo Effect

Answer 30

people’s expectations or beliefs influence or determine their experience

Question 31

Validity

Answer 31

extent to which a given instrument/tool accurately measures what it is designed to measure. A valid measure is always reliable, but a reliable measure is not always valid (online shopping today vs. during christmas time)

assumes the test is measuring exactly what it needs to

Question 32

Reliability

Answer 32

consistency and reproducibility of a given result. When a study involves observations by multiple people, it is important that they all make observations and record them in the same way

Question 33

Inter-rater reliability

Answer 33

measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify a particular event

Question 34

Informed Consent

Answer 34

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate.