Psychology Chapter 2

Question 1

Theory

Answer 1

well developed set of ideas that propose and explanation for observed phenomena.

Question 2

Case Study

Answer 2

In observational research, scientists are conducting a clinical or case study when they focus on one person or just a few individuals.

Question 3

Survey

Answer 3

list of questions to be answered by research participants—given as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally—allowing researchers to collect data from a large number of people

Question 4

Generalizing

Answer 4

the ability to apply the findings of a particular research project to larger segments of society.

Again, case studies provide enormous amounts of information, but since the cases are so specific, the potential to apply what’s learned to the average person may be very limited.

Question 5

Attrition

Answer 5

reduction in number of research participants as some drop out of the study over time

in longitudinal studies are quite high and increases over the course of a project.
For this reason, researchers using this approach typically recruit many participants fully expecting that a substantial number will drop out before the end.
As the study progresses, they continually check whether the sample still represents the larger population, and make adjustments as necessary.

Question 6

Correlation (positive and negative):

Answer 6

Relationship between two or more variables; when two variables are correlated, one variable changes as the other does.
Correlation means that there is a relationship between two or more variables (such as ice cream consumption and crime), but this relationship does not necessarily imply cause and effect.
When two variables are correlated, it simply means that as one variable changes, so does the other. We can measure correlation by calculating a statistic known as a correlation coefficient

Question 7

correlation coefficient

Answer 7

A number from -1 to +1 that indicates the strength and direction of the relationship between variables. The correlation coefficient is usually represented by the letter r.

Question 8

Confounding Variable

Answer 8

Unanticipated outside factor that affects both variables of interest, often giving the false impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable, when, in actuality, the outside factor causes changes in both variables

Question 9

Illusory correlations

Answer 9

Seeing relationships between two things when in reality no such relationship exists.
False correlations, occur when people believe that relationships exist between two things when no such relationship exists

Question 10

Confirmation bias

Answer 10

tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs

Question 11

experiemental research design

Answer 11

Researchers who use animals as experimental subjects must design their projects so that pain and distress are minimized. Animal

Question 12

Single-blind study

Answer 12

Experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group but participants do not

Conducting an experiment requires a lot of planning, and the people involved in the research project have a vested interest in supporting their hypotheses. If the observers knew which child was in which group, it might influence how much attention they paid to each child’s behavior as well as how they interpreted that behavior. By being blind to which child is in which group, we protect against those biases. This situation is a single-blind study, meaning that one of the groups (participants) are unaware as to which group they are in (experiment or control group) while the researcher who developed the experiment knows which participants are in each group.

Question 13

Double-blind study

Answer 13

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments

Question 14

Reliability

Answer 14

consistency and reproductibility of a given result. In the context of psychological research, this would mean that any instruments or tools used to collect data do so in consistent, reproducible ways.

Question 15

Validity

Answer 15

Accuracy of a given result in measuring what it is designed to measure.
The extent to which a given instrument or tool accurately measures what it’s supposed to measure. While any valid measure is by necessity reliable, the reverse is not necessarily true. Researchers strive to use instruments that are both highly reliable and valid.

Question 16

Institutional Review Board (IRB):

Answer 16

committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants.
The purpose of the IRB is to review proposals for research that involves human participants. The IRB reviews these proposals with the principles mentioned above in mind, and generally, approval from the IRB is required in order for the experiment to proceed.

Question 17

Informed consent

Answer 17

Form provides a written description of what participants can expect during the experiment, including potential risks and implications of the research. It also lets participants know that their involvement is completely voluntary and can be discontinued without penalty at any time.