Research Analysis & Design Exam 1 Flashcards
psychology
the scientific study of mental processes and behaviors
empiricism
the use of verifiable evidence as the basis for conclusions
theory
a statement that describes general principles about how variables relate
hypothesis
a statement of the result that researchers expect to observe
data
a set of observations representing the values of some variable
applied research
research whose goal is to find the solution to a real-world problem
basic research
research whose goal is to enhance knowledge without regard for direct application to practical problems
translational research
research that uses knowledge derived from basic research to test solutions to real-world problems
journal
a monthly periodical containing peer-reviewed articles on an academic discipline
journalism
news and commentary published or broadcast in the popular media
falsifiable
it is possible for collected data to be wrong
what is an example of being a consumer of research as a student?
attending a student research symposium or academic conference
describe the difference between basic and applied research
basic and applied research aim to achieve different objectives
what is the relationship between hypotheses and theories
hypotheses test the accuracy of a theory
why do scientific journals use peer review
to ensure the research published meets high quality standards
what is the difference between articles published in scientific journals and journalistic articles
journal articles are written by scientist while journalistic articles aren’t
when should you be cautious about the reliability of someones advice
when they base their recommendations solely on their personal experiences
which is the first section of an empirical journal article
abstract
for a comprehensive overview of the impact of diet on heart attack risk? which scientific source would be best?
meta-analysis
which two sections could you quickly read to get a summary of an article
the abstract and the first paragraph of the discussion
name a way that the scientific reasoner is different from the intuitive thinker
they create comparison groups and use systematic research
what is an example of an association claim
owning a dog is related to higher life satisfaction
stefan wants to establish a causal relationship in his dissertation, what is necessary to do so
he must conduct an experiment
what is NOT a research claim
teens spend too much time texting and driving
what did NOT occur in the tuskegee study
participants in the study were infected with the disease
according to the belmont report, which group is entitled to special protection
people with developmental disabilities
what is NOT an example of coercion
offering extra credit for participation
dr. kushner is considering using prisoners in his study, which member must be on the IRB reviewing his study
a prisoner advocate
what are the three principles of the belmont report
-respect for others
-beneficence
-justice
why is the producer role important
-coursework in psych
-for graduate school
-for working in a research lab
why is the consumer role important
-for psychology courses
-when reading online news stories based on research
-for your future career
how do scientists approach their work
-they’re empiricists
-they test theories
-they tackle applied and basic problems
what are the four components of research vs. your experience
-experience has no comparison group
-experience is confounded
-research is better than experience
-research is probabilistic
comparison group
enables us to compare what would happen both with and without the thing we are interested in
what are confounds
alternative explanations for an outcome
availability heuristic
things that pop up easily in our minds tend to guide our thinking
present/present bias
when people incorrectly estimate the relationship between an event and its outcome, because they focus on when the event and outcome are present, but not when they aren’t
confirmation bias
the tendency to consider only the evidence that supports a hypothesis
bias/bias blind spot
the tendency for people to think that compared to others, they are less likely to engage in biased reasoning
intuitive thinker vs. scientific reasoner
-we make mistakes when we base our reasoning on intuition rather than on empiricism
-researchers create comparison groups and look at all data
components of an empirical journal article
-abstract
-introduction
-method
-results
-discussion
-references
variable
something that varies, typically has two levels
constant
something that could potentially vary but that has only one level in the study
measured variable
one whose levels are simply observed and recorded
manipulated variable
a variable a researcher controls
conceptual variable
a variable of interest, stated at an abstract level
operational variable
the way in which a concept of interest is measured or manipulated as a variable in a study
frequency claim
describe a particular rate or degree of a single variable
association claim
argues that one level of a variable is likely to be associated with a particular level of another variable
causal claims
argues that one of the variables is responsible for changing the other
construct validity
an indication of how well a variable was measured or manipulated in a study
external validity
an indication of how well the results of a study generalize to or represent individuals or contexts besides those in the study itself
statistical validity
the extent to which statistical conclusions derived from a study are accurate and reasonable
covariance
the degree to which two variables go together
temporal precedence
states that the proposed causal variable comes first in time
what are some things that make an experiment unethical?
-being treated disrespectfully
-being harmed
-targeting disadvantaged groups
beneficence
to comply with it, researchers must take precautions to protect participants from harm and ensure their well-being
justice
