Research Methods Flashcards
Why is experience not a good basis for ideas?
We only see one version of a situation rather than every possible combination.
What are two reasons why intuition can be flawed?
- Overconfidence
- Confirmation bias
Theory-data cycle
Develop theories of behaviour, which lead to hypotheses, which are tested by collecting data.
Data consistent with a hypothesis increase support for a theory; data inconsistent with a hypothesis decrease support for a theory.
Variable
Something of interest that can take on different values from person to person.
Measured variable
Researcher observes and records value in numeric form.
Manipulated variable
Researcher assigns each individual to one level of a variable or another.
Operationalizing a variable
Turning a variable into a specific number or value.
What are 3 methods for operationalizing measured variables?
- Self report
- Physiological
- Observation
What are the 3 kinds of research?
Surveys
Descriptive
Correlational
What is a survey? What do they try and find out? How do they do it? How effective are they?
a. What do people do on average?
b. Descriptive/self-report
c. Sample
d. If random sampling is used, a sample as small as 1500 people can generalize to the population of interest
What are the two types of descriptive study?
a. Naturalistic observation: Use observational measures to record behaviours unobtrusively
b. Case studies: Study one or a few people, often extensively and over a long period of time
What is a correlational study?
a. Measure two or more variables and quantify relationships between them
b. Scatterplots: Assign measured variable to each axis and plot one dot to represent where each individual falls. If correlation positive, high values on one variable go with high values on the other. If negative, high values on one go with low values on the other. If correlation is zero, values are not systematically related at all.
What can and can’t correlation let us predict?
• Positive or negative correlation allows us to predict people’s standing in one variable from the other
• Correlation necessary but not sufficient for causation
What are independent and dependent variables in an experiment?
• One variable (the hypothesized cause) is manipulated, often by randomly assigning individuals to two groups. The other variable (the hypothesized effect) is measured for all individuals.
• Independent variable: the manipulated variable
• Dependent variable: the measured variable
What 3 things must an experiment do to establish causation?
○ Covariance: independent variable groups differ on the dependent variable
○Temporal precedence: Prove independent variable occurs first, followed by the dependent variable. Because experiments manipulate independent variable and then measure the dependent, they almost always meet this criterion.
○ Rule out alternative explanations. Random assignment usually rules out lots. But must carefully control any other extraneous variables too.