Research Methods Flashcards
basic research
driven by curiosity; for the sake of science
examples of basic research
neuroscience, cognitive, developmental, social
applied research
has a clear purpose
examples of applied research
clinical, educational, forensic
Why is psychological research important?
- reduces bias
- systematic
scientific method
- theory
- hypothesis
- research
- support/refute theory
What makes a good theory?
falsifiable: there is evidence to either support or refute the theory
What makes a good hypothesis?
specific and testable
population
everyone in the group that the experimenter is interested in
sample
a subset of a population
random assignment
assigning participants randomly to experimental conditions
random sampling
every person in the population has an equal chance of being selected
Why is random sampling important?
- eliminates the chance of third variables
- allows for generalization
convenience sampling
consists of people who are conveniently available for the study
correlational research design
measures how closely two factors/variables vary together
variable
a property whose value can vary at any given time
positive correlation
↑↑
negative correlation
↑↓ or ↓↑
zero correlation
one variable not predictably related to the other
What is the range of correlational coefficients?
-1 to +1
perfect negative correlation
-1
perfect positive correlation
+1
limitations of correlational studies
correlation ≠ causation
benefits of correlational studies
- more ethical
- leads to more experiments
experimental research design
an independent variable is systematically manipulated under controlled conditions and resulting changes in a dependent variable is observed
independent variable (IV)
factor that is varied or manipulated
dependent variable (DV)
the behavior that is measured and expected to change as a function of change in the IV
control variables
variables that are kept the same across the two conditions
experimental group
receives the treatment
control group
does not receive the treatment
limitations of experimental studies
- impractical or unethical
- highly controlled lab settings make generalization difficult
benefits of experimental studies
- can infer causation
- precise control over variables
quasi-experimental research design
a research design that is similar to experimental design but relies on existing group membership and not random assignment
What is the IV and DV in quasi-experimental designs?
IV: group membership
DV: performance in a cooperative situation
example of a correlational design
non-academic Internet use vs. class performance
How were the variables in the internet use vs. class performance study operationalized?
hours of Internet use and grades on final exam
What were the experimental and control groups in Albert Bandura’s bobo doll experiment?
experimental: watched an experimenter beat up a bobo doll
control: did not watch an experimenter beat up a bobo doll
What were the IV and DV in Albert Bandura’s bobo doll experiment?
IV: non-aggressive or aggressive model
DV: number of aggressive behaviors
What theory resulted from the bobo doll experiment?
Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory: we mimic the behaviors we observe
What was the IV and DV in the House Fire Study?
IV: nationality
DV: who the person chose to save
placebo effect
when receiving special treatment or something new leads to expectations that affect human behavior
experimenter bias
when an experimenter’s expectations influence the outcome of the study
What two ways can experimenter bias manifest itself?
- experimenters “see” what they want to see
- experimenters behave or treat participants differently
demand characteristics
when participants behave differently in a lab setting because they know they’re being watched and change their behavior to fit the experiment’s purpose
What was the IV and DV in the elderly priming experiment?
IV: whether participants received a word scramble related to the elderly or not
DV: timed to how fast they walked down the hall
What were the biases in the original elderly priming experiment?
- experimenter bias
- demand characteristics
Are biases fatal in experiments?
No, because published work attempts to mitigate for these factors
converging operations
a research strategy in which a variety of research techniques are used to investigate a research result
