Scientific Methods Flashcards
Theory vs hypothesis
Theory: organized ideas about how causal forces underlie an effect
Hypothesis: TESTABLE predictions about relationships, “if-then” statements
Steps of the scientific method
- State the problem
- Develop hypothesis
- Design a study (methods)
- Collect and analyze data (experiment and results)
- Report results and draw conclusions
Operational definition
Answers how the variable will be measured
What does replication refer to in terms of scientific experiments?
Confirms repeated observations, often multiple points are needed to conclude
Confounding/extraneous variables
A third variable (not independent or dependent) that affects the independent variable
Different research designs
- Case studies
- Naturalistic observations (observe behavior in a naturally occuring setting
- Surveys
- Correlational studies (relationship b/w 2+ variables, can not provide causation
- Experimental study: can provide causation
Positive vs negative correlation
Positive indicates as one goes one way one tends to go the same way, can’t tell which is dependent/independent. Negative indicates as one goes one way, one tends to go the other way. Zero correlation means no relationship
What does “correlation does not equal causation” mean?
In correlational studies we cannot tell which variable is independent or dependent
Subjective vs Objective observations- what is the difference between the two? Why is the objective approach critical in science?
Objective is stating data and facts, subjective is reporting information that is biased. Objective is needed because science has to be backed by FACTS!!!!
3 central tendencies
Mean, median, mode
Mean
the average
Median
middle score of all points
Mode
which data point has the most subjects
Standard deviation
measurement of how much the scores deviate from the mean
3 major types of SD
normal distribution, bimodal, skewed
