Sem. 1 - Unit 0 Flashcards
critical thinking
do not immediately accept arguments/conclusions, don’t trust your gut
hindsight bias
“I knew it all along”
overconfidence
humans tend to be more confident than correct, our confidence drives us to quick thinking rather than correct
confirmation bias
you like things that are similar to you - hide evidence that makes us wrong
peer reviewers
checking work for others to give feedback
theory
idea supported by evidence
hypothesis
prediction of what will happen with no prior evidence
falsifiable
can be proven wrong
operational definitions
used to describe the procedure of a study and the research variables
replication
repeating a process for reliability and validity
case study
in-depth investigation of an individual or small group who may have a highly unusual trait. - non experimental
naturalistic observation
observing and recording - non experimental
survey
Questionnaire, not the best because of wording effects, social desirability bias, and self report bias
wording effects
wording effects - using specific wording to influence one’s decision (social desirability bias)
social desirability bias
wording effects, influencing one’s decision
self-report bias
people don’t answer honestly
sampling bias
does not represent the population, no random sampling
random sample
the group of people that was picked randomly
population
the group that the data is represnenting
correlation
the extent to which two variables are related
correlation coefficient (R)
describes the strength and direction of a relations ship between two variables
perfect positive correlation = +1.00
perfect negative correlation = -1.00
no correlation = 0
variable
factor of experiment
scatterplot
type of graph with points
is correlational research a experimental or non-experimental method
non-experimental
illusory correlation
random events that we notice and falsely assume are related
regression toward the mean
the tendency for scores to average out. In this case extreme scores tend to happen rarely and seem to fall back toward the average (the mean)
experiment
a scientific procedure undertaken to make a discovery, test a hypothesis, or demonstrate a known fact
experimental group
the group that recieves the variable being tested
control group
the comparison group - does not receive variable being tested
random assignment
equal chance of placement in either testing group (ex. flipping a coin)
single-blind procedure
participants don’t know if they have the placebo or not, but researchers do
double-blind procedure
participants and researchers both don’t know who has that placebos and who doesn’t
placebo
An inactive substance or other intervention that looks the same as, and is given the same way as, an active drug or treatment being tested
placebo effect
triggered by the person’s belief in the benefit from the treatment and their expectation of feeling better, rather than the characteristics of the placebo
independent variable
the variable that is manipulated
confounding variable
in an experiment, a factor other than the factor being studied that might influence a study’s results
experimenter bias
the unintentional influence of the experimenter’s expectations, beliefs, or preconceived notions on the outcome of a study or research experiment
dependent variable
the variable that is measured
validity
accuracy
quantitative research
numerical data
qualitative research
largely non-numerical
informed consent
Part of an ethical experiement. Participants need to know the following before starting:
- purpose
- risks
-right to alternative
- right to withdraw at anytime
*informed assent (a process through which minors agree to participate in clinical trials)
debrief
the process of giving participants in a completed research project a fuller explanation of the study in which they participated than was possible before or during the research.
- Allows for deception
- confederate (in an experimental situation, an aide of the experimenter who poses as a participant but whose behavior is rehearsed prior to the experiment)
descriptive statistics
researchers use descriptive statistics to measure and describe characteristics of groups under study, often using a histogram to display their data
histogram
a bar graph
mode
most occuring number
mean
average
median
middle number
percentile rank
the % of scores that are lower than a given score
skewed
a representation of score that lack symetry around their average value (skews data one way or another)
range
the distance between the lowest and the highest value in a set of scores
standard deviation
a measure of how dispersed the data is in relation to the mean
normal curve
The distribution of cases between the mean and various standard deviations are the same
inferential statistics
Determine if results from the study are potentially generalizable beyond the research setting (based on probability)
meta-analysis
the statistical combination of the results of multiple studies addressing a similar research question
statistically significant
is the data significant
effect size
size of the effect
perceiving order in random events
even in random data, we often find patterns because we try to make sense of our world
pinky finger - branch of psych
biological (hold up pinky finger and curve the rest to make a b shape):
brain, structure, genetics, nervous system
ring finger - branch of psych
Humanistic (wedding ring, being married in a relationship with another human):
self improvement, hierarchy of needs
middle finger - branch of psych
behavioral (giving someone the middle finger):
learning though experience and observation, conditioned though rewards and punishments
pointer finger - branch of psych
cognitive (point to your brain):
how we store and retrieve information, problem solving
thumb - branch of psych
psychodynamic (thumb sucking):
behaviors come from unconscious conflicts, trauma from childhood
palm - branch of psych
socio-cultural (high five is not in every culture):
impact of cultural influence, behaviors varies across cultures, situational context
extra finger - branch of psych
evolutionary (extra finger was added on because of evolution):
why certain behaviors/genes/traits have adapted via natural selection
explain how psychology is a science
Psychology’s findings are the result of a scientific approach - based on careful observation and testing
Describe the three key elements of the scientific attitude and how they support scientific inquiry
Key elements:
1. curiosity (does it work?)
2. skepticism (what do you mean?)
3. humility (That was unexpected! Let’s explore further.)
-Curiosity is vital because it drives scientists to seek new information and understand the world.
-Skepticism enables scientists not to believe everything blindly, they require supportive evidence and examine facts critically.
-Scientists need to be open to new ideas and be readied to admit when they are wrong and accept new findings even if they are contrary to their beliefs, expectations or theories
*These elements work together in a scientific inquiry to facilitate the discovery of new knowledge and its acceptance.
Explain how critical thinking feeds a scientific attitude, and smarter thinking for everyday life
-The scientific attitude prepares us to think harder and smarter, which is called critical thinking
-Critical thinking examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions
-Critical thinking beats common sense
Explain how cognitive biases, such as hindsight bias, overconfidence, and the tendency to perceive order in random events illustrate why science-based answers are more valid than those based on common sense
our common sense thinking is flawed due to these 3 powerful tendencies, but scientific inquiry can help is sift reality from illusion
Describe how theories advance psychological science
explanations that apply an integrated set of principles to organize observations and generate hypotheses
Explain what it means when we say two things are correlated, and describe positive and negative correlations
A positive correlation is when two variables move in the same direction. A negative correlation is when two variables move in the opposite or inverse direction.
Describe the characteristics of experimentation that make it possible to isolate cause and effect
(1) manipulating the factors of interest and (2) holding constant (“controlling”) other factors.
Explain the process of determining which research design to use
depends on the type of data you need to answer your research question
Explain the value of simplified laboratory conditions in illuminating everyday life
Researchers intentionally create a controlled, artificial environment in the laboratory to test general theoretical principles. It is the general principles- not the specific findings- that help explain everyday behaviors.
Explain why psychologists study animals, and explain the ethical research guidelines that safeguard human and animal welfare
animals, especially mammals, have brains that function similarly to the human brain on a basic level
APA -> governing body for psychology
Federal regulations ->harm to self/others
IRB -> local (approval)
Animal research:
- purpose
-acquire legally
-humane treatment
Ethical guidelines:
1. Informed consent:
- purpose
-risks
-right to alternative
-right to withdraw
-informed assent (consent for minors)
2. Protection from harm and discomfort:
- minimize risk
- justification
3. Confidentiality:
- protect anonymity
- confidentiality
4. Debriefing:
- allows for deception
- confederate
Describe how psychologists’ values influence what they study and how they apply their results
Psychologists’ values influence their choice of research topics, their theories and observations, their labels for behavior, and their professional advice
Explain how we describe data using three measures of central tendency, and percentile rank
mode - the most occurring number
median - the middle number in a set of data
mode - average
percentile rank - the % of scores that are lower than a given score
Explain the relative usefulness of the two measures of variation
Measures of variation tell us how diverse data are
Two measures of variation are the range (which describes the gap between the highest and lowest scores) and the standard deviation (which states how much scores vary around the mean, or average, score). Scores often form a normal (or bell-shaped) curve.
Explain how we determine whether an observed difference can be generalized to other populations
To feel confident about generalizing an observed difference to other populations, we would want to know that the sample studied was representative of the larger population being studied
NON_EXPERIMENTAL RESEACH =
NO CAUSE AND EFFECT
CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL
CUASATION
