SP Units 1-4 Flashcards
Hypotheses
These are the predicted outcomes of an investigation, usually based on theory or previous research.
Qualitative Studies
These are more exploratory and descriptive in nature. Typically, they aim to find out people’s motivations, opinions and reasons for behaving in a particular way, through techniques such as focus groups, interviews and observations.
Quantitative Studies
These use objective measurements and the statistical analyses of data. They are often used to measure people’s attitudes, opinions or behaviours, through techniques such as correlational studies, surveys, and rating scales.
Replication
This means that the results of one study could be repeated in another laboratory or by another researcher, using the same method. By repeating a study and finding the same (or similar) results, the study is found to be consistent and higher in reliability.
Reliability / statistical reliability
Reliability is an examination of how consistent and stable the results of an assessment are.
This is important as it means that the results are an accurate representation of what is being measured, rather than being a product of unintentional factors or random errors.
Critical Thinking
the process of assessing claims and making judgements on the basis of reasonable evidence.
What am I being asked to believe or accept?
What evidence is available to support this assertion?
Are there alternative ways of interpreting this evidence?
What additional evidence would help evaluate the alternatives?
operational definition
a statement that defines the exact methods or operation used in research.
variable (in research)
a factor or characteristic that is manipulated or measured in research
validity / statistical validity
the degree to which evidence from a test or other research method measures what it is supposed to measure.
confirmation bias
the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one’s existing beliefs or theories.
“pop”/popular psychologists
self-proclaimed experts that seek to popularize oversimplified solutions without concern for validity, evidence, or evidence that conflicts their theories
the law of parsimony
simplicity. The idea that when there are many conflicting theories the simplest one is often correct, throughout the history of science.
observational methods
procedures for systematically watching behaviour in order to summarize it for scientific analysis
naturalistic observation
the process of watching without interfering as phenomenon occurs in its natural environment
case study
a research method involving intense examination of a specific phenomenon (a particular group, individual or situation)
survey
a research method that includes giving people a questionnaire or a special interview designed to obtain descriptions of their attitudes, beliefs, opinions or intentions
correlational studies
research methods that examine relationships between variables in order to analyze trends in data
correlation, positive correlation, negative correlation, strength of correlation
in research, the degree to which one variable is related to another. A positive correlation (+) means that the variables increase or decrease together. A negative correlation (-) means the variables move in opposite directions. The strength of the correlation determines how much one variable can help you predict the other. A correlation coefficient is a number between 0.00 and 1.00 that describes the strength of the correlation, for example -0.02 would be a weak negative and -1.00 would be the strongest negative.
experiment
a study in which the researcher directly controls one variable and then observes the effect of that manipulation on another variable, while holding all other variables constant
experimental group
in an experiment, the group that receives the experimental treatment
control group
in an experiment, the group that receives no treatment or provides some other baseline against which to compare the performance or response of the experimental group
independent variable
The variable directly controlled by the researcher in an experiment.
dependent variable
In an experiment, the factor measured to see whether or not it has been affected by the independent variable.
confound
In an experiment, any factor that affects the dependent variable, along with or instead of the independent variable
random variable
In an experiment, a confound in which uncontrolled or uncontrollable factors affect the dependent variable, along with or instead of the independent variable.
randomizing
assigning participants in an experiment to groups randomly to help ensure that random variables are evenly distributed
placebo
A physical or psychological treatment that contains no active ingredient but produces an effect because the person receiving it believes it will.
experimenter bias
A confound that occurs when an experimenter unintentionally encourages participants to respond in a way that supports the experimenter’s hypothesis
Valence (also: Hedonic Tone)
the affective quality referring to the intrinsic attractiveness/”good”-ness (positive valence) or averseness/”bad”-ness (negative valence) of an event, object, or situation
External Validity
the extent to which you can generalize the findings of a study to other situations, people, settings, and measures.
Ecological Validity
a measure of how test performance predicts behaviors in real-world settings.
Reliability
the consistency of the findings or results of a psychology research study. If findings or results remain the same or similar over multiple attempts, a researcher often considers it reliable
Predictive (about a theory)
how much a theory helps to make informed assumptions about what might happen in similar future events
influence (about a theory)
The way a theory supports, adds to or challenges existing theories or provokes further lines of research
integrative complexity
the extent to which a person’s thinking is open-ended and flexible.
Heuristics
assumptions and biases that guide our decision making about certain events, especially when they are uncertain. Like rules of thumb or cognitive shortcuts, they help us save mental energy but process less information (not taking into account the full picture).
counterfactual thinking
- considering other possibilities than the present reality
- upward counterfactual thinking: imagining better possible outcomes
- downward counterfactual thinking: imagining worse possible outcomes
stereotype
prototypes that are shared by a social group
prototype
a standard we have in our minds by which we compare other items of that category, a ‘mental image’
schemata (plural) schema (singular)
mental structures that an individual uses to organize knowledge and guide cognitive processes and behaviour. People use schemata (the plural of schema) to categorize objects and events based on common elements and characteristics and thus interpret and predict the world
attribution: internal/external, stable/unstable
inferences that people make about the causes of events and behavior.
Internal: because of a trait, ability or inability
external: because of luck, a situation, etc.
stable internal: ability
unstable internal: effort
stable external: help
unstable external: luck
area of the brain that processes impression formation
dorsomedial prefrontal cortex
Representativeness Heuristic:
a mental shortcut to predict the probability of something based on its similarity to a category we are familiar with. For example, thinking that because someone is wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase, they must be a lawyer because they look like the stereotype of a lawyer.
Availability heuristic:
a cognitive shortcut that allows us to draw upon information about how quickly information comes to mind about a particular event, to deduce the frequency or likelihood of that event.
Anchoring/adjustment heuristic:
a cognitive heuristic that makes us place weight upon initial standards/schemas (anchors) and as a result means we may not always adjust sufficiently far from these anchors to provide accurate judgements.
Base rate information:
information that gives us an idea about how frequent certain categories are in the general population.
Base rates are a statistic used to describe the percentage of a population that demonstrates some characteristic. Base rates indicate probability based on the absence of other information.
Cognitive miser:
a view of people as being often limited in processing capacity and apt to take shortcuts where possible to make life simple. (Fiske & Taylor 1991; 2008)
stereotype threat
“socially premised psychological threat that arises when one is in a situation or doing something for which a negative stereotype about one’s group applies”- Steele & Aronson, 1995)
Vulnerability Response (in the context of stereotype threat)
respones exhibited by those victimized by stereotype threat, such as underperformance, disengagement, disidentification
the actor-observer asymmetry
- actors explain their own behavior differently than an observer would
- actors prefer external explanations, but observers prefer dispositional explanations
this is different than the fundamental attribution error (FAE) which is mostly about trait inferences from behaviour, where as actor-observer asymmetry is about the explanations of behaviour
Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)
the tendency for people to over-emphasize dispositional, or personality-based explanations for behaviors observed in others while under-emphasizing situational explanations.
Basically to assume that a person’s actions depend on what “kind” of person that person is rather than on the social and environmental forces that influence the person.
