Unit 0: Science Practices Vocab Flashcards
Confirmation Bias
Individuals will tend to search for or support information that aligns w/ their personal beliefs and ignore information that may refute / disagree w/ these beliefs
Cultural Norms
The universal expectations/rules w/in a culture ( does include ‘American culture/society’) that influences behavior w/in a society
Experimenter Bias
The scenario when an experimenter impacts the results of their own study due to their own expectations
Hindsight Bias
Believing that something was known all along after the outcome occurred or was revealed
Overconfidence
The tendency to lean towards confidence rather than accuracy and therefore overestimate the truth behind personal beliefs & judgements
Peer Review
An evaluation process to ensure accuracy and quality where scholars/ researchers mutually assess work before it is published
Case Study
An in-depth study/investigation of a singular person that relies on observation & facts.
Confidentiality
Experimenters will not release any personal information about the subjects without their given consent
Confounding Variables
Factors outside the independent variable that may influence results/the dependent variable
Control Group
A number of participants w/in an experiment don’t receive experimental treatment.
Debriefing
When an experimenter fully informs the subject of the study’s purpose and procedure after the study had been completed.
Deception Research
Intentional misleading or under informing participants
Dependent Variables
The variables within an experiment that change in response to the alterations in the independent varaible
Double- Blind Study
Both Experimenter and the subject are ignorant to the details of the study
Experiment
An investigation done using various variables to test a theory / hypothesis
Experimental Group
The group receiving the variable being tested
Falsifiability
The ability for a hypothesis to be disproven.
Generalizability
The measure of how applicable a study is to a population of interest. Tells you how useful a study is.
Hypothesis
A testable prediction regarding the relationship between two or more variables
Independent Variables
Variables that are changed w/in an experiment, their effect is studied
Informed Assent
Obtaining agreement to participate in a study from an individual incapable of legally giving full informed consent (like a mentally impaired individual or a minor).
Informed Consent
A participant saying yes to a study with full knowledge of possible side effects
Institutional Review Board
A committee that reviews & approves behavioral/ biomedical research conducted on humans. Ensure ethical treatment & protection of subjects.
Likert Scales
The 5 point scale ranging from typically strongly agree to strongly disagree. Measure attitudes, opinions, and behaviors.
Naturalistic Observation
Observing a subject’s behavior’s w/in a scenario w/o interfering with them to obtain objective results
Operational Definitions
A statement/ term used to define research variables ( may include the procedure of a study
Placebo
A false treatment meant to determine if the actual treatment truly works or if the expectations are impacting the results. ( typically a s sugar pill)
Placebo Effect
The occurrence of people experiencing the effects of a treatment without truly recieving the treatment.
Professional Ethics
The set of moral principles applied to standard research, practice, and teaching conducted by pyschologists. Ensures resonable behavior and ethics when working with subjects and clients.
Qualitative Research/ Measures
Studies done while measuring behaivior without numbers and instead qualities. ( Ex; dialogue, body language, etc.)
Random Assignment
The randomization of placing subjects in an experimetnal group or a control (placebo group).
Replication
The process of repeating a study/ experiment to find if original results from an initial study repeatable and therefore reliable.
Single- Blind Study
A study where only participants are ignorant to the details of a study/ experiment
Social Desirability Bias
Bias occuring w/in a sudy when subject respond to survey’s according to societal/ experimenter expectations rather than being truthful.
Structured Interviews
A research method where each particpant is asked the same questions in the same order. -> ensures consistency & reliable comparisons.
Survey
Research method where participants answer a set of questions to provide data regarding attitude, behaviors, and opinions.
Theory
A well sustained explanation of an aspect of the natural world or of humanity. Uses principles to organize/predict an event.
Validity
Determines how well a test measures what it was designed to measure
Bimodal Distribution
A data set with two distict modes ( reoccurring values of the highest quantitity)
Central Tendency
A statistical measure indicating a middle point in a data set. Mean, Median, and Mode are all measures of central tendency
Correlation
A statistical relationship between two variables. Does not indicate direct causation, but when one variable changes so does the other.
Convenience Sampling
Obtaining subjects for a study by asking for peoples participation based on easy accessibility & availabilty
Correlational Research
A type of research design done to assess a relationship between two variables. Typically lacks manipulation of the variables and doesn’t establish a cause-and-effect relationship.
Correlational Coefficient
A statistical measure indicating the strength & direction of a relationship between two variables. Will be on a scale of -1 (neg correlation) to 1 Positive correlation
Directionality Problem
A limitation w/in correlational research where within a correlational relationship between two variables it is indgistinguishable which variable impacts the other.
Effect Size
Statistical measure indicating the magnitude/strength of the relationship between variables in a study.
Mean
Arithmetic Average ( overall avg)
Median
The middle value w/in a set of numbers.
Meta-Analysis
Statistical method where researchers combine results of multiple studies ( regarding the same topic) to draw clearer understanding and a reliable conclusion
Mode
Most frequently occurring value in a data set
Negative Correlation
A relationship where as one variable increases the other will decrease. A negative slope
Negative Skew
A distribution with more data points at the lower extreme causing the tail of the graph to lift on the left
Normal Curve
NORMAL CURVE= BELL CURVE
Bell shaped distribution of data with scores clustered around the mean with less data to the extremes
Percentile Rank
The precentage of individuals w/in a group who scored at or below a certain score/individual on a test
Population
The individuals w/in a group of study
Positive Correlation
When one variable goes up so does the other ( positive slope)
Positive Skew
Data distribution where some extremely high values pull the data tail up towards the right.
Random Sample
A sampling where each member of the population of study is equally likely to be included in the study.
Range
The difference between the highest score in a data set and the lowest score in a data set.
Regression Toward The Mean
The statistical tendency where extreme scores/ outliers will become less extreme/ move towards the mean when re-measured.
Representative Sample
A group of subjects w/in a study that closely matches the population of study as a whole.
Sample
A group of individuals examined for a study/research
Sampling Bias
A flaw in a study where a research sample isn’t representative of the larger population of the study.
Scatterplot
A graphed cluster of dots indicating data results.
Skew
The asymmetry of a data distribution. -> showing the data is not evenly spread around a central point/ the mean.
Standard Deviation
THE BELL CURVE; the overall difference from the mean in a set of data.
Def; Statistical procedure done to determine the variation w/in results/ data set.
Statistical Significance
The measure indicating whether the results of a study are unlikely to be caused by chance.
Third Variable Problem
The tendency for a third variable outside the two being studied leads to a correlation/relationship between the initial two which is not genuine.
Variation
The degree to which individuals w/in a population are different from each other. ( diversity)
