Unit 2 - Research Methods Flashcards
the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it
“I knew it all along”
hindsight bias
a questioning attitude
- “smart thinking”
- asses the source
critical thinking
an explanation that organizes observations and predicts future behavior or events
- ORGANIZES
theory
testable prediction that gives direction to research
- can be confirmed or refuted
hypothesis
specification of how a researcher measures a research variable
- MEASURES
- gives research validity
operational definition
technique that involves repeating the essence of an earlier research study with different participants and in different circumstances
- REPLICATE the same variables
replication
research method where we study one individual or a small group in depth to try to carefully draw conclusions about others based on what we observe
- can’t show cause and effect
case study
observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation
- natural environment
- describes and observes behavior, does not explain
naturalistic observation
a technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample group
- looks at many cases at once
survey
all those in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn
population
a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion
- narrowing your population down
random sampling
a flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample
- when your sample is no longer representative
sampling bias
measure of the direction and strength of the relationship between two variables
- correlation can be positive or negative
- how well does A predict B
correlation coefficient
a graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables
- graphically represents the correlation between two variables
scatterplot
change in the same direction
- if variable A goes up the variable B will go up
positive correlation
change in opposite direction
- if variable A goes up then variable B will go down
negative correlation
0 is the weakest; 1 or -1 is the strongest
- whether it is 1 or -1 does not matter, it just shows the direction
strong correlation
a perceived but nonexistent correlation
- ex. not being able to conceive a child so they adopt and then after they adopt they are able to conceive
illusory correlation
0 is the weakest correlation
weak correlation
a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental processes
- manipulation of the factors of interest
experiment
assigning participants to experimental and control groups by change, thus minimizing preexisting differences between the different groups
- everyone has equal opportunity to be chosen
random assignment
inert substance; in a drug treatment study, it does not contain the actual drug
- doesn’t do anything
- does not contain the actual drug
placebo
in an experiment, the group not exposed to the treatment
control condition
in an experiment, the group who receives the experimental treatment
experimental group
the experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect if being studied
independent variable
the outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable
dependent variable
most frequently occurring score
mode
arithmetic average of a distribution; obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores
mean
the middle score ina distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below
- best for determining housing values in a community
median
the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution
range
a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score; consistency
standard deviation
normal curve
68% of scores fall within 15 pts. of either side of the mean (85 to 115)
95% of scores fall within 30 pts. of either side of the mean (70-130)
a statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance
statistically significant
enduring traditions, attitudes, and behaviors shared by a large group of people
culture
the post experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants
debriefing
an ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate
informed consent
