Week 1: Intro to Psych

Question 1

Empirical Methods

Answer 1

approaches to inquiry that are tied to actual measurement and observation

Question 1

Systematic observation

Answer 1

careful observation of the natural world with the aim of better understanding it; observations provide the basic data that allow scientist to track, tally, organize info about the natural world

Question 2

Hypotheses

Answer 2

logical idea that can be tested

Question 3

Theories

Answer 3

group of closely related phenomena/observation

Question 4

Ethics

Answer 4

professional guidelines that offer researchers a template for making decisions that protect research participants from potential harm and that help steer scientists away from conflicts of interest/other situations that might compromise the integrity of their research

Question 5

Data

Answer 5

In research, info systematically collected for analysis and interpretation

Question 6

Induction

Answer 6

to draw general conclusions from specific observations

Question 7

Sample

Answer 7

in research, a number of people selected from a population to serve as an example of that population

Question 8

Pseudoscience

Answer 8

beliefs or practices that are presented as being scientific, or which are mistaken for being scientific, but which are not scientific (ex. astrology - making predictions about human behaviours using celestial bodies; unable to be falsified)

Question 9

Falsified

Answer 9

In science, the ability of a claim to be tested and possibly refuted; a defining feature of science

Question 10

Probabilities

Answer 10

A measure of the degree of certainty of the occurrence of an event

Question 11

Inductive Reasoning

Answer 11

form of reasoning in which a general conclusion is inferred from a set of observations (ex. noting that “driver in car was texting; he just cut me off than ran a red! - a specific observation, which leads to general conclusion that texting while driving is dangerous)

Question 12

Deductive Reasoning

Answer 12

A form of reasoning in which a given premise determines the interpretation of specific observations (ex. all birds have feather, since a duck is a bird, it has feathers)

kinda like using a rule/law to make a conclusion

Question 13

Representative

Answer 13

the degree to which a sample is a typical example of the population from which it is drawn

Question 14

Anecdotal evidence

Answer 14

a piece of biased evidence, usually drawn from personal experience, used to support a conclusion that may or may not be correct

Question 15

Population

Answer 15

all the people belonging to a particular group - in research

Question 16

Correlation

Answer 16

the measure of relatedness of two or more variables - in statistics

Question 17

null-hypothesis significance testing (NHST)

Answer 17

NHST helps you decide if outcome of study is likely due to chance or if it’s probably a real effect; if results are unlikely to happen by chance, then you reject the null hypothesis and conclude that something meaningful is happening (the alt hypothesis)

The null hypothesis is saying, “Whatever I’m testing (like a new treatment or method) has no impact, and any results are just due to chance.”

alternative hypothesis is what you’re actually trying to prove

calculate p value; if it’s low enough, it means study didn’t happen by chance - rejuct null hyp

Question 18

distribution

Answer 18

the relative frequency (how often) that a particular occurs for each possible value of a given variable

the spread of the data

Question 19

type I error

Answer 19

the error of rejecting the null hypothesis when it is true - in stats
when you think something happened, but it acc didn’t

Question 20

type ii error

Answer 20

the error of failing to reject the null hypothesis when it is false

when. you think nothing is happening, but something acc is

Question 21

probability values

Answer 21

the established threshold for determining whether a given value occurs by chance - in stats
p-value tells you how likely it is that the results of your exiperment happened just by chance

Question 22

Scientific Theory

Answer 22

an explanation for observed phenomena that is empirically well-supported, consistent, and fruitful (predictive)

Question 23

Empirically

Answer 23

concerned w observation and/or the ability to verify a claim

Question 24

Objective

Answer 24

being free of personal bias

Question 25

Facts

Answer 25

objective info about the world

Question 26

Values

Answer 26

Belief about the way things should be

Question 27

Levels of analysis

Answer 27

there are complementary understandings and explanations of phenomena

Question 28

Causality

Answer 28

the determination that one variable causes an effect (responsible for)

Question 29

Generalize

Answer 29

the degree to which one can extend conclusions drawn from the findings of a study to other groups or situations not included in the study

Question 30

Empiricism

Answer 30

the belief that knowledge comes from experience

Question 31

Neural Impulse

Answer 31

an electro-chemical signal that enables neurons to communicate

Question 32

Psychophysics

Answer 32

study of the relationships between physical stimuli and the human perception of those stimuli

Question 33

Introspection

Answer 33

Method of focusing on internal process

Question 34

Consciousness

Answer 34

Awareness of ourselves and our environment

Question 35

Structuralism

Answer 35

a school of American psychology that sought to describe the elements of conscious experience

trying to understand the mind by breaking it down into pieces/structures

Question 36

Functionalism

Answer 36

school of American psychology that focused on the usefulness
of consciousness

why we think, feel, act the way we do in order to adapt/survive

Question 37

Individual Differences

Answer 37

ways in which people differ in terms of their behaviour, emotion, cognition, and development

Question 38

Eugenics

Answer 38

the practice of selective breeding to promote desired traits; promotion of selective breeding

Question 39

Gestalt psychology

Answer 39

an attempt to study the unity of experience

Question 40

Cognitive Psychology

Answer 40

The study of mental processes

Question 41

Behaviourism

Answer 41

The study of behaviour

Question 42

Flashbulb Memory

Answer 42

A highly detailed and vivid memory of an emotionally significant event

Question 43

Tip-of-Tongue Phenomenon

Answer 43

inability to pull a word from memory even though there is the sensation that that word is available

Question 44

Scientist-practitioner model

Answer 44

model of training of professional psychologists that emphasize the development of both research and clinical skills

emphasizes combo of research and practical applciation

Question 45

Scholar practitioner model

Answer 45

a model of training of professional psychologists that emphasizes clinical practice