Week 2 - Research Methods Flashcards
True or false. The field of relationship science, there are numerous books and websites that offer information that is not at all accurate
True
They may…
- Base advice on their own experience
- Make up relationship advice from observations
Until the “_____ ______” century relationships were primarily the focus of “________ & ____________”
Mid 20th; poets & philosophers
“_________ _________” started conducting “________” observations in the “________”
What did they address?
Behavioural scientists; empirical; 1930’s
They addressed…
Children’s friendship and marriage
True or false. Many relationship studies were conducted before WWII
False
Numerous empirical research studies were done in the “________ & _______”
Who was involved?
1960’s & 1970’s
Ellen Bershield & Elaine Hatfield (attraction and love)
What are 3 drawbacks of empirical investigations?
- Don’t adequately represent the natural complexity
- They do provide proof that relationships can be studied scientifically
- Relationship science gained attention of numerous in other related fields (a lot of collaboration among their scholars)
What are 6 characteristics of relationship science today?
- DIVERSE samples of individuals
- Focus on family, romantic and friendship relations
- Tends to investigate relationships over TIME
- Highlights (+) and (-) ‘s of relationships
- Often evaluated in their NATURAL enviro
- Sophisticated tech is now used
What was the virtual human interaction lab at standford university?
2 individuals play a game of 20 questions in an attempt to GUESS a secret word
Their facial expressions are tracked and mapped onto AVATARS within a VIRTUAL environment
Enjoyment of the interaction is significantly HIGHER when they see smiles on the SIMULATION faces of their partners that are a bit LARGER and broader than the ACTUAL smiles their partners are showing.
Questions can be generated VIA…?
Personal experiences
Social changes/problems
Previous research
Theoretical perspectives
What are the 2 board types of questions?
- Those whose PURPOSE to DESCRIBE events as they occur NATURALLY
- outline the patterns as quickly and accurately as they can - Those whose PURPOSE is to HIGHLIGHT CASUAL connections that exist b/w events
- which events have impacts & which ones don’t?
What are the 2 main ways to obtain participation?
- Convience samples
- ex) uni students research participation marks, some conditions usually have to be met - Representative samples
- need participants in sample to represent the population they are supposed to represent
- volunteered bias (ppl tend to be more employed, high income, cohabit?)
***LOOKING TO APPLY GENERAL PRINCIPLES = USED REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLES
The vast majority of publications come from cultures that are…?
Western
Well-educated
Industrialized
Relatively rich
Democratic
***RESEARCH HAS TO BE MORE SO SIMPLE/BASIC PRINCIPLES THAT CAN BE APPLIED = GENERALLY THEN REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLES STILL GIVE GOOD FEEDBACK
What happened in the study “would you go to bed with me tonight”?
75% of men agreed to got to a random girls appartment on campus
WHEREAS, the amount of women was zero
Study generalized to over 20,000 findings
A “______ ______” will always have “______________”
Single study; imperfections
These weaknesses can be addressed by other STUDIES strengths
Converge towards a single question = gradually reveal the true nature of relationships
What are correlations?
Pattern in which the CHANGE in one variable is associated with CHANGE in another variable
Typically investigate NATURALLY occurring behaviour
(+) correlation: the variables move up and down together
(-) correlation: as one goes up, the other goes down
Unrelated: as one variable changes, this does not impact the other variable in any predictable manner
Perceived similarity tends to be “_________” associated with “___________”
Positively; liking
One of these variables may cause the other?
Third variable may explain this correlation?
When possible the best way to establish “________ __________” is to use an “____________ _________”
Causal connections; experimental design
What 2 things make a true experimental design?
- One or two more variables are manipulated
- Participants are randomly assigned to diff conditions
What did Bryne & Nelson research in 1965?
Investigated attitude similarity and attraction
Participants were randomly assigned to encounter a similar or non-similar stranger.
Measured liking of the stranger
Results: higher liking for similar stranger
Conclusion: more agreement CAUSES higher levels of liking.
What are the pros & cons for correlational designs?
Pros: can investigate compelling events in the real world (unsafe sex, love etc…)
Cons: limited since they CANT demonstrate causality
What are the pros and cons for experimental designs?
Pros: CAN infer causality
CONS: LIMITED in what you can study (ethical reasons)
What are self-reports?
How can this be obtained?
Most common approach to investigating INTIMATE relationships
Can be obtained…
- written questionnaires
- verbal interviews
- diaries (about their day)
What are the pros and cons of self-report data?
Pros:
- can understand personal attitudes/opinions that aren’t easily observed
- inexpensive
- easy to obtain
Cons:
- participant interpretation of questions
- hard to recall/awareness issues
- bias in reports
Observations should be…?
Accurate
Reliable
Detailed
What is experience sampling?
Method which uses INTERMITTENT and SHORT periods of observation in order to acquire samples of behavior that occur throughout LONGER periods of time
Can be done with audio or both audio and voice recordings
What is eye-tracking?
Tiny video cameras can be used to focus on participant EYES
When individuals inspect images, their eye movements reveal what they are looking at and the duration of their gaze
What are 2 difficulties with observational research?
- Expensive
- Reactivity
We can avoid issues concerning “___________” if we use “____________ _________”
Explain the oxytocin example?
Reactivity; physiological measures
Autonomic and biochemical reactions we CANNOT consciousnesly control
—————————————————————————————————————
Spouses who are happier tend to have more oxytocin
Found when people inhale oxytocin they tend to be less cold & more affectionate
Archives are also not “_________” by “__________”
What are these?
Affected; reactivity
Archives: personal documents including photos, diaries, public media, and government records
What are some ethical dilemmas in relationship science?
Asking individuals to focus on what they like or don’t like about their partners may STIMULATE their evaluation of their own relationships (MAY CAUSE ARGUMENTS)
Relationship studies include sensitive issues such as infidelity and partner abuse. Is this ethical?
Wheras…being asked to “_______” upon and “_______” personal experiences can assist individuals as they “________” from challenging situation
Reflect; report; recover
Ex) Evdience found in a research that’s people tend to bounce back better when extensively reported about their relationship
Ex) victims of violence/abuse… may help them realize
How are most relationship studies evaluated?
Evaluated using STATISTICAL ANALYSIS to determine whether their results are STATISTICALLY significant
Using the MEANS (average) from the data
***Apply to individuals to varying degrees
What are paired, interdependent data?
Responses that are obtained from RELATIONSHIP PARTNERS tend to be INTERDEPENDENT
SPECIAL statistical procedures are required to analyze this data
What are the 3 sources of influence?
Relationships emerge from 2 separate partners AND the impacts of how they mesh as a couple (dynamic interplay)
What is a meta-analysis?
Studies which statistically COMBINE results from numerous other studies
Can increase our confidence in patterns of results
