Psychology Research Methods

Lucid

A state of consciousness where a person is aware that they are dreaming.

Hypothesis

A testable prediction derived from a theory.

Extraneous Variable

Any variable other than the independent variable that can cause a change in the results.

Confounding Variable

An extraneous variable that has an uncontrolled effect on the experiment's results.

Population

The entire group of individuals belonging to a particular category relevant to research.

Sample

A subset of the population that is selected for participation in a research study.

Control Group

The group in an experiment that does not receive the experimental treatment and is used as a benchmark.

Experimental Group

The group in an experiment that receives the treatment or condition being tested.

Convenience Sampling

A non-probability sampling technique where participants are selected based on availability.

Stratified Sampling

A sampling method that involves dividing the population into groups and randomly selecting participants from each group.

Between Subjects Design

An experimental design that compares two different groups of participants.

Within Subjects Design

An experimental design that uses the same participants in both the experimental and control groups.

Descriptive Statistics

Statistics that summarize or describe characteristics of a data set.

Inferential Statistics

Statistics that allow us to make inferences or generalizations about a population based on sample data.

Placebo

A treatment with no active therapeutic effect, used as a control in experiments.