AP Psych - Unit 0 Vocab

Unit 0 - Research Methods and Data Interpretation, Vocab from Meyers' Psychology for the AP Course and Strive for a 5 Workbook

critical thinking

thinking that does not automatically accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have for seen it. (Also known as the I-knew-it-all-along phenomenon)

peer reviewers

scientific experts who evaluate a research article’s theory, originality, and accuracy

theory

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviours or events

hypothesis

a testable prediction, often implied by a theory

falsifiable

the possibility that an idea, hypothesis, or theory can be disproven by observation or experiment

operational definition

a carefully worded statement o the exact procedures (operations) used in a scientific study. Ex. “Human intelligence” may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test measures.