psychology vocab

psychology

the scientific study of individual human behavior and mental processes

behavior

an action that can be observed

conformity

the way people go along with a group because of peer pressure

bystanderism

when there is a person in need of help but everyone walks past and does nothing

mental processes/ cognitive processes / internal processes

the way we think

interact

to communicate or work together

empirical evidence

information we can verify with our senses

valid

founded on fact or evidence

reliable

trustworthy / dependable

variables

a factor that can vary or change

independent variable

variable that is manipulated

dependent variable

the variable that is measured

methodology

the aims, procedures, participants and equipment used in the study

aim

a one or two sentence statement that identifies the relationship being investigated between the IV and the DV in a particular study

participants / subjects

those who took part in a study

the procedures

what the participants were asked to do

treatment group

the group that receives the treatment

control group

the group that does not receive treatment

causational

when one variable is responsible for the change in another

correlational

relationship between two variables

control variables

the variables you keep the same in an experiment

extraneous variable

other possible factors that might influence the DV

confounding variables

a variable that does have an effect on the DV that was not intended

labratory experiments

an experiment in which all extraneous variables are accounted for

field experiments

when the IV is manipulated in a natural setting

ecological validity

how accurate an experiment's conditions are in replicating what happens in the "real world"

natural experiment

when the IV is naturally occurring

cause and effect

a causational relationship

negative correlation

as one variable increases, the other decreases

positive correlation

a relationship between two variables in which both increase

Bidirectional ambiguity

when the direction of the relationship is uncertain

correlational studies

a study without a DV and IV

phenomenon

something that can be observed to occur, especially if there's some questions or uncertainty about its cause or origin

Confabulation

Remembering information never stored in memory

neurogenesis

the brain's ability to grow new cells

research design and methodology

the type of method used in the study

triangulation

the use of more than one data point in the gathering or analyzing of data

assumptions and biases

believing something to be true without solid facts, when an individual's existing thoughts, beliefs, or ideas influence their thinking or behavior

contradictory evidence

Evidence that contradicts the given hypothesis or theory

areas of uncertainty

sections in studies involving imperfect or unknown information

internal validity

extent to which we can draw cause-and-effect inferences from a study

Reliability

the extent to which a study's results have been repeated

external validity

the extent to which the results of a study can be generalized to other situations and to other people

peer-reviewed

evaluation of scientific, academic, or professional work by others working in the same field

replicated

to repeat a research study, usually with different participants and in different situations, to confirm the results of the original study

test-retest reliability

using the same test on two occasions to measure consistency

Generalizability

the extent to which we can claim our findings inform us about a group larger than the one we studied

mundane reality

The extent to which the task that participants are asked to perform is representative of a real life situation

Population validity

degree to which the study results can be generalized to and across the people in the target population

conceptual understanding

an understanding of an abstract idea - based on relationships between variables, cognition, behavior, ethical considerations, and research methods