Chapter 2-Psychological Research

why is research important

its a mandatory process in validating claims, we are able to prove certain ideas through study and learning

grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed time and time again, regardless of who is observing.

scientific research is empirical

what are questions to ask when thinking critically about claims

what is the expertise of the person making the claim, what might they gain if the claim is valid, does the claim seem justified given the evidence, what do other researchers think of the claim

results are predicted based on a general premise.

-All living things require energy to survive (premise), ducks are living things, therefore ducks require energy to survive (conclusion).

deductive reasoning

conclusions are drawn from observations.

You see many fruit growing on trees and therefore assume all fruit grows on trees

inductive reasoning

scientific method

scientist form ideas (deductive reasoning)-hypotheses tested through empirical observation, then form conclusion (inductive)-conclusion leads to new theories or hypotheses

well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena.

theory

tentative and testable statement (prediction) about the relationship between two or more variables.

-Predicts how the world will behave if the theory is correct.

-Usually an “if-then” statement.

-Is falsifiable (capable of being shown to be incorrect).

hypothesis

what are approaches to research

clinical or case studies, naturalistic observations, surveys, archival research, longitudinal and cross sectional research

focuses on one individual, studied individual is typically in an extreme or unique psychological circumstance that differentiates them from the general public. allows for insight into case, difficult to generalize results to the larger population

clinical or case study

behavior in its natural setting, generally hidden under scrutiny or observation, any feeling of performance or anxiety of the studied individuals is eliminated.

naturalistic observation

when observations may be skewed to align with observer expectations.

observer bias

A list of questions that can be delivered in many ways (paper, electronically, verbally) can be used to gather a large amount of data from a sample (subset of individuals) from a larger population.

surveys

Uses past records or data sets to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships.

archival research

Compares multiple segments of a population at a single time (such as different age groups).

cross sectional research

Studies in which the same group of individuals is surveyed or measured repeatedly over an extended period of time. Researchers often expect some participants to drop out, particularly in this type of study and therefore often initially recruit a lot of participants.

longitudinal

reduction in number of research participants as some drop out of the study over time.

attrition

Relationship between two or more variables; when two variables are correlated, one variable changes as the other does.

correlation

number from -1 to +1, indicating the strength and direction of the relationship between variables, and usually represents by r.

correlation coefficient

Two variables change in the same direction, both becoming either larger or smaller.

positive correlation

two variables change in different directions, with one becoming larger as the other becomes smaller; a negative correlation is not the same thing as no correlation.

negative correlation

what does correlation not indicate

causation

changes in one variable cause the changes in the other variable; can be determined only through an experimental research design.

cause and effect relationship

unanticipated outside factor that affects both variables of interest, often giving the false impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable.

cofounding variable

Seeing relationships between two things when in reality no such relationship exists. can be involved in the formation of prejudicial attitudes that can lead to discriminatory behavior.

illusory correlation

tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs.

confirmation bias

what is the only way to establish a cause and effect relationship between 2 variables

scientific experiment

what can hypotheses be formulated through

observation, after review of previous research

The participants that experience the manipulated variable (group designed to answer the research question).

experimental group

Participants that do not experience the manipulated variable.

-Serve as a basis for comparison and controls for chance factors that might influence the results of the study

control group

what is the only difference between the experiment and control group

experimental manipulation

description of what actions and operations will be used to measure the dependent variables and manipulate the independent variables.

operational definition

researcher expectations skew the results of the study.

experimenter bias

participant expectations skew the results of the study.

participant bias

experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group but participants do not. (Controls for participant expectations).

single-blind study

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments. (Controls for both participant and experimenter expectations).

double-blind study

people’s expectations or beliefs influencing or determining their experience in a given situation.

placebo effect

Variable that is influenced/controlled by the experimenter. Ideally this should be the only important difference between the experimental and control group

independent variable

Variable that the researcher measures to see how much effect the independent variable had.

dependent variable

Subjects of psychological research.

participants

subset of individuals selected from the larger population.

sample

overall group of individuals that the researcher is interested in (e.g. College students).

population

subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected.

random sample

Method of experimental group assignment in which all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to either group, Prevents systematic differences between groups such as gender or age. an experiment cannot find a true cause-and-effect relationship. Any relationship could be due to preexisting differences between the groups.

random assignment

how can random assignment be achieved

-using statistical software or by simply flipping a coin.

a research method used to study cause-and-effect relationships when true random assignment to groups isn't possible, often due to ethical or practical reasons in real-world settings, using non-random groups (like existing classes or policy-affected populations) to assess interventions or policies

quasi experimental

what are issues to consider in experiments

manipulating variables, ethics

determines how likely any difference between experimental groups is due to chance.

Statistical analysis

article read by several other scientists (usually anonymously) with expertise in the subject matter, who provide feedback regarding the quality of the manuscript before it is accepted for publication.

-Helps to weed out poorly conceived or executed studies.

-Improves articles with suggested revisions.

-Determines whether the research is described clearly enough to be replicated by other researchers.

peer reviewed journal article

-Determines reliability of original research design.

-Can include additional measures that expand on the original findings.

-Provide more evidence to support the original finding or to cast doubt on those findings.

replication

consistency and reproducibility of a given result.

-Would the same test give the same results every time?

-Do the instruments/tools used to collect data do so in consistent, reproducible ways?

reliability

measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify a particular event.

inter rater reliability

accuracy of a given result in measuring what it is designed to measure.

-Does a test measure what it is meant to measure?

validity

what is always reliable

a valid measure is always reliable, a reliable measure is not always valid

Committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants.

-Exist at any research institution that receives federal support for research involving human participants. must approve research proposal before it can proceed

institutional review board

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate. Includes:

-Potential risks involved

-Implications of the research

-Notification that participation is voluntary

-Notification that any data collected will be kept confidential

informed consent

Purposely misleading experiment participants in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment.

deception

when an experiment involved deception, participants are told complete and truthful information about the experiment at its conclusion.

debriefing

what is the point of using animal subjects in research

make good substitutes because their basic processes similar to humans, human would be unethical, minimize pain or distress

committee of administrators, scientists, veterinarians, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving non-human animals

Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)