Research Methods in Psychology

These flashcards cover key concepts related to internal validity, various threats to research methods, and other critical vocabulary necessary for understanding research methodologies in psychology.

Internal Validity

The degree to which an experiment accurately establishes a causal relationship between variables.

Confounding Variables

Variables that are not intentionally studied but may have an effect on the dependent variable.

Maturation Threats

A change in behavior that emerges spontaneously over time, which can affect the outcome of an experiment.

History Threats

When an external event affects the treatment group at the same time as the treatment, potentially skewing results.

Regression Threats

When extreme scores at Time 1 are likely to be less extreme at Time 2, affecting the results.

Attrition Threats

Reduction in participants from pretest to posttest, which is problematic when the dropouts are systematic.

Demand Characteristics

When participants alter their behavior based on their understanding of the study; can be controlled through double-blind designs.

Placebo Effects

Improvements in condition that arise because participants believe they are receiving treatment, not due to the treatment itself.

Manipulation Check

A second dependent variable used to ensure that the independent variable manipulation was effective.

Measurement Error

Anything that inflates or deflates a person’s true score on the dependent variable.

Situation Noise

External distractions that can cause variability within groups, obscuring between-group differences.

Null Effect

A situation where the independent variable does not lead to any significant change in the dependent variable.

Causation vs Correlation

Causation implies a direct effect, while correlation simply indicates a relationship without establishing that one causes the other.