Psychology Research Design and Methods

Vocabulary flashcards focusing on psychology research designs, experimental variables, observational techniques, and sources of bias based on the lecture transcripts.

Hindsight Bias

The "I knew it all along" phenomenon; the tendency to believe, after an outcome has occurred, that one could have predicted or known it all along.

Overconfidence

The tendency to overestimate one's knowledge or ability, which is often heightened when individuals have immediate access to the Internet.

Perceiving Patterns in Random Events

The tendency to interpret uncorrelated, random, or coincidental sequences of events as meaningful patterns.

Scientific Method

A self-correcting process used to evaluate ideas, make observations, and test hypotheses.

Theory

A general worldview intended to integrate different findings and observations in order to make testable predictions.

Hypothesis

A specific, explicit, testable claim about an outcome, typically structured in an if-then format.

Relapse Prevention Theory

A theoretical framework in addiction and smoking cessation research that identifies warning signs or triggers—such as anger, frustration, or accessibility—to predict and manage reinitiating drug use.

Replication

The practice of recreating the conditions of a study with a new population to determine if the original findings can be reproduced.

Peer Review

The process in which academic experts critically evaluate a research paper submitted to a journal to assess its validity and keep poorly designed research from being published.

Descriptive Research

A category of research methods aimed at systematically observing and describing behavior without manipulating variables.

Case Study

An in-depth, detailed examination of a single individual or specific group, often utilized when experimental manipulation would be unethical.

Genie

A case study subject who experienced severe neglect and isolation for her first $13$ years of life, whose lack of language acquisition suggested a critical window for language development.

Naturalistic Observation

A descriptive research technique that involves systematically watching and recording subjects in their natural environment without intervention.

Reactivity

A limitation in naturalistic observation where subjects alter their normal behavior because they are aware of being watched.

Self-Report

A data collection method used in surveys and interviews where participants directly describe their own attitudes, experiences, or behaviors.

Independent Variable (IV)

The factor in an experiment that is manipulated or arranged by the researcher to evaluate its causal effect.

Random Assignment

The technique of placing participants into experimental or control groups by chance to minimize baseline differences between the groups.

Experimental Group

The group of participants in an experiment who receive the active treatment or exposure to the independent variable.

Control Group

The comparison group in an experiment that does not receive the active independent variable, providing a reference point for evaluating the treatment's effect.

Active Control

A control group condition in clinical research that receives an established best-practice treatment rather than no treatment, ensuring ethical care while measuring comparative efficacy.

Dependent Variable (DV)

The factor that is measured in an experiment to determine the effect of the independent variable.

Confounding Variable

Any factor other than the independent variable that can systematically influence the dependent variable and distort the experimental results.

Experimenter Bias

Unintentional influence exerted on study participants by a researcher's expectations, beliefs, or subconscious physical cues.

Clever Hans

A famous horse allegedly capable of solving math problems that was actually responding to subconscious physical cues—such as tensing and relaxing—exhibited by his owner.

Demand Characteristics

Aspects or cues in a study that reveal the expected behavior to participants, leading them to alter their natural actions to fit expectations.

Social Desirability

A participant bias where individuals underreport socially undesirable behaviors or overreport acceptable ones to appear socially favorable.

Placebo Effect

A measurable result or change in behavior produced solely by a participant's belief or expectation that they are receiving an active treatment.