psychology definitions

operationalization

how a variable is defined by the researcher and the way the variable is measured in the research

conditions of the experiment

different versions of the experiment that are carried out to see if a specific variable affects psychology

standardisation

the same instructions and procedure for everyone

control

keeping all variables the same across the different conditions (except the IV)

unconditioned stimulus

an event that produces an innate, unlearnt response

unconditioned response

an innate, unlearnt response produced when presented with an unconditioned stimulus

alternative hypothesis

there is a difference between the two conditions of the experiment

null hypothesis

there will be no difference between the two conditions of the experiment

directional hypothesis

states the way the experiment is going to go

non-directional

there will be a difference or no difference

behaviorism

perspective that assumes all behavior is learnt and nothing is innate

learning approach

a theory which emphasizes importance on what a person sees as acceptable behaviour through their experiences with others

stimulus

things or events that create energy or activity in someone

conditioned stimulus

an originally neutral event that is paired with an unconditional stimulus and eventually produces the desired response when presented alone

conditioned response

after conditioning, a learnt response produced when presented with a conditioned stimulus

learning

a long-time change in behaviour that is based on experience

neutral stimulus

an event that produces no reaction

operant conditioning

learning by the consequences of your actions

reinforcement

anything which increases the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated

positive reinforcement

reinforcement using pleasant consequences

negative reinforcement

reinforcement using unpleasant consequences going away

punishment

anything which decreases the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated by using unpleasant consequences

role model

a person who inspires/encourages others to imitate positive or negative behaviors

lab experiment

set in a controlled situation where the IV is manipulated to see its effect on the DV

field experiment

set in the natural environment where the IV is manipulated to see its effect on the DV

quasi-experiment

can be set in a field or lab where the IV is naturally occurring without manipulation

independent measures design

ppts only take part in one condition of the experiment

repeated measures design

ppts take part in all conditions of the experiment

matched pairs design

ppts are matched according to similar variables and are separated into experimental and control conditions

ecological validity

a measure of how a test performance predicts behaviors in real-world settings

demand characteristics

when ppts guess the aims of the experiment and display biased behaviours they think the supervisors want to see

extraneous variables

any variable that is not being controlled/investigated which has the potential of affecting the outcome of the experiment

quantitative data

data in numerical form

qualitative data

data that is descriptive

conclusion

what the results of an experiment tell us about human behaviour - it’s a generalization based on the results

ethics

the morality and moral principles of a study conducted; the wellbeing of participants in the study

opportunity/convenience sampling

where a researcher elects ppts based on their availability

participant variables

differences between the ppts that could affect their behaviour in a study

order effects

when practice or fatigue could affect the results in the later stages of the experiment

counterbalancing

done to reduce order effects - the order in which the ppts undertake the conditions is varied

random allocation

done to reduce participant variables - the allocation of ppts to conditions is randomized

single blind technique

done to reduce participant variables - the ppts are not made aware which condition they are in

self-report

when the ppt tells the researcher directly about their psyche

primary reinforcers

things that motivate behaviour because they fulfill needs

secondary reinforcers

are learned things we associate with primary reinforcers

shaping

the process of training a learned behaviour

chaining

teaching a multi-step task by breaking it into small sequenced steps

desensitization

the process which reduces the emotional response to a stimulus using repeated exposure

observation

an event is observed and recorded by researchers in its natural setting

code of conduct (animals)

replacement, species, number of animals, procedures, pain/distress, deprivation and aversive stimuli, housing

phobia

a persistent avoidance to irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation

operational definition

a clear and complete description used to define behavior in the psychological research

case study

an in-depth investigation of a single person, group, event, or community

sample

a small portion of people from a larger population that are selected to be part of an experiment

target population

the group of people which the sample is picked out from

population

who the research aims to generalize behaviour to

volunteer sample

individuals choose to take part in the experiment

random sample

everyone in the population has an equal chance of being chosen

opportunity sample

a sample of convenience; ppts are chosen based on availability

response bias

when ppts answer questions in a pattern without reading the question properly

interview

a direct conversation with the subject to discuss thoughts and behaviour

questionnaire

a pre-set number of questions participants are given to respond to

researcher effects

where behaviour of the researcher affects the interviewee’s answers

researcher bias

where the views/beliefs of the researcher affects the data (how it is interpreted, analyzed, etc.)

subjective data

data that is opinion-based

objective data

data that is factual

reliability

the extent to which the research is consistent and replicable

intra-rater reliability

whether one researcher is consistent over time

validity

the extent to which the findings of a study are true and accurate

internal validity

did the study measure what it set out to measure

external validity

can the results be generalized accurately

confounding variable

a variable that has affected the DV which should be mentioned after the study has been conducted

controlled observation

when the researcher watched ppts behaviour in a situation which has been manipulated by the researchers

confederate

an actor who is working with the researcher and has been instructed on how to act

mundane realism

the extent to which a task in an experiment represents a real world situation

empathy

the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

social salience

the extent to which a target attracts attention from observers

interaction effect

when two IVs display a relationship in the way they affect the DV

social cues

facial expressions/body language people use to send messages to others

personal space

idea that there is an area of space around people in which they would prefer not to have people in

differential effect

when one or more individuals experience a different effect when exposed to the same stimuli

placebo

an inactive substance or intervention that looks the same and is administered the same way as the treatment being tested

counterbalanced

where the order of the conditions is varied across ppts

altruism

helping someone without any obvious benefit to yourself

samaritan

someone who helps others — term taken from christian scriptures

prosocial behaviour

behaviour that benefits society

arousal

a state of physiological activation (adrenaline, heart rate, breathing increases

participant observation

the observer participates in the behaviour they are observing (can be covert or overt)

non-participant observation

the observer does not participate in the behaviour they are observing (can be covert or overt)

controlled observation

participants are given a task then observed doing the task

naturalistic observation

participants are observed behaving naturally with no manipulation from the researchers

structured observation

uses behavioral categorizing and coding frame to collect data

unstructured observation

collects all relevant data with no pre-planned categories

covert observation

undercover observation — ppts are unaware of them being observed

overt observation

ppts know they are being observed

coding frame

systematic methods of collecting and quantifying qualitative data

behavioral categories

clearly defined, specific actions that can be recorded as examples of the target behavior

inter-observer reliability

time sampling

data is recorded in certain time intervals

event sampling

data is recorded each time the target behaviour occurs