Approaches and Research Methods in Psychology Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards generated from the Approaches and Research Methods in Psychology lecture transcript, covering historical perspectives, experimental designs, biases, ethics, and statistical analysis.

Psychodynamic Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on the influence of the unconscious mind, including dreams, childhood trauma, and hidden desires and fears, on behavior.

Behavioral Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on the influence of reinforcement and punishment, explaining behaviors as a response to previous interactions or experiences.

Cognitive Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on how we think, make decisions, and solve problems.

Humanistic Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on human desire to achieve self-actualization and meet basic goals to be one's best self.

Social-Cultural Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on how parents, peers, family dynamics, cultural practices, and surrounding environment impact behavior and mental processes.

Biological Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on the influence of genes, hormones, neurotransmitters, brain regions, and other natural elements on behavior.

Evolutionary Approach

A psychological perspective that focuses on how the principles of natural selection and survival of the fittest influence behavior.

Biopsychosocial Approach

A modern psychological perspective that investigates the interactions between an individual's biology, personality, and social environment.

Deductive Reasoning

A logical process that starts with a general statement or hypothesis and examines possibilities to reach a specific logical conclusion.

Inductive Reasoning

A logical process that starts with specific observations to make general conclusions.

Cultural Norms

Shared standards or rules that guide behavior within a group or society.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to only seek out information that supports an existing idea while discounting information that could disprove it.

Hindsight Bias

The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it.

Overconfidence

The tendency to overestimate one's own knowledge or ability.

Gambler's Fallacy

The tendency to overestimate the occurrence of patterns in random data.

Illusory Correlation

The tendency to believe that variables have a relationship where none actually exists.

Quantitative Research

A research method that relies on and supplies numerical data, such as survey results or test scores.

Qualitative Research

A research method that relies on in-depth, narrative analysis that cannot be translated into numerical data, such as case studies or interview responses.

Experiment

A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more independent variables to observe the effect on dependent variables to isolate cause and effect.

Independent Variable

The factor in an experiment that is manipulated or controlled by the researcher.

Dependent Variable

The factor in an experiment that is measured or observed by the researcher.

Random Assignment

A procedure giving participants an equal chance of being placed in the experimental or control group to control for extraneous factors.

Experimental Group

The group of participants in an experiment that receives the manipulated variable.

Control Group

The group of participants in an experiment that does not receive the manipulated variable.

Case Study

A descriptive technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.

Naturalistic Observation

A descriptive technique of observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without manipulation or control.

Survey

A descriptive technique used to obtain self-reported attitudes and behaviors of a particular group.

Correlation Coefficient

A statistical measure of the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables, measured on a scale from $-1.0$ to $+1.0$.

Meta-analysis

A form of research that analyzes the results of multiple studies to reach an overall conclusion.

Hypothesis

A testable prediction about the relationship between variables.

Falsifiability

The ability to test a statement, hypothesis, or theory by finding an observation that could disprove it.

Operational Definition

A clear statement that defines how a specific concept will be measured, observed, or manipulated in a study.

Replication

Repeating research to determine if the original findings were legitimate and can be reproduced.

Extraneous / Confounding Variables

Factors other than the independent variable that can impact the dependent variable in a study.

Population

The entire group of subjects to which the results of a study could potentially apply.

Representative Sample

A selection of a population that accurately reflects the characteristics of the entire group as a whole.

Random Selection

A sampling process where every member of a population has an equal chance of being chosen to participate in research.

Sampling Bias

The tendency for researchers to target specific participants to increase the likelihood of proving a hypothesis, leading to unrepresentative results.

Convenience Sampling

A method of selecting participants based on who is easiest for the researcher to access.

Generalizability

The degree to which the findings of a research study can be applied to a broader context or population.

Placebo

An inert substance given to a control group in place of an independent variable.

Placebo Effect

Experimental results caused by participant expectations alone rather than an active treatment.

Single-blind Study

A study design where participants do not know which experimental group they are in, but the researcher does.

Double-blind Study

An experimental procedure where both research staff and participants are ignorant of which group received the active treatment or placebo.

Experimental Bias

A tendency where a researcher only notes aspects of an experiment that support their hypothesis while ignoring challenging evidence.

Likert Scale

A measurement rating system used in research to evaluate attitudes, opinions, and perceptions across a continuum.

Third-variable Problem

A challenge in correlational research where the apparent relationship between two variables is actually caused by an unmeasured third variable.

Social-desirability Bias

The tendency of participants to respond to questionnaires in a way that causes them to be perceived in a positive light.

Informed Consent

An ethical principle requiring that potential participants receive sufficient information about a study to choose whether to participate.

Debriefing

The post-experimental explanation of a study, detailing its purpose, results, and any deception used.

Confederate

An individual in a study who is secretly working for the researcher while posing as a genuine participant.

Descriptive Statistics

Numerical data used to summarize and describe the characteristics of a specific group of data.

Inferential Statistics

Numerical methods that use data from a sample to make generalizations or predictions about a larger population.

Percentile Rank

The percentage of scores in a distribution that are equal to or lower than a given score.

Standard Deviation

A statistical measure representing the average distance of a set of scores from their mean.

Regression Toward the Mean

The statistical tendency for extreme or unusual scores or events to fall back toward the average over time.

Bimodal Distribution

A probability distribution containing two distinct peaks, indicating two separate groups or processes within data.

Statistical Significance

The degree of certainty that the observed effect on a dependent variable was caused by the independent variable rather than chance (typically requiring $p \le 0.05$).

Effect Size

A measure representing the strength of the relationship between two variables.