2.14 Study Notes

Vocabulary flashcards defining core psychological research methods based on the lecture text.

Scientific Method

A process used by psychologists to examine human behavior and mental processes, including steps such as observation, question, hypothesis, experiment, analysis, and conclusion.

Case Study

A detailed analysis of a particular person, group, business, event, etc., commonly used to learn more about rare examples with the goal of describing that particular thing.

Naturalistic Observation

A research method where a researcher unobtrusively collects information without the participant's awareness.

Survey

A method in which participants are asked to provide information or responses to questions on a survey or structured assessment.

Archival Research

A research method in which researchers examine data that has already been collected for other purposes.

Longitudinal Study

A research design where researchers recruit a sample of participants and track them for an extended period of time.

Cross-Sectional Study

A research design where researchers gather participants from different groups (commonly different ages) and look for differences between the groups.

Correlational Design

A research design where two different variables are measured to determine whether there is a relationship between them.

Experiment

A study in which researchers create a controlled environment where they can carefully manipulate at least one variable to test its effect on another.