Scientific Practices

Why do we need psychological science?

To understand human behavior in a way that avoids bias.

What is overconfidence in psychological terms?

The tendency to overestimate one's abilities or knowledge.

What is hindsight bias?

The belief that one knew the outcome of an event all along, even after it has happened.

What does the perception of order in random events mean?

The belief that a pattern is occurring in a situation when it is actually random.

Why is critical thinking important in psychology?

It helps psychologists avoid jumping to conclusions without further observation.

What is the false consensus effect?

The tendency to believe that others share the same thoughts and beliefs as oneself.

Define expectancy bias.

When a researcher allows their expectations to affect the outcome of the study.

What is a case study?

A detailed examination of a particular individual or group.

What is naturalistic observation?

Observing behaviors as they occur naturally without manipulation.

What is the Hawthorne effect?

The phenomenon where individuals improve their behavior when they know they are being observed.

What is a survey in psychological research?

A technique used to gather self-reported attitudes or behaviors from participants.

What distinguishes longitudinal studies from cross-sectional studies?

Longitudinal studies observe the same subjects over a long period of time, while cross-sectional studies look at different individuals at various life stages.

What is sampling bias?

A flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample.

What is a random sample?

A subset of the population where every member has an equal chance of being selected.

What is the purpose of operational definitions in research?

To specify how variables will be measured and applied in real life.

What is replication in psychological research?

Recreating a study with different participants to verify results.

What does correlation refer to in psychological research?

The relationship between two or more variables that can predict one another.

What is the difference between positive and negative correlation?

Positive correlation is when variables move in the same direction, while negative correlation is when they move in opposite directions.

What does a correlation coefficient signify?

It indicates the strength and direction of the relationship between variables.

Define the placebo effect.

When a participant believes a treatment is effective and experiences real changes due to that belief.

What is an independent variable?

A variable that can be changed or manipulated in an experiment.

What is a dependent variable?

A variable that is affected by the independent variable in an experiment.

What are confounding variables?

Factors other than the independent variable that may affect the dependent variable.

Explain the difference between applied research and basic research.

Applied research seeks practical applications, while basic research focuses on pure scientific understanding.

What are measures of central tendency?

Scores that represent the entirety of scores in a dataset.

What is a histogram?

A bar graph representing the frequency distribution of data.

Define standard deviation.

A measure of the amount of variation or dispersion in a set of values.

What is the significance of a P value less than 0.05?

It indicates that the results are statistically significant and unlikely due to chance.

What do outliers represent in data?

Data points that are significantly different from other observations.

What is descriptive statistics?

Statistics that summarize data characteristics, such as measures of central tendency.

What is inferential statistics?

Statistics that make generalizations about a population based on sample data.

What are the ethical principles guiding human research?

Informed consent, confidentiality, avoidance of deception, and debriefing.

What is the role of the Institutional Review Board (IRB)?

To approve and monitor research involving human participants to ensure ethical standards are met.

What is one of the 3 Rs in animal research ethics?

Replacement: finding alternatives to using animals in research.

Define culture in the context of psychology.

The shared ideas, behaviors, attributes, and traditions from a group of people that influence their beliefs and behaviors.