Chapter 2 of Health Psychology (Research Methods)

According to the source, what are the two key elements of science in health psychology?

Science is empirical and theory-driven.

What is the primary aim of descriptive studies in health psychology research?

To describe what is going on, often by establishing baselines

Descriptive studies are used to determine ___________ rates, which refer to the proportion of a population that has a particular disease or condition at a specific time.

Prevalence

Descriptive studies are used to determine ___________ rates, which measure the number of new cases of a disease or condition during a specific period.

Incidence

What type of research design is used to describe the relationships between variables?

Correlational studies

In correlational studies, what does a positive correlation indicate about the relationship between two variables?

It indicates that the variables change in the same direction.

In correlational studies, what does a negative correlation indicate about the relationship between two variables?

It indicates that the variables change in opposite directions.

A _________ correlation is when a third, controlling variable is involved in the analysis of the relationship between two other variables.

Partial

What is the central question that experimental and quasi-experimental designs aim to answer?

They test if one thing causes something else.

In an experimental design, what is the term for the variable that is manipulated by the researcher?

Independent variable

In an experimental design, the dependent variable is the one that is _____ by the independent variable.

Influenced

How does a quasi-experimental design differ from a true experimental design?

A quasi-experimental design does not rely on random assignment of participants to conditions.

What is a research design that involves a control group receiving a placebo to compare against the experimental group receiving the actual treatment?

Randomized Control Trial (RCT)

What is a placebo in the context of a Randomized Control Trial?

An inactive substance or treatment that appears similar to the experimental drug or treatment.

What type of study design involves sampling a large number of people at a single point in time?

Cross-sectional design.

What is the defining characteristic of a prospective research design?

It follows people over a period of time to examine certain variables.

A _____ study looks into the past history of participants to find connections between past events and current outcomes.

Retrospective

What is the most critical factor mentioned for determining if research findings are statistically significant?

Sample size

An increase in _____ can make even small changes appear statistically significant.

A study’s sample size

What statistical test would be appropriate for determining if weight loss in one group is significantly different from another?

Analysis of variance (ANOVA).

In an ANOVA, a p-value of the F-test being less than _____ is typically considered statistically significant.

.05

What is the purpose of regression analyses in health psychology research?

To determine how much variance in a dependent variable is explained by other variables.

What type of analysis is used to determine the ratio of the odds of an event occurring in one group to the odds of it occurring in another group?

Logistic regression (which calculates odds ratios).

What does an odds ratio greater than 1 suggest?

It suggests the phenomenon is more likely to occur in the group being studied.

What are two risk metrics, besides odds ratios, mentioned in the source material?

Hazard ratio, relative risk, or absolute risk.

What is the role of the 'covariance' in statistical tests like ANCOVAs and MANCOVAs?

It allows the tests to statistically control for the influence of third variables.

What is a variable that changes the magnitude or direction of the relationship between two other variables?

Moderator

In the example 'People with higher support are happier than those with less social support,' what concept does social support illustrate?

A moderator

What is the intervening process or mechanism through which one variable influences an outcome?

Mediator

How can researchers test for mediation?

By comparing the correlation between two variables before and after the potential mediator is statistically introduced.

In the example 'Stress can influence health behaviors, which in turn influence feelings,' what role do health behaviors play?

They are the mediator.

According to the source, what demographic variables cannot be both mediators and moderators?

Age, ethnicity, and race

What is a major issue with generalizing findings from one person to an entire culture?

It ignores the significant differences that exist within a group.

The source states that people are generally more _____ than they are _____.

Similar; dissimilar

What are the two critical factors of research design highlighted by the 'Who am I?' test?

The context of the person’s environment and the person’s level of analysis of themselves.

What statistical test is used for studies with multiple dependent variables, such as comparing quality and taste ratings of different foods?

Multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs).