IB Psychology Notecards

Psychology

Scientific study of behavior and mental process tested through scientific research

Empirical Research

Evidence Based Research

Rosenzweig, Bennet, & Diamond (1972)

Study conducted on rats to test the theory of neuroplasticity; rats were placed in either a control, ‘enriched’, or impoverished environment and then the weight of their brain tissue was measured to determine the differentiation of their neurons

Neuron

a nerve cell; basic block of nervous system

Neuroplasticity

The brain changes over time due to external influences

Differentiation

The growth of new connections between neurons (learning)

Neural Pruning

The loss of connections between neurons; can be good as it allows brain to only hold onto important information, let go of bad memories/trauma

Neurotransmission

Communication between neurons; neurotransmitters push out acetylcholine which bonds to other neurons and creates growth (dendrites)

Acetylcholine

Chemical and neurotransmitter used for learning and memory; when it leaves one neuron and moves to another, this is learning; the greater the activity (the transfer of acetylcholine), the heavier the brain tissue, the greater the learning

Agonist

‘Green light’; fires a neutral message telling neurons to keep firing by bonding to dendrites; are our neurotransmitters, sometimes are meds

Antagonist

‘Red light’; stops chemical neural messages, still binds to neuron but tells it not to continue firing, is only a medication

Aim

Objective of research

Operationalized

What variables must be in order to conduct research, clearly identified, best when quantifiable (numeric)

Target Population

The target demographic of an experiment

Participants

People or animals involved in research whose data is being used and recorded

Sample

Group being tested

Representative Sample

reflects the target population so research is more generalizable

Sampling technique

The way in which the participants are selected for an experiment, can be self-selected, opportunity, stratified, random, or snowball

Self-selected Sample

Experiment in which sample is volunteer based; pros: easy, motivated; cons: lack of representation, biased motivation

Opportunity Sample

Whoever is available for the experiment; pros: easy; cons: not diverse/representative

Stratified Sample

Includes people of all subsets/groups; the most representative technique

Random Sample

Everyone has an equal chance of being selected; difficult to do with large target populations, but limits researcher bias the most

Snowball Sample

One picks another; easy, but high researcher bias and lack of diversity among sample

Laboratory Experiment

Conducted in a controlled setting, most likely to find causation

Field Experiment

Have control outside of the lab setting where the behavior occurs

Natural Experiment

independent variable is an event occurring not controlled by the researcher (ex. are studies about psych after 9/11, natural disasters, pandemic, holocaust)

Quasi Experiment

Independent variable is a trait not controlled by researcher (ex. studies on differently aged people, diagnosed patients, height, eye color)

Dependent Variable

What is being measured

Independent variable

What is being manipulated

Research hypothesis

a prediction about a relationship between two variables; to write for class use format: The IV will ___ the DV (make sure to operationally define each)

One-tailed hypothesis

Predicts the direction (increase/decrease) of the effect the IV will have on the DV

Two-tailed hypothesis

Predicts there will be an effect from the IV on the DV, but unsure of direction (Increase/decrease)

Control group

Not manipulated, behaving naturally, baseline for comparison

Experimental group

manipulated, compared to control

Validity vs Credibility

Accuracy of research vs

Internal Validity

accuracy of findings within the research process

External Validity

accuracy of findings outside the research (outside of the context of the research)

Generalizability vs. Transferable

Extent to which findings can be applied to others (just for people whereas external validity applies to environments too)

Reliability

Consistency of research; can it be repeated and have similar results?

Bias

Error which decrease the validity and reliability of research

Participant Bias

When participants’ behavior is artificial because they are aware of being in an experiment

Participant Bias - demand characteristics

Error because they know they are in an experiment and their behaviors are modified and artificial because of this

Sampling bias

Common in self-selected or snowball sampling

Researcher Bias

Bias on behalf of the researcher where their opinions or expertise cloud their research

Confounding variables

Form of bias, unexpected variable that skews the findings and cannot be know until after the experiment

Artificiality

Another form of procedural bias but can also be with participants in which experiment results are not true to real behavior

Reflexivity

Researcher needs to be reflective, acknowledge variables that may have influenced research; more importantly in qualitative research with personal or procedural influences

Ethics CARDUD

The ethical principles and foundations that are used in psychology. Informed consent, anonymity/confidentiality, right to withdraw, deception, undue stress or harm, debriefing