Research Methods Review

Flashcards covering concepts of personal experience, intuition biases, types of biases, skepticism towards authority, advantages of research, finding research information, forms of research communication, and reading empirical journal articles.

Why are beliefs based on personal experiences often inaccurate?

Personal experience usually has no 'comparison group' and is usually confounded, lacking controlled factors for daily life.

How is intuition typically biased based on the provided notes?

People are likely to accept an explanation that makes intuitive sense, and they often overestimate the occurrence of something if easily accessible information is present.

What is the availability heuristic?

It is the overestimation of an occurrence of something if easily accessible information is present.

What is the present/present bias?

In testing relationships, it fails to look for absences and easily accepts what is present.

What is confirmation bias?

It is seeking out evidence that confirms initial beliefs and ideals while failing to find evidence that disconfirms them.

What is the bias blind-spot?

It is the belief that we are less biased than everyone else.

Why is it important to be skeptical about accepting conclusions from authority figures, especially those not based on research?

Scientific conclusions of authority figures may not be accurate as their claims could be biased from their experience or incite disinformation; instead, well-conducted studies that support valid claims should be sought.

What are the advantages of research over intuition and experience?

Research uses systematic comparison to control confounding variables, its findings are probabilistic (not expected to explain all cases all the time), and conclusions explain certain proportions of possible cases. Experience differs from what usually happens, and intuition is just a hunch based on personal logic that lacks concrete evidence.

How can one find research-based information on databases like PsycINFO?

Look for peer-reviewed journal articles from a credible source.

What are empirical journal articles?

They are peer-reviewed articles describing original research, reviewed by credible sources, and aimed at an academic audience.

What are review journal articles?

They summarize and integrate all published studies done in one research area.

How do books and chapters in edited books contribute to research-based information?

They are based on empirical research to add new knowledge in a specific field, undergo peer-review for credibility, and include case studies, data analysis, and theories.

What is the purpose of reading the Abstract section of an empirical journal article first?

It provides a summary of the article, outlining what it's about and the claim being made.

What is the function of the Introduction section in an empirical journal article?

It lays the groundwork for the research.

What details are found in the Method section of an empirical journal article?

It describes what and who was measured during the study and how it was conducted.

What is discussed in the Results section of an empirical journal article?

It discusses what was found and whether it supported the researcher’s hypothesis.

What is addressed in the Discussion section of an empirical journal article?

It addresses any limitations or further investigation on the study’s conclusion and findings.

What is the purpose of the References section in an empirical journal article?

The researcher cites all the information used in the article.

How can one distinguish between legitimate journalism and disinformation in popular media?

Compare popular media sources and books to original empirical articles to verify information and view claims with organized skepticism to avoid disinformation (deliberately created false information).