Introduction to Psychology

Cognitive Processes

processes by which existing knowledge is used to create new knowledge

Physiology

biological systems

Attitudes

feelings of liking or disliking toward an object, person, or idea

Emotions

combination of physiological and cognitive processes

aim

the purpose of a study

procedure

methodology for carrying out a study

findings

the interpretation of the results of a study

target population

specific group of people researchers are interested in for their study

sample

group of participants chosen from target population to take part in the study

participant

a person who takes part in a psychological study

opportunity sampling

participants selected based on naturally occurring groups

random sampling

methods of selecting participants for a study where each member of a population has an equal chance of being represented

self selected sampling

participants volunteer to be selected for a study

snowball sampling

participants recruit other participants for a study

stratified sampling

participants from within various subgroups of population are randomly selected

sampling bias

where members of a population aren’t properly represented in a study

quantitative data

data based on numbers

experiment

research method that determines whether a cause and effect relationship exists between two variables

repeated measures

research design where a sample of participants are exposed to each condition of an experiment

participant variables

a characteristic of a participant’s background that could influence results of a study

order effects

occur when a participant’s responses to various conditions is influenced by the order in which they were exposed to a condition

demand characteristics

cues that may indicate the research objectives to the participant

social desirability

occurs when a participant responds to questions in a way that will be viewed favorably by others

screw you effect

when a participant attempts to disprove the researcher’s hypothesis, resulting in the credibility of the study being skewed

independent measures

research method where participants are randomly assigned to a different condition

qualitative data

data based on observation

extraneous variable

a variable not being investigated that could affect the results of the study

standardization

making an experiment easily to replicate (e.g. detailed written through procedures)

ecological validity

the extent to which findings can be generalized to real life settings

psychological theory

an explanatory framework for a psychological phenomenon

quasi experiment

experiment where participants are grouped based on a trait/behaviour

natural experiment

an experiment where the IV is environmental and outside the control of the researcher

hypothesis

prediction of how the IV affects the DV

experimental hypothesis

prediction of the relationship between the IV and the DV

null hypothesis

prediction that the IV will have no effect on the DV or the change is due to chance

researcher bias

when the researcher consciously or unconsciously affects the findings of the study

double blind control

design where the researchers and participants don’t know which group the participants are allocated to

positive correlation

when both variables are affected in the same way

negative correlation

when one variable increases, the other decreasese

bidirectional ambiguity

when it’s impossible to know if x causes y or y causes x in a correlational study

naturalistic observation

observation in a naturalistic setting that aims to study behaviour

matched pairs design

participants matched into groups before randomization

single blind experiment

only the participants are unaware of their group assignment.

confounding variables

factors related to the independent variable that may affect the dependent variable, potentially skewing results.

construct validity

the extent to which a test measures what it claims to measure

inter-rater reliability

the degree to which other researchers are able to replicate the experiment and receive similar results

data triangulation

the use of several data sources in order to increase data reliability

method triangulation

the use of multiple research methods to test the same effect to see if the same results are achieved

researcher triangulation

where multiple researchers carry out the same study and interpret the results separately

theory triangulation

a more holistic approach where multiple approaches are used to explain behaviour

internal validity

extent to which the study researchers what it set out to test

fatigue effect

participants performing worse in an experiment out of exhaustion or boredom, losing motivation and skewing results

practice effect

happens especially when an experiment takes place over days where participants perform better out of mastering an ability rather than a change in conditions

reductionism

the belief that human behaviour can be explained by breaking it down into smaller components

holism

the approach that considers the whole rather than simple parts, acknowleding that many factors lead to behaviour

structured interviews

interviews that follow a set schedule and list of questions

semi-structured interviews

interviews that follow a set schedule and list of questions but that allows for follow-up questions

unstructured interviews

interviews that don’t follow a set schedule and mainly relate to the overall topicf

focus group interviews

group interviews commonly including participants that are relevant to the topic, with the researcher acting as a facilitator