Behaviorist Orientation
Focus is on observed behavior as responses to stimuli in the environment
Cognitive Orientation
Focus is on thought processes within the individual that organize and interpret information
Rule/Role Orientation
Focus is on the internal rules or role prescriptions that are available for the individual in any given situation
hypothetico-deductive method
the combination of a number of principles from a previous research and through logical means, arriving at a set of predictions
Use of analogy method
Borrowing models and concepts from other disciplines
Lab experiment strengths
Random assignment Control of extraneous variables
Lab experiment weaknesses
High level of control may create an artificial situation and prevent natural behaviour from being exhibited; this may also include demand characteristics (where participants guess the aim of the study and change their behaviour), which lowers validity.
People may behave differently in the lab, so it may be difficult to generalise to other settings, therefore having low ecological validity.
It is sometimes necessary to deceive and cause participants a small amount of harm to improve the validity and reliability of the study.
Field experiment strengths
• Higher external validity • No demand characteristics bc participants don't know they are taking part in a study
field experiment weaknesses
-Might be difficulties in controlling the situation, so more interference from extraneous mariables -Experiment may be difficult to replicate exactly -Might be issues of access to where the study is to be done, such as consent from a company. -Ethical problems of deceit, consent, invasion of privacy, etc.
Quasi experiment strengths
Examination of powerful predictor variables
Quasi experiment weaknesses
There may be other differences which cannot be separated from the IV, making it impossible to infer cause and effect.
The researcher has to wait for the conditions to occur naturally so they may not be available at the the time of the research.
Survey/Questionnaire Strengths
Straightforward Anonymous Economical
Survey/Questionnaire Weaknesses
Recall/response error Low response rates
Archival research strengths
Use of unobtrusive measures open time range for study
Archival research weaknesses
Selective entry Selective decay
Simulation/role play strengths
co-investigator status of subjects
Simulation/role play weaknesses
Evaluation apprehension Authenticity
Internal Validity
extent to which we can draw cause-and-effect inferences from a study
External validity
extent to which we can generalize findings to real-world settings
Experimental realism
degree to which an experiment absorbs and involves its participants
Mundane Realism
degree to which an experiment is superficially similar to everyday situations
Act Utilitarianism
assesses each separate act according to whether it maximizes pleasure over pain (cost-benefit analysis)
Rule Utilitarianism
a utilitarian theory asserting that the morally right action is the one covered by a rule that if generally followed would produce the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered
Informed Consent
an ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate
Attribution Theory
suggests how we explain someone's behavior—by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition.
What purpose do attributions serve?
control of outcomes
prediction of events
maintenance of self esteem
generation of meaning
Conditions under which attributions are initiated
Under negative situations
During unexpected/novel situations
When events have high hedonic relevance
When evens are characterized by a high level of personalism
Hedonic relevance
Refers to behaviour that has important direct consequences for self.
Naive epistemology
Fritz Heider Describes the ways people think about and infer meaning from what occurs around them
Locus of Causality
Attributions of Responsibility
attributions of responsibility
We are less likely to help those who seem to be responsible for their predicament, based on levels of accountability (association, causality, foreseeability, intentionality, justifiability)
correspondent inference theory
A theory that states that people pay closer attention to intentional behavior than accidental behavior when making attributions, especially if the behavior is unexpected.
Factors influencing the correspondent inference process
Desirability of Outcome
Presence and Number of Non-common effects
Desirability of Outcome
Behaviors that are socially desirable are less informative than undesirable actions
Non-common effect
an outcome that can be achieved by one specific action but not others
Kelley's Covariation Model
Based on the notion of covariation; if two events are construed as causally linked, they must covary with each other
Gender dysphoria
distress associated with incongruence between one's biological sex and gender identity
Puberty Blockers
a group of medicines that pause the changes a body undergoes during puberty. They can provide additional time before secondary sex characteristics develop (such as a deepening voice, breast development, or facial hair). They are also referred to as blockers or hormone blockers.
Consequences associated with puberty blockers
Lack of research Chemically alters body Gives children more time to grow, develop, and be more confident about their gender identity
Purpose and Methodology of the Bandura, Ross, & Ross article
Demonstrate that learning can occur through mere observation of a model and that imitation of learned behavior can occur in the absence of that model Laboratory Experiment IVs:
Aggression level
Sex of model
Sex of child
DV:
Amount of imitative behavior and aggression shown by child
Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961) Findings
Children exposed to aggressive role model were more aggressive. Suggests children imitate aggression. Both physical and verbal, some was non-imitative suggesting they were finding their own ways of being aggressive.
More likely to copy same sex model.
Girls spent more time playing with the dolls or tea sets and boys with guns.
Five Propositions derived from Stanford Prison Experiment
Underscored degree to which prison experiments are powerful, potentially damaging situations with possible negative psychological effects. It had painful and traumatic effects. prisons should be used sparingly in the war on crime
Revealed how even minimalist prison can be painful and powerful
Decompression programs
Personality tests for individual behavioral predictions in familiar scenarios may not fare well in predicting in novel settings (are of limited utility)
Meaningful prison reform should come from those outside of the institution
Grudem's rationale for male headship
Woman was created for man
Man was created in God's image first
Man's direct and unmediated fashion as the image of God, manifesting the glory of God
Sabates reading: Possible limitations to the CFR approach
Difficult to accurately assess underlying motives from observable behavior
Unable to prove anything about its central assumption
Christians have biases when assessing Scripture
Proximal Causation (Weeks & Luper)
Immediately responsible for causing an event
Distal Causation
God as a factor become more common Supernatural forces responsible for causing an event
Protestant Religious Attributions
Emphasize the soul more (internal attributions)
Repenting sins and belief in God will assure rewards in the afterlife
Inward focused form of religion
Catholic Religious Attributions
Participation in sacrament and traditions
Outward focused form of religion