Chapter 2 - Psychological Research

Psyc001 Winter 2025

Define empirical

(of scientific knowledge) grounded in objective and tangible evidence that can be observed repeatedly

Define facts

observable realities

Opinions

personal judgements that may be innacurate

Deductive reasoning

ideas are tested in the real world; more general theories lead to more specific theories; “top down”

— typically used in quantitative research

Explain the deductive reasoning flowchart

theory —> hypothesis —> observation —> confirmation

Inductive reasoning

real world observations lead to new ideas; from specific observations to broader generalizations and theories; “bottoms up”

— typically used in the qualitative method of research

explain the inductive reasoning flowchart

observation —> pattern —> tentative hypothesis —> theory

Why do scientists use deductive reasoning

to empirically test hypotheses

Why do scientists use inductive reasoning

to formulate theories, theories are then used to generate hypotheses that are tested using deductive reasoning

Define falsifiable

a scientific hypothesis must be falsifiable (capable of being shown to be incorrect); freud’s theories were not falsifiable

describe quantitative method of research

starts with theory/hypothesis that makes a prediction —> gather evidence; allows us to compare and statistically aggregate data; provides info on bigger pictures; focus is on the outcome (“what”)

Define correlation

relationship between two or more variables; as one variable changes, so does the other; NOT cause and effect

Correlation Coefficient

number from -1 to +1, indicating strength, direction, and predictability of the relationship between the variables, represented by r

Positive Correlation

two variables change in the same direction (both become either large or small)

negative correlation

two variables change in different directions (one becomes small and other becomes large)

No correlation

no relationship between the two variables; operate independently

Define cause and effect relationship

changes in one variable causes the changes in the other variable; can only be determined through experimental research

Confounding variable

outside factor that affects both variables, giving impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable

Define illusory correlations

seeing relationships between two things when in reality no such relationship exists

Confirmation bias

tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs

Define experimental group

participants that experience the manipulated variable (designed to answer the research question)

Control Group

participants that do not experience the manipulated variable

Purpose of a control group

basis for comparison, controls for chance factors that might influence the results of the study

Placebo effect

people’s expectations influencing their experience in a given situation

Ex. how would you set up an experiment to determine the efficacy of a medication?

experimental group receives medication, control receives placebo (sugar pill)

any differences between the groups will be due to the medication

Why should you provide the control group with a placebo (testing medication efficacy example)?

protects against bias caused by expectancy

Experimenter bias

researcher expectations skews the results of the study

Participant bias

participant expectations skew the results of the study

Single blind study

experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental vs control group, but participants dont (controls for participant expectations)

Double blind study

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments (controls for both participant and experimenter expectations)

Independent variable

variable controlled by experimenter

should be only difference between experimental and control

Dependent variable

variable the researcher measures to see the effect the independent variable had

Population

overall group of individuals that the researcher is interested in

Participants

subjects of psychological research

Sample

subsets of individuals selected from the larger population

Random sample

subset of larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected

why is random sampling preferred

more likely that the selected participants will be representative of the larger population

Random assignment

method of experimental group assignment in which all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to either group

Purpose of random assignment

prevents systematic difference between groups so any significant differences between groups can be said to be due to the result of the manipulation

can’t find true cause and effect relationship w/o it (any relationship can be due to any pre-existing relationship between the groups)

Statistical Analysis

determines how likely any difference between experimental groups is due to chance

results are either significant or non-significant

What determines significant results?

if the odds that the differences occurred by chance are 5% or less

Reliability

consistency and reproducibility of a result

Validity

accuracy of a given result in measuring what it is designed to measure

Erm relationship between reliability and validity

valid measure is always reliable, but a reliable measure is not always valid

What are the pros of quantitative research

1) Provide numerical data

2) testing already constructed theories

3) can be generalized

4) results are independent of researcher (less bias)

5) data analysis is less time consuming

What are the cons of quantitative research

1) interpretation of data results can be subjective, lead to bias

2) samples can be biased

3) confounding variables can lead to the wrong conclusion

4) experiments can be expensive

Purpose of qualitative research

exploratory; gain deeper understanding of underlying reasons of a phenomena, detailed info about a topic

What are the data collection methods of qualitative research

unstructured or semi-structured techniques; focus groups, group discussions, interviews, observations; small sample sizes

What are clinical/case studies

focuses on one individual in a unique psychological circumstance

allows for study into unusual conditions, lead to novel ideas about causes, subject to research bias

difficult to generalize results to larger population

What is natural Observations

observation of behavior in natural setting

removes feelings of performance or anxiety in subjects

Define observer bias

when observations may be skewed to align with observer expectations

How to eliminate observer bias?

establish clear criteria to observe, however this may influence the subject being observed

What are the pros of qualitative research

1) brings personal experience and allows the participants to voice their opinions

2) focuses on a certain population and setting/location

3) single case studies can be performed

4) observations can be made in a natural setting

5) provides a lot of details about a single topic

What are the cons of qualitative research

1) interpretation can be subjective/lead to bias

2) personal experiences may not be generalizable

3) collected information may need to be coded and analysis can be time consuming

Explain mixed method research

— research questions include both open and close ended questions

— data collection has combines qualitative and quantitative methods for observing the same phenomena

— delves deeper into a topic and can also be generalizable

— uses both deductive and inductive reasoning

Mixed Method Research pros

1) tests both processes and outcomes

2) uses multiple different methods

3) can explore a topic more in detail

Cons of mixed method research

1) needs a rationale to conduct this research

2) can be time consuming and expensive

3) interpretation can be subjective and may lead to bias

Surveys

— a list of questions that can be delivered via ex. paper and pencil, electronically, verbally

— used to gather large amount data from a sample

— qualitative (open ended questions) or quantitative (generates data set)

— data can be biased due to social desirability

Archival research

uses past records or data sets to answer research questions, or search for interesting patterns/relationships (can be both quantitative and qualitative)

Define ethics

norms for conduct that distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable behavior

Purpose of ethics

— norms promote the aims of research (knowledge, truth, avoidance of error)

— ethical standards promote values essential to collaboration (trust, accountability, mutual respect, fairness)

— holds researchers accountable to public

— builds public support for research

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants

— exists at any research institution with federal support or human participants

— must approve research before it can proceed

— meets regularly to review experimental proposals w/ human participants

Informed consent

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment and then obtaining the persons consent to participate

What does informed consent include

1) potential risks involved

2) benefits to society

3) nature of the research

4) alternate care

5) notification that participation is voluntary

6) notification that any data collected will be kept confidential

Deception

purposefully misleading experiment participants in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment

Debriefing

when an experiment involved deception, participants are told complete and truthful information about the experiment at its conclusion

Peer reviewed journal article

article anonymously read by other scientists with expertise in subject matter, provide feedback about quality

Purpose of peer reviewing articles

— weeds out poorly conceived or executed studies

— improves articles with suggested revisions

— determines whether research is described clearly enough so as to be replicated

Replication

reproducing an experiments exact methods

— determines reliability of design

— can include additional measures to expand original findings

— provides more evidence, or casts doubt on OG findings