Unit Two: Research Methods

Hindsight Bias: the tendency to believe after learning the outcome, that you knew all along.

Overconfidence: the tendency to think we know more than we do

The Barnum Effect: the tendency for people to accept very general or vague characterizations of themselves and take them to be accurate

 Hawthorne Effect: double-blind study; both the subject and scientist do not know what is happening; reduces risk of bias and overconfidence

 

Applied vs. Basic Research

Applied: has a clear, practical application

Basic: explores questions that you may be curious about, but not intended to be immediately used

 

Hypothesis: expresses a relationship between two variable

·         Independent: whatever is being manipulated

·         Dependent: whatever is being measured

·         Confounding Variable: anything that could cause a change in B, that is not A.

Operational Definitions: Explain what you mean in your hypothesis. How will the variables be measured in “real life” terms

 

Sampling: identify the population you want to study; must be a representative of the population you want to study

 

Research Methods

Experimental Method: looking to prove causal relationships; cause->effect

Correlational Method: expresses a relationship between two variables

·         Positive: both variable go in the same direction (compliments, Self-esteem)

·         Negative: the variable go in opposite directions (smoking, living longer)

Correlation Coefficient: a number that measure the strength of a relationship; range is -1 to1; closer to zero is a weaker correlation

Survey Method: most common type of study in psychology; measures correlation;

cheap and fast; need a good random sample

Naturalistic Observation: watch subjects in their natural environment; do not manipulate the environment

Case Study: detailed picture of one or few subjects; tells us a story, just descriptive research; does not give us correlation data

 

Statistics

 

Statistics: recording the results of our data

·         Descriptive Statistics: describes sets of data

o   Range: distance from highest to lowest

o   Standard Deviation: the variance of scores around the mean; the higher the variance, the more spread out the distribution is

·         Z scores: a unit that measures the distance of one score from the mean

o   a positive z score means a number above the mean

o   a negative z score means a number below the mean

 

Ethical Guidelines for Research

Animal Research: clear purpose; treated in a humane way; acquire legally; least amount of suffering possible

Human Research: voluntary; informed consent; anonymity; no significant risk; must debrief