EDP intro and research

5th step

Analyze and interpret data, quantitative research and qualitative research

What's the relationship between basic and applied research? Try to give an example of how basic research can lead to applied research (think of change blindness)

Basic research aims to increase scientific knowledge while applies research aims to solve a problem or improve our lives

How do we draw meaningful conclusions from data?

Because data is the closest thing to fact that psychologists have

Independent variable

Being manipulated,

4th step

Collect data: objective and subjective data

Know the advantages of correlational studies and give examples of when a correlational study might be the best approach (think convenience, ethical concerns)

Correlational studies: Helps you show the existence of associations; you stick to ethics; cheap

Be able to recognize correlational vs. causal conclusions

Correlational studies: study showing the relationship between two variables with no manipulation

3rd step

Design study: variables (independent and dependent) Operational variables: give specific definition for each variable

How does psychology apply principles of scientific inquiry, and how is it difficult?

Focus on observable, objective data; mathematical analyses to understand and interpret data; make conclusions more reliable

Recall our examples in class (studying expertise in physics, changes in memory capacity)

Harder tasks require more resources, and we only have so much

2nd step

Hypothesis: proposal of what you think will happen; usually based on observation; must be testable; must be falsifiable; shows a simple relation; should be generalizable

Differentiate between descriptive and inferential statistics and know the purposes of each

Inferential Statistics is trying to draw a conclusion based on the association of variables

What is introspectionism? Why is it NOT a very scientific way to study the mind?

It is looking inward and thinking about your own thoughts

How do psychologists come up with research questions?

Observe and see if any patterns appear or if anything interesting is happening

What are some observable phenomena commonly used in psychology research? Give an example and explain its relationship to activities in the mind

Often, this term is used without considering the causes of a particular event. Example of a physical phenomenon is an observable phenomenon of the lunar orbit or the phenomenon of oscillations of a pendulum.

What assumptions do psychologists have to make when relating observable behaviors and the mind?

Psychologists assume that behavior is at least somewhat predictable; assume observable behavior reflect internal process

6th step

Report findings: to journal publications, conferences even if you think it is insignificant

What is the first step of the Research Process

Research question: often inspired by problems or observations

Think about the challenge of relating activities of the mind to observable phenomena.

The mind makes the person observe something in a unique way based on perception.

What is the mind and why is it hard to study?

The mind offers a set of human conclusions, The mind difficult to study because mental processes are not observable, and many behaviors involve a number of process

How do psychologists study the mind?

They combine human behavior studies and there own data

Why is the representativeness of the sample important for the conclusions we draw?

They ensure all relevant types of people and subjects are included in the conclusions that are found.

Be able to explain to someone not in the course (e.g., a family member or friend) how psychologists examine questions about learning and behavior

They examine questions by doing experiments and case studies with multiple test subjects

How does experimental design affect our conclusions?

They provide with studied raw data from experiments

How do we conduct research in psychology?

Through experiments and case studies and research

Be able to evaluate the quality of a hypothesis

You analyse the hypothesis against the observations of others who have studied that topic in the field

Dependent variable

being measured, depends on the independent

Understand the term "operationalization" and why it is important for interpreting and generalizing results

is the process by which a researcher defines how a concept is measured, observed, or manipulated within a particular study. This process translates the theoretical, conceptual variable of interest into a set of specific operations or procedures that define the variable's meaning in a specific study.