PSYC 301 Lecture Chapter 1 and 2

Match each research question to the type of research it describes. (basic research, translational research, applied research) a) how quickly can the eye switch between targets? b) do tablet computers increase the productivity of nurses in an emergency room? c) what are the effects of cocaine on the sociability of rats? d) can historically effective interventions for depression be used in schools on children? e) do farm safety days decrease accidents with rural children? f) can the previously documented persuasive effects of scarcity be used to increase recycling?

Basic Research: a, c Translational Research: f, d Applied Research: e, b

City libraries were interested in the effectiveness of summer reading programs in improving the reading ability of elementary school students. They implemented two types of summer reading programs in libraries across the city. One program was a 2-week intensive camp, and one program lasted the entire summer. The program that each library implemented was decided by drawing a line through the center of the city. One year later, city officials compared reading abilities via standardized tests of all the elementary schools in the city. They found that elementary schools close to libraries with the longer summer reading programs boasted higher reading comprehension. State whether or not the aspects could be considered confounds: a) the libraries were in different locations b) the long program read more books. c) the elementary schools may have been of different qualities. d) the standardized tests were graded incorrectly. e) completion of each program results in a free book.

Confound: a, c Not a Confound: b,d,e

Research consumer: Research producer: statistician, lawyer, school teacher, field data collector, FBI agent, investor, research psychologist

Consumer: lawyer, school teacher, FBI agent, investor Producer: statistician, field data collector, research psychologist

Identify each activity as either producing or consuming research: using research findings to update patients' treatment plans creating and testing a hypothesis on sexuality in teenagers using previous studies to create a new study that analyzes all of those previous findings reporting current trends in biology research to the public

Producing research: creating and testing a hypothesis on sexuality in teenagers using previous studies to create a new study that analyzes all of those previous findings Consuming research: using research findings to update patients' treatment plans reporting current trends in biology research to the public

Imagine you are looking for reliable scientific sources about self-esteem. Rank the options according to their likelihood of helping you find a reliable scientific source, starting with the most helpful option. library or bookstore, PsycINFO, Wikipedia, Google Scholar

PsycINFO, Google Scholar, library or bookstore, Wikipedia

Determine whether or not the following are considered reliable scientific sources. information from your uncle Bob who was once in a psychology study Journal of Personality and Social psychology Handbook of Social Cognition a scientific study reported by the BBC scientific evidence found on Wikipedia

Reliable: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Handbook of Social Cognition Unreliable: information from your uncle Bob who was once in a psychology study a scientific study reported by the BBC scientific evidence found on Wikipedia

Tracy is conducting a study. She has Phil pretend to be a salesman, and she has Erica pretend to be a customer, to see if Erica's presence will convince others to be interested in Phil's product. Tammy and Samantha walk up to Phil and ask him about the product. Phil then informs them that this is part of a research experiment and that he would like to ask them a few questions.Match each person to his or her role in the study. Tammy, Samantha, Tracy, Erica, Phil Roles: researcher, confederate, participant

Researcher: Tracy Confederate: Phil, Erica Participant: Tammy, Samantha

Yara tells a few friends about a study that suggests that being less motivated to succeed can improve test performance. Yara, however, did not fully understand the study's finding, which was that being overly motivated can hinder test performance.What is the consequence of Yara being a poor research consumer? She and her friends could adopt a practice that hurts their test scores rather than helps. Nothing-just having a conversation about research does not have serious consequences. Regardless of how it is spread, discussing scientific information will encourage critical thinking. Her friends will become interested in the article and read it, causing them to learn the correct answer regardless.

She and her friends could adopts a practice that hurts their test scores rather than helps.

Listed are several parts of a scientific study. Match each part to its corresponding step of the theory-data cycle. (theory, research question, data, hypothesis, research design) Junto records awkwardness ratings and analyzes them to see if there is a difference. Junto wonders if a differently sized elevator would change how awkward people feel in an elevator. Junto believes that a participant placed in a larger elevator will feel less awkward than a participant placed in a smaller elevator. Based on previous data, Junto believes that most people do not interact in an elevator because it is a confined space and they feel awkward. Junto creates a plan to test participants in differently sized elevators to understand what effect elevator size may have on awkwardness.

Theory: Based on previous data, Junto believes that most people do not interact in an elevator because it is a confined space and they feel awkward. Research Question: Junto wonders if a differently sized elevator would change how awkward people feel in an elevator. Data: Junto records awkwardness ratings and analyzes them to see if there is a difference. Hypothesis: Junto believes that a participant placed in a larger elevator will feel less awkward than a participant placed in a smaller elevator. Research Design: Junto creates a plan to test participants in differently sized elevators to understand what effect elevator size may have on awkwardness.

Sort the statements as either true or false: a) it is not necessary to read a research article from start to finish b) it can be effective to only focus on the part of an article that accentuate the argument being made c) it is not useful to read the abstract. d) if you do not understand the results section, you should ignore it

True: a, b False: c, d

True or False: a) it is possible for an expert to be wrong b) authorities do not fall victim to the same biases others do c) sometimes authorities only present their side of an argument d) authorities who have researched a certain area should not be questions

True: a, c False: b, d

True or False: a) personal experience can be just as valuable as research if you document your experiences properly. b) a comparison group allows experimenters to show that a treatment is effective. c) if a research study finds an effect that majority of the time, there is no guarantee it will happen to you. d) using multiple groups allows researchers to isolate potential confounds. e) if the results from a research study do not apply to every case, that research should not be taken seriously.

True: b, c, d False: a, e

True or False: a) If a researcher tests his hypothesis and the results are as predicted, this proves his theory. b) Every theory should be falsifiable. c) If a result does not support a theory, that theory should be discarded. d) The simplest theory that explains all of the data is the best theory.

True: d, b False: a, c

Match each role to the type of person it describes: a) one who takes research and applies it to one's career or daily life b) one who facilitates the research process in order to increase knowledge

a) research consumer b) research producer

Place the parts of a typical journal article in order of appearance. results, discussion, abstract, introduction, method

abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion

Confound: Confederate: Probabilistic: Comparison Group:

an alternative explanation for a study's results an actor playing a specific role for the experimenter the quality of a study that causes the majority of outcomes to not explain all cases a group used to study what would happen if both possibilities of an outcome occurred

While giving a lecture on language, Giancarlo's professor, Dr. Franklyn, says something that seems to Giancarlo to contradict the textbook. Giancarlo decides not to ask a clarifying question because he assumes that Dr. Franklyn knows more than he does, so he must have misunderstood what the textbook said.What source of information is Giancarlo relying on?

authority

Amanda's teacher asks her which city is farther north—Des Moines, Iowa, or Boulder, Colorado. Amanda thinks to herself that Colorado is known for being cold and mountainous, therefore Boulder must be farther north. Her teacher tells her that Des Moines is actually farther north.What type of faulty thinking is this an example of? confirmatory hypothesis testing, present/present bias, bias blind spot, availability heuristic

availability heuristic explanation: Amanda thinks that the answer is Boulder because the idea of Colorado being cold comes most easily to her.

Terrance has had a difficult time dealing with stress lately because of past traumatic experiences that have been bothering him. He goes to see a therapist and tells her his problem. His therapist, Janice, recently read an article about adjustment disorder. She suggests that Terrance may have this disorder and diagnoses him as such. Even though Janice is a trained psychologist, her diagnosis is not purely based on her client's symptoms but is partially influenced by the ____________________. Because Janice should be aware of her susceptibility to faulty thinking, her mistake is an example of the _______________. bias blind spot, confirmation bias, availability heuristic, present/present bias

availability heuristic, bias blind spot

Mike is told by his psychology professor that people are likely to be swayed by a story that sounds good or "makes sense." Later that week, Mike begins experiencing stomach pain and thinks he may have a stomach ulcer. He asks his roommate what he should do, and the roommate suggests that the pain must be from all the spicy food Mike likes to eat. Mike agrees with his roommate, and without doing any research, he avoids spicy food to try to help his stomach pain.What type of faulty thinking is this an example of?

bias blind spot explain: Make has been told that people are often convinced by information that "makes sense." Despite that, he is still convinced by his roommate that eating spicy food makes his stomach hurt, because it seems reasonable.

After owning his new smartphone for two months, Tyler concludes that it is superior to the rival brand's phone he was thinking of buying. Tyler's conclusion is not based on empirical research. Though he examined his new phone, he is missing a/an _______.

comparison group

Eliza designs an experiment because she believes that watching violent movies makes people more aggressive. She tests aggressiveness after having participants watch 30 minutes of a violent action movie versus a nonviolent action movie. Her dependent variable in the violent condition asks, "Do you feel more violent and aggressive after watching this violent and aggressive movie?"What type of faulty thinking is this an example of?

confirmatory hypothesis testing

Patrick thinks his favorite baseball team is the best in the league. He checks an online sports website and sees an article by a sports journalist claiming that his team's rival is the best team. Patrick ignores that article and instead reads a different article celebrating the achievements of his favorite team.What type of faulty thinking is this an example of?

confirmatory hypothesis testing

Charles is designing a study in which he combines the findings of ___________ and calculates the magnitude of all the combined results, otherwise known as a ___________. Research like this can combine the statistical findings of individual studies to identify a(n) ___________. This type of research usually does not use ____________. empirical articles, review articles, confound, discussion, design, probalistic, meta-analysis, effect size

empirical articles, meta-analysis, effect size, review articles

Using evidence from the senses (or an instrument to assist the senses) as the basis for conclusions is known as _______.

empiricism

String theory is a theory of physics that claims that all particles are made up of strings so small that they cannot be viewed by humans even with the assistance of technology. Although there is some evidence to support string theory, most scientists point out its main weakness, which is that it is not _______.

falsifiable explain: because the strings are not viewable, there is no way to prove the theory incorrect.

A scientific ________ is a periodic publication that is ________ and contains articles written by qualified _______. journalists, parsimonious, falsifiable, journal, peer-reviewed, researchers

journal, peer-reviewed, researchers

Match each description to the correct type of article (meta-analysis article, review article, empirical article): a) articles that quantitatively analyzes thirty previously conducted studies on gender discrimination b) article that discusses all the current work on eye-tracking technology c) article about a 3-year field study on risky decision making in at-risk youths d) report of an experiment that tested the effects of different types of grammar on decision making e)combination of various studies on imagination that is examined as one large study f) summary of the current literature on psychopathy and criminal behavior

meta-analysis: a, e review article: b, f empirical article: c, d

A theory that offers the simplest explanation is _______.

parsimonious

Heather is looking for a new album to listen to and searches all throughout the music store, comparing several different albums. She finds one album that two of her friends have said they really liked. Heather thinks that because two of her friends liked it, she should like it; however, she does not account for the fact that she has many other friends who have not told her their opinions on the album.What type of faulty thinking is this an example of?

present/present bias

Determine whether or not the following are reliable sources when choosing an allergy medicine: a drug study conducted by the FDA on the effectiveness of each medicine your intuition that a certain drug will work best a celebrity doctor who recommends that everyone use a certain drug your mom's advice that she had the most success with a certain drug

reliable: a drug study conducted by the FDA on the effectiveness of each medicine unreliable: your intuition that a certain drug will work best a celebrity doctor who recommends that everyone use a certain drug your mom's advice that she had the most success with a certain drug

Which aspect of a trade book is most likely to be helpful in determining whether it is a reliable source of scientific information? the author, the title, if it's in the psychology section, the reference section

the reference section

Confirmatory hypothesis testing Present/present bias Availability heuristic Bias Blind Spot

the tendency to seek out information that you agree with the tendency to ignore things that are absent the tendency to think the first thing you think of is correct the tendency to ignore the fact that you are susceptible to biases

Place the parts of the theory-data cycle in the order that they usually take place. theory, data, research design, hypothesis, research question

theory, research question, research design, hypothesis, data