Chapter 2: Key Terms

IACUC

(Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee) committee of administrators, scientists, veterinarians, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants.

IRB

(Institutional Review Board) committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants.

peer reviewed journal article

article read by several other scientists (usually anonymously) with expertise in the subject matter, who provide feedback regarding the quality of the manuscript before it is accepted for publication.

cross-sectional research

compares multiple segments of a population at a single time.

inductive reasoning

conclusion are drawn from observations.

generalize

inferring the results for a sample apply to the larger population.

double blind study

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments.

single blind study

experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group.

inter rater reliability

measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify a particular event.

random assignment

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

archival research

method of research using past records or data sets to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships.

deception

purposely misleading experiment participants in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment.

attrition

reduction in number of research participants as some drop out of the study over time.

correlation

relationship between two or more variables; when two variables are correlated, one variable changes as the other does.

control group

serves as a basis for comparison and controls for chance factors that might influence the results of the study-- by holding such factors constant across groups so that the experimental manipulation is the only difference between groups.

longitudinal research

studies in which the same group of individuals is surveyed or measured repeatedly over an extended period of time.

participants

subjects of psychological research.

random sample

subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal change of being selected.

sample

subset of individuals selected from a larger population.

confirmation bias

tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs.

hypothesis

tentative and testable statement about the relationship between two or more variables.

negative correlation

two variable change in different directions, with one becoming larger as the other becomes smaller; it is not the same thing as no correlation.

positive correlation

two variables change int he same direction, both becoming either larger or smaller.

survey

list of questions to be answered by research participants--given as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally--allowing researchers to collect data from a larger number of people.

population

overall group of individuals that the researchers are interested in.

statistical analysis

determines how likely an difference between experimental groups is due to chance.

falsifiable

able to be disproven by experimental results.

validity

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

cause and effect relationship

changes in one variable cause the changes in the other variable; can be determined only through an experimental research design.

reliability

consistency and reproducibility of a given result.

operational definition

description of what actions and operations will be used to measure the dependent variables and manipulate the independent variables.

empirical

grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed time and time again, regardless of who is observing.

experimental group

group designed to answer the research question; experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, so any differences between the two are due to experimental manipulation rather than chance.

correlation coefficient

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

fact

objective and verifiable observation, established using evidence collected through empirical research.

naturalistic observation

observation of behavior in its natural setting

clinical or case study

observational research study focusing on one or a few people.

placebo effect

people's expectations or beliefs influencing or determining their experience in a given situation.

opinion

personal judgments, conclusions, or attitudes that may or may not be accurate.

informed consent

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiments, any risks involved, and the implications of the research, and then obtaining the person's consent to participate.

replicate

repeating an experiment using different samples to determine the research's reliability.

experimenter bias

researcher expectations skew the results of the study.

deductive reasoning

results are predicted based on a general premise.

illusory correlation

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

confounding variable

unanticipated outside actor that affects both variables of interest, often giving the false impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable, when, in actuality, the outside factor causes changes in both variables.

independent variable

variable that is influenced or controlled by the experimenter; in a sound experimental study, the independent variable is the only important difference between the experimental and control group.

dependent variable

variable that the researcher measures to see how much effect the independent variable had.

theory

well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena.

debriefing

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

observer bias

when observations may be skewed to align to observer expectations.