psych 303 final exam
operational deifnition
a description of an experimental variable in such a way that the variable can be measured and the procedure can be replicated
measured variable
a factor/variable affecting the outcome of an experiment that is measured
reliability
the consistency in its measures of a research study or measuring test -refers to the repeatability of findings
observer (rater) bias
the cultural assumptions which all researchers bring to their work and which help determine their method of research and their observations.
compliance effects
the effect that the words, actions, or presence of other people have on our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, or behavior -social influence is driving force
strength of association
the extent to which one variable is related to the other
treatment group
the group in the experiment that receives the experimental manipulation, also called the experimental group
conceptual variable
the independent variable that the researcher personally invents and defines, such as "taste in music," or one that exists in scientific literature, such as "Gratitude."
WEIRD sample
the participants of a study are overwhelmingly Western Educated from Industrialized Rich and Democratic countries
manipulated variable
the thing that is changed on purpose in an experiment to see if the change will cause an effect in something they observe. also called the independent variable
forced-choice
type of measure in which respondents compare two or more desirable options and pick the one that is most preferred -requires test-taker to identify or recognize a previously-prevented stimulus by choosing between multiple options
independent variable (IV)
type of variable manipulated by the experimenter
quantitative variable
variable that provides some form of numerical 'measurement' of what is being studied - i.e., the measure can be quantified.
zero association
variables have no relationship whatsoever
null hypothesis
what the researcher has to disprove, reject, or nullify -proposes that there is no statistical significance in a certain set of given observations
biased sample
where a sample is collected in such a way that some members of the intended population are less likely to be included than others
spurious association
where two or more variables/events have no direct causal (logical) connection, yet it is wrongly inferred that they do because of the presence of a third, unseen variable
restriction of range
The difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution
curvilinear association
The level of one variable changes its pattern as the other variable increases.
association claims
It suggests that the two variables are related, but they do not cause one another -It helps us make predictions by reducing the size of our prediction errors. The stronger it is, the more accurate our predictions are.
sequence (carryover) effects
Last variable might carry over into next variable, causing skewed results
one group pre-post design
Minimal Control. There is somewhat more structure, there is a single selected group under observation, with a careful measurement being done before applying the experimental treatment and then measuring after. This design has minimal internal validity, controlling only for selection of subject and experimental mortality. It has no external validity.
third variable
When two variables appear to be related to each other but there is another unknown variable (the third variable) that is the real source of the link between the other two variables. For example, you're getting less sleep because of more stress, but could that be caused by your new job?
repeated-measures
Where the same group does all levels of the IV -research design in which participants are exposed to both the experimental and control conditions (also known as within-subjects design)
interrater reliability
consistency in the results of study
type I error
incorrect rejection of a true null hypothesis, a "false positive" -Saying there is a relationship when there is not.
type II error
incorrectly retaining a false null hypothesis, a "false negative" -Saying there is not a relationship when there is.
convenience sample
non-probability sampling technique where subjects are selected because of their convenient accessibility and proximity to the reseacher
correlational study
research method in which variables are related, but does not indicate causation
reactivity effects
Participants might react more in a study than usual
demand characteristics
Participants might try to act according to how they think the researcher wants them to act
frequency claims
How often or the percentage of something that happens.
measurement scales
- Psychophysical Scaling: Concepts such as brightness ex: less bright, more bright, no difference - Psychometric Scaling: Concepts of emotions: relies on behavior or what is said ex: less happy, more happy - Likert Scales: Rating scale ex: 1 - 10
logic of hypothesis testing
1) state the hypothesis 2) define the decision method (using sample data) 3) obtain data 4) make a decision-compare value of a statistic computed from the sample data with the hypothesized value of the population parameter -if data consistent w hypothesis, we reject the null hypothesis -if there is a big discrepancy between the data and the hypothesis, we conclude that hypothesis is wrong
three fundamental principles of ethics in research
1- principle of beneficence 2- principle of justice 3- principle of respect for persons
comparison group
A group in an experiment whose levels on the independent variable differ from those of the treatment group in some intended and meaningful way. -It allows a person to compare what would happen both with and without the thing you are interested in.
experiments
A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable). By random assignment of participants, the investigator aims to control other relevant factors.
random sample
A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion.
theory
A statement or a set of statements that describes general principles about how variables relate to one another.
correlation coefficient
A statistical index of the relationship between two things (from -1 to +1).
control variables
Always consistent
confederate
An actor playing a specific role for the experimenter.
principle of justice
An ethical principle from the Belmont Report calling for a fair balance between kinds of people who participate in research and the kinds of people who benefit from it.
principle of respect for persons
An ethical principle from the Belmont Report stating that research participants should be treated as autonomous agents and that certain groups deserve special protections.
floor effect
At the bottom of the scale/ 0%
ceiling effect
At the top of the scale/ 100%
dependent variable (DV)
Depends on / Result of the independent variable
between-groups designs
Each group only gets 1 IV
blind design
Experiment where the subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or control group
self-report measures
Person is reporting on their own personal state
matching sample
Pretest and similar participants would go together
likert scale
Rating scale ex: 1 - 10
informed consent
Research participants' rights to learn about a research project, know its risks and benefits, and decide whether to participate
causal claims
The verb or action suggests that one variable brings about another reaction in another.
scatterplot
The visual representation on the variables and how they correlate with each other.
deception
The withholding of some details of a study from participants or the act of actively lying to them.
debrief
To inform participants afterward about a study's true nature, details, and hypotheses.
control group
Untreated participants
counterbalancing
a method of controlling potential order effects whereby half the research participants experience the experimental condition first, followed by the control condition, and the other half experience the control condition first, followed by the experimental condition
stratified random sample
a sample that is divided into various strata, or sub-groups, and then a random sample technique is used to select the sample members for each stratum
population
all of the individuals from which subjects for an experiment may be drawn
participant variables
also called subject variables -the differing individual characteristics of participants in an experiment
self-selection
any situation in which individuals select themselves into a group, causing a biased sample with non-probability sampling.
negative association
both variables move in opposite directions
positive association
both variables move in the same direction
bivariate correlation
describes the effect that two or more phenomena occur together and therefore they are linked
open-ended question
designed to encourage a full meaningful answer using the subject's own knowledge and/or feelings
outlier
distribution point that is much further away from the other points -can skew measurements so that the results are not representative of the actual numbers
placebo effect
due to a belief that something will happen, it does happen
random selection
each member of a group stands an equal chance of being chosen as a participant in the study
selection bias
error in choosing the individuals/groups to take part in the study -selection of individuals/groups/data for analysis in such a way that proper randomization is not achieve, which makes the sample obtained not representative of the population intended to be analyzed. "selection effect"
measurement error
errors when collecting and calculating data
institutional review board
ethical review board- approves, modifies, and disapproves research -protects rights and welfare of human research subjects
quasi-experimental designs
experiment where participants are not randomly assigned.
factorial designs
experiment whose design consists of two or more factors, each with levels -allow researchers to look at how multiple factors and their separate and conjoined influence on the subject of interest in the experiment -factor is an independent variable in the experiment and a level is a subdivision of a factor
order (practice/fatigue) effects
extraneous variable whereby a participant's performance on particular tasks may be affected by the order in which they are required to complete those tasks
response set bias
general term for any kind of cognitive bias that influences the responses of the participants away from an accurate or truthful response
test-retest reliability
giving the same test twice in succession over a short time interval
representative sample
group of participants selected from a larger population that closely matches the characteristics of the population as a whole -sample is fairly accurate reflection of the population from which the sample is drawn
sample
group of people who take part in the study/experiment. referred to as participants
subject attrition
happens when a group gets smaller in number bc members quit the study. -the reliability of a study can be threatened bc the people can drop out for a variety of reasons
matched groups
matching similar subjects or groups with each other to allow for different experimental conditions to be observed while being able to control for individual difference by matching similar subjects or groups with each other.
falsifiability of a theory
possibility or fact that a theory can be proven false
experimental condition/condition
presenting the IV to members of the experimental condition to determine what effect an IV has on some measure
process debriefing
procedure conducted after an experiment/study has been concluded -structured or semi structured interview btwn researchers and subjects where all elements of study are discussed in detail
hypothesis
proposes a tentative explanation about a phenomena observed in the natural world
pretest/posttest designs
quasi-experiment where participants are studied before and after the experimental manipulation. Remember, quasi-experimental simply means participants are not randomly assigned. -design means that you are able to see the effects of some type of treatment on a group.
surveys
questioning of a large group of people
leading questions
questions that encourage a particular desired answer, often because of the way the question is phrased
observer (expectancy) effects
refers to changes that the act of observation will make on a phenomenon being observed.
confidentiality
requirement that the participants privacy is protected
within-groups designs
research design in which participants are exposed to both the experimental and control condition, also called repeated-measures
principle of beneficence
researchers should have the welfare of the research participant as a goal of any clinical trial or other research study
social desirability
response bias where there is the tendency of survey respondents to answer questions in a manner that will be viewed favorable by others -trying to present themselves in the best possible light
selection effect
same as selection bias
alpha level/significance level
significance level that is the probability of making the wrong decision when the null hypothesis is true -called a significance level/significance test
research hypothesis
statement created by researchers when they speculate upon the outcome of research or experiment
cultural psychology
study of how psychological and cultural behavioral tendencies are rooted in and embodied in culture -mind and culture are inseparable and mutually constitutive, meaning that people are shaped by their culture and their culture shaped by them
levels
subdivision of a factor in an experiment