pysch handout 2-3
longitudinal study
studying the same group of individuals over a long period of time
population
the entire group from which subjects may be sleeved for a study
experimental group
the participants in an experiment who are exposed to the treatment; that is the independent variable
control group
the participants in an experiment who are not exposed to the independent variable
independent variable
the research variable that is hypothesized to cause a change in the dependent variable
dependent variable
what changes as a result of the independent variable
case study
when one person is studied in depth
participant bias
when participants in research respond differently than they normally would because of what the believe the researcher wants
researcher bias
when researchers selectively notice evidence that supports their hypothesis or expectations
placebo
a nonactive substance that may be administered instead of a drug
experiment
a research method in which the researchers manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on another variable while confounding variables remain controlled
correlational study
a research project strategy that investigates the degree to which two variables are related to one another
survey method
a research technique designed to discover the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of people thought he use of questionnaires or interviews
random sampling
a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal change of being included
operational definition
a statement of the exact behaviors a researcher is looking for in a research study
hypothesis
an investigators testable prediction about the outcome of research
random assignment
assuming participants to experimental and control groups by change
double blind procedure
both the data collectors and the research participants do not know the expected outcome of the experiment
cross sectional study
compare people of different ages at one time
confounding variables
could inadvertently influence the dependent variable; can be eliminated through random assignment; types: environmental differences and expectation effects
replication
repeating the essence of a research study to see whether the results can be reliably reproduced
blind procedure
research participants are ignorant to the expected outcome of the experiment