research: Replication crisis

Dr. No studies flirting by observing teenagers at the mall. She concludes that flirting happens with strangers more often than it happens with friends. Dr. Yes evaluates these findings by observing the same set of behaviors with an adult sample at a local bar. Which of the following best describes Dr. Yes' research?

A conceptual replication of an earlier study

Dalton is hired by a store to pretend to be a customer. When a real customer shows interest in watches or jewellery Dalton-who is browsing nearby-says "oh, that is really nice." The store owner finds this drives more sales. What is Dalton doing?

He is the store's confederate.

Imagine that there are several successful exact replications of a study. What does it mean?

It means that the findings of the original study are true

Should psychological researchers be penalized for non-replications of their published research?

No because non-replications may be due to cultural changes or errors in the replication attempt.

If you read about a psychological finding in a textbook, can you know for sure that it is accurate?

No, you should only consider the finding accurate if it has been replicated

Which of the following statements about research that primes intelligence by having participants think about "professors" or "soccer hooligans" is the most correct?

Participants primed with professors scored higher on the trivia game. However, this research did not replicate so it is unlikely that this type of priming actually affects intelligence.

What is sample size?

number of participants in a study

What was the overall percentage of findings that were successfully replicated by the Open Science Collaboration in 2015?

36%

Dr. Original conducts a study, finds significant results, and gets an article published. Dr. Copycat conducts the same study in her own lab using the same methodology and a matching sample of new participants. How would the field of psychology view Dr. Copycat's research?

Dr. Copycat's work would be considered an exact replication of Dr. Original's research. It might be published in order to demonstrate whether Dr. Original's finding replicate.

How does the media contribute to the general public having inaccurate ideas about the results of scientific research?

The media tend to disseminate stories of novel, interesting findings even if these findings have not yet been successfully replicated.

What would a researcher attempting to conduct a conceptual replication of a past study do?

The researcher would read the published article about the original research and create new procedures and materials that test the same hypothesis in a somewhat different way.

What would a researcher attempting to conduct an exact replication of a past study do?

The researcher would read the published article about the original research and use the same materials and procedures with new participants.

Why was Bem's (2011) study that showed that the future could influence the past published?

The study was methodologically sound.

What can psychological researchers do to help solve the replication crisis?

They can conduct multiple conceptual replications of their own research.

How have new resources such as the Center for Open Science and psychfiledrawer.org helped to solve the replication crisis?

They have created outlets where the results of replication attempts can be made available.

Yesica has found that that saying "Do you believe in love at first sight?" is a very effective way to get attractive strangers to give her their phone numbers. Her sister, Yaneli, decides to try it but instead says, "I lost my phone number. Can I have yours?" In terms of psychological research, what is Yaneli doing?

Yaneli is conducting a conceptual replication of Yesica's "study".

what is a confederate?

individuals recruited by lead experimenters to play the role of a bystander, participant, or teammate

A professor attends a student poster session and sees a poster that claims that 40% of college students use prescription or illegal drugs. I class that day she notices that some of her students have red eyes and seem very sleepy. She decides that many of her students are probably on drugs. What concept does this example illustrate?

priming

What is the definition of replication?

repeating research to determine whether findings are consistent across time and situations

What is priming?

when a recent experience that an individual may or may not be aware of influences the individual's thoughts, feelings, or behaviour