feist & rosenberg chapter 2 audio lecture

Introduction to Psychology : 

Introduction to Psychology Chapter 2: Conducting Research in Psychology

Overview : 

Overview Almost everything we know in psychology comes from doing research To understand psychological research, we need to consider The nature of science Different methods for conducting research How we ensure that our research studies are ethical Entire chapter

Objective 1 : 

Objective 1 Explain why we need a scientific approach in psychology Because common sense, logic, and observation are all limited Examples of common sense being correct Examples of common sense/intuition being limited p. 37-38

Objective 2 : 

Objective 2 Identify the three main characteristics of science that distinguish it from non-scientific approaches Science is _____________________, meaning that the knowledge base builds on itself (i.e., we know more than we used to) A __________________ more than a ________________, meaning that psychologists approach their research questions in a particular way p. 38-41

Objective 2(cont.) : 

Objective 2(cont.) An attitude, meaning that psychologists Question authority, including scientific authority Maintain an attitude of open ________________ Adhere to standards related to intellectual honesty

Objective 3 : 

Objective 3 Explain what is meant by the O.P.T.I.C. approach to conducting research in psychology O refers to… P refers to… T refers to… I refers to… C refers to… p. 41-43

Objective 4 : 

Objective 4 Explain what distinguishes science from pseudoscience Pseudoscience refers to… Are philosophy and art pseudoscientific? Why or why not? Examples of pseudoscience p. 43-44

Objective 4(cont.) : 

Objective 4(cont.) Advocates of pseudoscience tend to Make no real advances in __________________ Disregard well-known and established _________________ that contradict their claims Fail to ___________________ or question their assumptions Offer vague or incomplete ______________________ for their findings Use unsound ________________ in making arguments

Objective 5 : 

Objective 5 Explain the principles of research design A variable is a… Examples of variables include… True or false, and explain. Psychologists typically conduct research on entire populations What is the difference between a sample and a population? Why is social desirability bias a problem in research? p. 45-46

Objective 6 : 

Objective 6 Summarize the differences among three types of descriptive studies These research designs are called descriptive because… Case study Naturalistic observation Interview and survey p. 46-50

Objective 7 : 

Objective 7 Describe the correlational research method, and the conclusions that can be drawn from it Much of the research in psychology is correlational; these designs involve determining whether there is a ___________________ between two variables Nothing is manipulated; we just take two variables as they are, and use a statistical formula to see if they are related (the resulting number is called a correlation coefficient) p. 50-51

Objective 7(cont.) : 

Objective 7(cont.) The correlation coefficient can range from _______ to ________ Closer to +/- 1 = stronger relationship Closer to 0 = weaker relationship A chart showing correlational data is called a… Examples Is class attendance related to course performance? Are violent video games related to aggression? Is breastfeeding related to children’s intelligence?

Objective 7(cont.) : 

Objective 7(cont.) If two variables are correlated, we can Say that as the level of one variable changes, the other is likely to change Predict the value of one variable if we know the value of the other variable We cannot Say whether one variable is causing the other one In other words, correlation is _________ __________________ for causation (or, correlation does not prove causation)

Objective 8 : 

Objective 8 Define experiment as the term is used in psychological research, and describe its two characteristics By experiment, we mean a particular kind of study that has A variable that is manipulated, and a variable that is measured ____________________ __________________ to the experimental and control groups p. 52-55

Objective 8(cont.) : 

Objective 8(cont.) Random assignment means that everyone has an equal chance of being in either group and cancels out the effects of ALL VARIABLES EXCEPT THE ONE OF INTEREST Define the following Independent variable Dependent variable Experimental group Control group

Objective 9 : 

Objective 9 Explain how an experiment in psychology is conducted Does Paxil cause people with depression to feel better? Recruit 1,000 volunteers with depression (exact number of participants varies) _________________ assign them to the experimental group and control group p. 52-55 Note: We’re not advocating medications in general, or Paxil specifically. Drug studies are just a very common use of true experiments in psychology

Objective 9(cont.) : 

Objective 9(cont.) If the groups are large enough and we randomly assign people to groups, then the groups differ only in terms of the _____________________ variable The experimental group takes ________________ The control group takes a _________________. Why? Measure the outcome after 12 weeks. The outcome in this study is level of depression, and is also known as the _________________ variable

Objective 10 : 

Objective 10 Explain the difference between single-blind and double-blind experiments, and why experimenter expectancies are important In a single-blind study, the _________________ do not know which group they are in In a double-blind study, neither the _________________ nor the _________________ knows which group participants are in Experimenter expectancy effects occur when… p. 55

Objective 11 : 

Objective 11 Describe Rosenthal’s work on experimenter expectancy effects and explain why it is important Rosenthal’s studies revealed that… Was his study on “late blooming” schoolchildren an experiment? Why or why not? What is the bottom line? Why is this research important? p. 56-58

Objective 12 : 

Objective 12 Describe three types of measures used in psychological research A measure in psychology is a… Self-report Behavioral Physiological p. 59-62

Objective 13 : 

Objective 13 Discuss the components of ethical research in psychology Ethics are defined as… Examples of ethically controversial studies (describe each) Zimbardo’s prison study Milgram’s study of obedience p. 66-68

Objective 13(cont.) : 

Objective 13(cont.) Components of ethical treatment of human participants Informed consent Respect for persons Beneficence (information about costs and benefits) Privacy and confidentiality ___________________ occurs when participants are fully informed after their participation IRBs help ensure that studies are ethical before they begin

Objective 14 : 

Objective 14 Examine the debate around the use of non-human animals in psychological research When is animal research used in psychology? The key to the ethical use of animals in research is _________________ treatment, which means… Summarize arguments on both sides of debate Own view on this issue? p. 68-69

Conclusion : 

Conclusion There are many different ways in which psychologists learn about thought and behavior Each research method has strengths and weaknesses, and allows us to draw particular kinds of conclusions