Unit 1: Reading and Notes

Question 1

Empiricism

Answer 1

What we know comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge

Question 2

Structuralism

Answer 2

Early school of though promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind

Question 3

Functionalism

Answer 3

Early school of though promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

Question 4

Experimental Psychologists

Answer 4

The study of behavior and thinking using the experimental method

Question 5

Behaviorism

Answer 5

The view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes . Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2)

Question 6

Humanistic Psychology

Answer 6

A historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people

Question 7

Cognitive Neuroscience

Answer 7

The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition

Question 8

Psychology

Answer 8

The science of behavior and mental processes

Question 9

Nature-nurture issue

Answer 9

The debate over whether the human personality is based off the way you were raised and the experiences you had as a young child or if it’s based off your genes

Question 10

Nature-Nurture example

Answer 10

While some psychologists believe it is nature that shapes a human’s personality, others believe it is nurture that shapes personality. Some believe it is both.

Question 11

Biopsychosocial approach

Answer 11

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis

Question 12

Biosychosocial approach

Answer 12

Someone can be the way they are because of biological, psychological, and social-cultural influences

Question 13

Hindsight Bias

Answer 13

The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it.

Question 14

Hindsight Bias Example

Answer 14

After the stock market drops, people say it was “due for correction”

Question 15

Critical Thinking

Answer 15

Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, assesses the source, discerns hidden values, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions

Question 16

Critical Thinking Example

Answer 16

Looking up the facts behind information before taking it as true

Question 17

Are humans overconfident when it comes to their intelligence

Answer 17

Yes, humans are overconfident when it comes to their intelligence. For example, only 40% of predictions made by experts with 80% confidence were true.

Question 18

Why are humans prone to perceive patterns in the world?

Answer 18

Humans are prone to perceive patterns in the world because of our natural need to make sense of it all

Question 19

How does the scientific attitude contribute to critical thinking

Answer 19

The scientific attitude tells you to believe with skepticism, which is one of the main points of critical thinking

Question 20

Case Study: Strengths vs. Weakness

Answer 20

Strength: shows us what can happen
Weakness: individual cases may mislead us if the individual is atypical

Question 21

Naturalistic Observation: Strengths vs. Weakness

Answer 21

Strength: Describes behavior without any interference
Weakness: Does not explain behavior

Question 22

Surveys: Strengths vs. Weakness

Answer 22

Strength: looks at many cases
Weakness: the way a question is framed can have major effects

Question 23

What is the purpose of a hypothesis in an experiment?

Answer 23

To create a prediction which can be tested. The prediction is often created based on a theory

Question 24

What is an operational definition and how can this affect the results in an experiment?

Answer 24

An operational definition is a carefully wondered statement of the exact procedures used in a research study. This can affect the results in an experiment because it allows anyone to replicate it, therefore allowing the experiment to be further proved or disproved

Question 25

What are the different sampling methods and which one is generally the most effective?

Answer 25

Different sampling methods are the methods in which the people who take the survey are selected. The most effective sampling method is the random sample because it fairly represents the population.

Question 26

Scatterplot

Answer 26

A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables. The slope of the points suggest the direction of the relationship between two variables. The amount of scatter suggest the strength of the correlation

Question 27

Correlation

Answer 27

A measure of the extent to which two variables change together, and thus of how well either variable predicts the other

Question 28

What is the difference between correlation and causation

Answer 28

Correlation is when one variable is present at the same time another variable is present. Causation is when one variable causes another variable

Question 29

What is illusory correlation and provide an example

Answer 29

Illusory correlation is the perception of a relationship where none exists. For example, when people believe bad weather causes arthritis, they are only remembering the times that arthritis was present at the same time as bad weather, not when it wasn’t

Question 30

Explain the difference between the experimental ground and the control group

Answer 30

The experimental group is the group where the independent variable is changed. The control group is the group where the independent variable is not changed

Question 31

Double-Blind procedure

Answer 31

An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participates have received the treatment or a placebo

Question 32

Placebo Effect

Answer 32

Experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active

Question 33

Validity

Answer 33

The extent to which a test or experiment measures or predicts what it is supposed to

Question 34

What can be the dangers of statistical illiteracy?

Answer 34

Because it can lead people to misanalyze data and believe something that is not true as fact

Question 35

What is descriptive statistics and what are some ways to organize data?

Answer 35

Descriptive statistics is numerical data used to measure and describe characteristics of groups. Some ways to organize data are with a bar graph or the mean, median, and mode

Question 36

How can data be skewed?

Answer 36

Data can be skewed if there are a low number of inputs in a large standard deviation

Question 37

Range

Answer 37

The difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

Question 38

Standard Deviation

Answer 38

A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

Question 39

Inferential statistics

Answer 39

Numerical data that allows one to generalize - to infer from a sample of data the probability of something being true of a population

Question 40

Statistical significance

Answer 40

A statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

Question 41

Explain the difference between descriptive and inferential statistics in research

Answer 41

Descriptive statistics is numerical data that describes characteristics in groups and inferential statistics is data that allows you to see the probability of the descriptive statistics being true

Question 42

Informed Consent

Answer 42

An ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

Question 43

Debrief

Answer 43

The post experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants