Psych-Chapter 1 Research Methods psych

Question 1

Case study

Answer 1

An intensive study of one person

Question 2

Control group

Answer 2

A group within an experiment that does not experience the experimental manipulation

Question 3

Correlation

Answer 3

The tendency of two variables to change together. If one goes up as the other goes up the correlation is positive; if one goes up as the other goes down, the correlation is negative

Question 4

Correlation coefficient (r)

Answer 4

A number that expresses both the size and the direction of a correlation, varying from + 1.00 (perfect positive correlation) to -1.00 (perfect negative correlation).

Question 5

Correlational studies

Answer 5

Studies in which the investigator analyzes the relationships among the variables that were in place before the study, without manipulating those variables.

Question 6

Debriefing

Answer 6

A step at the end of an experiment in which the researcher explains the study’s purpose and design to each participant and undoes any manipulation to participants’ beliefs or state.

Question 7

Demand characteristics

Answer 7

Th cues in a study that might tell a research participant what behaviors are expected or desirable in that setting.

Question 8

Dependent variable

Answer 8

The variable that is measured or recorded in an experiment

Question 9

Descriptive statistics

Answer 9

Mathematical procedures that allow a researcher to characterize a data pattern; these procedures include measures of central tendency and of variability.

Question 10

Double-blind design

Answer 10

The technique of assigning participants to experimental conditions while keeping both the participants and the researchers unaware of who is assigned to the group.

Question 11

Effect size

Answer 11

The magnitude of the difference between groups in a study, often computed by subtracting the mean of one group’s scores from mean the other’s scores.

Question 12

Empirical claims

Answer 12

Claims hat can be true or false depending on the facts.

Question 13

Experiment

Answer 13

A study of causal relationships in which the researcher manipulates an independent variable to examine its effect on a dependent variable.

Question 14

Experimental group

Answer 14

The group within an experiment that experiences the researcher’s manipulation of the independent variable.

Question 15

Experimental manipulation

Answer 15

The deliberate alteration of the independent variable in an experiment in order to learn about its effects on the dependent variable.

Question 16

External validity

Answer 16

The degree to which a study’s participants, stimuli, and procedures adequately reflect the world as it actually is.

Question 17

Independent variable

Answer 17

The variable that the experimenter manipulates as a basis for making predictions about the dependent variable.

Question 18

Inferential statistics

Answer 18

Mathematical procedures that allow a researcher to draw further claims a data pattern, including claims about whether the pattern observed in the sample is likely to be observed in other samples.

Question 19

Informed consent

Answer 19

A research participant’s agreement to take part in the study, based on full information about what the experiment will involve.

Question 20

Internal validity

Answer 20

The characteristic of a study that allows us to conclude that the manipulation of the independent variable caused the observed changes in the dependent variable.

Question 21

Intrinsically rewarding

Answer 21

An activity or object that is pursued for its own sake.

Question 22

Median

Answer 22

A measure of central tendency taken by putting the data values in order and finding the value that divides the distribution in half.

Question 23

Mean (M)

Answer 23

A measure of central tendency computed by calculating the sum of all the observations, then dividing by the number of observations.

Question 24

Meta-analysis

Answer 24

A statistical technique for combining the results of many studies on a particular topic, even when the studies used different data collection methods.

Question 25

Operational definition

Answer 25

A definition that translates the variable we want to assess into a specific procedure or measurement.

Question 26

Population

Answer 26

The entire group about which the investigator wants to draw conclusions. See also sample.

Question 27

Quasi-experiment

Answer 27

A comparison that relies on already-existing groups (I.e., groups the experimenter did not create).

Question 28

Random assignment

Answer 28

In an experimental design, the random placement of participants in either the experimental or control groups, ensuring that the groups are matched at the outset of the experiment.

Question 29

Random sampling

Answer 29

A procedure in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being picked to participate in a study.

Question 30

Reliability

Answer 30

The degree of consistency with which a test measures a trait or attribute. See also test-retest reliability.

Question 31

Replication

Answer 31

A repetition of an experiment that yields the same results.

Question 32

Sample

Answer 32

The subset of the population that the investigator studies in order to learn about the population at large. See also population.

Question 33

Standard deviation (SD)

Answer 33

A measure of the variability of a data set, calculated as the square root of the variance (V).

Question 34

Statistical significance

Answer 34

A calculation central to inferential statistics that describes the likelihood that the results of a study happened by chance.

Question 35

Testable hypothesis

Answer 35

A prediction that has been formulated specifically enough so that it is clear what observations would confirm the prediction and what observations would challenge it.

Question 36

Third-variable problem

Answer 36

The possibility that the two correlated variables may be changing together only due to the operation of a third variable.

Question 37

Validity

Answer 37

The extent to which a method or procedure measures what it is supposed to measure. See also construct validity, external validity, internal validity, predictive validity.

Question 38

Variability

Answer 38

The degree to which scores in a frequency distribution depart from the central value.

Question 39

Variable

Answer 39

Any characteristic whose values can change.

Question 40

Within-subject comparisons

Answer 40

Within a study, comparing the data about each participant in one situation to data about the same participant in another situation.

Question 41

Between-subject comparisons

Answer 41

Within a study, comparing one group of individuals to a different group