exam I

Question 1

what is psychology?

Answer 1

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes, relies on scientific method

Question 2

what is research methods?

Answer 2

ways to answer questions about people’s behavior and mental processes

Question 3

illusory correlation

Answer 3

focus on two events that occur together and assume they are causally related

Question 4

intuition and authority are…

Answer 4

limited

Question 5

empiricism

Answer 5

knowledge is based on observation, data plays central role

Question 6

adversarial

Answer 6

competing hypotheses/predictions are tested to move us closer to the truth

Question 7

how to be skilled consumer of research

Answer 7

what was measured/how, how do they know one thing caused another, to what/whom can we generalize the results, have other researchers found same results?

Question 8

4 goals of science

Answer 8

1. describe behavior
2. predict behavior
3. determine the causes of behavior
4. explain behavior

Question 9

describing behavior

Answer 9

describing systematic relationships between events/variables

Question 10

predicting behavior

Answer 10

when two events co-vary systematically, we can start to predict the likelihood of one event from another

Question 11

determining causes of behavior (factors)

Answer 11

temporal precedence, covariation of cause and effect, elimination of alternative explanations

Question 12

understanding/explaining behavior

Answer 12

answering the “why?” questions

Question 13

applied research

Answer 13

use of research psychology theories and methods to address practical problems and propose potential solutions

Question 14

basic research

Answer 14

tries to answer fundamental questions about nature of behavior

Question 15

program evaluation

Answer 15

assesses social reforms and innovations occurring in government, education, criminal justice system, industry, etc.

Question 16

theories

Answer 16

systematic body of ideas about a particular topic
functions: organize/explain and generate new ideas

Question 17

common sense

Answer 17

adages or sayings, commonly held beliefs

Question 18

5 research sources of ideas

Answer 18

theories, common sense, observation, past research, practical problems

Question 19

abstract

Answer 19

research summary in 120 words

Question 20

introduction

Answer 20

what are you studying? how does past research lead logically to current study hypotheses?

Question 21

methods

Answer 21

overview, participants, measures, procedure

Question 22

results

Answer 22

statistical analysis and findings

Question 23

discussion

Answer 23

discuss findings in context of current literature, limitations, future directions, concluding thoughts

Question 24

milgram’s obedience experiment

Answer 24

very strong shock, how far will go to obey authority figure

Question 25

tuskegee syphilis experiment

Answer 25

U.S. public health service on 399 black men in late stages of syphilis (effects of untreated)

Question 26

belmont report main principles

Answer 26

beneficence, respect for persons, justice

Question 27

beneficence

Answer 27

risk-benefits analysis (harm/stress vs treatment/educational benefits or application)

Question 28

compensation is...

Answer 28

NOT a benefit in beneficence

Question 29

autonomy

Answer 29

ability to make deliberate decisions about participation, informed consent process

Question 30

issues w autonomy

Answer 30

vulnerable populations, coercion, info issues, debriefing

Question 31

justice

Answer 31

selection of participants must be just

Question 32

equity

Answer 32

scientific rationale for including/excluding populations

Question 33

exempt from IRB oversight

Answer 33

no more than minimal risk AND edu research, surveys/interviews/observations, analysis of previous data, etc

Question 34

non-exempt research (expedited review)

Answer 34

no more than minimal risk AND some clinical/drug studies, noninvasive blood/biological specimens, recordings, etc

Question 35

full board review

Answer 35

more than minimal risk, new treatments, invasive procedures, collecting sensitive data with identifiers

Question 36

what is a variable

Answer 36

any event, situation, behavior, individual characteristic, response that varies

Question 37

situational variable

Answer 37

ex temperature, light, rejection

Question 38

participant variable

Answer 38

self-esteem, height, reading level

Question 39

response variable

Answer 39

reaction time, cortisol levels, performance, helping behavior

Question 40

mediating variable

Answer 40

explains how/why two variables are related

Question 41

moderating variable

Answer 41

a variable that changes the way one variable (IV) affects another variable (DV)

Question 42

operational definition

Answer 42

defining a variable in terms of the techniques used to measure or manipulate it

Question 43

variables must be measured on...

Answer 43

numeric/continuous scale (not categories)

Question 44

non-experimental method

Answer 44

observing/measuring all variables of interest

Question 45

experimental method

Answer 45

manipulating IV to see its effect on DV, experimental control

Question 46

non-experimental method two problems

Answer 46

direction of cause+effect and third variable effect (extranous/confounding)

Question 47

experimental method 3 factors

Answer 47

manipulation of independent variable, experimental control, randomization

Question 48

manipulation of independent variable establishes...

Answer 48

temporal precedence + co-variation of cause and effect

Question 49

construct validity

Answer 49

operational definition reflect the theoretical meaning of the variable

Question 50

internal validity

Answer 50

ability to draw conclusions about causal relationships changes in IV caused DV changes based on: temporal precedence, covariation of c+e, elimination of alt. explanations/confounds

Question 51

external validity

Answer 51

generalizability! field experiments, diff. operational definitions, participants, settings