| Question |
Answer |
| Hindsight bias |
The tendency for people to exaggerate how much they could have predicted an outcome after knowing it occurred |
| Observational method |
The technique where a researcher observes people and records his observations |
| Ethnography |
The method of researchers immersing themselves in the culture they are observing without imposing any preconceived notions they might have |
| Interjudge reliability |
The level of agreement between 2 or more people who independently observe and code data; by showing that 2 or more judges independently come up with the same observations, researchers ensure that the observations are not the subjective, distorted impress |
| Archival analysis |
A form of observation where the researcher examines the accumulated documents, or archives, of a culture (ex. Diaries, novels, magazines, and newspapers) |
| Correlational method |
The technique where 2 or more variables are systematically measured and the relationship between them is assed |
| Correlation conflict |
A statistical technique that assesses how well you can predict one variable from another- ex. How well you can predict peoples weight from their height |
| Surveys |
Research in which a representative sample of people are asked (often anonymously) questions about their attitudes or behaviors |
| Random selection |
A way of ensuring that a sample of a people is representative of a population by giving everyone in the population an equal chance of being selected for the sample |
| Experimental method |
The method in which the researcher randomly assigns the participants to different conditions and ensures that these conditions are identical except for the independent variable (one being manipulated) |
| Independent variable |
The variable a researcher changes or varies to see of it has an effect on some other variable |
| Dependent variable |
The variable a researcher measures to see if it is influenced by the independent variable; the researcher hypothesizes that the dependent variable will depend on the level of the independent variable |
| Random assignment to a condition |
Process ensuring tht all partc. have an = chance in taking part in any cond of an exp; thru random assignment researchers can be relatively certain that differences in the participants personalities or backgrounds are distributed evenly across conditions |
| p- value |
# that tells researchers how likely it is tht the results of their experiment occurred by chance and not because of the I.V. or variables;results are sig if the proby lvl is <5 in 100 that the results might be due to chance factors & not the I.V, studied |
| Internal validity |
Making sure that nothing besides the independent variable can affect the dependent variable; this is accomplished by controlling all extraneous variables and by randomly assigning people to different experimental conditions |
| External validity |
The extent to which the results of a study can be generalized to other situations and to other people |
| Mundane realism |
The extent to which an experiment is similar to real life situations |
| Psychological realism |
The extent to which the psychological processes triggered in an experiment are similar to psychological processes that occur in everyday life; psychological realism can be high in an experiment even if mundane realism is low |
| Cover story |
A description of the purpose of a study, given to the participants, that is not the true reason for the study, used to maintain psychological realism |
| Replication |
Repeating a study often with different subject populations or in different settings |
| Meta- analysis |
A statistical technique that averages the results of two or more studies to see if the effect of an independent variable is reliable |
| Cross-cultural research |
Research conducted with members of different cultures, to see whether the psychological processes of interest are present in both cultures or whether they are specific to the culture in which people were raised |
| Field experiments |
Experiments conducted in natural settings |
| Basic research |
Studies that are done to find the best answer to the question of why people behave as they do and are conducted purely for reasons of intellectual curiosity |
| Applied research |
Studies designed to solve a particular social problem |
| Informed consent |
Agreement to participate in an experiment, granted in full awareness of the nature of the experiment which has been explained in advance |
| Deception |
Misleading participants about the true purpose of a study of the events that will actually transpire |
| Institutional review board |
Group w/ 1 scientist, 1 non-scientist, & 1 other member not affiliated with an institution that reviews all psych research at tht institution & decides whether it meets ethical guidelines; all research must be approved by the IRB bf it can be conducted |
| Debriefing |
Explaining to participants at the end of an experiment the true purpose of the study and exactly what happened |
| Conformity |
A change in ones behavior due to the real or imagined influence of other people |
| Informational social influence |
Influence of other ppl tht leads us to conform bc we see them as a source of info to guide our behavior |
| Private acceptance |
Conforming to other people behavior out of genuine belief that what they are doing or saying is right |
| Public compliance |
Conforming to other peoples behavior publicly without necessarily believing in what we are doing or saying |
| Contagion |
The rapid spread of emotions or behaviors through a crowd |
| Mass psychogenic illness |
The occurrence, in a group of people, of similar symptoms with no known physical cause |
| Social norms |
The implicit or explicit rules a group has for the acceptable behaviors , values and beliefs of its members |
| Normative social influence |
The influence of other people that leads us to conform in order to be liked and accepted by them; results in public compliance with the groups beliefs and behaviors, but not necessarily private acceptance of those beliefs and behaviors |
| Social impact theory |
The idea that conforming to social influence depends on the strength of the groups importance, its immediacy, and the number of people in the group |
| Idiosyncrasy credits |
The tolerance that a person earns over time by conforming to a groups norms |
| Minority influence |
The case where a minority of group members influence the behavior or beliefs of the majority |
| Injunctive norms |
People's perceptions of what behaviors are approved or disapproved by others. Motivate behavior by promising rewards or punishments for normative or non normative behavior |
| Descriptive norms |
Peoples perceptions of how people actually behave in given situations, regardless of whether the behavior is approved or disapproved by others |
| Social Influence |
The words actions or mere presence of other people have on our thoughts feelings attitudes or behavior |
| Social psychology |
The scientific study of the way in which peoples thoughts feeling and behaviors are influenced by the real or imagined presence of other people |
| Construal The way in which people perceive, comprehend, and interpret the social world |
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| Individual differences |
The aspects of peoples personalities that make them different from other people |
| Fundamental attribution error |
The tendency to over estimate the extent to which peoples behavior is due to internal dispositional factors and to underestimate the role of situational factors |
| Behaviorism |
The school of psych maintaining that to understand human behavior, one need only consider the reinforcing properties of the environment - that is, how positive and negative events in the environment are associated with specific behaviors |
| Gestalt psychology |
A school of psychology expressing the importance of studying the subjective way in which an object appears in peoples minds rather than the objective, physical attributes of that object |
| Self-esteem |
Peoples evaluations of their own self-worth- that is, the extent to which they view themselves as good, competent, and decent |
| Social cognition |
How people think about themselves and the social world, more specifically how people select, interpret, and use the social information to make judgments and decisions |
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