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AP Psych: Unit 0
research methods (new ced)
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| psychology | the scientific study of mental process and behavior |
| mental processes | thoughts, feelings, and motives that each of us experience privately but that cannot be direction observed |
| behavior | any action that people can observe or measure |
| confirmation bias | the tendency to favor information that confirms your existing beliefs |
| scientific method | a step-by-step method for conducting research |
| peer review | the process of having other experts examine your work to check its validity |
| replication | repeating a study to see if the same results are obtained |
| reliabilty | the consistency of a research study or measuring test |
| validity | the accuracy of a test or research to measure what it claims to measure |
| the American Psychological Association (APA) | a major organization for psychologists in the United States |
| research design | the plan for a research study, determining how to collect and analyze data |
| methodology | the specific procedures or techniques used to identify, select, process, and analyze information about a topic |
| quantitative data | data that can be counted or measured and given a numerical value |
| qualitative data | data that describes qualities or characteristics |
| likert scales | a scale used to represent people's attitudes or feelings; respondents specify their level of agreement to a statement |
| experimental group | the group in an experiment that receives the variable being tested |
| cognitive perspective | examines how we process information, including how we think, understand, and remember information |
| hindsight bias | the feeling after something happens that you knew it was going to happen |
| overconfidence | being more confident than correct; overestimating the accuracy of your beliefs |
| empirical evidence | information from experiments or observations rather than theories |
| hypothesis | a prediction that you can test through study and experimentation |
| falsifiable | something that can be proven wrong through tests |
| structured interviews | interviews where everyone is asked the same questions in the same way |
| survey technique | a method of gathering information by asking questions to people |
| wording effect | how the way a question is phrased can influence the answers given |
| social desirability bias | the tendency of respondents to answer questions in a manner that will be viewed favorably by others |
| naturalistic observation | watching behaviors occur naturally without interfering |
| case study | a detailed examination of a single subject or group |
| correlational research | a study that investigates the relationship between two variables to determine if they vary together |
| third variable problem | a situation where an unseen variable affects the results of a study |
| scatterplot | a graph in which the values of two variables are plotted along two axes, the pattern of the resulting points revealing any correlation present |
| correlation coefficient | a number between -1 and 1 that describes the strength and direction of a relationship between variables |
| positive correlation | a relationship where if one variable increases, the other one does too |
| negative correlation | a relationship where if one variable increases, the other decreases |
| experimental method | a method where the researcher manipulates one variable to see if it affects another |
| independent variable | the variable that is changed or controlled in a scientific experiment |
| dependent variable | the variable that is tested and measured in a scientific experiment |
| confounding variable | an extra variable that wasn't accounted for that could affect the results of an experiment |
| operational definitions | clearly defining how you will measure your variables in research |
| control group | the group in an experiment that does not receive the test variable |
| random assignment | assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, which helps ensure that any differences observed after the treatment are due to the treatment and not a preexisting difference |
| placebo effect | a change n a participant's illness or behavior that results from a belief that the treatment will have an effect, rather than the actual treatment |
| experimenter bias | when a researcher's expectations influence the outcome of a study |
| single-blind study | when the participants do not know whether they are receiving the treatment or not |
| double-blind study | when neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving a particular treatment |
| placebo condition | a condition in which participants receive a placebo instead of the actual treatment |
| sample | a group of subjects selected from a larger population for study |
| representative sample | a randomly chosen sample of subjects from a larger population that accurately reflects the characteristics of the larger population |
| random sample | a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of being included |
| sample bias | a sample that does not accurately represent the population from which it was drawn |
| generalizability | the extent to which research findings can be applied to larger populations |
| statistics | the science of collecting, analyzing, presenting, and interpreting data |
| descriptive statistics | statistics that summarize data, such as mean or standard deviation |
| inferential statistics | statistics used to infer the properties of a population, based on a sample of data |
| measure of central tendency | a statistical measure that describes the center of a data set; includes mean, median, and mode |
| mean | the average of a set of numbers |
| median | the middle number in a set of numbers arranged in order |
| mode | the number that appears most frequently in a data set |
| range | the difference between the highest and lowest values in a data set |
| normal curve | a bell-shaped curve that shows data distrubution; most scores fall near the middle |
| regression to the mean | the phenomenon that extreme values in data tend to be closer to the average on subsequent measurements |
| positive skew | when more scores fall on the low side of the scale and tail on the high side |
| negative skew | when more scores fall on the high side of the scale and tail on the low side |
| standard deviation | a measure of how spread out numbers are around the mean |
| percentile rank | the percentage of scores in a distribution that a specific score is greater than |
| bimodal distribution | a distribution of data with two modes or peaks |
| statistical significance | the likelihood that a result from data collected by an experiment is not due to chance |
| effect sizes | a measure of the strength of the relationship between two variables |
| meta analysis | a method of combining data from many different research studies |
| institutional review boards (IRB) | groups of people responsible for reviewing to ensure that is ethical |
| informed consent | permission granted in the knowledge of the possible consequences, typically that which is given by a patient to a doctor for treatment with full knowledge of the possible risks and benefits |
| informed assent | agreement by a minor or other not able to give legal consent to participate in the activity |
| confidentiality | keeping information given by participants in a research study private |
| deception | misleading participants about the true purpose of a study or the events that will transpire |
| confederates | actors who take part in a study pretending to be real particpants |
| debriefing | explaining to participants at the end of a study the true purpose of the study and exactly what transpired |
| psychodynamic perspective | this approach looks at how our unconscious mind and childhood experiences shape our behaviors and emotions |
| behavioral perspective | focuses on observable behaviors and how they're learned through interactions with the environment |
| humanistic perspective | emphasizes personal growth and the concept that everyone has the potential to achieve their own form of greatness |
| biological perspective | investigates the physical and biological bases of behavior, such as brain structures, chemicals, and genetics |
| evolutionary perspective | considers how behaviors and mental processes might have developed over time to increase survival chances |
| sociocultural perspective | looks at how our behaviors and thoughts are influenced by the society and culture we live in |
| biopsychosocial perspective | integrates biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors to provide a comprehensive understanding of human behavior |
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simoneazcona
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