Chapter 2: Psychological Research PDF

Chapter 2: Psychological Research Chapter Outline Chapter 2: Psychological Research 2.1 Why is Research Important? 2.2 Approaches to Research 2.3 Analyzing Findings 2.4 Ethics Why is research important? Goal of scientists: to better understand the world around them Psychology = sci...

Chapter 2: Psychological Research Chapter Outline Chapter 2: Psychological Research 2.1 Why is Research Important? 2.2 Approaches to Research 2.3 Analyzing Findings 2.4 Ethics Why is research important? Goal of scientists: to better understand the world around them Psychology = scientific study of the mind and behavior Without science and facts, we’d be left to rely on: Intuition, assumptions, guessing, opinions Authority Personal experience/history Luck Why is research important? Scientific research is grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed time and time again, regardless of who is observing Through research we can prove certain ideas are true or false Use this information to improve daily life and the world around us  Thinking critically about claims: What is the expertise of the person making the claim? Approach claims Does the claim seem justified with a critical eye given the evidence? What do other researchers think of the claim? The Process of Scientific Research The Scientific Method Cyclical process of forming an idea (hypothesis) and testing it against the real world (observations, experiments) The Scientific Method Humans do this process all the time. Not just in research! In research, we get a little more technical.  The Scientific Method The scientific method of research includes proposing hypotheses, conducting research, and creating or modifying theories based on results. Theory – a well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena Hypothesis – tentative and testable statement (prediction) about the relationship between two or more variables. Hypothesis Hypothesis – tentative and testable statement (prediction) about the relationship between two or more variables. Predicts how world will behave if the theory is correct Usually an “if-then” statement Falsifiable: capable of being shown to be incorrect Scientific Method Chapter Outline Chapter 2: Psychological Research 2.1 Why is Research Important? 2.2 Approaches to Research 2.3 Analyzing Findings 2.4 Ethics  Clinical or case studies Naturalistic / Laboratory Observation Approaches Surveys to Research Archival Research Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Research Case Studies o Study of an individual in great detail The individual is typically in a unique psychological circumstance or rare characteristic that differentiates them from the general public o Advantages o Limitation Tremendous amount of Findings may not detail generalize to others Rich source for hypothesis generation The Remarkable Tale of Phineas Gage See Video on Moodle  Naturalistic Observation Observation of behavior in normal environment o Advantages Realistic picture of behavior  Naturalistic Observation Observation of behavior in normal environment o Limitations (& ways of minimizing them): o Difficult to set up and control o Observer effect: tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal when they know they are being observed o Observer bias: tendency of observers to see what they expect/want to see o Blind observers: people who do not know what the research question is o Establish clear criteria for recording observations Laboratory Observation Observing behavior in a laboratory setting o Advantages Control over environment Allows use of specialized equipment Laboratory Observation Observing behavior in a laboratory setting o Limitation Artificial situation that may result in artificial behavior Can be difficult to generalize findings to “real world” situations or others  A technique for identifying the attitudes, Survey opinions, or behaviors of people through a series of questions Survey o Advantages Quick, easy to administer Data from large, diverse groups of people Data from hard to reach, low base-rate populations Study private behaviors (e.g., drinking behavior, suicidal thoughts) o Limitation People are not always accurate Small variations in wording/order of questions can affect outcomes Researchers have to ensure representative sample if interested in generalizing findings to a certain population When was the research conducted? Archival research = Use past records to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships Cross-Sectional Research = Compare multiple segments of a population at a single time (such as different age groups) Longitudinal = Study the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time Chapter Outline Chapter 2: Psychological Research 2.1 Why is Research Important? 2.2 Approaches to Research 2.3 Analyzing Findings 2.4 Ethics  Correlational Research Analyzing Causality: Conducting Findings Experiments and Using the Data Reliability and Validity Correlational Research Correlation = Relationship between two or more variables When one variable changes, so does the other Correlation Coefficient (r) Range from -1 to +1 Indicates strength and direction of the relationship between variables Correlations: Direction 84 Positive Correlation = Two variables change in the same direction, both becoming either larger or smaller As one variable increases, the other variable increases As one variable decreases, the other variable decreases 0 200 Fun fact: Scatterplots are a graphical view of the strength and direction of correlations. The stronger the correlation, the closer the data points are to a straight line. Correlations: Direction 10 Negative Correlation = Two variables change in different directions, with one becoming larger as the other becomes smaller As one variable increases, the other variable decreases 0 10 Correlations: Direction 10 NO Correlation / Zero Correlation = changes in two variables are not related to each other A negative correlation is NOT the same thing as no correlation 0 15 Correlations: Strength/Size Correlation ≠ Causation Correlation does not prove causation! A correlation can’t distinguish which variable is the cause and which is the effect Example: feelings of loneliness and symptoms of depression Cause-and-effect relationship – changes in one variable CAUSE the changes in the other variable Can be determined only through an experimental research design Can NOT be determined with correlation Correlation ≠ Causation Confounding variable = unanticipated outside factor that affects both variables of interest, often giving the false impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable. Correlation is NOT Causation  What is Correlation? See video 2.1.2 on Moodle Other Issues with Correlations Illusory Correlations: false correlations; occur when people believe a relationship exists when it does not Confirmation Bias: Tendency to notice, seek out, and interpret information in a way consistent with or that confirms your own prior beliefs The Experiment The only way to establish that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between two variables is to conduct a scientific experiment Experiments & Their Variables Experiment: A researcher manipulates one variable and measures the effect of the manipulation on another to determine causality between the two variables Independent Variable (IV): Variable that is influenced/manipulated by the experimenter Dependent Variable (DV): Variable that the researcher measures to see how much effect the independent variable had Designing an Experiment Experimental Group Participants that experience the manipulated variable Control Group Participants that do not experience the manipulated variable Serve as a basis for comparison and controls for chance factors (confounds) that might influence the results of the study May receive a placebo Designing an an Experiment Experiment Experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups Any DV differences between the two groups are due to experimental manipulation rather than chance. Designing an Experiment Population = entire group of individuals that the researcher is interested in (e.g., College students) Populations are too large for a researcher to include everyone, so samples are used. Sample = subset of individuals selected from the larger population (e.g., this class)  Designing an Experiment Random sample = subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected Random assignment = Method of experimental group assignment in which all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to either group (experimental or control)  Operational definition = precise definition/description of what actions and operations will be used to measure the dependent variables and manipulate the Operational independent variables Definition Intention is that any researcher could use this operational definition to repeat the same experiment  Example Putting It All Together Can a sleep intervention in the National Guard improve Service Members’ sleep? IV: whether participants received the intervention DV: sleep duration & quality Experimental group: participated in the intervention Control Group: did NOT participate in the intervention Sample: National Guard Operational definitions: Define intervention components (IV) Define sleep outcomes (DVs) Potential Issues with Experiments Confounds: extraneous variable that affect the variables you are interested in studying Solution: re-do study with higher control Not all independent variables can be manipulated Not all research questions can be ethically answered using experiments  1. Experimenter bias – researcher expectations skew the results of the study. 2. Participant bias – participant expectations skew the results of the study. Potential 3. Single-blind study – experiment in which the researcher Issues with knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group, but participants do not Experiments Controls for participant bias 4. Double-blind Study – experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments Controls for both participant and experimenter bias  Potential Issues with Experiments Placebo effect = people’s expectations or beliefs influence or determine their experience When people are given a pill to improve their mood, their mood may increase just because they believe it will. To know if medication is really having an effect or whether it is a placebo effect, the experimental group receives medication and control group receives placebo (sugar pill). Any differences between the groups will be due to the medication. Validity & Reliability Validity = extent to which a given instrument/tool accurately measures what it is designed to measure A valid measure is always reliable, but a reliable measure is not always valid Reliability = consistency and reproducibility of a given result When a study involves observations by multiple people, it is important that they all make observations and record them in the same way Inter-rater reliability – measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify a particular event Chapter Outline Chapter 2: Psychological Research 2.1 Why is Research Important? 2.2 Approaches to Research 2.3 Analyzing Findings 2.4 Ethics Research Involving Humans 1. Must adhere to strict guidelines 2. Institutional Review Board (IRB) 3. Informed consent Research Involving Humans 2. Institutional Review Board (IRB) Committee of administrators, scientists, and community members Review proposals for research involving human participants and approves research before it can proceed Research Involving Humans 3. Informed consent – process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate. Includes: - Potential risks involved - Implications of the research - Notification that participation is voluntary - Notification that any data collected will be kept confidential  Research Involving Animals Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) Committee of administrators, scientists, veterinarians, and community members Review proposals for research involving non-human animals Animals may make good substitutes because many of their basic processes are sufficiently similar to those in humans Researchers must minimize pain or distress Next Week Chapter 3: (read it) Biopsychology Due Monday by 11:59PM Ch 2 Quiz Ch 2 Forum