PSYC-2700 Methodology Lecture 2 Winter 2025 PDF

PSYC-2700 METHODOLOGY Lecture 2 Winter 2025 REMINDER: YOUR TEACHING ASSISTANTS “I have 2 dogs: Roman and Copper” “I worked at a cemetery over the summer” Kaelen Hepworth Cassandra Clinch  E-mail: [email protected]...

PSYC-2700 METHODOLOGY Lecture 2 Winter 2025 REMINDER: YOUR TEACHING ASSISTANTS “I have 2 dogs: Roman and Copper” “I worked at a cemetery over the summer” Kaelen Hepworth Cassandra Clinch  E-mail: [email protected]  E-mail:  Office hours: by appointment [email protected]  W01, W03, W09, W10  Office hours: by appointment  W02, W04, W05 REMINDER: WHERE SHOULD YOU GO FOR HELP (WITH THIS CLASS)? If you have question, request or concern, please email your respective TA first and they will do their best to respond within 48 hours Please include “PSYC 2700” in the subject line of all e-mails! Only email me if: Your TA has tried to help you but has been unable to do so You have a concern about your TA REMINDER: COURSE COMPONENTS Every class we will have between 3 – 6 Top Hat components Starting in Lecture 2, participate in at least 1 component per class to earn 1% (of 10%) of your grade.  Attendance does not count!  Ignore the “Grade” reported by Top Hat E-mail TA’s by midnight if something goes wrong!  Send them the Q and your A TODAY’S AGENDA Pop Quiz Empirical Social Psychology  Formulating hypotheses and theories  Observational, correlational, and experimental research methods How to do the “Annotated Review” Allison Ridgway: How to find research Wrap-Up TODAY’S LEARNING OBJECTIVES By the end of class today, you should be able to:  Summarize the three major empirical research designs used in social psychology  Devise a simple study to test a specific hypothesis  Know what is expected of you for the “Annotated Review” assignment  Find published peer-reviewed primary research for your “Annotated Review” assignment BEFORE WE GO FURTHER Critical thinking is imperative! When learning about research, don’t forget to ask questions.  What claim is being made?  What evidence is presented to support this claim?  What is the quality of the evidence?  Are there any other plausible explanations?  What additional evidence would be needed to reach a clearer conclusion?  At present, what is the most reasonable conclusion to draw? BEFORE WE GO FORWARD Warning! Several results from social psychology studies will seem obvious to you  Many results are difficult to predict apriori but seem obvious once the results are known  We call this tendency, hindsight bias: “I knew it all along” EMPIRICAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BASIC VS. APPLIED RESEARCH Researchers get into social psychology for different reasons Those reasons can inform two different “types” of empirical research:  Basic research: Studies designed to improve theories and predictions to increase our understanding  Applied research: Studies with “applied” value; designed to help to understand and solve real-world problems BASIC RESEARCH APPLIED RESEARCH NOT ALL RESEARCH IS SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH!!! BUT WHAT IS SCIENCE? There are actually several different “philosophies of science” but at its core, science is about constructing, testing, and refining theories about the observable world. WHAT IS A THEORY? An organized set of principles that can be used to explain observed phenomena. Satisfactio Rusbult’s (1988) n Investment Model Quality of Decision to stay Commitm Alternative or leave ent relationship s Investment Theories are used to inform hypotheses.  WHAT IS A HYPOTHESIS? A testable statement or idea about the relation between two or more variables Satisfactio Rusbult’s (1988) n Investment Model Quality of Future decision to Commitm Alternative stay or leave ent relationship s Investment  WHAT IS A HYPOTHESIS? A testable statement or idea about the relation between two or more variables X X Satisfactio n Rusbult’s (1988) Investment Model Hypothesis: According to X X Quality of Rusbult’s Investment Future decision to Commitm Model, increasing Alternative stay or leave ent relationship perceived quality of s alternatives should reduce X X commitment to a current Investment partner.  WHAT IS A HYPOTHESIS? A testable statement or idea about the relation between two or more variables X X Satisfactio n Rusbult’s (1988) Investment Model Imagine a study in which an attractive confederate, X X Quality of Future decision to who appears to be a fellow Commitm Alternative stay or leave participant, flirts with half ent relationship s of the participants (randomly determined) to X X Investment increase their perceived quality of alternatives.  SCIENCE AS AN ITERATIVE PROCESS OF DISPROVING A THEORY Science can be a deductive process where theories are used to inform hypotheses that are tested with quantitative data.  If the hypothesis is confirmed, we can be more confident in the theory. Increased  If it is not, the theory must be modified or rejected. Confidence Empirical Theory Hypothesis Research Decreased Revise Theory Confidence Abandon Theory Theories can never be proven! SCIENCE AS A GENERATIVE INDUCTIVE PROCESS Not all theories come from pre-existing theories.  Theories are often developed inductively by recognizing patterns of association within observations and then speculation about why those patterns occur RESEARCH METHODS IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY There are three major research designs used in social psychology: 1. Observational method 2. Correlational method 3. Experimental method A given study can include more than one method NOTE ON TERMINOLOGY: “STUDY” VS. “EXPERIMENT” Did the empirical investigation involve manipulation of a variable of interest?  Yes: “Study” or “Experiment”  No: “Study” only WHAT THE METHODS HAVE IN COMMON Operation al Obtaining a representative sample is key Random selection of participants is ideal Convenience samples are more common Also need operational definitions that specify exactly how you plan to measure or manipulate your variables of interest OBSERVATIONAL METHOD Goal: To describe what a particular group of people, type of behavior, or content of media is like What you do: Observe people or media and systematically record measures of their attributes or behavior  Observer involvement can vary across studies OBSERVATIONAL METHOD Sometimes in observational studies, researchers ask two or more people to code the same data Interrater (interjudge) reliability is the level of agreement between the different coders  Increases the trustworthiness and validity of the observational data OBSERVATIONAL METHOD: ETHNOGRAPHY Researchers try to understand the norms, values, beliefs, and behaviors of specific a group, culture, etc. by observing it from the inside  Largely involves participant observation, which means to observe while immersing oneself in the day-to-day activities of the people that are being studied  Can also involve direct interviews  Important for researchers not to impose any preconceived ideas OBSERVATIONAL METHOD: ARCHIVAL STUDIES Violence Researchers try to understand a group, culture, etc. by observing accumulated documents of that group, culture, etc.  E.g., Diaries, magazines, novels, newspapers, marriage records CORRELATIONAL METHOD Goal: To systematically measure and assess the association (connection, relationship, etc.) between one variable and another variable.  E.g. People who are high in anxious attachment tend to be low in self-esteem Goes beyond simply documenting thoughts, feelings, and behavior Allows you to test hypotheses LET’S DESIGN A STUDY: CORRELATIONAL HYPOTHESIS Satisfactio Rusbult’s (1988) n Investment Model Quality of Decision to stay Commitm Alternative or leave ent relationship s Investment CORRELATIONAL METHOD You can understand the relation between Variables A and B by calculating a correlation coefficient (e.g., Pearson r) Correlation coefficients indicate the strength and direction of the association between two variables This allows you to mathematically “predict” the value of Variable A given the value of Variable B UNDERSTANDING CORRELATIONS: STRENGTH The strength of a correlation indicates the degree to which values on Variable A can be predicted from values on Variable B Strength ranges from 0 to 1  r =.00  No association between Variables A and B, no possible prediction  r <.30  Weak association  r =.30-.50  Moderate association  r >.50  Strong association  r = 1.00  Perfect association, perfect prediction (this never happens) UNDERSTANDING CORRELATIONS: DIRECTION Correlatio ns The direction of a correlation indicates whether the association between values on Variables A and B trend in the same direction or in opposite directions  Positive: A and B move in the same direction  Negative: A and B move in opposite directions Combining strength and direction, correlations can range from -1 to 1 SURVEYS/QUESTIONNAIRES Researchers often use surveys/questionnaires when interested in correlations  Advantage #1: Easy to design, administer, and score  Advantage #2: Allow researchers to assess associations between variables that may be difficult to observe  Disadvantage: Accuracy of participant responses Note…correlations can be calculated from any data (including observations), and questionnaires are often used in experiments too LIMITATIONS OF CORRELATIONS Limitation #1: Correlation does not equal causation  We can infer only that the two variables are related, not why they are related Limitation #2: Correlations can sometimes be explained by third (extraneous) variables  When the association between Variables A and B can be explained by a third variable, or by chance alone, A and B have a spurious relationship  E.g., Ice cream sales and shark attacks LIMITATIONS OF CORRELATIONS EXPERIMENTAL METHOD Goal: To determine causal relationship between two or more variables Experiments are the only method that allow researchers to conclude that changes in Variable A cause (influence, impact, affect, etc.) changes in Variable B EXPERIMENTAL METHOD To conduct an experiment, you must:  Manipulate the independent variable(s) (IVs)  Control extraneous variables (i.e., hold constant any variables that might yield a spurious association)  Keep all individual and environmental conditions the same across conditions except the manipulated variable  Randomly assigning participants to condition is often used for this purpose  Observe the effect of the independent variable(s) on the dependent variable(s) (DVs) LET’S DESIGN A STUDY: EXPERIMENTAL METHOD Satisfactio Rusbult’s (1988) n Investment Model Quality of Decision to stay Commitm Alternative or leave ent relationship s Investment STUDY VALIDITY Internal validity reflects the extent to which conclusions about causal relationships are warranted  Achieved by varying only the IV(s) and keeping everything else in the study the same Internal validity can be improved by random assignment such that all participants have an equal chance of ending up in any of the different experimental conditions  Helps to evenly distribute different participants’ personalities, backgrounds, etc. STUDY VALIDITY External validity reflects the extent to which a study’s results can be generalized to other situations and other people  Vital in order to figure out if results hold in “real life” A cover story can sometimes help by misdirecting participants from a study’s true purpose to increase the external validity of a study. STUDY VALIDITY Realis m Researchers try to make the often artificial setting of studies as realistic as possible  Mundane realism: How similar a study is to a real-life situation?  Psychological realism: How similar the psychological processes triggered in a study are to psychological processes triggered by a real-life situation? FIELD EXPERIMENT Field experiments, which are experiments that take place outside the lab) are excellent for increasing external validity  Advantage: Takes place in the real world, and participants are sometimes unaware they’re in a study  Disadvantage: Tend to have lower internal validity because random assignment is much harder (and sometimes impossible) Lab and field experiments testing the same idea can be combined to provide the most convincing validity information for an idea ANNOTATED REVIEW COURSE COMPONENTS Annotated Review: Monday Mar 10 (before class!!!)  4-5 double-spaced pages (including title page)  Pick a topic article from a list on Blackboard  Find a published study on the same topic  Summarize both studies like an annotated bibliography (1 page each)  Describe a critical synthesis of the two articles (1-2 pages)  Submit through Blackboard  Late papers will be penalized 5% per day; not graded after 1 week  25% of final grade STEP 1: PICK A TOPIC ARTICLE FROM A LIST ON BLACKBOARD Racial stereotypes, video games, and violence: Markey, P. M., Ivory, J. D., Slotter, E. B., Oliver, M. B., & Maglalang, O. (2020). He does not look like video games made him do it: Racial stereotypes and school shootings. Psychology of Popular Media, 9(4), 493–498. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000255 Ovulation, attraction, and mating behaviour (in humans): Cantú, S. M., Simpson, J. A., Griskevicius, V., Weisberg, Y. J., Durante, K. M., & Beal, D. J. (2014). Fertile and selectively flirty: women's behavior toward men changes across the ovulatory cycle. Psychological science, 25(2), 431–438. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797613508413ur Praise and self-esteem: Brummelman, E., Thomaes, S., Orobio de Castro, B., Overbeek, G., & Bushman, B. J. (2014). “That’s Not Just Beautiful—That’s Incredibly Beautiful!”: The Adverse Impact of Inflated Praise on Children With Low Self-Esteem. Psychological Science, 25(3), 728-735. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797613514251 Smiling, social perception, and subjective well-being: Seder, J. P., & Oishi, S. (2012). Intensity of Smiling in Facebook Photos Predicts Future Life Satisfaction. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 3(4), 407-413. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550611424968 STEP 2: FIND A MATCH! Must be primary empirical research which analyses data! No theoretical papers! No review papers! No meta-analyses! 25% deduction!  STEP 3: MAKE AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR BOTH ARTICLES An annotated bibliography provides a summary / evaluation of sources of information that you have read. In this case, I want your annotated bibliographies to focus on:  the aim, goal, question or hypothesis  the methods used in the study  the obtained results No more than a page long per paper!  You do not need to describe all studies in a single paper https://www.easybib.com/guides/citation-guides/apa- format/annotated-bibliography-format-apa/ STEP 4: WRITE A CRITICAL SYNTHESIS Think critically about what your articles say and what can be learned by comparing their methods and results about the topic you have chosen.  Similar or different conclusions  Similar or different methods  What is quality of the studies?  What could have been done better?  Overall, what can be concluded? WRAP-UP SUMMARY There are three major research methods used in social psychology research: Observational, correlational, and experimental Correlational and experimental methods can be used to test hypotheses, though only experimental methods can test causal hypotheses. It is important, though often difficult in practice, to maximize both internal and external validity in research. NEXT CLASS Monday, January 20  Topic: Social Cognition and Social Perception  Reading(s): Chapters 3 and 4  ACADEMIC INTEGRITY MODULE!