Chapter 3: The Starting Point PDF

Chapter 3: The Starting Point “Difficulties and disagreements are mainly due to a very simple cause: namely to attempt to answer questions without first discovering precisely what question you desire to answer.” –George Edward Moore Asking and refining questions    Research begins with a ques...

Chapter 3: The Starting Point “Difficulties and disagreements are mainly due to a very simple cause: namely to attempt to answer questions without first discovering precisely what question you desire to answer.” –George Edward Moore Asking and refining questions    Research begins with a question Must refine the question until it becomes specific enough to give the researcher a clear direction for answering it. This is one of the most critical steps, because it determines how the rest of the research should be conducted Examples: Good or bad?    What makes people depressed? Does having a heavy course load lead to depression in 21-year-old AsianAmerican college students who are majoring in psychology at a local community college? How do perceived stress and social support contribute to teen depression? Levels of Constraint      Experimental research (highest) Differential research Correlational research Case-study method Naturalistic observation (lowest) Experimental Method    Researcher manipulates a variable under controlled conditions and observes if changes occur in a second variable Variables: any measurable conditions, events, characteristics, or behaviors that are controlled or observed in a study Helps to determine a cause  Example: Sleep and Mood Variables    Independent: a condition or event that an experimenter varies in order to see its impact on another variable- free to be varied Dependent: the variable that is thought to be affected by manipulation of the independent variable- depends on manipulations of independent variable Constant: A variable that is not allowed to vary. Groups     Experimental: consists of subjects who receive special treatment in regard to the independent variable Control: consists of subjects similar to the experimental group but do not receive the special treatment Very similar except for the treatment Isolate the effect Levels of variables   Level refers to how many groups are involved in your independent variables E.g. I am studying what type of therapy helps most with treating depression. I am comparing psychoanalytic therapy, cognitive therapy, and behavioral therapy.    IV= type of therapy Levels of IV= 3 (the 3 types of therapy) DV= depression Levels cont’d  If you are looking at the effects of a study skills workshop on students’ test scores, then how many levels do you have?    IV= study skills workshop DV= test scores Levels= ? Two types of IVs Manipulated: those that the experimenter controls by actively manipulating or changing them E.g., sleep deprivation in lab setting Non-manipulated (classification variables): variables that are preexisting characteristics of participants. Researcher does not actively manipulate. E.g., religiosity, age Confounding/Extraneous Variables    Any variables other than the independent variable that seem likely to influence the dependent variable in a specific study Secondary or nuisance; cloud the situation Talented experimenter vs. Mediocre experimenter Constants    Variables that are prevented from varying Helps to make sure that these variables don’t affect outcome of the study E.g., Holding age constant, limiting couples to only heterosexual or to only homosexual, picking one religious group to study Random Assignment   When all subjects have an equal chance of being assigned to any group or condition of the study To help control for extraneous variables Advantages of Experimental Research   Permits conclusions to be drawn about cause-and-effect relationships Precise control allows to isolate the relationship Limitations of Experimental Research     Often artificial Simple, contrived situations Applicability of findings to everyday behavior Cannot be used to explore some research questions due to ethical concerns Differential Research      Research comparing two (or more) pre-existing groups Group composition is outside of the researcher’s control Thus, not a true experiment b/c you are not randomly assigning participants to groups. Interpreting group differences takes skill, knowledge, and caution E.g., age, IQ, sex, SES, clinical diagnoses, smoking status. Correlational Methods     Determine a link or association Correlation exists when two variables are related to each other Helps us study topics we couldn’t otherwise study due to ethical or practical constraints However, we cannot talk about cause and effect Concept of Correlation   Correlation: exists when two variables are related to each other Can be positive or negative   Positive: two variables covary in the same direction Negative: two variables covary in opposite directions Strength of Correlation       Correlation Coefficient: a numerical index of the degree of relationship between two variables Range from –1.00 to +1.00 Positive range 0 to +1.00 Negative range –1.00 to 0 Near zero; no relationship Closer to +1.00 or –1.00 very strong relationship Correlation is NOT Causation  X cause Y? Y cause X? X and Y caused by a third variable? PRO: Can see strength and direction of relationship between 2 or more variables CON: Can’t determine causation Surveys  Often used to obtain information on aspects of behavior that are difficult to observe directly     Attitudes Sexual Behavior Easy to Collect data from large sample Major Limitation: Depends on self-report data which can be unreliable Case Studies     In-depth investigation of an individual subject (or a limited few) Data Collection techniques:  Interview  Direct Observation  Examination of records  Psychological Testing Main Problem: Highly subjective Some intervention on the part of the researcher to structure the observation  Asking questions  Setting up situations or tasks Naturalistic Observation      A researcher engages in careful, usually prolonged observation of behavior without intervening directly with the subject Real world rather than laboratory; flexible strategy (can observe what seems interesting and can shift focus) Often no strong hypotheses going into the study Behavior is allowed to unfold naturally (without interference) in the setting it would normally occur (natural flow of behavior) Can be difficult to make observations unobtrusively Let’s practice!  Select the best research method for the examples given in class: Consider pros and cons of each as related to study, then select most practical/appropriate Experiment, Differential, Case Study, Survey, or Naturalistic Observation?? Theory vs. Hypothesis A hypothesis is a suggested explanation for an observable phenomenon, or a reasoned prediction of a possible causal correlation among multiple phenomena. A theory is a tested, well-substantiated, unifying explanation for a set of verified, proven factors. A theory is always backed by evidence; a hypothesis is only a suggested possible outcome, and is testable and falsifiable. Evaluating Research      Replication: the repetition of a study to see whether the earlier results are duplicated Sampling Bias Placebo Effects Distortions in Self-report data Experimenter Bias Sample   Collection of subjects selected for a study Should be representative of the population from which it is drawn  Population: the larger group of people/animals/objects that the researcher wants to generalize about Good Sample/Bad Sample  Sampling Bias:   When a sample is not representative of the population from which it is drawn This is one type of flaw we can look for when evaluating research   Age, gender, race, etc. Where did they recruit people from? Placebo Effects    Placebo: (in Pharmacology) a substance that resembles a drug but has no actual pharmacological effect Placebo effects: occur when subjects’ expectations lead them to experience some change even though they receive empty, fake, or ineffectual treatment Can be assessed by including a placebo condition in the study Distortions in Self-Report Data      Social Desirability Bias: a tendency to give socially approved answers to questions about oneself (trying to create a favorable impression) Misunderstand the questionnaire Memory errors Agree/Disagree with most answers There are ways to neutralize these, but we should still be cautious Experimenter Bias     When a researcher’s expectations or preferences about the outcome of a study influence the results obtained See what they want to see; Unintentionally influence the behavior of the subjects Mistakes in recording subject’s responses Minimized by the double-blind procedure: neither subjects or experimenters know the control group from the experimental group Ethics– (More to come in Ch. 3 part 2)    Committees evaluate and approve or deny APA Guidelines Animal research: only 7 to 8% of all psychological studies involve animals Sections in Empirical Research Articles       Abstract Introduction Method Results (with tables, when appropriate) Discussion References The Starting Point: Asking Questions Graziano and Raulin Research Methods: Chapter 3 Opener: Let’s talk! Should psychologists perform experimental research on human beings?  Should psychologists perform experimental research on non-human animals?  This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA Research Ethics    Ethical guidelines for human research  Focused on protecting the rights of participants  Stimulated by the atrocities committed by some Nazi scientists in the name of research Ethical guidelines for animal research  Focused on proper care and minimizing pain Ethical committees are entrusted with evaluating proposed projects Research in Germany  Inhumane treatment of participants can be traced as far back as World War II  Deliberately exposing to infectious diseases  Inmates immersed in ice water  Injected w/ gasoline. U.S. Research  American research wasn’t quite as bad but it had some similarities to German research. 1)Live disease organisms were being injected into people. 2) New surgical techniques were being done on people who were having surgery for something totally unrelated. 3) Severely retarded individuals being injected w/ hepatitis to study the dvp of illness (Willowbrook). 4) Poor southern black men with syphilis were left untreated for years and misinformed about their health (Tuskegee study). 5) Soldiers given LSD w/o their knowledge—Launched by CIA to expose to LSD to gauge drug’s ability to be a weapon of war. Other psychological studies Milgram’s study of obedience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr5cjyokVUs  Zimbardo’s prison experiment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GePFFf5gRKo  Little Albert study of conditioning https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMnhyGozLyE   And many others…. Today’s standards    People must have chance to know what is being done to them and to either freely consent or refuse to participate. Must have informed consent! Must be allowed to withdraw at any time without penalty. When is informed consent not needed?      Using old data gathered for another purpose, If it’s anonymous, For classroom projects in which data is used for demonstration purposes, Some employment-related data collection exercises (eg.., MMPI). For observational studies (who stops at stop sign)—if the person is in public place where anyone could be observed by anyone else. When is deception OK? If the researcher’s judgment that deception poses no serious or long-term risks.  Explain the true nature of the deception in debriefing.  And study couldn’t be done w/o deception  Specific circumstances What if the participant is 16 y.o.?  What if the participant has intellectual disability?  What if the participant gets signature from father, but the mother is the one with legal custody?  What if it’s a severe hardship for the experimenter if the participant withdraws?  General rule: Minors must have legal guardian sign consent.    Can take part in educational experiences that are part of a class requirement. Permitted to complete studies, but only as long as their data are not used for research purposes. Federal OHRP regulation 46.102, without parental consent, minors cannot contribute to "a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge." Human Research Ethics Formalized guidelines that must be followed in any research with humans  All research proposals must be approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)  First safeguard is “informed consent”  The greater the potential risk to participants, the more responsibility the researcher has to protect participants from harm  Ethical Checks 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Will the study have informational value? Does the study pose risks to participants? If so, are there sufficient controls for those risks? Is there a provision for informed consent? Is there a provision for adequate feedback? Do I accept full responsibility for the ethical conduct of the study? Has the proposal been approved by an IRB? Diversity Issues Age, sex, and ethnic status is likely to affect behavior  Early psychological and medical research did not always represent the entire population  The federal government insists that funded research must represent minority members, women, and children in their samples  Animal Research Ethics    Animals cannot give informed consent, and the research with animals is often more invasive than the research conducted with humans. Laboratory Animal Care Committees review animal research for ethical issues. Must provide humane housing, minimize pain & discomfort, only do if absolutely necessary, surgery under anesthesia only, proceed rapidly if life must be ended, follow federal, state, and local law for caring for and disposing of animal. Summary    Research starts with questions  Questions come from many sources  Most questions need to be refined before they are ready to be answered through research Questions involve the presumed relationship between variables Research ethics must be considered in any research project