Chapter 1 – The Science of Psychology (Research Methods)

 Scientific Method: A system of gathering data that reduces bias & error in
measurement.
 The Steps:
o 1. Perceive the question.
o 2. Form the hypothesis.
o 3. Test the hypothesis.
o 4. Draw conclusions.
o 5. Report results.
 Hypothesis:
o A testable prediction.
o Stated in precise, concrete language to rule out any confusion in meaning.
o Enables us to test and reject or revise a theory.
 Research Process:
o 1. Theories; Example: Low self-esteem feeds depression.
o 2. Hypotheses; Example: People with low self-esteem score higher on a
depression scale.
o 3. Research and Observations; Example: Administer tests of self-esteem
and depression. See if a low score on one predict a high score on the
other.
 Sometimes in research asking a question leads to answer that spawns another
question.
 Naturalistic Observation:
o Observing & recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without
trying to manipulate or control the situation.
o Realistic picture of the behavior.
o Can pave the way for further studies.
 Disadvantages of Naturalistic Observation:
o Describes the behavior but doesn’t explain it.
o Each naturalistic setting is unique.
 Observer Effect:
o The tendency of people/animals to behave differently when they know
they are being observed.
 Observer Bias:
o The tendency of observers to see what they expect to see.
o You may interpret some behavior the way you want to see it.
 Laboratory Observation:
o Watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting (more
controlled setting).
o Gives control over the environment.
o Allows the use of specialized equipment.
 Disadvantage of Laboratory Observation:
 o An artificial situation may result in artificial behavior.
o E.g. a flight simulator instead of going on a real, expensive flight.
o Sometimes if the artificial situation is realistic enough, the participant may
forget momentarily that it’s artificial and start exhibiting behaviors of the
realistic part.
 Case Study – when one person is studied in depth.
 Advantages of case studies:
o A large amount of detailed information.
o Can suggest hypotheses for further study.
 Disadvantages of case studies:
o Detailed information about one person may not apply to another.
o Uncle Bob – chain smoker who died at age 84 and was healthy for most of
his life. Most people like this would die in their 40s. Uncle Bob would be an
outlier in a research study that focused on more than one person.
 Example of case study: Phineas Gage got a rod through his frontal lobe and his
personality changed. That’s when people started to say maybe the frontal lobe
does affect personality. Let’s research this to see if it applies to other cases.
 3 case studies to know: Phineas Gage, H.M., Uncle Bob.
 Surveys:
o A technique for determining self-reported attitudes, opinions or behaviors.
o A representative, random sample of people.
 Advantage of surveys:
o An efficient way to obtain information from many people.
 Disadvantages of surveys:
o If the survey is like the Chick-Fil-A redeem a free sandwich within 48
hours survey, where everybody’s receipt has the link for the survey, then
people are choosing to do it voluntarily. That means the sample is not
random and representative.
o Answers depending on wording (how do you feel about your town raising
revenue vs raising tax moneys), choice of respondents (religious survey
being handed outside of a church) & who is asking (surveyor).
o Not answering truthfully.
o Giving socially acceptable answers (courtesy bias) – especially for
surveys conducted verbally or where the respondent’s name is attached to
the answers. It can happen even when the surveys are anonymous.
 Problems with surveys dealing with controversial/sensitive issues:
politics, voting, religion, drug/substance abuse, employee
satisfaction survey, criminal record, dishonesty (taxes, cards,
school, relationships), etc.
 In the 2016 election, the polls said Clinton would win. A lot of
people who responded to polls would lie and say they were
undecided or voting Democrat even when they really were going to
vote for Trump.
 o Feeling pressured to answer in certain ways.
 Could lose a job, get a stain on permanent record, social stigma if
answered truthful.
 Population – All the cases in the group from which samples are drawn.
o Doing research about voting issues: all voting age adults.
o Doing research about something related to college life for students: all
college students.
 Random sample:
o Fairly represents the population because each member has an equal
chance of inclusion.
o The best basis for generalizing.
o Large samples are better than small ones.
o Impossible to completely represent the population through random
sampling.
 Random sampling illustration:
o A 60/40 ratio of red to blue marbles in a large container.
o Taking a random scoop will result in 60/40 red to blue ratio (plus or minus
2 to 3 %).
 Correlation:
o Numerical measure of strength of the relationship between two variables.
o Knowing one allows the prediction of the other.
o It can be positive, negative, or zero.
o The number represents the strength of the relationship (0.00 – 1.00).
o The sign (positive or negative) indicates the direction of the relationship.
o Correlation coefficient is usually “r”.
o r=+0.37 would represent a medium strong positive correlation.
o Correlation is not always equal to causation! Sometimes a third factor can
cause both.
 Relationship between low self-esteem and depression.
o Positive correlation – means that both variables are moving in the same
direction.
o Negative correlation – means that both variables are moving in opposite
directions.
o Zero correlation – No relationship exists between the two variables.
 Sometimes it is tricky to prove if correlation proves causation.
o Low self-esteem could cause depression.
o Depression could cause low self-esteem.
o Distressing events or biological predisposition could cause low self-
esteem and depression.
 Experimentation:
o Experiment – Used for identifying cause & effect relationships.
o An investigator manipulates variable(s) that are thought to cause some
behavior while holding all other variables constant.
 Independent Variable – Manipulated by the experimenter. Effects are the focus of
the study.
 Dependent Variable – What gets measured.
 Experimental Group – Group that receives the treatment (IV) in experiment.
 Control Group – Undergoes the same procedures as experimental group, except
they do not receive the treatment. They are the comparison group for evaluating
the effects of treatment.
 Placebo – Inactive substance or fake treatment used as a control in an
experiment. Required in drug studies.
 Placebo effect – A change in behavior or health due to expectations of the
treatment’s results rather than what the actual treatment does. It diminishes over
time.
 Experimenter effects – Unintended changes in the subject’s behavior due to cues
inadvertently given by the research staff.
 Double-Blind Procedure – Both the participants & the research staff are ignorant
(blind) about which group the participants are in.
 Common Ethical Guidelines:
o Do no harm.
o Secure informed consent.
o Justify deception.
o Can withdraw at any time.
o Protect from/explain risks.
o Debrief.
o Keep personal data confidential.
o Responsible for undesirable consequences.
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