PI10203

Research Methods
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Introduction to Research Methods
 An Example From Psychology
Research
◼ Psychologists develop theories and conduct
research to answer questions about behavior and
mental processes.
◼ Psychological research provides answers that
impact individuals and society.
◼ One example is the research on the effects of
media violence on youth.

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 Media Violence and Aggression
◼ After five decades of research, what do
psychologists say about the behavioral,
emotional, and social effects of media violence?
◼ Exposure to media violence causes an increase in the
likelihood of aggressive thoughts, emotions, and
behaviors in short- and long-term contexts.
◼ The effects of violence in the media are consistent
across a variety of research studies and methods,
samples of people, and types of media (e.g., TV,
films, video games, Internet, music).

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Media Violence and Aggression (continued)
◼ Recent long-term studies link frequent childhood
exposure to media violence with adult aggression
including physical assaults and spouse abuse.
◼ Research evidence supports psychologists’ theories
that media violence:
◼ “activates” (primes) people’s aggressive cognitions and
physiological arousal,
◼ facilitates people’s learning of aggressive behaviors
through observation (modeling), and
◼ desensitizes people to violence.

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Media Violence and Aggression (continued)
◼ Factors that influence the likelihood of aggression in
response to media violence include:
◼ characteristics of viewers (e.g., age, identification with
aggressive characters),
◼ social environments (e.g., parental monitoring), and
◼ media content (e.g., realism of violent depictions,
consequences of violence).
◼ No one is immune to the effects of media violence.
Source: Anderson, C. A., Berkowitz, L., Donnerstein, E., Huesmann, L. R.,
Johnson, J. D., Linz, D., Malamuth, N. M., & Wartella, E. (2003). The
influence of media violence on youth. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 4,
81-110.

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 The Scientific Method
◼ “Scientific method” refers to
◼ an abstract concept,
◼ not a particular technique or method.

◼ The scientific method refers to ways in which

scientists ask questions and the logic and
methods they use to gain answers.

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 The Scientific Method (continued)

◼ Two important aspects of the scientific method

are:
◼ the reliance on an empirical approach, and
◼ the skeptical attitude scientists adopt toward
explanations of behavior and mental processes.

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 The Scientific Method (continued)

◼ An empirical approach to gaining knowledge

emphasizes:
◼ observation of behaviors that can be observed
directly, and
◼ experimentation in which scientists employ
systematic control in the situation to be observed.

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 Science in Context
Historical, Social/Cultural, and Moral Contexts
1. Historical Context
◼ The scope of scientific psychology has increased dramatically
in 100 years.
◼ The American Psychological Association (APA) and the
American Psychological Society (APS) promote the science
of psychology.
◼ At the turn of the 20th century, early psychologists adopted
the empirical approach as the best means for developing the
science of psychology.
◼ The computer revolution has been a key factor in the shift
from behaviorism to cognitive psychology as the dominant
theoretical perspective in psychology.

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 Science in Context (continued)

2. Social and Cultural Context

◼ Scientists’ questions, resources, and acceptance are
influenced by the current zeitgeist (pronounced: tsahyt-
gahyst) — the social and cultural spirit of the times.
◼ Because scientists conduct psychological research in
a social and cultural context, they are susceptible to
the potential bias of ethnocentrism.

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 Science in Context (continued)

◼ Ethnocentrism
◼ A bias in which we try to understand the behavior of
individuals in a different culture through the framework or
views of our own culture.
◼ Be aware of cultural influences.
◼ The way we think about ourselves and others is heavily
influenced by the culture in which we live.
◼ Our understanding of psychology is based on research
done primarily within the American cultural context.

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 Science in Context (continued)

◼ An ethnocentric bias can influence the research areas and

questions we choose to pursue. For example:
◼ Do we focus on deficits in aging people (e.g., declining
memory) rather than strengths (e.g., wisdom)?
◼ Do we examine questions of aggression and race rather than
nurturance and race?
◼ When developing a research question, be sure to consider
whether you are being ethnocentric.
◼ Consider developing a research question that goes against
the cultural norm.

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 Science in Context (continued)
◼ An ethnocentric bias also influences how we
interpret behavior.
◼ Consider, for example, how we stereotype people
based on their dress, hairstyle or body art (e.g.,
“Goths,” Hip-Hop).
◼ Has your behavior ever been interpreted in terms of
an ethnocentric bias?

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 Science in Context (continued)
3. Moral Context
◼ Scientists maintain the highest standards for integrity
and ethical conduct.
◼ Scientists do not fabricate data, plagiarize, or
selectively report research findings.
◼ Psychologists consult the ethical principles of the
American Psychological Association.
◼ The code of ethics helps researchers to evaluate dilemmas, such as
the risks and benefits associated with deception and the use of
animals in research.

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 Thinking Like a Researcher
◼ To “think like a researcher” is to be skeptical regarding
claims about the causes of behavior and mental
processes
— even claims made on the basic of “published” scientific
findings.

◼ The strongest evidence for a claim about behavior

comes from converging evidence across many studies
— although scientists recognize that claims are always
probabilistic.

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 Thinking Like a Researcher (continued)
◼ Scientists are similar to detectives and others in
the legal system.
— Both groups seek to make decisions based on
evidence.
◼ In the legal system, a small amount of evidence
leads to suspicion, but a large amount of evidence
is needed to convict someone of a crime.

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 Thinking Like a Researcher (continued)

◼ Similar to legal evidence, scientific evidence varies

according to the strength of the evidence.
◼ Description of behavior
◼ Prediction about behavior
◼ Evidence for the cause of a behavior
◼ Replications (repetitions) of findings for the cause of
behavior
◼ The stronger the evidence, the more confident we can
be about the claim about behavior.

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 Evidence and Decision Making

Quality & Extent of

Legal Decision Evidence Scientific Decisions

suspicion of guilt low description

arrest prediction

arraignment statement about

causes

conviction high replication of findings

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 Guidelines for Evaluating Reports of
Research
◼ Don’t confuse pseudoscience or nonscience
with science.
◼ Be skeptical.
◼ Be aware that scientists may disagree.
◼ Keep in mind that research is generally about
averages.
◼ Whenever possible, go to the original source.
…Adams asserts in her book Chicken Little that "without a doubt, the chicken came
before the egg" (as cited in Smith, 2005).
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 Getting Started Doing Research

◼ What should I study?

◼ Choose a research topic by reviewing topics in
◼ journals,

◼ textbooks, and

◼ courses.

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 Getting Started (continued)

◼ Research Hypotheses
A hypothesis (plural: hypotheses) is
◼ a tentative explanation for a phenomenon, and
◼ is often stated in the form of a prediction together
with an explanation for the prediction.

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 Getting Started (continued)

◼ Examples of hypotheses:
◼ Research participants who play violent video games
are predicted to behave more aggressively after
exposure than participants who passively view
television violence
because
video game participants’ aggression is reinforced
(rewarded) while playing the game.

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 Getting Started (continued)

◼ Examples of Hypotheses (continued)

◼ Research participants who play violent video games
are predicted to behave less aggressively after the
exposure than participants who passively view
television violence
because
video game participants have the opportunity to
release any aggressive impulses; passive television
viewers do not have the opportunity during
exposure.
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 Getting Started (continued)

◼ How do I develop a hypothesis to test in my

research?
◼ Think about deviations (oddities, exceptions) from a general
trend or principle.
◼ Imagine how you would behave in a task or when faced with a
specific problem.
◼ Consider similar problems with known solutions.
◼ Make sustained, deliberate observations of a person or
phenomenon (e.g., perform a “case study”).
◼ Generate counterexamples for an obvious conclusion about
behavior.
◼ Borrow ideas or theories from other disciplines.
◼ Read reports of psychological research.
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 Getting Started (continued)

◼ Is the research question a good one?

◼ Why might this question be scientifically important?
◼ What is the scope of this question?
◼ What are likely outcomes if I carry out this research project?
◼ To what extent will psychological science be advanced by
knowing the answer to this question?
◼ Why would anyone be interested in the results obtained by
asking this question?

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 The Multimethod Approach to
Psychological Research
◼ There is one scientific method.
◼ There are many psychological research questions
and research methods.
◼ Psychologists study many different topics from
diverse areas:
clinical, social, industrial/organizational,
developmental, counseling, physiological,
cognitive, educational, personality, human factors,
neuropsychology, etc.

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 The Multimethod Approach (continued)

◼ No single research method or technique can

answer all of the different questions.
◼ An important advantage of the multimethod
approach is that researchers obtain a more
complete understanding of complex behavior
and mental processes.

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 The Multimethod Approach (continued)

◼ Researchers recognize there is no perfect

method for answering questions
— each method or measure of behavior has flaws or
may be incomplete in its ability to answer research
questions fully.
◼ By using multiple methods, the flaws associated
with any particular method are overcome by
other methods that “fill in the gaps.”

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 The Multimethod Approach (continued)

The multimethod approach means that we have a

“toolbox” with different tools for conducting
research.

◼ The focus of this class is to introduce you to the

different research tools and how to use them.

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 Steps of the Research Process
(An overview of this course.)

1. Develop a research question.

◼ Be aware of ethnocentrism.
◼ Gain personal experience doing research.

◼ Read psychological literature.

2. Generate a research hypothesis.

◼ Read psychological theories on your topic.
◼ Consider personal experience, think of exceptions,
and notice inconsistencies in previous research.

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 Research Steps (continued)

3. Form operational definitions.

◼ Look to previous research to see how others have
defined the same constructs (concepts).
◼ Identify the variables you will examine.

4. Choose a research design.

◼ Decide whether your research question seeks to
describe, allow prediction, or identify causal
relationships.
◼ Choose the appropriate research design for your
question.
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32
 Research Steps (continued)

5. Evaluate the ethical issues.

◼ Identify the potential risks and benefits of the research and
the ways in which participants’ welfare will be protected.
◼ Submit a proposal to an ethics review committee.
◼ Seek permission from those in authority.
6. Collect and analyze data; form conclusions.
◼ Get to know the data.
◼ Summarize the data.
◼ Confirm what the data reveal.

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 Research Steps (continued)

6. Report research results.

◼ Presentthe findings at a psychology
conference.
◼ Submit a written report of the study to a
psychology journal.

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 Discussion Questions
◼ Have you heard or read media reports about
psychological research?
◼ Did you accept the report without questions?
Why or why not?
◼ Did you have enough information?
◼ What do other scientists say about the topic?
◼ Could the report be biased?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Discussion Questions, continued
◼ Do you remember ever being skeptical about
research presented in the media?
◼ Why were you skeptical?
◼ What information would have made you less
skeptical?
◼ Did a finding seem “too good to be true”?

◼ Did anyone have anything to gain through the

report?
◼ Have the findings been replicated (repeated)?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Discussion Questions, continued
◼ What research topics in psychology interest you?
◼ What hypotheses can you form about your topic?
◼ What relationships might exist between variables (factors)
you’ve identified?
◼ Can you make predictions regarding your topic?

◼ Can you identify potential causes for the behavior or

phenomenon?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Discussion Questions, continued
◼ Does your cultural background influence your
choice of topic and hypotheses?
◼ Would people with different backgrounds view your
topic similarly?
◼ Consider people with different sex, age, racial,
socioeconomic status than yourself.
Might these characteristics make a difference for
your topic?
◼ Are there other cultural variables that would make a
difference?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Discussion Questions, continued
◼ What research topics and theories are currently
popular among psychologists?
◼ What psychology research topics are
investigated at your school?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Discussion Questions, continued
◼ How might our current social and cultural
context be related to the prominence of certain
research topics?
◼ To what extent does ethnocentric bias play a
role in the prominence of current research
topics?

Copyright © 2015 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or

distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
 Tutorial Classes
◼ PT10203 (SECTION 2) tutorial registration for is now open. Please register your tutorial class
online. Maximum 35 students/tutorial. For Section 1 please contact Mr. Beddu Salam Baco.

Tuesday 8am-9am (BS3)

Tuesday 9am-10am (BS3)
Wednesday 8am-9am (BS3)
Wednesday 9am-10am (BS3)
Wednesday 10am-11am (BS3)
Wednesday 11am-12pm (BS3)
Thursday 8am-9am (BS3)

◼ Online registration will commence from 6th February 2015 (8 a.m.) to 27 February, Friday (5
p.m.). Any later than that will not be entertained.
◼ Tutorial classes begin on the THIRD WEEK of the semester (3, 4 & 5 March 2015).
◼ Attendance is compulsory.
◼ Please be informed that the FIRST LECTURE will commence on the SECOND WEEK of
the semester (24th Feb 2015).

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