UNIT 3 MODULES 3 4 Unit 3 Methods Two types of Research Basic and Applied Psychologists aren t the only people who seek to understand human behavior and solve social problems Philosophers religious leaders and politicians also strive to provide explanations for human behavior Psychologists believe that research is the best tool for understanding human beings and their relationships with others Rather than accepting claims psychologists collect data and do tests The statements made by psychologists are based on an empirical study An empirical study is results of verifiable evidence from a systematic collection and analysis of data that has been objectively observed measured and undergone experimentation Psychologists develop and test their research ideas they measure the thoughts feelings and behavior of individuals and they analyze and interpret the data they collect To understand psychology you must understand how and why the research you are reading about was conducted and what the collected data mean Learning about the principles and practices of research will allow you to critically read interpret and evaluate research Psychologists study behavior of humans and animals and the main purpose of this research is to help us understand people and to improve the quality of human lives Some psychological research is basic research Basic research is research that answers fundamental questions about behavior For instance bio psychologists study how nerves conduct impulses from the receptors in the skin to the brain and cognitive psychologists investigate how different types of studying influence memory for pictures and words There is no particular reason to examine such things except to acquire a better knowledge of how these processes occur Applied research is research that investigates issues that have implications for everyday life and provides solutions to everyday problems Applied research has been conducted to study the most effective methods for reducing depression the types of advertising campaigns that serve to reduce drug and alcohol abuse the key predictors of managerial success in business and the indicators of effective government programs Basic research and applied research inform each other and advances in science occur more rapidly when each type of research is conducted Learn by doing Various areas of the brain are studied to determine which areas are most affected by drinking alcohol Basic only researching fundamental answers about brain behavior in different parts of the brain when affected by alcohol A comparison of driving behavior and people who have various levels of alcohol to no alcohol in their bloodstreams Applied it may provide important information to improve the safety of people while driving UNIT 3 MODULES 3 4 Mice are given a new drug to determine if there are any effects on their nervous system Basic it is only researching fundamental answers about how a drug affects the nervous system of mice The effects of electronic multi tasking are studied by recording brain activity in the cerebral cortex Basic it is only researching fundamental answers about how electronic multitasking affects brain activity in the cerebral cortex of individuals College students are surveyed to determine the average amount of alcohol that is consumed weekly so that an alcohol awareness program can be developed Applied it may provide important information to help students become aware of the use of alcohol among their peers that may have implications for their everyday life Did I get this Research that answers fundamental questions about behavior is called basic research Research that investigates issues that have implications for everyday life and provides solutions everyday problems is called applied research If you conduct a study on areas of the brain most affected by the smoking of marijuana it would be called basic research A study is conducted to determine whether the desire to learn or having higher academic skills has a greater impact on achieving a college degree This type of study is an example of applied research The Research Hypothesis A theory is an integrated set of principles that explains and predicts many but not all observed relationships within a given domain of inquiry One example of an important theory in psychology is the stage theory of cognitive development proposed by the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget The theory states that children pass through a series of cognitive stages as they grow each of which must be mastered in succession before movement to the next cognitive stage can occur This is an extremely useful theory in human development because it can be applied to many different content areas and can be tested in many different ways Good theories have four important characteristics A good theory is General meaning it summarized different outcomes Parsimonious meaning it provides the simplest possible account of those outcomes Provides ideas for future research Falsifiable meaning that the variables of interest can be adequately measured and the relationships between the variables that are predicted by the theory can be shown through research to be incorrect UNIT 3 MODULES 3 4 Piaget s stage theory of cognitive development meets all four characteristics of a good theory First it is general in that it can account for developmental changes in behavior across a wide variety of domains and second it does so parsimoniously by hypothesizing a simple set of cognitive stages Third the stage theory of cognitive development has been applied not only to learning about cognitive skills but also to the study of children s moral and gender development And finally the stage theory of cognitive development is falsifiable because the stages of cognitive reasoning can be measured and because if research discovers for instance that children learn new tasks before they have reached the cognitive stage hypothesized to be required for that task then the theory will be shown to be incorrect No single theory is able to account for all behavior in all cases Theories are limited in that they make accurate predictions in some situations or for some people but not in other situations or for other people As a result there is a constant exchange between theory and data Existing theories are modified on the basis of collected data and the new modified theories then make new predictions that are tested by new data and so forth When a better theory is found it will replace the old