PSYC 307 Lecture 2 How we study child development I Scientific Method a Choose a question b Formulate hypothesis c Test hypothesis d Draw conclusion e Hypotheses theories can never be proven only disproven i To prove a theory you would need to test ALL situations across all cultures infinite II Reliability a Degree to which independent measures of behavior are consistent i Interrater reliability you will get the same results regardless of who observes behavior ii Test retest reliability get the same measures if you run the experiment again and again 1 Standardized tests across individuals III Validity a Degree to which a test experiment measures what it is intended to i Internal ability to be comfortable that measures are measuring what you say they should be ii External can you generalize your results to other populations IV Contexts for gathering data about children a Interviews i Structured Interview all participants get the same questions 1 Pro responses are easy to code and interpret ii Clinical Interview unstructured questions adjusted in accordance with answers interviewee gives harder to interpret results iii Case studies individuals 1 Generalizing data studies only one person 2 HM Canada temporal lobe damage epilepsy a Effects of brain damage on memory b Case studies can help evolve generate research b Naturalistic Observation i Observe children in everyday situations ie age related differences and interaction with parents 1 Advantage more likely to get genuine observation 2 Limitation do not have control over any aspect limited in the conclusions that you can draw c Structured Observation i Can get information and control the experience 1 Advantage can control factors 2 Limitation not as natural V Ethnography a Descriptive qualitative technique b Goal understand group culture i Participant observation ii Researcher lives in community usually one that is developing or isolated for months or years iii Works to capture unique values social processes 1 Observe developmental stages right of passage VI Neurobiological Methods i Measures autonomic nervous system activity sensitive to psycho state 1 Heart rate blood pressure respiratory system pupils stress ii Measures relationship between nervous system processes and behavior 1 Helps infer perceptions thoughts emotions of infants young children no words stimuli b Methods of Measuring Brain Function i EEG measure electrical activity in brain ii ERP evokes potentials in certain situations peak iii fMRI changes of blood flow in brain 1 language studies in babies common 2 very expensive iv PET clinical studies radioactive dyes v NIRS different wavelengths of light 1 Oxygenated blood vs deoxygenated VII Designs Strategies a Correlational Designs i Goal determine how 2 variables are related 1 Correlation association between 2 variables a Ex sugar intake and activity level ii Types of correlations perfect positive 1 0 positive strong 4 perfect negative 1 0 strong negative 6 no correlation 0 iii CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION iv Third variable problem other things affect experimental processes b Experimental Designs i Controlled setting 1 Experimental group receives experience of interest independent variable 2 Those in control group do not get IV 3 The dependent variable DV is a behavior that is hypothesized to be affect by IV 4 Random assignment help ensure that change in behavior is due to IV DV VIII Naturalistic Experiments a Ext val of experimental designs can be questionable b Naturalistic experiments can address problem i TVs vs no TVs IX Designs for Examining Development a Cross sectional allows you to study different age groups simultaneously i Pro can be done quickly all data collected at once ii Con unable to see how previous performance is connected to current performance 1 Continuity vs discontinuity b Longitudinal study the same group of participants over time i Pro observing how the same subjects are changing ii Con attrition drop outs over periods of time data collection takes time 1 Social historical effects changes in norms and trends could affect data c Sequential longitudinal AND cross sectional comparison i Reveals cohort effects ii Permits tracking of age related changes effective iii Design helps identify difficulty d Microgenic provide in depth depiction of processes that produce change i How do changes actually occur 1 Children on brink of developmental changes are more exposed to experiences that are believed to promote change a Studied more intensely during transition X Ethical Issues in Research a Anticipate potential risks participants may encounter i Minimize those risks ii Ensure that the benefits of the study outweigh the harm that it could do to participants b International Review Board i Studies involving children pregnant women or prisoners are reviewed extremely carefully
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