PSYCH 111 Shelly Schrier Lecture #2 09-10-2013: Methods in Psychology Outline of Last Lecture I. Psychology DefinedII. 4 Goals of PsychologyIII. History and Psychological InquiryIV. Applied PsychologyOutline of Current Lecture V. What do you believe?VI. Research Methods in Five Easy StepsVII. Measurement Issues in ResearchVIII. Data Collection TechniquesIX. Various Types of Psychological ResearchX. Descriptive Correlational StudiesXI. John/Joan Case Study: John as nature made himXII. Statistical RelationshipsXIII. APA An Ethical Guide for ResearchCurrent Lecture1. What do you believe?a. Theory: A systematic way of organizing and understanding observationsb. Hypothesis: A proposed relationship between two variablesc. Variable: Anything which can be measured or described along a particular dimensioni. Continuous Variable: a variable which can be measured across a continuum ii. Categorical Variable: A variable with fixed meaning or attribute. d. Operational Definitions: Label and describe the variables of interesti. Research on sexual activity and adolescence: how do you define sexually active?ii. Research on Marijuana and academic achievement: how does one define/differentiate use?iii. Research on Aggression and Preschoolers: what is aggression?1. Does piercing make someone more attractive?2. Research Methods in Five Easy StepsThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.a. Develop a theory based on observationsb. Develop a hypothesis from the theoryc. Design a research studyd. Gather the datae. Analyze the data and report findings3. Measurement Issues in Researcha. Validity: does it measure what you’re suppose to measureb. Reliability: do you get consistent results over time4. Data Collection Techniquesa. Direct observation b. Questionnairesc. Interviewsd. Psychological Testse. Physiological Readingsf. Examination of Historical Records5. Various Types of Psychological Researcha. Experimental Methodi. Systematic observation ii. Explores changes in variables of Interestiii. Independent Variable is manipulated by the experimenteriv. Dependent variable is measured to assess any changes in response to the manipulationb. Subjectsi. Random sample which represents the population as a wholec. Sampling bias: i. Skewed samples will give results, which don’t generalize.d. Experimental group: i. Receive the special treatment in the experimente. Control group: i. Receive all the same treatment except the independent variable to assessits impact.f. Extraneous Variable: i. Variable other than the IV which can impact the results: time or day, lighting, procedural variationsg. Standardization: i. Keeping research procedures constant to assure confidence when comparing resultsh. Placebo Effect: i. Experiences can impact subjective experiencesi. Demand Characteristics: i. Subjects may behave in ways they think are expected of them ; responding to subtle or unintentional cues from the experimenterj. Social Desirability:i. Give answers which are “correct” or “appropriate” and not necessariy truek. Generlizability: i. The ability to reasonably apply the results to other similar populationsl. Response Set:i. Consistency in answers reflective of a patterned responsem. Experimenter bias: i. Research expectations may impact the interpretation of resultsn. Single-blind Study:i. Controls for subject bias by limiting their knowledgeo. Double-blind study: i. Controls for subject and experimenter bias with limited knowledge for both.p. Wording questions in a manner which does not consider developmental abilities can also impact research resultsq. Advantages and Disadvantages of Experimental Design:i. Permits researchers to draw conclusions about causationii. Can be replicatediii. May not have real world applicabilityiv. Not appropriate for all areas of inquiry due to ethical or practical limitationsr. Zimbardo and the “Stanford Prison Study”i. Explored the power of situational forces and social rolesii. Randomly assigned subjects to the role of prisoner or guardiii. Significant criticism of the methods and ethics of this research study1. Design flaws and biases: 2. These findings have been applied to several real life situations6. Descriptive and Correlational Studiesa. Looks at patterns of behavior across conditionsb. Links variables which show consistent patterns or relationshipsc. Case studies:i. In depth study of an individual or small groupii. Provides systematic observationsiii. Limited generalizabilityiv. Susceptible to research bias7. John/Joan Case Study: As Nature Made Hima. John Money’s John/Joan case studyi. Ethical challenge were significant in this caseii. Replication not likelyiii. Money’s reported findings led to a change in the standard of care for intersex individuals, failing to consider the limited generalizability of case studiesb. Naturalistic Observationi. Looks at behavior in natural environmentii. Reports observationsiii. Can describe but not explain behaviorc. Survey Methodi. Large sample size possibleii. Often based on questionnaires and interviesiii. Limitations: Response bias/Sample biasd. Correlational Studiesi. Explores the relationships between two variables using a numerical valueii. Scale of -1 to +1iii. -1 is strong negative relationshipiv. +1 is a strong positive relationshipv. 0 indicates no relationshipvi. Correlations do not indicate causationsvii. Third-Variable Correlation: the fact that two variables are correlated only because each is casually related to a third variable. 8. Statistical Relationshipsa. Mean: group scores added and divided by the number of scoresb. Median: the score which falls exactly in the middle of the scoresc. Mode: the most frequently occurring scored. Standard Deviation: how much individual scores vary (> the sd the > variance there is)e. Advantages and Disadvantages of Descriptive Researchi. Allows for investigation where experiments are not possible or ethicalii. Can observe real world phenomenoniii. Can not draw cause and effect conclusions9. APA Ethical Guidelines for Researcha. Informed Consentb. Freedom and Coercionc. Protection from Harmd. Risk-Benefit Analysise. Deceptionf. Debriefingg. Confidentialityh. Issues Specific to Research with Infants and Children (SRCD)i. Parental consent for minorsii. Children old enough grant consent/assent (7+)iii. Explain in reasonable