methods and approaches

Nota:

• how psychological research is done.

1. hypothesis

   Nota:

   • theory; speculation
2. Experiment

   Nota:

   • an investigation seeking to understand cause and effect.
   1. case studies

      Nota:

      • are intensive psychological studies of a single individual.
      • often known as clinical studies.
3. Variable

   Nota:

   • effect
   • example:  1. an experiment tests whether watching violence on tv causes aggression. tho groups of children are randomly placed infant of a violent/nonviolent tv programs. -->(independent variable b/c it can be manipulated by the experimenter)2. placing a doll in front of the children and observing how they react/treat the doll.-->(dependent variable, the variable that stays constant and is being measured)
   • population; group of interest, to be studied. I__>representative sample is drawn.
   • random sampling: is a way of ensuring maximum representativeness--> the degree to which a sample reflects the diverse characteristics of the population being studied.
   1. dependent

      Nota:

      • what is measured
   2. independent

      Nota:

      • manipulated variable.
      • using two groups allows for comparison to be made and causation to be determined.
      1. experiment group

         Nota:

         • receiving or reacting to the independent variable
      2. control group (placebo)

         Nota:

         • doesn't receive the independent variable, but should be kept identical in all other respects. it's later on used to compare the experiment group.
4. correlation coefficient

   Nota:

   • correlation-->shows the strength of relationship among variables. is a statistic that will give us the required information/outcome.
   • pearson correlation: is a descriptive statistic that describes the linear relationship between attributes.
   • correlation does not prove causation-->the reason something happens
   1. positive correlation

      Nota:

      • as one increases, the other increases as well. 
   2. negative correlation

      Nota:

      • as one increases, the other decreases.
5. validity
   1. internal val.

      Nota:

      • is the certainty with which the results of the results of an experiment can be attributed to the manipulation of the independent variable rather than to some other, confounding variable.
   2. external val.

      Nota:

      • the extent to which the finding of a study can be generalized to other contexts in the "real world".
6. reliability

   Nota:

   • is whether or not the same results appear if the experiment is repeated under similar conditions.
7. statistics
   1. descriptive

      Nota:

      • summarizes data. measures of central tendency, that is , they characterize the typical value of is a set of data.
      1. mean

         Nota:

         • the arithmetic average of s et of number. ex. 22254411-->21(total)/6=3.5
         1. median

            Nota:

            • the number that falls exactly in the middle of a distribution ex1. 24387-->23478=4 ex2. 558325-->235558=5+5/2=5 -->(get the average)
            1. mode

               Nota:

               • the most repeated value in the data set. ex. 154787737=7
      2. normal curve
         1. positive skew

            Nota:

            • there are more exceptionally large values
         2. negative skew

            Nota:

            • there are more exceptionally small variables.
      3. variability

         Nota:

         • refers to how  much the numbers differ from each other. 
      4. standard deviation

         Nota:

         • measures a function of the average dispersion of numbers around the mean and is a commonly used measure of variability.
   2. inferential

      Nota:

      • are used to determine our level of confidence in claiming that a set of a givens of results would be extremely unlikely to occur if the result was only up to chance.
      1. type I error

         Nota:

         • refers to the conclusion that a difference exists wen in fact it does not.
      2. type II error

         Nota:

         • refers to the conclusion that there is no difference when in fact there is.
8. ethics

   Nota:

   • occasionally, some experiments may include deception. ex. the staley pilgrim experiment-->UNETHICAL.
   1. informed consent

      Nota:

      • participants only agree to participate in study after they've been told what their participation entails.
   2. debriefing

      Nota:

      • is what the participants receive after the experiment has been concluded, in which they are told the exact purpose of their participation in the research and of any deception that may have been used in the process of experimentation.
   3. confidentiality
9. subfields in psychology
   1. applied psychology

      Nota:

      • is psychology that is put directly into practice. ex. when therapist meets client. ex. school psychology
   2. basic psychology

      Nota:

      • is grounded in research and is often conducted at universities and private labs.