SOURCES OF INFORMATION
What are the 3 main sources of information (other than research)?
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, INTUITION, AUTHORITY
A pattern of variance explaining a systematic difference between groups in an orderly, predictable way. This is what we aim for in research.
SYSTEMATIC Variance
This type of research is used to determine a relationship between variables without any manipulation.
CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH (to determine an associative claim)
This type of validity represents how well a conceptual variable is operationalized (i.e., how well a variable was measured/manipulated in a study).
CONSTRUCT VALIDITY
a measure that represents the value scores tend to center around, often expressed as either mode, median, or mean
CENTRAL TENDENCY
Relying on authority can lead us to erroneous conclusions because...
They can ALSO BE BIASED & not everyone is trustworthy (may have own agenda)
(ex. celebrity, professor)
Variance unaccounted for (& not systematically related to) by variables in a study. This is random, and therefore, not systematically relevant to the variables
ERROR Variance
Finding an association does not necessarily mean there is a causal relationship. 2 reasons for this are attributable to... (100 pts per correct response)
_____________ problem -When you cannot determine which variable came first (cause & effect)
_____________ problem -another variable affect each of the variables being studied
DIRECTIONALITY; THIRD-VARIABLE
This type of validity represents a study being able to account for and rule out alternative explanations for data such as confounds and is especially important for causal claims in experimental research
INTERNAL VALIDITY
What's the difference between simple frequency distribution and grouped frequency distribution?
SIMPLE frequency distribution- “Categories” are the individual scores
GROUPED frequency distribution- “Categories” are subsets/grouping of scores
What are 3 reasons (from class) personal experience can lead to erroneous conclusions?
a. NO COMPARISON GROUPS -may not be able to know what would have happened if opposing scenario occurred
b. fullllll of CONFOUNDS -there could be a number of alternative explanations for what happened
c. relationships are PROBABILISTIC -situation may be true on average but not necessarily in every case, can't explain what happens every time
a value that represents the proportion of systematic to total variance and how meaningful a relationship is in the real-world
EFFECT SIZE
Define these terms. *150 pts each.
1. __________ -start with a broad explanation and come up with a hypothesis from theory, then prediction from hypothesis. Essentially taking what we already know & applying it.
2. ___________ -starting with a specific observation for hypothesis then making prediction.
1. DEDUCTION
2. INDUCTION
*Difference between the two comes from the inspiration behind claim. (theory vs. observation)
This type of validity represents how meaningful and accurate statistical conclusions are using p-value and effect size
STATISTCAL VALIDITY
Nominal and Ordinal data are types of DISCRETE data.
Define each type. *150 pts each.
NOMINAL- scores are represented by category such as color (ex. blue, red, green)
ORDINAL -scores are by rank order (ex. High school grade levels)
What are the 3 main reasons using intuition as a source of info. can lead us to erroneous conclusions?
*25 Bonus Points per example you give for each reason (each reason has at least 2 examples on the outline we talked about in class)
a. we use COGNITIVE SHORT-CUTS (ex. 'Good Story' heuristic, Availability heuristic)
b. we focus on EVIDENCE WE PREFER (ex. Confirmation Bias, Confirmatory Hypothesis Testing)
c. we are often UNAWARE of our INTUITIVE LIMITATIONS (ex. Overconfidence, Bias Blind Spot)
A mathematical way of determining the main conclusion of a particular phenomenon by combining the results of studies into a single effect size
META-ANALYSIS
"All scientific hypotheses must be ________ and ______."
TESTABLE & FALSIFIABLE
This type of validity refers to how well findings can be generalized to other people and situations (based on how well the sample represents the external population of interest). This is often sacrificed for internal validity in experimental research
EXTERNAL VALIDITY
Interval and Ratio are types of CONTINUOUS data.
Define each type. *200 pts each.
INTERVAL- equal intervals (distance) between scores (ex. IQ test scores)
RATIO- zero indicates lack of variable (ex. the amount of rain caught in a bucket)
What source of information is described?
"When you think about it, people should have more energy at the beginning of the day than toward the end. This means that it's better to take an exam in the morning than at night."
INTUITION
Statistics account for observed variability in behavioral data. To conclude a real effect, we use effect size (and statistical significance) to determine if SYSTEMATIC VARIANCE is...
large enough compared to error variance
Remember, data either "supports" or "fails to support" hypotheses. Why can we never "prove" a hypothesis?
-studies have flaws/limitations, such as sampling error
-there is always a bit of variability that cannot be accounted for
This type of validity (often used when in "generalization mode" for a study) refers to how realistic the operational definitions are to a real-world setting (experimental realism)
ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY
250 each*
What IS a z-score? (what does it represent)
What is the formula used to calculate z score?
(To compare apples to oranges!)
A z score is a value used to determine how far away a score is from the mean in standard deviation units. This can be used to compare scores on different variables.
z = (raw score - mean) / standard deviation