Exam 1
Three features of science
systematic empiricism
empirical questions
public knowledge
-self correcting
What is the difference between primary and secondary sources
A primary source is an original material based on first-hand research that was done by the author. These are written while the research is being completed and they present us with new discoveries or info.
A secondary source provides us with a recap and summarizes the original research.
What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative research?
Quantitative research- it is in numerical form (percentages, statistics)
Qualitative- You do not have numerical data, you try to identify abstract concepts
What is a z-score?
the difference between that individual’s score and the mean of the distribution, divided by the standard deviation of the distribution.
What is a two-tailed test ?
A two-tailed test is a method in which the critical distribution is two sided and tests whether a sample is greater or less than a certain range of values.
Definition of psychology...
The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
Difference between scholarly and non-scholarly sources?
Non-scholarly sources have not been reviewed by the other researchers and are mostly based on common sense or personal experiences.
Define constructs.
Psychological variables that represent an individual's mental state or experience, often not directly observable, such as personality traits, emotional states, attitudes, and abilities.
What was Milgram's study looking at and what did it consist of?
Milgram conducted a series of studies where he looked at obedience and authority. His experiments involved instructing study participants to deliver increasingly high-voltage shocks to an actor in another room, who would scream and eventually go silent as the shocks became stronger. He did this to try to understand the justifications behind the genocide in World War 2. Basically trying to understand how a large amount of people could agree to something so horrible.
Statistics vs. parameters
statistics are the descriptive data for the sample, parameters are the corresponding values for the population
The 5 Methods of Knowing are...
Intuition
Empiricism
Authority
Scientific Method
Rationalism
Define Meta-analysis
....instead of conducting new research with participants, the researchers examine the results of several previous studies....
When do you use a scatterplot and when do you use a bar graph?
You use a scatterplot when...
- you are trying to determine if two intervals are related, your dependent variable has multiple values, and you have paired numerical data.
You use a bar graph when...
- you are comparing two or more values
What is a case study?
A case study is an in-depth examination of an individual
What is a sampling error?
random variability in a statistic from sample to sample
What is the difference between applied and basic research?
Basic research has the intent to increase our knowledge or understanding of a problem without seeking to solve it.
Applied research is when you find solutions to the problems.
What is the order of the info in an APA research paper
Abstract
intro
proposed methods
design
results
discussion
What is different in a quasi experiment compared to an experiment?
An experiment has random assignment
Measures of central tendency
A typical value for a probability distribution. It is the location of the distribution. It tries to identify data by finding the central position in the set of numbers.
What is a null hypothesis?
A null hypothesis is when there is not a significant difference between the specified populations or when there is no observed difference due to the sampling or experimental error.
What does IRB stand for and what does it do?
IRB stands for institutional review board. They look at proposals to see if it has the correct protections for the rights of those participating in the research.
What type of information is found in the Methods section?
The type of research and the techniques and assessment instruments used.
What is reliability and validity?
Reliability is the consistency of a research study or measuring test.
Validity is the extent to which a test measures what it claims to measure.
Z-scores vs T-scores
The difference between a t-score and a z-score is ...
z-score is from a population data, must be used if population is 30 or higher, the average is always zero, and the standard deviation is always one.
t-score is from sample data, used when population is not known or sample size is less than 30, average is always 50, and the standard deviation is always 10.
p-value vs alpha
a p-value is the probability you have of getting results as extreme as the observed results from the statistical hypothesis test.
the alpha is the level of probability you have of rejecting the null hypothesis when it is true.