1, 3, 5, 7, 9
Is this the median, mode, mean, or range: 8 ?
Range (9-1)
Someone who is secretly working with the researcher but appears to be a regular participant in the study.
Confederate
What is this: Non-experimental research method looking at relationship between 2 variables
Correlational Study
What is the group called in an experiment that receives the treatment being tested?
Experimental group / treatment group
A hypothesis must be able to be proven wrong. What is this idea called?
Falsifiability
Random sampling / random selection
A researcher submits their study proposal to the __________ to ensure that their experiment involving human participants follows ethical guidelines, including informed consent and protection from harm.
Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Phone use is correlated with social anxiety. However, it's unclear which variable is causing the change in the other. What is the name of this problem?
Directionality problem
What is the group called in an experiment that does NOT receive the treatment?
Control Group / Control Condition
Here are 2 versions of a dependent variable:
Version 1: Academic performance
Version 2: Academic performance, measured by time taken to complete a quiz
What type of definition is Version 2?
Operational Definition: measurable & specific
Alex usually gets an 80 on his math test. But this time, he only got a 50. Next time, what is most likely to happen? What is this called?
Score closer to 80 again - move closer to average
Regression to the mean
If a researcher discusses his participants' stories at lunch with her colleagues, what ethical principle is she violating?
Confidentiality
True or False & WHY: If nicotine use is associated with higher anxiety levels, then nicotine causes anxiety.
FALSE. Correlation does not mean causation.
An experiment requires 2 things to be considered a "true" experiment. What are they?
1. Manipulation of variables (IV & DV)
2. Random assignment of subjects to different conditions (like spinning a wheel to assign to groups A or B)
Make a hypothesis for this question: Does a competitive environment cause success or failure?
Possible answers MUST be falsifiable:
Some psychologists found that competitive environments drive an individual to try hard and succeed because they are motivated to be the best.
Some psychologists found that competitive environments lead to individualistic mindsets that become toxic and can lead people to stop trying.
In this graph, is the mean closer to the left or the right? WHY?
The mean is closer to the left (or the lower values).
Reason: the mean is sensitive to extreme values, and the lower outliers pull it toward the tail.
What is debriefing, and why is it important?
Debriefing: Explaining the study to participants afterwards
Important to make sure participants understand any deception + give emotional support
What is this: When a third, confounding variable affects both of the correlated variables, leading to an illusory correlation
Give an example
Third-Variable Problem
Ice cream sales are correlated with drowning rates
A 3rd variable, hot weather, influences both
What is this: How much the experiment measures what it’s supposed to measure
How do we increase it?
Validity
Increased by using random assignment, controlling for confounding variables, using double-blind procedures
What happens if we don’t have Operational Definitions?
We can’t REPLICATE experiments
A researcher runs a study, and gets this result:
p-value = 0.03
What does this tell us about the study?
p-value of 0.03 is LESS THAN 0.05. This means the result is statistically significant
i.e. result is UNLIKELY to be by chance.
When using confederates, why is it important to have minimal deception?
Maintain ethical standards and ensure that participants' trust is not violated
Name 1 example of each: 1) Case Study 2) Meta-Analysis 3) Naturalistic Observation 4) Correlational Study 5) Experiment
We've learned about RANDOM ASSIGNMENT & RANDOM SAMPLING/SELECTION. What is the difference?
Random Assignment: putting ppl in groups randomly (experimental vs. control)
Random Sampling / Selection: getting a representative sample, so we can generalize findings to the population
A professor runs an experiment: if homework is printed on yellow paper, students will remember it better than if it is printed on white paper. To test this hypothesis, he puts the names of all his students into a bowl. Then, he draws out names to assign them to 2 different groups. This is a necessary procedure to make a study a REAL experiment. What is it called?
Random assignment: putting people in groups randomly.