Science Fundamentals
Alex works at a liberal think tank. He wants to run a study to determine whether raising taxes on the rich is morally just given that current levels of inequality have exceeded those of the Gilded Age and problems like homelessness and medical bankruptcy are on the rise.
Can science answer Alex’s question? Why or why not?
No, science cannot answer questions of what is moral or what is objectively "right" or "wrong" in this way.
It can provide information that we can use to make such judgments, but it cannot definitively make the judgement.
What are the 4 "levels" of principles that define and enforce research ethics?
Moral, legal, institutional, and normative.
Describe the difference between basic and applied research.
Basic Research: generates information to understand fundamental psychological phenomenon and to confirm or disconfirm theoretical or empirical positions.
Applied Research: Generates information to address a real-world problem or issues that have immediate relevance to current procedures, practices, and policies.
Complete the following:
A hypothesis is a _____ about _____ between two or more ______.
a prediction about the specific relationship between two or more variables.
_______________ is a statistical technique in which data from many quantitative studies exploring a similar phenomenon are combined and analyzed to determine the degree to which the existing literature leads to consistent conclusions regarding the phenomenon in question.
Meta-Analysis
What are the two reasons publication is an essential feature of science?
1. Science is a large-scale collaboration across time and space. Publishing research allows it to be part of this repository - allows people to access that knowledge and build on that work to advance the collaboration.
2. Science is self-correcting. Publication allows others in the scientific community to detect and correct these errors so that, over time, scientific knowledge increasingly reflects the way the world actually is.
What principles distinguish the APA Ethics Code General Principles from the Belmont Report?
Fidelity & Responsibility: Psychologists must seek to build and maintain trust while upholding and being accountable to professional standards of conduct.
Integrity: Psychologists must prioritize accuracy, honesty, and truthfulness in science, teaching, and practice.
How do psychologists come up with research questions?
- Informal Observation
- Practical Problems
- Previous Research
A team of researchers found no relationship between childhood screen time and the development of attention problems in their 2 large, well-designed longitudinal studies. Presenting this work at a press conference, the lead researcher concludes at a technology conference, "Parents can rest easy now that our findings have proven screen time has no effect on attention." The crowd erupts into applause.
Name and define the key term covered in the lectures identifying the issue with this scenario?
Disconfirmation: We cannot prove that a theory or hypotheses is true, only that it has not been disconfirmed or disproven.
Jenny wants to run a study to explore the impact of TikTok on contraceptive use among teenage girls. When conducting her literature review, she finds that a couple of research studies have already been published exploring this topic.
What questions should Jenny now ask?
- What did those studies find?
- What methods did they use?
- Can she explore the topic differently or better in some meaningful way?
Name and define the philosophies of science outlined in the textbook.
Positivism: the belief that absolute truths about the human experience exist and science can objectively identify them.
Post-positivism: the belief that absolute truth about the human experience may exist but that true objectivity in seeking them is impossible - though worth striving for - due to inevitable biases.
Constructivism: believes the “realities” researchers identify are human creations that can be helpful in finding subjective meanings within the data collected. This embrace of subjectivity is carried through to an open acceptance and acknowledgement of biases in research process.
Phenomenology: believes research should be focused entirely on how human beings subjectively experience themselves and their world as they go through life.
What are the necessary conditions for ethical deception in research?
What characteristics of a good research question are missing from the following example:
"Do people feel sad when they lose a loved one?"
Unclear answer (the answer is obviously yes)
Novel (this has been exhaustively studied)
Identify the characteristics of a good hypothesis that are absent in the following example:
People who are mean will have worse lives.
Testable ("mean" and "worse lives" are undefined and unmeasurable as stated)
Specific (no defined population, timeframe, mechanism, or outcome variable)
Supportable by data or theory (no data or theoretical framework is invoked / or plausibly could be invoked to justify the predicted relationship)
What are the first three things you should do when reading a peer-reviewed research paper?
1. Read the abstract.
2. Skim the introduction.
3. Skin the discussion.
A marketing firm claims their new wristband “balances your body’s celestial energy” and helps reduce stress. They advertise it as “scientifically proven,” but no studies are published, and the methods are unclear.
Name and define the features of science that are missing here?
Systematic Empiricism (process of learning through carefully planned observations and analyses)
Empirical Questions (questions that can be answered through systematic empiricism)
Public Knowledge (publication and dissemination of scientific research)
What required components are missing from the displayed informed consent document?
- Expected Duration
- Incentives for participation
- Contact information of researcher .
What's the difference between subproblems and pseodoproblems? Give me an example of each for the following research question:
"How does the use of AI chatbots by elementary school students impact the development of writing ability?"
Subproblems: More specific and easier to answer components of the broader research question.
Pseudoproblems: Questions involving decisions a researcher must make before being able to effectively address the general research problem and its subproblems.
Name and define the 4 dimensions on which we can classify hypotheses?
Null v. Alternative
Non-Directional V. Directional
Descriptive V. Causal
Data-Driven V. Theory Driven
Why do we use theories?
1. To provide accurate explanations or interpretations of phenomenon.
2. To organize phenomena in ways that will help you think about them clearly and efficiently.
3. To make predictions about what will happen in new situations.
4. To generate new research questions informed by the theory.
Name and define the 7 characteristics of scientific information.
Empirical – learned through systematic observation.
Rational - It follows the rules of logic.
Testable - It is the result of the scientific process and can be submitted to it again.
Parsimonious - Aims for the simplest explanation possible.
General - Seeks to produce information that applies across a variety of contexts / explain those boundaries.
Tentative - Subject to change as needed.
Evaluated - Has been rigorously evaluated through peer-review, replication, and /or contestation.
Josh studying social media and self-esteem creates a fake Instagram profile to infiltrate private teen self-harm groups, covertly collecting data from minors who have no idea they're in a study. He collects data on how they are harming themselves and their methods for hiding it by screenshotting all their messages for qualitative analysis. When the data collection ends, Josh begins writing his paper without debriefing the teens, informing their parents of the danger, or referring them for care.
Which General Principles of the APA Ethics Code is Josh in violation of? Justify each by noting specific relevant unethical behaviors.
Beneficence & Nonmaleficence: Psychologists must seek to maximize good while minimizing harms.
Fidelity & Responsibility: Psychologists must seek to build and maintain trust while upholding and being accountable to professional standards of conduct.
Integrity: Psychologists must prioritize accuracy, honesty, and truthfulness in science, teaching, and practice.
Respect for People's Right's & Dignity: Psychologists must respect the dignity and worth of all people, and their rights to privacy, confidentiality, and self-determination.
What characteristics of good research questions and subproblems are violated by the following example:
Research Question: "What makes a virtuous leader?"
Subproblems:
RQ Violations: Empirical (virtuous is about moral character and cannot be determined through science).
SQ Violations: Researchable (#1 and #3 are not empirical questions and #2 is not feasible), Tied to Interpretation of Data (#1)
Jennifer predicts that increasing AI use will make employees better.
Answer the following questions as they relate to the above hypothesis:
1. How would you classify the above hypothesis?
2. Which characteristics of a good hypothesis are absent from this hypothesis?
3. How would you fix this to address the issue?
It's an alternative, directional, causal hypothesis.
It's not specific and, as a result, it's not testable.
Can also note: No data or theory is being marshaled to support it.
Name and define the three different "types" of theories outlined in the course reading?
Functional Theories: explain psychological phenomena in terms of their function or purpose.
Mechanistic Theories: focus on specific variables, structures, and processes, and how they interact to produce the phenomena - providing an explanation for the phenomenon and context for when or how intense the phenomenon happens.
Organizational Theories: theoretical approaches that provide organization without necessarily providing a functional or mechanistic explanation - can include state theories and typologies.