Research Design Pt. 1
Correlation
Correlation: A statistical measure indicating the extent to which two variables fluctuate together; for instance, the correlation between study hours and exam scores.
Random Assignment
Random Assignment: The process of assigning participants to experimental and control groups randomly to minimize any preexisting differences between them.
Double Blind Study
Double-blind Study: An experimental procedure in which neither the participants nor the researchers know which participants are in the experimental or control group, reducing bias
Broca's Area
A region located in the left frontal lobe of the brain, responsible for speech production and language processing, particularly the production of grammatically correct speech.
Wernicke's Area
Wernicke's Area: A region of the brain located in the left temporal lobe, responsible for language comprehension and understanding speech. Damage to this area can result in receptive aphasia, where individuals have difficulty understanding spoken or written language while retaining the ability to produce fluent speech.
Experiment
Experiment: A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe their effect on a dependent variable; e.g., testing the impact of different teaching methods on student performance.
APA Ethical Guidelines (Give 3 of 5)
informed consent, Beneficence and Nonmaleficence (do good, no long-term harm), Justice (equal treatment/fair treatment), confidentiality, integrity (maximize benefits by being truthful, accurate, honest), DEBRIEFING!
Independent Variable
Independent Variable: The variable that is manipulated by the researcher to observe its effect on the dependent variable; for instance, the amount of caffeine consumed in a study on alertness.
Adrenal Glands
Adrenal Glands: Endocrine glands located on top of the kidneys that produce hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, playing a key role in the body's response to stress.
Myelin Sheath
Myelin Sheath: A fatty substance that surrounds and insulates axons, increasing the speed and efficiency of nerve impulse transmiss
Dependent Variable
Dependent Variable: The variable being measured and observed in an experiment, affected by the independent variable; such as, test scores in an educational study.
Random Selection
Random Selection: The process of selecting a sample from a population in which each member has an equal chance of being chosen, ensuring representativeness.
Single Blind Study
Single-blind Study: An experimental procedure in which either the participants or the researchers are unaware of which participants are in the experimental or control group, reducing bias to some extent.
Motor Neuron (also say alternative term for this!)
Efferent/Motor Neuron: Neurons that transmit signals from the central nervous system to muscles or glands, controlling voluntary movements and other motor functions.
Acetylcholine
Acetylcholine: A neurotransmitter involved in many functions, including muscle contraction, memory, and learning, with deficits in acetylcholine implicated in diseases such as Alzheimer's.
Operational Definition
Operational Definition: A clear, precise description of how a variable will be measured or manipulated in a particular study; for example, defining "happiness" as the number of smiles observed in a social interaction.
Standard Deviation (give the standard deviation for IQ scores too!)
Standard Deviation: A measure of the amount of variation or dispersion in a set of values, indicating how much they deviate from the mean; e.g., the standard deviation of test scores in a class.
P Value
P-Value: The probability of obtaining a result equal to or more extreme than what was observed, assuming the null hypothesis is true; typically used to determine statistical significance.
Prefrontal cortex
Prefrontal Cortex: The part of the brain located at the front of the frontal lobe, responsible for executive functions such as decision-making, planning, and impulse control.
Differences between the left and right brain
Left Brain:
Right Brain:
Statistical Significance
Statistical Significance: The probability that an observed result occurred by chance, often denoted by a p-value less than 0.05.
Descriptive Statistics
Descriptive Statistics: Statistical methods used to summarize and describe the characteristics of a dataset, such as mean, median, and standard deviation.
Inferential Statistics
Inferential Statistics: Statistical methods used to draw conclusions and make predictions about a population based on sample data.
Somatosensory Cortex
Somatosensory Cortex: The region of the brain located in the parietal lobe that receives and processes sensory information from the skin, muscles, and joints, allowing for the perception of touch, pressure, temperature, and pain.
Long-term Potentiation
Long Term Potentiation: A persistent increase in synaptic strength between neurons, often considered a cellular mechanism for learning and memory.
Imagine a person learning how to ride a bicycle for the first time. As they practice riding, their brain is actively engaged in forming new neural connections and strengthening existing ones.
During this learning process, repeated activation of specific neural pathways involved in balancing, pedaling, and steering leads to an increase in the efficiency of synaptic transmission along those pathways. This phenomenon is akin to "strengthening" the connections between neurons involved in coordinating the various aspects of bicycle riding.
Over time, with continued practice and repetition, these synaptic connections become more robust and enduring. Even after the initial learning period, the individual retains the ability to ride a bicycle, demonstrating the persistence of the strengthened neural pathways—a hallmark of Long-Term Potentiation.