Ethics in Research
Who reviews psychological studies to make sure participants are safe?
What is the Institutional Review Board (IRB)?
👉 Explanation: The IRB is like a safety inspector for research — they double-check that people’s rights are protected.
What is the independent variable (IV) in an experiment?
What is the factor the researcher changes?
👉 Explanation: The IV is what’s manipulated — the “cause” in cause-and-effect.
The average of a set of scores is called the ____.
What is the mean?
👉 Explanation: Add them all up and divide by the number of scores.
In a normal distribution, the mean, median, and mode are ____.
What is the same value?
👉 Explanation: In a perfect bell curve, all three are in the middle.
A z-score tells you how many ___ a score is above or below the mean.
What are standard deviations?
👉 Explanation: Z-scores measure distance from the average.
True or False: Participation in a study must always be voluntary.
What is True?
👉 Explanation: People can’t be forced to join research; they can quit anytime.
What is the dependent variable (DV) in an experiment?
What is the outcome that is measured?
👉 Explanation: The DV is what’s observed — the “effect” of the IV.
The middle score in a set of data is called the ____.
What is the median?
👉 Explanation: Line up the numbers; the one in the middle is the median.
If most scores are low with a few very high ones, the distribution is ____.
What is positively skewed?
👉 Explanation: The “tail” points to the right (higher side).
A score of 115 on an IQ test (M = 100, SD = 15) is how many SDs above the mean?
What is 1 SD?
👉 Explanation: 115 is 15 points higher, and 15 = 1 SD.
What form must participants sign before joining a study?
What is an informed consent form?
👉 Explanation: This form explains the risks and benefits, so people know what they’re agreeing to.
What do we call clearly defining how variables are measured?
What is an operational definition?
👉 Explanation: This means spelling out exactly how something is measured (e.g., test scores, reaction time, survey rating).
The most frequent score in a set of data is called the ____.
What is the mode?
👉 Explanation: The number that shows up the most.
About what percent of scores fall within 1 standard deviation of the mean in a normal curve?
What is about 68%?
👉 Explanation: Around 2/3 of scores are close to the average.
If p < .05, what does this mean about the results?
What is the results are statistically significant (less than 5% chance due to error)?
👉 Explanation: It’s unlikely the results happened by accident.
About what percent of psychological studies involve animals?
What is about 7%?
👉 Explanation: Animal research is rare but important, often done with rats because they’re biologically similar to humans.
Why do researchers keep conditions the same for all participants except the IV?
What is to control other factors that could affect the results?
👉 Explanation: Controlling variables keeps the test fair, so only the IV affects the DV; to avoid confounding variables.
Group A and B both had a mean of 75. What extra statistic showed how spread out the scores were?
What is the standard deviation (SD)?
👉 Explanation: SD tells us if the scores are all close together or spread out.
In a negatively skewed distribution, which measure is best to report—mean or median?
What is the median?
👉 Explanation: The mean gets pulled down by the low scores, so the median shows the middle better.
What’s the cutoff z-score for significance in a two-tailed test at p < .05?
What is ±1.96?
👉 Explanation: A score this far from the mean is rare enough to be “significant.”
Name two rights that protect participants during research.
What are confidentiality/anonymity, the right to withdraw, protection from harm, or access to study results?
👉 Explanation: These rules make sure people stay safe, private, and in control of their choices.
What is it called when participants are randomly placed into experimental or control groups?
What is random assignment?
👉 Explanation: Random assignment ensures each group is similar at the start, so differences are due to the IV.
What is the range of scores?
What is the highest score minus the lowest score?
👉 Explanation: It shows the “spread” from the bottom to the top score.
In a normal curve, what percent of scores fall within 3 standard deviations of the mean?
What is about 99.7%?
👉 Explanation: Almost all scores fit within 3 SDs of the average.
A student scored 82 in Group A (M = 75, SD = 2). What is their z-score?
What is +3.5?
👉 Explanation: 82 is 7 points higher than the mean; 7 ÷ 2 = 3.5 SDs above.