Chapter 6
What's random assignment and why does it matter?
Definition: Assigning participants with no systematic bias in how the subjects are assigned to groups
Why do we care: Increases generalizability, decreases accusations of bias, etc
What's random assignment and random sampling?
Random assignment- All participants are just as likely to be assigned to the control group as to the experimental group
Random sampling- The randomization in selecting participants to be a part of study
Why does "Einstein syndrome" need to be kept in check?
It can promote the spread of pseudo science, incorrect scientific claims, and decreases misinformation spread via exaggeration
True or false: Any amount of emotional influence in the creation of the study invalidates it
False- Researchers just need to have their work checked to minimize its impact
What are common examples of "person who" statistics?
People who smoke, use substances, the vaccines and autism crowd, even flat earthers or claims of aliens can be "people who" bucked the trend
What's a control group and why do they experience what they do?
Definition: The participant group who gets doodley squat (no intervention)
Why: To increase proof of effectiveness from the experimental group
How is basic and applied research different?
Basic- Focuses on hypothesis and theory testing
Applied- Applying hypothesis and theory in the real world
What's the principle of connectivity?
A scientific theory or hypothesis must connect with previously established empirical facts, not only explaining new facts but also accounting for old ones.
True or false: Emotional influence is only a factor to measure in researchers
False- Researching emotionally charged topics such as politics, animal rights, or cultural phenomena can be difficult to control for in participants as well (remember my tangent on incels)
What's a cognitive illusion?
Even when people know the correct answer, they may be drawn to an incorrect conclusion by the structure of the problem (aka how the question is worded or phrase)
True or false: Clever Hans was a horse that could count
False- The horse was indeed clever, yet it was proven he could not count. He relied on other tools and sensory input to "count" correctly
True or false: Research conducted on animals is viewed as "less than" by the scientific community
False: Animal research, particularly in mice and monkeys, is seen as almost preferable to human studies.
- You get brownie points thinking of reasons why this is
What are the 2 principles of converging evidence?
Experiments with limitations- Experiments can go wrong but researchers examine possible flaws in research literature
Theory testing- When research is highly convergent after a series of experiments that consistently support a given theory while possibly eliminating a competing theory
What does "magnitude" mean in a research context?
The possible influence of a variable that may depend on the influence of another variable
True or false: Many common folk psychology sayings are supported using statistical reasoning
How do we combat control group "inequality"?
Remember in lecture I shared the meme with Dave Chappelle saying "Why? Cause f*ck em, that's why!". If you're lucky enough to be sorted in the experimental group, awesome. If not, too bad so sad.
True or false: The "college sophomore" problem completely discredits most research from American Universities
False: Although seen as not ideal, it gives a decent "launching point" for other researchers to confirm the findings
After numerous class tangents, why am I (and full time researchers) opposed to statements like "This experiment/procedure proves XYZ"?
- No single study proves everything
- Phrasing is important "provides evidence for" instead of "completely removes"
True or false: We can derive information from studies with the best implementation yet they don't provide significant or applicable results
Absolutely true- Just because we didn't get the results we wanted, we're still providing to the literature if and only if we use correct research methods
How is failure to use sample size information dangerous?
In my lecture example of the hand sanitizer situation, what was the independent and dependent variables?
Independent: Introduction of the hand sanitizer/cleaning solution
Dependent: Medical outcomes of the clinic patients
Were the findings of the infamous "Marshmallow study" supported after replications?
Yes and no- It supported ideas behind emotional regulation and delay of gratification, but it doesn't doom kids to a poor future if they eat the marshmallow early
What's a meta analysis and why are they important?
Using statistics to combine results from dozens or sometimes hundreds of studies to form a conclusion
- Remember my tangent on Carl Rogers, the big name therapist. He used one to prove therapy works!
What's a zero sum attitude and why do we care?
Definition- All causes of a phenomena compete with one another, and by emphasizing one it reduces the emphasis on the others
Why we care- Think about how/why we can't account for all variables at once. Sometimes research follows the same tendency and can't make every theory a priority