Research methods
The variable that is manipulated
Independent variable?
An in-depth study of one person, group, or event.
A case study
Any characteristic or aspect of a participant's background that could affect study results, even though it's not the focus of an experiment.
Participant variables
A testable statement that is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it. A working hypothesis is a provisionally accepted hypothesis proposed for further research.
A hypothesis
What is a null hypothesis?
The simplistic definition is that the null hypothesis is the opposite of the hypothesis being tested
People who drink coffee before bed will find it hard to sleep
There will be no difference in sleep patterns between people who drink coffee and those that dont
The variable that is measured
Dependant variable?
A scientific test done under controlled conditions, meaning that just one (or a few) factors are changed at a time, while all others are kept constant.
A controlled experiment
Factors in the environment that can unintentionally affect the results of a study like noise, temperature, odors, and lighting.
Situational variables
All participants in the sample are exposed to the same treatments.
Within experimental design
What is a treatment group?
Those that had a treatment during the experiment
The variable that is measured
An extraneous variable?
Any test, measure, or survey that relies on an individual's own report of their symptoms, behaviors, beliefs, or attitudes
self-report
Cues that might indicate the aim of a study to participants. These cues can lead to participants changing their behaviors or responses based on what they think the research is about.
Demand characteristics
When a study has at least one between-subjects factor and at least one within-subjects factor
Mixed design experimental design
What is a control group?
Those that didn't take a treatment so they can be used to compare the treatment group with
A variable that has already affected the DV but was not intended to
A confounding variable?
Used to investigate the behavior and psychological processes and functioning of individuals in social and other environments by reproducing those environments in a realistic way
simulation study
The tendency on the part of the experimenter/researcher to influence the participants or to interpret the data/findings to arrive at the result they are seeking to obtain.
Experimental effects
What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative?
Quantitative data seeks objective knowledge and deals with numbers unlike qualitative data which seeks meaning and context - no numbers
What is a placebo?
A sugar pill that the person taking it thinks is the real thing
What identifies the purpose of the investigation?
Aim
A type of research design that looks at the relationships between two or more variables but non-experimental, which means that the experimenter does not manipulate or control any of the variables.
correlational study
When a person's physical or mental health appears to improve after taking a placebo or 'dummy' treatment.
Placebo effects
Where every participant experiences only one condition, and you compare group differences between participants in various conditions.
Between experimental design
What is the placebo effect?
When people take a placebo and recover