Chapter 1: The science of psychology
Being wary and questioning specific claims by looking at evidence that both supports and disproves the claim is engaging in.
scientific skepticism
A form of research that holds a similar hypothesis as a previously published study, but recruits a different sample of participants, and changes some aspect of the method is…
conceptual replication
Specific information and data that is only shared with the research team.
Confidential
“I can just feel that this is right because my heart is saying that this is true”
intuition
Which goal of psychological research is being addressed by the question: “How many students report using their phones during lecture?”
describe
The term for being able to disprove or find alternative explanations for a given hypothesis indicates the research is...
falsifiable
A research study investigated the effects of social media use on depression rates. However, they failed to take age, occupation, or type of social media into account. What would these variables be considered to be?
confound
An active discussion between the researcher and participant that outlines their rights and the risks/benefits of the study.
informed consent
Carefully curating a research question, collecting data in controlled environments, analyzing that data with ethical procedures, and coming to a conclusion with some evidence for a specific phenomenon is part of…
the scientific method
When my kids sleep, they are happy. When my kids do not sleep, they are not happy. Which criteria of causal claims is this?
covariation of cause and effect
“I believe that the earth is flat, and the reason I believe that is because I see many posts on instagram that show that this holds true. I also listen to podcasts and watch documentaries where they discuss evidence that the earth is not round.”
confirmation bias
A research study assesses the effects of dog food and hours of exercise on a sample of German Shepherd dogs to determine which combination is best for training dogs to be most effective for policing. What is one limitation to only assessing German Shepherd dogs?
external validity
the policy that outlines the three ethical principles of: Respect for persons, Concern for Welfare and Justice.
Canada’s Tri-council policy statement
Every time I go to the East Coast of Canada, I observe that it often rains, therefore I could say that the East Coast is a very rainy area.
empiricism
The potatoes cannot grow unless it rains first.
temporal precedence
Through systematic empiricism, asking empirical questions, and disseminating for public knowledge is known as the…
the scientific approach
A research study resulted in not finding sufficient evidence to determine a relationship between consuming coffee and sleep quality. However, many other research studies are able to find a meaningful relationship between these variables. What type of error does this best describe?
Type II error (false negative)
The potential benefits from a specific research experiment should outweigh the potential risks.
risk-benefit analysis
We only look at observable behaviours, and draw a conclusion based on logic or assumptions.
rationalism
“I have a cold because the weather is changing.” What is something this statement is lacking?
failing to rule out alternative explanations
Because Mars is in retrograde and my sun sign is a Pisces with my moon, rising, and Venus all in Leo, I'm going to be rich by the end of this year.
psuedoscience
In a study looked at caffeine consumption and productivity. Caffeine is measured as the amount of 250ML cups of coffee consumed each day, and productivity is measured by the number of successful completion of tasks set for the day, as well as a personal reflection of perceived productivity. The act of defining each variable to ensure accuracy is also called?
operationalization
The act of fabricating or alternating data, not fully disclosing all methods and changing results of the statistical tests to influence the results of the study are forms of..
violations in professional ethics
in 1998 a surgeon named Andrew Wakefield published a paper claiming that the MMR vaccine causes Autism. This article was later retracted in 2010 for a variety of ethical violations, but many people continue to believe him. What type of method of knowing do his supporters endorse?
Authority
A claim survives repeated testing but is later revised after new evidence emerges. Which feature of the scientific method is most clearly demonstrated?
self- correction