EXPEL1

• Experimental Psychology is a method of studying psychological phenomena and processes
• The experimental method in psychology manipulates variables to account for the activities of animals (including humans) and the functional organization of mental processes
• Psychology is the science of behavior, and psychologists take a scientific approach to understanding behavior based on accumulated research evidence
• The word "science" has two meanings: content (what we know) and process (the systematic ways of gathering data, noting relationships, and offering explanations)
• All areas of psychology rely on scientific research methods, including formal laboratory experiments, surveys, observations in natural settings, administering psychological tests, and evaluating data using scientific criteria
• In psychology, the need for scientific methodology is crucial to gather accurate data and avoid biases like confirmation bias
• Commonsense psychology tends to overlook situational data in favor of trait explanations when understanding behavior
• The scientific mentality in psychology assumes that behavior follows a natural order and can be predicted, based on the belief in specifiable causes for behavior (determinism)
• Modern scientists in psychology gather empirical data, seek general principles, and propose theories to explain observed phenomena
• Attachment is a strong reciprocal emotional bond between an infant and a primary caregiver
• Schaffer and Emerson's 1964 study on attachment aimed to identify stages of attachment and find a pattern in the development of attachment between infants and parents
• Participants in the study were 60 babies from Glasgow
• The study analyzed interactions between infants and carers, finding that babies of parents with 'sensitive responsiveness' were more likely to have formed an attachment
• Research psychologist share the belief that there are specifiable causes for the way people behave and that these cause can be discovered through research. This belief is called determinism.
• Whitehead traced the beginnings of modern science to the works of the Greek philosopher, Aristotle (384-322 BC). Aristotle assumed that order exists in the universe, and he set about describing that order in a systematic way by collecting empirical data that is, data that are observable or experienced
• Modern scientists go beyond cataloging observations to proposing general principles laws or theories that will explain them. When these principles have the generality to apply to all situations, they are called laws
• Typically, we do not have enough information to state a general law, but we advance understanding by devising and testing an interim explanation, commonly called a theory. Theories pull together, or unify, diverse sets of scientific facts into an organizing scheme, such as a general principle or set of rules, that can be used to predict new examples of behavior. Testing predictions stemming from a theory has been the cornerstone of psychological science
• A central feature of the scientific method is good thinking. The approach to the collection and interpretation of data should be systematic, objective, and rational. It avoids letting private beliefs or attitudes. Good thinking includes being open to new ideas even when they contradict our prior beliefs or attitudes.
• Another important aspect of good thinking is the principle of parsimony, sometimes called Occam’s razor.
• What Occam had in mind was simplicity, precision, and clarity of thought. We must avoid making unnecessary assumptions to support an argument or explanation. When two explanations are equally defensible, the simplest explanation is preferred until it is ruled out by conflicting data
• Self Correction: The content of science changes as we acquire new scientific information, and old information is reevaluated in light of new facts. Changes in scientific explanations and theories are an extremely important part of scientific progress
• Publicizing Results: Because of its dynamic nature, modern science has become a highly public activity. Scientists meet frequently through professional and special interest groups and attend professional conferences to exchange information about their current work. This continuous exchange of information is vital to the scientific process. It would do little good for scientists to work in isolation
• Replication is another important part of the scientific approach. We should be able to repeat our procedures and get the same results again if we have gathered data objectively and if we have followed good thinking. Finding that are obtainable by only one researcher have very limited scientific value
• Description is the initial step toward understanding any phenomenon, whether it is the path of the stars in the heavens or the complexities of human and animal behaviors. When we define description in psychological science, we are referring to a systematic and unbiased account of the observed characteristics of behaviors. Good descriptions allows us greater knowledge of behaviors because they provide us with information about what the behavior will be like. Ex: • Case Study • Field Study
• Prediction refers to the capacity for knowing in advance when certain behaviors would be expected to occur to be able to predict them ahead of time because we have identified other conditions with which behaviors are linked or associated. Ex: • Correlational • Quasi-experimental
• Explanation: When we have explained a behavior, we also understand what causes it to occur. Explanation includes knowledge of the conditions that reliably reproduce the occurrence of a behavior. • Experiment research design
• Control: The application of what has been learned about behavior. Once a behavior has been explained through experimentation, it may be possible to use that knowledge to affect change or improve behavior. Control is rarely the intent of experimentation, but some research is conducted with the intent of producing behavioral change along with increasing knowledge
• There are three main tools of the scientific method: • observation • measurement • experimentation.
• Observation: The systematic noting and recording of events. Only events that are observable can be studied scientifically.
• Measurement: The assignment of numerical values to objects or events or their characteristics according to conventional rules. When we do research, we assign numbers to different sizes, quantities, or qualities of the evens under observation. Rather than relying on global impressions, we use standardized units, agreed-upon conventions that define such measures as the minute , the meter, and the ounce.
• Experimentation is a process undertaken to test a hypothesis that particular behavioral events will occur reliably in certain, specifiable situations. When we experiment, we systematically manipulate aspects of a setting to verify our predictions about observable behavior under specific conditions. Experimentation is not always possible. To do an experiment, our prediction must be testable
• Three minimum requirements must be met: • We must have a procedure for manipulating the setting • The predicted outcome must be observable • We must be able to measure the outcome
• Many behaviors are observable (smoking, talking), but what about internal processes such as feeling, thinking or problem solving? How can we explore those areas?

  standardized tests
• Antecedent is an event or a circumstance that happens before another
• Antecedent conditions, or antecedents, are the circumstances that come before the event or behavior that we want to explain.
• If we can identify all the antecedents of a behavior, we can explain that behavior in the following way: When XYZ is the set of antecedent conditions, the outcome is a particular behavior. If the XYZ set of antecedents occurs again, we expect the same outcome.
• In the psychology experiment, we create specific sets of antecedent conditions that we call treatments. We compare different treatment conditions so that we can test our explanations of behaviors systematically and scientifically.
• The word treatment, as used in experimentation, does not necessarily mean that we must actively do something to “treat” each subject (although it can mean this). Rather, it means that we are treating subjects differently when we expose them to different sets of antecedents. We expose them to different antecedent conditions and then measure their behavior to ascertain whether different treatments produce predictably different outcomes
• A psychology experiment is a controlled procedure in which at least two different treatment conditions are applied to subjects. The subjects’ behaviors are then measured and compared to test a hypothesis about the effects of those treatments on behavior.
• Note that we must have at least two different treatments so that we can compare behavior under varied conditions and observe the way behavior changes as the treatment condition change. Note also that the procedures in the psychology experiment are carefully controlled so that we can be sure we are measuring what we intent to measure.