Psych Quiz

• Behavior


  -Any action or response that can be measured or observed

  -Includes actions but also psychological responses such as the release of stress hormones or blushing
• Mental Processes


  -Things such as attention, memory, perception, and thinking that are not directly observable

  -Mental processes are often inferred by behavior
• Operationalize


  Define a variable into measurable factors
• How is psychology a science?

  -Knowledge is gained through rigorous tests of hypotheses and through rejecting/disproving competing explanations

  -Uses empirical evidence, is falsifiable, and involves replication
• How to approach one problem through multiple approaches?

  -Biological approach

  -Socio-cultural approach

  -Cognitive approach
• Biological Approach


  The rate of progress in language learning is determined by the density of neurons and associated neurotransmitters in the parts of the brain that handle language learning
• Socio-cultural Approach


  The rate of progress in language learning is determined by the degree of interaction with those speaking that language and the attitudes of the individual's culture and society towards learning foreign languages
• Cognitive Approach


  -The rate of progress in language learning is determined by the ability and drive to encode new vocabulary and language structures into the brain's memory structures.

  -It may be assisted by a strong self-belief in language learning abilities
• Research evaluations should focus on three main things

  -Validity/Credibility

  -Generalizability/Transferability

  -Experimental ethics
• Validity/Credibility


  Refers to the degree which the results or conclusions are believable/accurate
• Generalizability/Transferability


  Refers to the extent to which the results of the study can be applied beyond the sample, methods, and settings of the study
• Experimental ethics


  The moral principles that guide the design, conduction, and reporting of research studies
• Quantitative Data


  -Numbers

  -Validity

  -Generalizability
• Qualitative Data


  -Texts

  -Credibility

  -Transferability
• Factors that can influence a study's credibility/validity

  -Control of possible confounding variables

  -Bias

  -Sampling
• Confounding Variables


  Variables that could also influence the dependent variable or result of your study
• Bias and the different types of bias

  -Bias: ways that a researcher or participant might influence the results of a study

  -Selection bias

  -Research bias
• Selection Bias


  if the sample is not representative of the target population
• Sampling


  -First, researchers define a target population; a group of people for whom they expect their study results to apply

  -Then, researchers use one of several techniques to find and recruit individuals to take part in their study. Those people who agree form a sample
• Factors that might influence a study's generalizability

  -Sampling

  -Experimental conditions/Ecological Validity

  -Operationalization/Theoretical Generalization
• Sampling and how it can influence a study's generalizability

  If the sample is a representative of the target population, then the findings should be generalizable to the wider population
• Experimental conditions/Ecological Validity and how it can influence a study's generalizability


  The more realistic the experimental conditions, the more ecological validity the experiment has, and the more generalizable the results are to real-life situations
• Operationalization/Theoretical Generalization and how it can influence a study's generalizability


  The more accurate the operationalization of mental processes is in quantitative studies, the easier it is to generalize results to a theoretical framework. In qualitative studies, the richness of the data improves the theoretical generalization
• MAGECC - Major factors to touch on when evaluating a study

  Methodological evaluation

  Alternative explanations

  Gender evaluation

  Ethical evaluation

  Cultural evaluation

  Comparison with other studies
• Ethical Considerations in Psychology

  -All major national and international psychological research groups are governed by codes of ethics.

  -All research projects must first be approved by an ethical board before research begins

  -Ethical considerations must be followed during both the design and conduction of a study and during the reporting & application of the results.
• Informed Consent


  -Participation must be voluntary, and participants must be made aware of the study aims, what they will do/be exposed to, and how the data will be used.

  -Written consent is often required.
• Minors and Parental Consent


  In most cases, parents must also give consent for children under 16.
• Course Credit /Extra Credit


  Although common, it is ethically problematic to offer course credit or extra credit for participation in a research study, as you can argue that participation is not truly voluntary in those cases.
• Anonymity of Confidentiality


  Anonymity if no one (not even the researcher). accurs can connect the results to an individual person (e.g. an anonymous survey). Confidentiality occurs if the researcher can connect data to a person but agrees to keep the info private.
• Protection from Harm


  Participants should be protected from short- and long-term physical, mental, and emotional harm.
• Withdrawal from Participation


  Participants must be allowed to withdraw from a study at any point in time, and they must explicitly be told this.
• Deception


  Deception is occasionally necessary (ice, if it might affect study results) but must be kept to an absolute minimum. No deception is allowed in IB psych projects.
• Debriefing


  At the end of the study, participants must be fully informed about the study aims, results, and how their data will be stored. They have the right to look over their data and withdraw it if they choose. If there is any risk of harm to the own participant then follow-up care, such as counseling, must be offered.
• Consent forms should include


  -Study aims and methods

  -Risks to participants

  -Right of withdrawal

  -Confidentiality and data handling
• Data Fabrication


  Altering or making up data is a serious violation. Legitimate errors should be corrected through retracting an article or publishing and erratum (the corrected version of a report that is published to disregard the initial, inaccurate report)
• Plagiarism


  Presenting someone else's work or data as your own is a major violation
• Publication Credit


  All people who contribute to the making of the project should be recognized
• Sharing Research Data for Verification

  Raw data should be made available to other researchers who request it so that the analysis and interpretation can be verified
• Handling of Sensitive Information

  Participants may learn sensitive info about their health, genetics, family relationships, or mental disorders as part of the research or debrief. Such info should be revealed with care and subjects should be monitored for some time after the study and offered counseling if necessary.
• Social Implications of Reporting Results

  Researchers should take care that their results are not misrepresented to the publics; such concerns may influence where they choose to publish sensitive or controversial findings (e.g. a more academic journal instead of a magazine for non-scientists)