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Research Methods Exam 1
Chapters: 1, 7, 8, 6, 15, 16, 13, 14
153
Psychology
Graduate
02/27/2013

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Term
Antecedent conditions
Definition
All circumstances that occur or exist before the event or behavior to be explained; also called antecedents.
Term
Applied research
Definition
Research that is designed to solve real-world problems.
Term
Basic research
Definition
Research designed to test theories or to explain psychological phenomena.
Term
Cause-and-effect relationship
Definition
The relation between a particular behavior and a set of antecedents that always precedes it—whereas other antecedents do not—so that the set is inferred to cause the behavior.
Term
Commonsense psychology
Definition
Everyday, nonscientific collection of psychological data used to understand the social world and guide our behavior.
Term
Data
Definition
Facts and figures gathered from observations in research. (Data is the plural form of the Latin word datum, so to be correct we say that data are gathered rather than that data is gathered.)
Term
Empirical data
Definition
Data that are observable or experienced; capable of being verified or disproved through investigation.
Term
Experimentation
Definition
The process undertaken to demonstrate that particular behavioral events will occur reliably in certain specifiable conditions; a principal tool of the scientific method.
Term
Good thinking
Definition
Organized and rational thought, characterized by open-mindedness, objectivity, and parsimony; a principal tool of the scientific method.
Term
Laws
Definition
General scientific principles that explain our universe and predict events.
Term
Measurement
Definition
The systematic estimation of the quantity, size, or quality of an observable event; a principal tool of the scientific method.
Term
Methodology
Definition
The scientific techniques used to collect and evaluate psychological data.
Term
Observation
Definition
The systematic noting and recording of events; a principal tool of the scientific method.
Term
Parsimony
Definition
An aspect of good thinking, stating that the simplest explanation is preferred until ruled out by conflicting evidence; also known as Occam’s razor.
Term
Pseudoscience
Definition
A field of study that gives the appearance of being scientific but has no true scientific basis and has not been confirmed using the tools of the scientific method: observation, measurement, and experimentation.
Term
Psychology experiment
Definition
A controlled procedure in which at least two different treatment conditions are applied to subjects whose behaviors are then measured and compared to test a hypothesis about the effects of the treatments on behavior.
Term
Replication
Definition
The process of repeating research procedures to verify that the outcome will be the same as before; a principal tool of the scientific method.
Term
Science
Definition
The systematic gathering of data to provide descriptions of events taking place under specific conditions, enabling researchers to explain, predict, and control events.
Term
Scientific method
Definition
Steps scientists take to gather and verify information, answer questions, explain relationships, and communicate findings.
Term
Subject
Definition
The scientific term for an individual who participates in research.
Term
Testable
Definition
Capable of being tested; typically used in reference to a hypothesis. Three requirements must be met to have a testable hypothesis: procedures for manipulating the setting must exist, and the predicted outcome must be observable and measurable.
Term
Theory
Definition
A set of general principles that attempts to explain and predict behavior or other phenomena.
Term
Treatment
Definition
A specific set of antecedent conditions created by the experimenter and presented to subjects to test its effect on behavior.
Term
Concurrent validity
Definition
The degree to which scores on the measuring instrument correlate with another known standard for measuring the variable being studied.
Term
Confounding
Definition
An error that occurs when the value of an extraneous variable changes systematically along with the independent variable in an experiment; an alternative explanation for the findings that threatens internal validity.
Term
Construct validity
Definition
The degree to which an operational definition accurately represents the construct it is intended to manipulate or measure.
Term
Content validity
Definition
`The degree to which the content of a measure reflects the content of what is being measured.
Term
Dependent variable (DV)
Definition
The specific behavior that a researcher tries to explain in an experiment; the variable that is measured.
Term
Experimental operational definition
Definition
The explanation of the meaning of independent variables; defines exactly what was done to create the various treatment conditions of the experiment.
Term
Extraneous variable
Definition
A variable other than an independent or dependent variable; a variable that is not the focus of an experiment but can produce effects on the dependent variable if not controlled.
Term
Face validity
Definition
The degree to which a manipulation or measurement technique is self-evident.
Term
History threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity in which an outside event or occurrence might have produced effects on the dependent variable.
Term
Hypothetical construct
Definition
Concepts used to explain unseen processes, such as hunger, intelligence, or learning; postulated to explain observable behavior.
Term
Independent variable (IV)
Definition
The variable (antecedent condition) that the experimenter intentionally manipulates.
Term
Instrumentation threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity produced by changes in the measuring instrument itself.
Term
Interitem reliability
Definition
The degree to which different items measuring the same variable attain consistent results.
Term
Internal validity
Definition
The certainty that the changes in behavior observed across treatment conditions in the experiment were actually caused by the independent variable.
Term
Interrater reliability
Definition
The degree of agreement among different observers or raters.
Term
Level of measurement
Definition
The type of scale of measurement—either ratio, interval, ordinal, or nominal—used to measure a variable.
Term
Levels of the independent variable
Definition
The two or more values of the independent variable manipulated by the experimenter.
Term
Manipulation check
Definition
An assessment to determine whether the independent variable was manipulated successfully.
Term
Maturation threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity produced by internal (physical or psychological) changes in subjects.
Term
Measured operational definition
Definition
The description of exactly how a variable in an experiment is measured.
Term
Method
Definition
The section of a research report in which the subjects and experiment are described in enough detail that the experiment may be replicated by others; it is typically divided into subsections, such as Participants, Apparatus or Materials, and Procedures.
Term
Operational definition
Definition
The specification of the precise meaning of a variable within an experiment; defines a variable in terms of observable operations, procedures, and measurements.
Term
Predictive validity
Definition
The degree to which a measuring instrument yields information allowing prediction of actual behavior or performance.
Term
Reliability
Definition
The consistency and dependability of experimental procedures and measurements.
Term
Selection interactions
Definition
A family of threats to internal validity produced when a selection threat combines with one or more of the other threats to internal validity; when a selection threat is already present, other threats can affect some experimental groups but not others.
Term
Selection threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity that can occur when nonrandom procedures are used to assign subjects to conditions or when random assignment fails to balance out differences among subjects across the different conditions of the experiment.
Term
Statistical regression threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity that can occur when subjects are assigned to conditions on the basis of extreme scores on a test; upon retest, the scores of extreme scorers tend to regress toward the mean even without any treatment.
Term
Subject mortality threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity produced by differences in dropout rates across the conditions of the experiment.
Term
Test-retest reliability
Definition
Consistency between an individual’s scores on the same test taken at two or more different times.
Term
Testing threat
Definition
A threat to internal validity produced by a previous administration of the same test or other measure.
Term
Validity
Definition
The soundness of an operational definition; in experiments, the principle of actually studying the variables intended to be manipulated or measured.
Term
Balancing
Definition
A technique used to control the impact of extraneous variables by distributing their effects equally across treatment conditions.
Term
Constancy of conditions
Definition
A control procedure used to avoid confounding; keeping all aspects of the treatment conditions identical except for the independent variable that is being manipulated.
Term
Context variable
Definition
Extraneous variable stemming from procedures created by the environment, or context, of the research setting.
Term
Cover story
Definition
A plausible but false explanation of the procedures in an experiment told to disguise the actual research hypothesis so that subjects will not guess what it is.
Term
Demand characteristics
Definition
The aspects of the experimental situation itself that demand or elicit particular behaviors; can lead to distorted data by compelling subjects to produce responses that conform to what subjects believe is expected of them in the experiment.
Term
Double-blind experiment
Definition
An experiment in which neither the experimenter nor the subjects know which treatment condition the subjects are in; used to control experimenter bias.
Term
Elimination
Definition
A technique to control extraneous variables by removing them from an experiment.
Term
Experimenter bias
Definition
Any behavior of the experimenter that can create confounding in an experiment.
Term
Personality variables
Definition
The personal characteristics that an experimenter or volunteer subject brings to the experimental setting.
Term
Physical variables
Definition
Aspects of the testing conditions that need to be controlled.
Term
Placebo effect
Definition
The result of giving subjects a pill, injection, or other treatment that actually contains none of the independent variable; the treatment elicits a change in subjects’ behavior simply because subjects expect an effect to occur.
Term
Rosenthal effect
Definition
The phenomenon of experimenters treating subjects differently depending on what they expect from the subjects; also called the Pygmalion effect.
Term
Single-blind experiment
Definition
An experiment in which subjects are not told which of the treatment conditions they are in; a procedure used to control demand characteristics.
Term
Social variables
Definition
The qualities of the relationships between subjects and experimenters that can influence the results of an experiment.
Term
Analytic statement
Definition
A statement that is always true.
Term
Contradictory statement
Definition
A statement that is always false.
Term
Deductive model
Definition
The process of reasoning from general principles to specific instances; most useful for testing the principles of a theory.
Term
Discussion
Definition
Concluding section of the research report, used to integrate the experimental findings into the existing body of knowledge, showing how the current research advances knowledge, increases generalizability of known effects, or contradicts past findings.
Term
Experimental hypothesis
Definition
A statement that is a tentative explanation of an event or behavior; it predicts the effects of specified antecedent conditions on a measured behavior.
Term
Falsifiable statement
Definition
A statement that is worded so that it is falsifiable, or disprovable, by experimental results.
Term
Fruitful statement
Definition
A statement that leads to new studies.
Term
Hypothesis
Definition
The thesis, or main idea, of an experiment or study consisting of a statement that predicts the relationship between at least two variables.
Term
Inductive model
Definition
The process of reasoning from specific cases to more general principles to form a hypothesis.
Term
Introduction
Definition
Beginning section of a research report that guides the reader toward your research hypothesis; includes a selective review of relevant, recent research.
Term
Intuition
Definition
The development of ideas from hunches; knowing directly without reasoning from objective data.
Term
Meta-analysis
Definition
A statistical reviewing procedure that uses data from many similar studies to summarize and quantify research findings about individual topics.
Term
Nonexperimental hypothesis
Definition
A statement of predictions of how events, traits, or behaviors might be related, but not a statement about cause and effect.
Term
Parsimonious statement
Definition
A statement that is simple and does not require many supporting assumptions.
Term
Psychological journal
Definition
A periodical that publishes individual research reports and integrative research reviews, which are up-to-date summaries of what is known about a specific topic.
Term
Serendipity
Definition
The knack of finding things that are not being sought.
Term
Synthetic statement
Definition
A statement that can be either true or false, a condition necessary to form an experimental hypothesis.
Term
Testable statement
Definition
A statement that can be tested because the means exist for manipulating antecedent conditions and for measuring the resulting behavior.
Term
Aggregation
Definition
The grouping together and averaging of data gathered in various ways, including aggregation over subjects, over stimuli and/or situations, over trials and/or occasions, and over measures.
Term
Field experiment
Definition
An experiment conducted outside the laboratory that is used to increase external validity, verify earlier laboratory findings, and investigate problems that cannot be studied successfully in the laboratory.
Term
Manipulation check
Definition
An assessment to determine whether the independent variable was manipulated successfully.
Term
Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA)
Definition
The statistical procedure used to study the impact of independent variables on two or more dependent variables; an extension of analysis of variance.
Term
Multivariate design
Definition
Research design or statistical procedure used to evaluate the effects of many dependent variables in combination, including multiple correlation, factor analysis, and multivariate analysis of variance.
Term
Naturalistic observation
Definition
A descriptive, nonexperimental method of observing behaviors as they occur spontaneously in natural settings.
Term
Reactivity
Definition
The tendency of subjects to alter their responses or behaviors when they are aware of the presence of an observer.
Term
Statistical conclusion validity
Definition
The degree to which conclusions about a treatment effect can be drawn from the statistical results obtained.
Term
Unobtrusive measure
Definition
A procedure used to assess subjects’ behaviors without their knowledge; used to obtain more nonreactive data.
Term
Abstract
Definition
A brief summary of the report (approximately 150–250 words), which precedes the four major sections.
Term
Discussion
Definition
The fourth major section of the research report, used to draw conclusions and to integrate the experimental findings into the existing body of knowledge.
Term
Introduction
Definition
Beginning section of a research report that guides the reader toward your research hypothesis; includes a selective review of relevant, recent research.
Term
Method
Definition
The section of a research report in which the subjects and experiment are described in enough detail that the experiment may be replicated by others; it is typically divided into subsections, such as Participants, Stimuli or Materials, and Procedures.
Term
References
Definition
A list of books and articles cited in the research report; placed at the end of the report.
Term
Research report
Definition
Written report of psychological research, which contains four major sections: Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion.
Term
Results
Definition
The section of a research report in which the findings are described and the results of statistical tests and summary data are presented.
Term
Running head
Definition
A short version of the title, which will appear as a header at the top of pages of the published report.
Term
Scientific writing style
Definition
A concise, impersonal, and unbiased form of writing used in research reports.
Term
Title
Definition
The name of the report, which describes what the report is about; typically includes the variables tested and the relationship between them.
Term
Alternative hypothesis
Definition
A statement that the data came from different populations; the research hypothesis, which cannot be tested directly.
Term
Critical region
Definition
Portion in the tail(s) of the distribution of a test statistic extreme enough to satisfy the researcher’s criterion for rejecting the null hypothesis—for instance, the most extreme 5% of a distribution where p , .05 is the chosen significance level.
Term
Descriptive statistics
Definition
The standard procedures used to summarize and describe data quickly and clearly; summary statistics reported for an experiment, including mean, range, and standard deviation.
Term
Directional hypothesis
Definition
A statement that predicts the exact pattern of results that will be observed, such as which treatment group will perform best.
Term
Experimental error
Definition
Variation in subjects’ scores produced by uncontrolled extraneous variables in the experimental procedure, experimenter bias, or other influences on subjects not related to effects of the independent variable.
Term
Inferential statistics
Definition
Statistics that can be used as indicators of what is going on in a population; also called test statistics.
Term
Mean
Definition
An arithmetical average computed by dividing the sum of a group of scores by the total number of scores; a measure of central tendency.
Term
Measures of central tendency
Definition
Summary statistics that describe what is typical of a distribution of scores; include mean, median, and mode.
Term
Median
Definition
The score that divides a distribution in half, so that half the scores in the distribution fall above the median, half below; a measure of central tendency.
Term
Mode
Definition
The most frequently occurring score in a distribution; a measure of central tendency.
Term
Nondirectional hypothesis
Definition
A statement that predicts a difference between treatment groups without predicting the exact pattern of results.
Term
Normal curve
Definition
The distribution of data in a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve.
Term
Null hypothesis
Definition
A statement that the performance of treatment groups is so similar that the groups must belong to the same population; a way of saying that the experimental manipulation had no important effect.
Term
One-tailed test
Definition
A statistical procedure used when a directional prediction has been made; the critical region of the distribution of the test statistic is measured in just one tail of the distribution.
Term
Range
Definition
The difference between the largest and smallest scores in a set of data; a rough indication of the amount of variability in the data.
Term
Raw data
Definition
Data recorded as an experiment is run; the responses of individual subjects.
Term
Significance level
Definition
The statistical criterion for deciding whether to reject the null hypothesis or not, typically p , .05.
Term
Standard deviation
Definition
The square root of the variance; measures the average deviation of scores about the mean, thus reflecting the amount of variability in the data.
Term
Statistical inference
Definition
A statement made about a population and all its samples based on the samples observed.
Term
Statistical significance
Definition
Meeting the set criterion for significance; the data do not support the null hypothesis, confirming a difference between the groups that occurred as a result of the experiment.
Term
Statistics
Definition
Quantitative measurements of samples; quantitative data.
Term
Summary data
Definition
Descriptive statistics computed from the raw data of an experiment, including the measures of central tendency and variability.
Term
Test statistics
Definition
Statistics that can be used as indicators of what is going on in a population and can be used to evaluate results; also called inferential statistics.
Term
Two-tailed test
Definition
A statistical procedure used when a nondirectional prediction has been made; the critical region of the distribution of the test statistic is divided over both tails of the distribution.
Term
Type 1 error
Definition
An error made by rejecting the null hypothesis even though it is really true; stating that an effect exists when it really does not.
Term
Type 2 error
Definition
An error made by failing to reject the null hypothesis even though it is really false; failing to detect a treatment effect.
Term
Variability
Definition
Fluctuation in data; can be defined numerically as the range, variance, or standard deviation.
Term
Variance
Definition
The average squared deviation of scores from their mean; a more precise measure of variability than the range.
Term
A priori comparison
Definition
Statistical test between specific treatment groups that was anticipated, or planned, before the experiment was conducted; also called planned comparison.
Term
Analysis of variance (ANOVA)
Definition
The statistical procedure used to evaluate differences among three or more treatment means by breaking the variability in the data into components that reflect the influence of error and error plus treatment effects.
Term
Between-groups variability
Definition
The degree to which the scores of different treatment groups differ from one another (that is, how much subjects vary under different levels of the independent variable); a measure of variability produced by treatment effects and error.
Term
Chi square
Definition
A nonparametric, inferential statistic that tests whether the frequencies of responses in our sample represent certain frequencies in the population; used with nominal data.
Term
Confidence interval
Definition
A range of values above and below a sample mean that is likely to contain the population mean with the probability level (usually at 95% or 99%) that the mean of the population (the true mean) would actually fall somewhere in that range.
Term
Critical value
Definition
The value of the test statistic that must be exceeded to reject the null hypothesis at the chosen significance level.
Term
Degrees of freedom (df)
Definition
The number of members of a set of data that can vary or change value without changing the value of a known statistic for those data.
Term
Error
Definition
The variability within and between treatment groups that is not produced by changes in the independent variables; variability produced by individual differences, experimental error, and other extraneous variables.
Term
F ratio
Definition
A test statistic used in the analysis of variance; the ratio between the variability observed between treatment groups and the variability observed within treatment groups.
Term
Mean square (MS)
Definition
An average squared deviation; a variance estimate used in analysis-of-variance procedures and found by dividing the sum of squares by the degrees of freedom.
Term
Mean square between groups (MSb)
Definition
The variance (or average squared deviation) across different treatment groups produced by error and treatment effects; found by dividing the sums of squares by the degrees of freedom.
Term
Mean square within groups (MSw)
Definition
The variance (or average squared deviation) within a single treatment group; produced by the combination of sources called error.
Term
One-way between-subjects analysis of variance
Definition
Statistical procedure used to evaluate a between-subjects experiment with three or more levels of a single independent variable.
Term
One-way within-subjects (or repeated measures) ANOVA
Definition
Statistical procedure used to evaluate a within-subjects experiment with three or more levels of a single independent variable.
Term
Post hoc test
Definition
Statistical test performed after the overall analysis indicates a significant difference; used to pinpoint which differences are significant.
Term
Robust
Definition
A term describing a statistical test that can be used without increasing the probability of Type 1 or Type 2 errors even though its assumptions (e.g., the population is normally distributed and has equal variances) are violated.
Term
t test
Definition
A statistic that relates differences between treatment means to the amount of variability expected between any two samples of data from the same population; used to analyze the results of a two-group experiment with one independent variable and interval or ratio data.
Term
t test for independent groups
Definition
A statistic that relates differences between treatment means to the amount of variability expected between any two samples of data from the same population; used to analyze the results of a two-group experiment with independent groups of subjects.
Term
t test for matched groups
Definition
A statistic that relates differences between treatment means to the amount of variability expected between any two samples of data from the same population; used to analyze two-group experiments using matched-subjects or within-subjects designs. Also called a within-subjects t test.
Term
Within-groups variability
Definition
The degree to which the scores of subjects in the same treatment group differ from one another (that is, how much subjects vary from others in the group); an index of the degree of fluctuation among scores that is attributable to error.
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