1)      Descriptive Research:

correlation: 

Case studies: (descriptive)

i)        Advantages: 

ii)        Disadvantages:

in-depth examination of one

i)lots of information, can study rare behaviors

 ii) low generalizability, observer bias (not enough systematic recording)

a)      Surveys: (descriptive)

i) advantages

ii) disadvantages

using questionnaires or interviews to get information

i)    Allows study of difficult-to-observe thoughts and behaviors

ii)    poor questions, non-representative sample, people don’t answer accurately or truthfully

-Who: representative sample

-When: surrounding events form people opinions

-What: keep in mind- ignorance of language in question, influence of surveyor, wording choice

Naturalistic observations: (descriptive)

i)        Advantage: 

ii)       Disadvantages: 

watching without interfering

i)behaviors are spontaneous

ii)some behaviors are rare, possibility of observer bias

a)      Archives: 

1)      Experiments: 

i)      Advantage: 

ii)      Disadvantage: 

determine why something happens. Two or more groups of people go through almost the same procedure

i)can establish cause and effect

ii)cannot look at “strong” variables (like how does an earthquake affect people, many problems with ethical boundaries for things like smoking)

i)        Independent Variable (IV): 

ii)       Dependent Variable (DV):

i)cause variable or explanatory variable

ii) whats is measured, affected by IV, response variable

i) two or more conditions: with and without IV

ii) control group

iii) Random assignment

-natural observations

-surveys

-experiments

- evaluate the costs and benefits of proceedures

-Informed consent

-debriefing after the study

Knowing self:

i) why:

ii) problems:

ex: physical and mental

i) predictability, and control

ii)not as objective as possible and easily affected

ex: physical = skin, but mental are less clear

a.       Attributions (ch3): 

                                                               i.      External Attributions: 

        I.            Self-Goals: 

a.       Verification: 

a.       Enhancement (ch2): 

Accuracy

Verification

Improvement

Enhancement

1)predicting emotions: short term, but hard to do for long term

2) explaining the past

                                                               i.      Durability Bias:

Why dont our emotions last as long as predicted (durability bias)

1)Focalism

  2)Immune Neglect: 

1)people focus on the predicted event to the exclusion of others

2)people have a natural system for coping with events and escaping negative moods (mainly pertaining to negative events) we don’t realize how good we are at getting rid of bad moods

1.       through awareness and understanding of this bias you can lead to more accurate predictions and better decisions (medical application)

self enhancement

expectation of success

different criteria for desired vs. undesird outcomes

People from Eastern cultures- negative info about the self is not seen as threatening; individual self isn’t as important as the larger group

&

People who are depressed, anxious, or have low-self esteem: don’t want to feel good

Better-than-average effect (under explaining the past)

-Why do we use this?

judging ourselves compared to others and our peers

-self-enhancement

-we focus on intentions in judgement and not always actions

-idiosyncratic trait definitions: meaning that we define them differently (ex:talented- some think of athletics others think of musicians)

1)Comparisons

2) solutions

1)when we feel uncertain, when something is wrong

2)change the situation or change your mind

Comparing yourself to someone else

-Downward- compare to someone worse off (provides consolation)

-Upward- someone better off (provides motivation for self-improvement)

comparing present to the past

-Downward:I am better now than then

-Upward: I am worse off now :(

What might have happened compared to what did.

-Downward: comparing to a worse alternative (if that had happened I would have been worse off, but it didnt so I am better off)

-Upward:comparing to better alternative 

.....these comparison types often lead to regret

the painful longing for an alternative that could have been better

1)Regret of action: immediately feel badly for doing something bad or unwise

2)Regret of inaction: didn't do something, usually developes long term

-action activates the physiological immune system

-Zeigarnik effect: we remember the details of unfinished tasks more than finished tasks

human fathers invest a great deal of time, energy, and resources into their offspring