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Research Methods

Terms in this set (34)

Hindsight Bias
The tendency to believe that after learning an outcome, anyone could have foreseen it (aka "I-knew-it-all-along" phenomenon).
Critical Thinking
Not just accepting conclusions or answers, instead examining assumptions, discerning hidden values, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.
Theory
An explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events.
Hypothesis
A testable prediction often implied by a theory.
Operational Definition
A statement of the procedures used to define research variables (how something is measured in an experiment).
Replication
Repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participates in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances.
Case Study
An observation technique in which one person, or a small group of people, is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.
Survey
A technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group.
Population
All the cases in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn (not including national studies).
Random Sample
A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion.
Naturalistic Observation
Observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation.
Correlation
A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other.
Correlation Coefficient
A statistical index of the relationship between two things.
Scatterplot
A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables. The slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship between the two variables, and the amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation.
Illusory Correlation
The perception of a relationship where none exists.
Experiment
A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process. with random assignment of participants, the experimenter aims to control other relevant factors.
Random Assignment
Assigning participants by chance to experiment or control groups of the experiment, minimizing preexisting differences between the two groups.
Double-Blind Procedure
An experiment in which neither the test subject nor the research staff know which group is receiving the treatment or the placebo.
Placebo Effect
An experimental result based on expectation, any effect on behavior because the test subject assumed they were receiving the actual treatment when it was not.
Experimental Group
In an experiment, the group that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent.
Control Group
In an experiment, one group must not receive the treatment, to compare and contrast with the experimental group.
Independent Variable
The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.
Confounding Variable
A factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an experiment.
Dependent Variable
The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.
Mode
The most frequently occurring number score(s) in a distribution.
Mean
The arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores.
Median
The middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it.
Range
The difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution.
Standard Deviation
A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score.
Normal Curve
A symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data; most scores fall near the mean.
Statistical Signfigance
A statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance.
Culture
The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.
Informed Consent
An ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate.
Debriefing
The post-experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants.
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