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AP Psychology

AP Psychology. Ms. Simon September 17-24, 2009 Introduction to Research Methods. Hindsight Bias. The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it. Scientific Theories. Set of principles that organize and predict behaviors or events Link observed facts

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AP Psychology

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  1. AP Psychology Ms. Simon September 17-24, 2009 Introduction to Research Methods

  2. Hindsight Bias The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

  3. Scientific Theories • Set of principles that organize and predict behaviors or events • Link observed facts • Imply hypotheses that offer testable predictions

  4. Subfields of Psychology • Basic Psychology- research • Applied Psychology- research put into practice as therapist • Psychiatry- a medical field- deals with mental disorders- prescribe medication

  5. There are three main types of research methods in psychology: Descriptive Correlational Experimental

  6. Descriptive Study: • Case Study- psychologists study one individual in great depth in hopes of revealing universal principles

  7. Case Study Pros • Detailed information • Unusual Cases • Inexpensive • Few ethical considerations

  8. The Problem with the Case Study: An individual may be atypical Cannot generalize results Difficult to Manipulate Variables Difficult to quantify data

  9. Naturalistic Observation • Observe subjects in natural habitats without interacting

  10. Naturalistic Observation

  11. Survey Method • Relies on questions answered by a group of people in interviews or questionnaires

  12. Survey Method • Experimenter must identify the population to study • Random sampling picking members from a population randomly to ensure a representative sample

  13. Survey Method

  14. Wording Effects • In a study by AMNH, 88% of all respondents said that they were interested in plants and trees, but only 39% said they were interested in botany. • One out of five Americans (22 percent) doubted that the Holocaust had occurred. 12% said they weren’t sure

  15. What to Watch for… • Order of choices • Is the time frame specified? • How personal or direct is the wording? • Is there a cultural bias?

  16. Correlational Studies • Correlational studies assess the association between two or more characteristics of interest without ascribing causes • Is a correlational study an experiment?

  17. Correlation coefficient Example: R= + .37

  18. Correlational Studies

  19. Correlational Studies

  20. Illusory Correlation • When we believe there is a relationship between two things, we are likely to notice and recall instances that confirm our belief

  21. What is the correlation? • 1) good looks/popularity • 2) self-esteem/depression • 3) brain size/intelligence • 4) money/happiness • 5) Education/length of life

  22. Correlation: determining causation There is a strong correlation between people who ate oatmeal for breakfast as a child and cancer versus people who ate Frosted Flakes for breakfast as a child

  23. Friday’s Exam: What to Study • About 40% Historical Approaches, 60% Research Methods • Study mostly from Class Discussion! • Format: Multiple Choice, One short AP exam style essay question, short answer and/or matching

  24. Research Methods

  25. Experimental Method • Researcher manipulates one variable (independent variable) and observes the effect on another variable (dependent variable) • Allows one to show a causal relationship

  26. Q: How is the experimental group different from the control group? • A: The experimental group receives or reacts to the independent variable and the control group does not receive the independent variable • Q: Why is a control group needed? • A: Provides baseline for comparison

  27. Confounding variable: external differences between the experimental group and the control group other than those resulting from the independent variable

  28. Confounding Variables 1) Placebo Effect experimental results caused by expectations alone

  29. Confounding Variables • Demand Characteristics- participants form an interpretation of the experiment's purpose and unconsciously change their behavior accordingly

  30. How can we control for confounding variables?

  31. How can we control for confounding variables? 1) Random Assignment method of assigning subjects to groups to minimize pre-existing differences between those groups This is an example of Between subjects design: Participants in the experimental and control group are different individuals

  32. How can be control for confounding variables? 2) Within subjects design Technique where subjects serve as control and experimental group. 3) Twin Studies:

  33. Confounding Variables • Experimenter bias- researcher’s expectations about the outcome of a study influence the results Q: How can we eliminate experimenter bias?

  34. How can we eliminate experimenter bias? • Multiple Experimenters 2. Double blind procedure- research design in which neither the experimenter or the participants know who is in the experimental versus control group

  35. AP Psychology Ms. Simon September 24, 2009 Experimental Statistics

  36. Do Now: • From your reading: Why do we need operational definitions?

  37. How do psychologists present data? • Frequency Distributions

  38. Statistics • Statistical significance (p) is the likelihood that the observed difference between groups results from a real difference rather than chance alone • What’s a good p value?

  39. When is data statistically significant?

  40. 1) Large difference between the two means ) Large difference between the two means

  41. When is data statistically significant?

  42. When is data statistically significant? 2) Small standard deviations

  43. But… what’s a standard deviation? A standard deviation is the degree by which a score varies from the mean You don’t need to know the equation!

  44. When is data statistically significant?

  45. When is data statistically significant? 3) Large Sample Size

  46. Mean, Median, Mode 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10, 10, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 12, 13 What’s the mode? What’s the median?

  47. Normal Distribution

  48. Skewed Data

  49. Homework: • Activity: design an experiment to see if aggression is related to violent TV watching Be sure to address random selection, random assignment, experimental versus control group, confounding variables, and how you will minimize the effects of experimental and observer bias.

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