Introduction to Psychology

Myers PSYCHOLOGY (8th Ed)Chapter 1 Thinking Critically with Psychological Science

AP Psychology

Thinking Critically with Psychological ScienceCritical Thinking thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusionsexamines assumptionsdiscerns hidden valuesevaluates evidence

Modules p.20Limits of Intuition and Common SenseHindsight Bias tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it the I-knew-it-all-along phenomenonOverconfidencewe tend to think we know more than we doModules p 17 & 18Research StrategiesTheory an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes and predicts observationsHypothesis a testable predictionoften implied by a theoryModule p 21The Scientific Method

generate or refineresearch and observationslead tohypothesistheoriesResearch StrategiesOperational Definitiona statement of procedures (operations) used to define research variablesExample-intelligence may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test measuresModule p 22Research Strategies- see HandoutReplicationrepeating the essence of a research study to see whether the basic finding generalizes to other subjects and circumstancesusually with different subjects in different situations module p 22Case Studyan observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles begin module 3 p 30Research StrategiesSurveytechnique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of peopleusually by questioning a representative, random sample of themFalse Consensus Effecttendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviorsResearch StrategiesPopulationall the cases in a group, from which samples may be drawn for a studyRandom Samplea sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusionResearch StrategiesIf marbles of two colors are mixed well in the large jar, the fastest way to know their ratio is to blindly transfer a few into a smaller one and count them

Research StrategiesNaturalistic Observationobserving and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation and like case studies and surveys, does not explain behavior, only describes it.Research StrategiesCorrelation Coefficienta statistical measure of the extent to which two factors vary together and thus how well either factor predicts the otherModule p 33Correlation coefficientIndicates directionof relationship(positive or negative)Indicates strengthof relationship(0.00 to 1.00)r = +.37Research StrategiesScatterplota graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variablesthe slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationshipthe amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlationlittle scatter indicates high correlationalso called a scattergram or scatter diagramResearch Strategies module 3 p 34Perfect positivecorrelation (+1.00)No relationship (0.00)Perfect negativecorrelation (-1.00)Research StrategiesScatterplot of Height and Temperament55 60 65 70 75 80 85 959085807570656055504540353025TemperamentscoresHeight in inchesResearch StrategiesHeight and Temperament of 20 Men123456789101112131415161718192080636179746962757760647671667370637168707566609060424260813948697257637530578439SubjectHeight inInchesTemperamentSubjectHeight inInchesTemperamentResearch StrategiesThree Possible Cause-Effect Relationships(1)Low self-esteemDepression(2)DepressionLow self-esteemLow self-esteemDepression(3)Distressing eventsor biologicalpredispositioncould causecould causecould causeororandIllusory CorrelationIllusory Correlationthe perception of a relationship where none existsModule 3 p 36ConceiveDo not conceiveAdoptDo notadopt

disconfirming evidenceconfirming evidencedisconfirming evidenceconfirming evidenceRandom SequencesYour chances of being dealt either of these hands is precisely the same: 1 in 2,598,960.

Research StrategiesExperiment the investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe their effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable) while controlling other relevant factors by random assignment of subjectsby random assignment of participants the experiment controls other relevant factorsModule 3 p 38Research StrategiesDouble-blind Procedureboth the subject and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the subject has received the treatment or a placebocommonly used in drug-evaluation studiesPlacebo an inert substance or condition that may be administered instead of a presumed active agent, such as a drug, to see if it triggers the effects believed to characterize the active agentResearch StrategiesExperimental Conditionthe condition of an experiment that exposes subjects to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variableControl Conditionthe condition of an experiment that contrasts with the experimental treatment serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatmentResearch StrategiesRandom Assignmentassigning subjects to experimental and control conditions by chanceminimizes pre-existing differences between those assigned to the different groupsResearch StrategiesIndependent Variable the experimental factor that is manipulatedthe variable whose effect is being studiedDependent Variable the experimental factor that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable in psychology it is usually a behavior or mental process

Research Strategies- see HandoutComparing Research MethodsResearch Method Basic Purpose How Conducted What is ManipulatedDescriptive To observe and Case studies, surveys, Nothing record behavior and naturalistic observationsCorrelational To detect naturally Computing statisticalNothing occuring relationships; association, sometimes to assess how wellamong survey one variable predictsresponsesExperimental To explore causeManipulating one orIndependent and effectmore factors and usingvariable(s)random assignmentto eliminate preexistingdifferences among subjectsResearch StrategiesDesign of the subliminal tapes experimentSubliminal tape contentSelf-esteemMemoryMemorySelf-esteemTape labelStatistical ReasoningModethe most frequently occurring score in a distributionMeanthe arithmetic average of a distributionobtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scoresMedianthe middle score in a distributionhalf the scores are above it and half are below itStatistical Reasoning Our Brand Brand BrandBrand X Y Z100% 99 98 97 96 95Percentagestill functioningafter 10 yearsBrand of truckStatistical Reasoning Our Brand Brand Brand Brand X Y Z100% 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0Percentagestill functioningafter 10 yearsBrand of truckStatistical ReasoningA Skewed Distribution

15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 90 47571070Mode Median MeanOne FamilyIncome per family in thousands of dollarsStatistical ReasoningRangethe difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distributionStandard Deviationa computed measure of how much scores vary around the meanStatistical Significancea statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chanceDoes Behavior Depend on Ones Culture?Culturethe enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a large group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next