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Why Research?

Why Research?. “Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons.” – Popular Mechanics, 1949 “The real purpose of the ____________ is to make sure Nature hasn’t misled you into thinking you know something you don’t actually know.” – Robert M. Pirsig

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Why Research?

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  1. Why Research? • “Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons.” – Popular Mechanics, 1949 • “The real purpose of the ____________ is to make sure Nature hasn’t misled you into thinking you know something you don’t actually know.” – Robert M. Pirsig • “Life is lived forward and understood backwards” - Soren Kierkegaard • “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this dis--.” – General John Sedgwick • A skeptic is one who is willing to question any truth claim, asking for clarity in definition, consistency in logic and adequacy of evidence.” • “The naked intellect is an extraordinarily inaccurate instrument” – Madeline L’Engle • “Anything seems commonplace, once explained” – Dr. Watson to Sherlock Holmes

  2. RESEARCH METHODS

  3. Why Research? • Hindsight Bias – I knew it all along! • Overconfidence – we think we know more than we do SO ITS IMPORTANT TO HAVE….. • Critical thinking – making observations more objective to eliminate bias • Scientific Method

  4. Naturalistic Observation • “The simplest scientific technique is observation” This method OBSERVES behavior of animals or people in their natural environment • Famous Naturalistic Observers… • Jane Goodall • Charles Darwin • David Rosenhan • Dian Fossey • Adeline Levine READ and SUMMARIZE what they found and how they found it.

  5. Naturalistic Observation HW: Pairs - Naturalistic Observation of a group interacting. - Agree on group you are observing - Observe from different angles without the group knowing you are doing so - Take note during the entire observation (20 min or more) - After – compare notes, discuss and write about similarities and differences

  6. Naturalistic Observation • BUT BE CAREFUL OF… • Researcher/Confirmation bias – when observations are influenced by what you WANT to discover • Participant bias – when participants act differently because they KNOW they are being observed

  7. Response to HW • What were challenges to observing this way? • What surprising outcomes did you have? • Name two research situations in which you might use this form of gathering data.

  8. Case Studies • The study of single individuals in depth in hope of revealing universal principals.

  9. Famous Case Studies • FREUD • Psychoanalysis conclusions based mainly on case studies of Freud’s female patients • JUNG • Theories of unconscious on case studies of clients • WATSON & RAYNER • Trained Little Albert to wear furry objects b/c associated objects with loud noise…to de-condition him of his fears

  10. Famous Case Studies • GENIE – Group read about Genie • How can Genie’s experience give answers about human development? Should we use it as an example? • DANI (FL) http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2008/reports/danielle/ • Are there similarities between Genie and Dani’s cases? Would this be enough to make scientific psychological conclusions?

  11. Surveys • A research technique designed to discover the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a sample of people through a questionnaire or interview. Examples of survey topics? • POPULATION – All the cases in a group • RANDOM SAMPLE – A group that represents a population b/c each member has an equal chance of inclusion – IDEAS of how to be RANDOM? BE CAREFUL OF BIAS…..

  12. Bias in Surveys • Problems with • Vocabulary • Respondents • Questions • Response options • Question and response order • Multicultural connections Read your ‘three’ and report on; • What are they talking about? • Example x 2 • How to make sure you don’t do it

  13. Create your own • With your newly established partner, pick a survey topic and write 10 survey questions that avoid the PITFALLS

  14. Longitudinal & Cross Sectional Studies • To study how individuals change throughout the life span (mainly used by developmental psychologists) • LONGITUDINAL – follow same group for years • CROSS SECTIONAL – compares people of different ages at one time

  15. The Nun Study • Explain the study • Explain the findings • Why were nuns good research subjects? • What results from the nun study could be viewed as correlational? Which results could be considered casual? • What experimental hypotheses can be proposed from looking at this study?

  16. Correlations • A CORRELATION exists when two variables are related to each other. • The CORRELATIONAL COEFFICIENT is a numerical index of the degree of relationship btwn the two variables • Positive - two variables co-vary in the SAME direction (+ or no sign) • Negative – two variables co-vary in the opposite direction (-) • #’s between 0 - +1.00 or 0 - -1.00

  17. Scatterplot of Quiz Scores and Time

  18. Correlation & Prediction • As a correlation INCREASES in strength (gets closer to -1.00 or +1.00) the ability to predict on variable based on knowledge of the other variable increases BUT……. Prediction does not tell us whether a CAUSE and EFFECT relationship exists. i.e. + correlation btwn kids shoe size and size of vocab BUT does foot size CAUSE vocab? CORRELATION does NOT = CAUSATION

  19. Correlation • Complete the Application Activity #2 • Chart the Correlation on Scatterplot and decide whether the correlation is positive, negative or zero.

  20. Experiments • The ONLY way to determine true Cause and Effect relationships • The EXPERIMENT is a RESEARCH method where the investigator can manipulate variables under controlled conditions to observe changes in a second variable. • HOW X EFFECTS Y

  21. Experiments HOW X EFFECTS Y • X – Independent Variable – the variable the experimenter controls or manipulates – its FREE to be varied • Y – Dependent Variable – the variable affected by the manipulation of the independent variable – it depends on the manipulations • Operational Definitions – describe what is precisely meant by each variable (dictionary definition on steroids) • Worksheet Practice

  22. Experiments • Experimental Group – consists of the subjects who receive some special treatment in regard to the independent variable. • Control Group – consists of similar subjects who do NOT receive the special treatment given to the experimental group

  23. Experiments • Extraneous (secondary)Variables – variables (other than the independent variable) that seem likely to influence the dependent variable • Confounding of Variables – occurs when 2 variables are linked together in a way that make it difficult to sort out their specific effect. So..when an extraneous variable is confounded with an independent variable, a researcher cannot tell which is having what effect on the dependent variable.

  24. Experiment in Class

  25. Experiments • Advantages • Disadvantages

  26. Statistics • Descriptive statistics are used to organize and summarize data (overview of numerical data) • Inferential Statistics are used to determine out level of confidence in claiming data has significance

  27. Statistics • Central tendency – median, mean, mode • Median – falls exactly in the center of a group of scores • Mean – average of the scores • Mode – most frequent score in a distribution • Variability – how much the scores vary from each other and the mean. • The Standard Deviation is an index of the AMOUNT of variability in a set of data • When variability is great, SD will be too. • Correlation • + vs. –

  28. Methodological Flaws • Sampling bias • Placebo effects • Distortions in self report • Confounding of variables • Experimenter bias(which flaws have happened? – pg. 60)

  29. Ethics in Research • Informed Consent • The right to be protected from harm and discomfort • The right to confidentiality • The right to debriefing • Milgram Experiment • What was the experiment? • What were the results? • How could this study be considered ethically ‘shady’

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