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The Starting Point: Asking Questions

Learn the foundation of research methods: asking clear questions, defining variables, addressing ethics. Understand types of variables, refining questions, validity, and human research ethics.

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The Starting Point: Asking Questions

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  1. The Starting Point:Asking Questions Graziano and Raulin Research Methods: Chapter 3 Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  2. Asking Questions • Research always starts with questions • Fueled by the curiosity of the scientist • Sources of questions • Personal interests and observations • Theories and research of others • Most research is stimulated by other research • Theories and research build on each other • Seeking solutions to practical problems • Termed applied research Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  3. Refining Questions • Initial questions may be vague • You cannot answer a vague question • Refine the question so that specific variables are defined as well as their expected relationship • Further refined into a “statement of the problem” and then one or more “research hypotheses” (covered in detail in Chapter 8) Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  4. Types of Variables in Research • Variables defined by their nature • Behavioral variables • Stimulus variables • Organismic variables • Variables defined by their use in Research • Independent variable • Dependent variable • A constant Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  5. Defined by their Nature • Behavioral variables • Any behavioral response of the organism • Stimulus variables • Any factor that affects or could affect behavior • Organismic variables (not as much fun as orgasmic variables) • Any characteristic of the research participant Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  6. Defined by their Use in Research • Independent variable • The variable that is manipulated by the research in experimental research • Dependent variable • Variable, measured by the researcher, which is expected to change as a result of the independent variable manipulation • Constants • Variables that are not allowed to vary Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  7. Validity and Control • Validity: How well a study, procedure, or measure does what it is supposed to do • Validity is enhanced when the researcher controls variables that could affect the dependent measure • Such variables are called extraneous variables • This course is devoted to the procedures required to control extraneous variables Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  8. Research Ethics • Ethical principles apply to all activity, including research • Ethical guidelines • For human research • Focused on protecting the rights of participants • Stimulated by the atrocities committed by some Nazi scientists in the name of research • For animal research • Focused on proper care and minimizing pain Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  9. Human Research Ethics • Formalized guidelines that must be followed in any research with humans • All research proposals must be approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) • First safeguard is “informed consent” • The greater the potential risk to participants, the more responsibility the researcher has to protect participants from harm Graziano & Raulin (2000)

  10. Summary • Research starts with questions • Questions come from many sources • Most questions need to be refined before they are ready to be answered through research • Questions involve the presumed relationship between variables • Research ethics must be considered in any research project Graziano & Raulin (2000)

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