Research Methods Chapter 1

1
Research Methods Chapter 1

• Introduction

2
Science

• Not based on content of an area
• Way of studying or learning
• Psychology
• soft science

3
Sources of Knowledge

• Superstition / Intuition
• Tenacity / Authority
• Rationalism
• Empiricism

4
Systematic Empiricism

• Based on systematic and objective recordings of
  behavior
• Systematic? not random or capricious
• Verifiable by others ? presentations, journals
• Replicable
• Empirically solvable problems

5
Types of Research

• Basic
• For sake of knowledge
• Can lead to solutions
• Applied
• For sake of solving problem
• Practical significance

6
Goals

• Description
• Careful observations describing beh
• Prediction
• Discovering relationships among var
• Explanation
• Discovering cause and effect among var
• Control
• Application of information

7
Descriptive Methods

• Observational
• Naturalistic observation?wild
• Laboratory? controlled situations
• Case Study
• In-depth study of one or more persons
• Survey
• Obtaining attitudes and opinions
• Asking questions

8
Predictive Methods

• Correlational Method
• Assesses whether a relationship exists
• When a change in one variable is accompanied by a
  consistent change in the other variable
• Quasi-Experimental Method
• Compares differences between groups that already
  exists
• Subject or Participant Variable?No manipulation
  (No IV)
• Caution interpreting results? NO CAUSE AND EFFECT

9
Explanatory Method

• Experimental method
• Describe and predict
• Explain? cause and effect relationships between
  variables
• Control of variables
• Independent variable manipulated
• Confound variable? might explain results /
  alternative factors influencing beh (DV)

10
Characteristics of Experiment

• Experimental Group? exposed to one level of the
  IV
• Control Group ? no IV exposure
• Random assignment to groups
• Purpose is to make groups equal as possible with
  the only exception being the IV
• Measure DV