Principles Of Experimental Design Vocab

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applied research

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scientific inquiry that directly focuses on helping to solve or evaluate a specific real-world problem

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authority

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relying on other people as the source of our knowledge and beliefs

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basic research

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scientific inquiry that examines the fundamental nature of phenomena

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causal inference

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conclusion that variable X caused variable Y

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conformation bias

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tendency to selectively seek info that supports one's views and avoid disconforming info

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control

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ability to regulate research settings and procedures and to guide the application of scientific knowledge

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distal causes

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remote causes; in a chain interrelated events that lead to a given result, the events that are remote from the result

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empirical knowledge

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knowledge that is based on the senses- on experiences with the world

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empirical question (empirical claim)

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question or clam that, in principle, can be tested empirically through observation

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empiricism

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the process of acquiring knowledge directly through observation and experience; the philosophical viewpoint that all knowledge is derived from experience

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falsifiability

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criterion for judging testability; an assertion is testable if we can envision some type of empirical evidence that will reveal it to be false

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hypothesis

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tentative proposition about the causes or outcome of an event or, more generally, about how variables are related

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operationism

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defining a concept in terms of the specific procedures (or operations) used to represent it

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peer-reviewed journal

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professional journal in which reports submitted for publication first undergo a screening process by several experts

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proximal (proximate) causes

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immediate causes; in a chain interrelated events that lead to a given result, the events that are close to the result

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reason

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the use of logic and rational argument to reach a conclusion about how things "must be"

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replication

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the process of repeating a study to determine whether the original findings will be upheld

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science

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process of systematically gathering and evaluating empirical evidence to answer questions and test ideas

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skepticism

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outlook that questions the validity of claims before deciding whether to accept them

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tenacity

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holding a belief simply because it is what has long been believed

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theory

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set of formal statements that specifies how and why variables or events are related

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variable

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any factor or attribute that can assume two or more values

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confounding variable

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extraneous factor that covaries with tan independent variable in such a way that we can no longer determine which one has caused the changes in the dependent variable; provides alternative explanation for the results

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content analysis

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analysis of the diff types of content found within or represented by a set of data

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cross-sectional research

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descriptive research design in which each person in the study participates on one occasion and all variables are measured at that time; in developmental research, a study in which participants of diff ages are compared at the same point in time

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deductive reasoning

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using a general principle to reach a more specific conclusion

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dependent variable

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the behavior or outcome the researcher measures to determine whether the independent variable has produced an effect

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descriptive research

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method in which researchers measure variables but do not manipulate them

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descriptive stats

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stats that organize and summarize a set of data

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effect size

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statistical measure of the strength of a relation between two variables

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evidence-based treatments

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interventions that specifically controlled studies have demonstrated to be effective in treating specific conditions

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experiment

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research method in which the researcher manipulates one or more variables, attempts to control extraneous factors, and then measures how the manipulated variables affect participants' responses

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external validity

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the generalizability of the findings beyond the circumstances of the present study

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internal validity

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represents the degree to which we can confidently infer that our study demonstrated that one variable had a causal effect on another variable

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field study

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research in a real-world setting

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field experiment

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study in which researchers manipulate an independent variable in a natural setting and exercise some control over extraneous factors

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inductive reasoning

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using specific facts to form a general conclusion or general principle

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quantitative research

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relies primarily on numerical data and numerical analysis to describe and understand behavior

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qualitative research

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seeks to achieve a relatively holistic or thematic description and understanding of behavior, primarily through nonstatistical analysis

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independent variable

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the manipulated variable

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longitudinal research

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same participants are tested across diff time periods (as they grow older)

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sequential research design

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several age cohorts are tested longitudinally

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population

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all the cases or observations of interest to us in a given study

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sample

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subset of cases or observations from a population

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variance

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average of the squared deviations about the mean; measures how much the scores in a distribution are spread out in relation to their mean

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standard deviation

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square root of the variance; measures how much the scores in a distribution are spread out in relation to their mean as expressed in the original units of measurement

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inferential stats

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allow researchers to draw conclusions about a pop based on data from the sample

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statistically significant

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unlikely to be due to chance

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law of parsimony

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explanations should use the min number of principles necessary to account for the greatest number of facts

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meta-analysis

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statistical procedure for combining the results of diff studies that examine the same topic

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operational definition

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specific procedures (specific operations) used to measure or manipulate a variable in a particular study; refers to defining a variable in terms of the procedures used to measure or manipulate it