Psy 101 Chap. 2

Front 1

method that allows researchers to combine the results of several different studies on a similar topic in order to establish the strength of an effect

Back 1

meta-analysis

Front 2

broad idea or set of closely related ideas that attempts to explain certain observations

Back 2

theory

Front 3

anything that can change

Back 3

variable

Front 4

objective description of how a research variable is going to be measured and observed

Back 4

operational definition

Front 5

idea that is arrived at logically from a theory. it is a prediction that can be tested

Back 5

hypothesis

Front 6

entire group about which the investigator wants to draw conclusions

Back 6

population

Front 7

subset of the population chosen by the investigator for study

Back 7

sample

Front 8

sample that gives every member of the population an equal chance of being selected

Back 8

random sample

Front 9

observation of behavior in real-world settings with no effort made to manipulate or control the situation

Back 9

naturalistic observation

Front 10

test that requires people to answer a series of written or oral questions or sometimes both

Back 10

standardized test

Front 11

in-depth look at a single individual

Back 11

case study

Front 12

research strategy that identifies the relationships between two or more variables in order to describe how these variables change together

Back 12

correlational research

Front 13

situation where an extraneous variable that has not been measured accounts for the relationship between two others

Back 13

third variable problem

Front 14

special kind of systematic observation that involves obtaining measures of the variables of interest in multiple waves over time

Back 14

longitudinal design

Front 15

carefully regulated procedure in which one or more variables believed to influence the behavior being studied are manipulated while all other variables are held constant

Back 15

experiment

Front 16

assignment of participants to research groups by chance

Back 16

random assignment

Front 17

manipulated experimental factor in an experiment

Back 17

independent variable

Front 18

factor that can change in an experiment in response to changes in the independent variable

Back 18

dependent variable

Front 19

group in the research study whose experience is manipulated

Back 19

experimental group

Front 20

comparison group that is as much like the experimental group as possible and is treated in every way like the experimental group except for the manipulated factor

Back 20

control group

Front 21

soundness of the conclusions we draw from an experiment

Back 21

validity

Front 22

extent to which an experimental design is representative of the real world issues it is supposed to address

Back 22

ecological validity

Front 23

extent to which changes in the dependent variable are due to the manipulation of the independent variable

Back 23

internal validity

Front 24

influence of the experimenter's own expectations on the outcome of the research

Back 24

experimenter bias

Front 25

influence of research participants' expectations on their behavior within an experiment

Back 25

research participant bias

Front 26

harmless, inert substance that may be given to participants instead of a presumed active agent, such as a drug, and that has no specific physiological efffect

Back 26

placebo

Front 27

situation where participants' expectations, rather than the experimental treatment, produces an experimental outcome

Back 27

placebo effect

Front 28

experiment that is conducted so that neither the experimenter nor the participants are aware of which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group until after the results are calculated

Back 28

double-blind experiment

Front 29

mathematical procedures that are used to describe and summarize sets of data in a meaningful way

Back 29

descriptive statistics

Front 30

statistical measure of central tendency that is calculated by adding all the scores in a set and then dividing by the number of scores

Back 30

mean

Front 31

statistical measure of central tendency that falls exactly in the middle of a distribution of scores after they have been arranged from highest to lowest

Back 31

median

Front 32

statistical measure of central tendency; the score that occurs most often in a set of data

Back 32

mode

Front 33

statistical measure of variability that is the distance between the highest and lowest scores

Back 33

range

Front 34

statistical measure of variability that involves how much the scores vary, on the average, around the mean of the sample

Back 34

standard deviation

Front 35

mathematical methods that are used to indicate whether data sufficiently support or confirm a research hypothesis

Back 35

inferential statistics

Front 36

using an ethnic label, such as "African-American" or "Latino," in a superficial way that portrays the ethnic group as more homogeneous than it really is

Back 36

ethnic gloss