Psych 418 Flashcards

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Systematic empiricism

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Learning about the world through careful observation

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Empirical questions

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A question about the way the world actually is that can be answered by making systematic observations

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Public research

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Detailed descriptions of research that are available to other researchers and the general public, usually through publication in a professional journal

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Basic research

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Scientific research that is conducted primarily for the purpose of learning something new (do women talk more than men?)

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Applied research

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Scientific research that is conducted primarily to solve some practical problem (cell phones and driving)

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Folk psychology

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People's intuitive beliefs about human behavior or mental processes

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Tolerance for uncertainty

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A critical-thinking attitude that involves withholding judgement about whether a belief or claim is true when there is insufficient evidence for it

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Descriptive statistics

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statistical procedures used to summarize, organize, and simplify data

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Inferential statistics

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consist of techniques that allow us to study samples and then make generalizations about the populations from which they were selected

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Constructs

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internal attributes or characteristics that cannot be directly observed but are useful for describing and explaining behavior

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Operational definition

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identifies a measurement procedure (a set of operations) for measuring an external behavior and uses the resulting measurements as a definition and a measurement of a hypothetical construct. Note that an operation definition has two components: First, it describes a set of operations for measuring a construct. Second, it defines the construct in terms of the resulting measurements.

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Discrete variable

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consists of separate, indivisible categories. No values can exist between 2 neighboring categories (ex: dice)

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Continuous variable

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infinite number of possible values that fall between any 2 observed values. A continuous variable is divisible into an infinite number of fractional parts.

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Real limit

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boundaries of intervals for scores that are represented on a continuous number line; each score has 2 limits: an upper real limit and a lower real limit.

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Nominal scale

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consists of a set of categories that have different names. Measurements on a nominal scale label and characterize observations, but do not make any quantitative distinctions between observations (for example: you can't quantify majors in college; art is not "less than" biology, etc.)

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Ordinal scale

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consists of a set of categories that are organized in an ordered sequence. Measurements on an ordinal scale rank observations in terms of size or magnitude.

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Interval scale

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consists of ordered categories that are all intervals of exactly the same size. Equal differences between numbers on a scale reflect equal differences in magnitude. However, the zero point on an interval scale is arbitrary and does not indicate a zero amount of the variable being measured (for ex: celsius and farenheit, golf, etc.)

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ratio scale

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an interval scale with the additional feature of an absolute zero point. With a ratio scale, ratios of numbers do reflect order of magnitude (ex: race times, weight, height.)

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Psychometrics

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the measurement of psychological variables and constructs

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Constructs

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a variable that cannot be observed directly b/c it represents a tendency to behave in certain ways or a complex pattern of behavior and internal processes. These include personality traits, emotional states, attitudes, and abilities.

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Conceptual definition

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a description of a variable of construct in terms of the behaviors and internal processes that are involved, along with how that construct relates to other variables.

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Operational definition

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a definition of a variable or construct in terms of precisely how it will be measured

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Converging operations

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multiple operational definitions of the same construct. When multiple operational definitions are closely related to each other and produce the same pattern of results, this constitutes evidence that the construct is being measured effectively and is a useful one.

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Reliability

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consistency of a measure

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Test-retest reliability

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The extent to which scores on a measure are consistent across time for the same individuals

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Internal consistency

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the extent to which the items on a multiple-item measure are consistent with each other

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Split-half correlation

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a correlation between scores based on one half of the items on a multiple-item measure and scores based on the other half of the items

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Cronbach's a (alpha)

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a statistic used to assess the internal consistency of a multiple-item measure. It is conceptually equivalent to the mean of all possible split-half correlations.

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Cohen's k (kappa)

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a statistic used to assess interrater reliability when the observor judgments are categorical

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Validity

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the extent to which scores on a measure represent the variable or construct the way they are intended to. It's a judgment based on the available evidence.

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Face validity

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the extent to which a measurement appears "on it's face" to measure the variable or construct the way it's supposed to

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Content validity

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the extent to which a measure covers all aspects of the content it is supposed to measure

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Criterion validity

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the extent to which scores on a measure are correlated with other variables and constructs that they are expected to be correlated with, given the conceptual definition of the construct being measured

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Discriminant validity

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the extent to which scores on a measure are not correlated with other variables and constructs that are conceptually distinct

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Reactivity

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participants' reactions to the fact that they are being measured

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Socially desirable responding

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participants' responding in ways they believe are socially appropriate rather than in ways that reflect their actual thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

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Demand characteristics

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features of a study that cue participants as to how the researcher expects them to behave