PBSI 302: Exam 1 Review (updated)
questions and answers
TOPIC 1 INFO
PSYCHOLOGY AND THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
producers and consumers of research
Scientific/academic interpretations of research vs. popular media interpretations of research
WHAT IS SCIENCE?
- science is a method of making sense of the world around us
- a means of / approach to acquiring knowledge
- numbers and data to base, no intuition, data driven
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: EMPIRICISM
,- based on experience / observation / quantitative data
- empiricism: approach of collecting and using quantitative data to develop, support, or
challenge theories
- theory: explanations of observed phenomena (why and how); permits predictions
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: OBJECTIVITY
objective - perceived the same way
- free from bias, opinion, preferences, values
- subjective - unique to the perceiver
- strives to be objective
- not asserting its absolutely objective / relatively much more objective to knowledge
acquisition
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: PARSIMONY
often the simplest explanation is the best explanation
- parsimony: explain the relationship between X and Y
- go w/ theories that use as little variables to explain phenomena
, Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: CONTROL
the defining characteristic of scientific method!
- control the alternate explanations!
What is the most powerful control method in the scientific method?
random assignment!
- allows us to deal with threats to research designs
- designates research designs as experimental vs. non-experimental
- not all studies use random assignment thus not all studies are experiments
- experiments are a type of research study
- while all experiments are studies, not all studies are experiments!
Working assumptions of science
questions and answers
TOPIC 1 INFO
PSYCHOLOGY AND THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
producers and consumers of research
Scientific/academic interpretations of research vs. popular media interpretations of research
WHAT IS SCIENCE?
- science is a method of making sense of the world around us
- a means of / approach to acquiring knowledge
- numbers and data to base, no intuition, data driven
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: EMPIRICISM
,- based on experience / observation / quantitative data
- empiricism: approach of collecting and using quantitative data to develop, support, or
challenge theories
- theory: explanations of observed phenomena (why and how); permits predictions
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: OBJECTIVITY
objective - perceived the same way
- free from bias, opinion, preferences, values
- subjective - unique to the perceiver
- strives to be objective
- not asserting its absolutely objective / relatively much more objective to knowledge
acquisition
Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: PARSIMONY
often the simplest explanation is the best explanation
- parsimony: explain the relationship between X and Y
- go w/ theories that use as little variables to explain phenomena
, Characteristics of scientific disciplines/research: CONTROL
the defining characteristic of scientific method!
- control the alternate explanations!
What is the most powerful control method in the scientific method?
random assignment!
- allows us to deal with threats to research designs
- designates research designs as experimental vs. non-experimental
- not all studies use random assignment thus not all studies are experiments
- experiments are a type of research study
- while all experiments are studies, not all studies are experiments!
Working assumptions of science
