THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD & RESEARCH DESIGN
MODEL OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY:
1. researchers formulate a research question
2. Then conduct an empirical study designed to answer the question
3. Next, analyze the resulting data
4. Now, draw conclusions about the answer to the question
5. Finally, publishes the results so that they become part of the research literature
Women are not more talkative than men.
FINDING A GOOD RESEARCH TOPIC
● Good research must begin with a good research question
INSPIRATION IN EVERY DAY LIFE:
● 3 of the most common sources of inspiration are informal observations, practical problems,
and previous research.
● One of the most common sources for inspiration is previous research:
○ it is important to review the literature early in the research process.
○ The research literature in any field is all the published research in that field.
○ Reviewing the research literature means finding, reading, and summarizing the
published research relevant to your topic of interest.
■ It can tell you if a research question has already been answered.
■ It can help you evaluate the interestingness of a research question.
■ It can give you ideas for how to conduct your own study.
■ It can tell you how your study fits into the research literature.
● What piques your interest? If the topic is interesting to you, it’s likely interesting to others
● Engage your creativity: What hasn’t already been covered in great detail? Is there new
speculation on an old theory?
● What specifically would you want to know? The more detail you have, the easier it will
be to design a study
PROFESSIONAL JOURNALS:
● Professionaljournalsare periodicals that publish original research articles.
MODEL OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY:
1. researchers formulate a research question
2. Then conduct an empirical study designed to answer the question
3. Next, analyze the resulting data
4. Now, draw conclusions about the answer to the question
5. Finally, publishes the results so that they become part of the research literature
Women are not more talkative than men.
FINDING A GOOD RESEARCH TOPIC
● Good research must begin with a good research question
INSPIRATION IN EVERY DAY LIFE:
● 3 of the most common sources of inspiration are informal observations, practical problems,
and previous research.
● One of the most common sources for inspiration is previous research:
○ it is important to review the literature early in the research process.
○ The research literature in any field is all the published research in that field.
○ Reviewing the research literature means finding, reading, and summarizing the
published research relevant to your topic of interest.
■ It can tell you if a research question has already been answered.
■ It can help you evaluate the interestingness of a research question.
■ It can give you ideas for how to conduct your own study.
■ It can tell you how your study fits into the research literature.
● What piques your interest? If the topic is interesting to you, it’s likely interesting to others
● Engage your creativity: What hasn’t already been covered in great detail? Is there new
speculation on an old theory?
● What specifically would you want to know? The more detail you have, the easier it will
be to design a study
PROFESSIONAL JOURNALS:
● Professionaljournalsare periodicals that publish original research articles.
