PSYCHOLOGY 2000 LSU TEST 1
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 100% PASS
confirmation bias - ✔✔tendency to notice, seek out, and interpret information in a way
consistent with or that confirms your own prior beliefs
Scientific Method - ✔✔a system for reducing bias and error in the measurement of data
How is the scientific method used in psychology? - ✔✔used to accomplish the goals of
description, explanation, prediction, and control
What are the three methods of psychology? - ✔✔descriptive methods, correlations, and
the experiment
What are the different descriptive methods? - ✔✔Naturalistic Observation, Laboratory
Observation, Case study, surveys
Naturalistic observation - ✔✔watching animals or humans behave in their normal
environment
What is the advantage to naturalistic observation? - ✔✔realistic picture of behavior
limitations of naturalistic observation - ✔✔observer effect and observer bias
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 1
,observer effect - ✔✔tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal
when they know they are being observed
observer bias - ✔✔tendency of observers to see what they expect to see
blind observer - ✔✔people who do not know what the research question is
laboratory observation - ✔✔watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting
Advantages of Laboratory Observation - ✔✔1. Controls over environment
2. Allows use of specialized equipment
Limitations of laboratory observation - ✔✔Artificial situation that may result in
artificial behavior
Can be difficult to generalize findings to "real world" situations
case studies - ✔✔study of one individual in great detail
advantage of case study - ✔✔tremendous amount of detail
limitation of case study - ✔✔findings may not generalize to others
Phineas Gage - ✔✔railroad worker who survived a severe brain injury that dramatically
changed his personality and behavior; case played a role in the development of the
understanding of the localization of brain function
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 2
, Surveys - ✔✔a technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a
particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group
advantages of surveys - ✔✔Data from large numbers of people
Study covert behaviors
Data from hard to reach, low base-rate populations
limitations of surveys - ✔✔-people are not always accurate
-small variations in wording used or order of questions can affect outcomes
-researchers have to ensure representative sample if interested in generalizing findings
to a certain population
Sampling - ✔✔The process of selecting representative units from a total population
Correlations - ✔✔A measure of the relationship between two variables/things that
change
positive correlation - ✔✔variables move in the same direction
(increase, increase)(decrease, decrease)(temp. and sweat)
negative correlation - ✔✔variables are related in opposite direction(increase,
decrease)(decrease,increase)(gas price and driving)
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 3
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 100% PASS
confirmation bias - ✔✔tendency to notice, seek out, and interpret information in a way
consistent with or that confirms your own prior beliefs
Scientific Method - ✔✔a system for reducing bias and error in the measurement of data
How is the scientific method used in psychology? - ✔✔used to accomplish the goals of
description, explanation, prediction, and control
What are the three methods of psychology? - ✔✔descriptive methods, correlations, and
the experiment
What are the different descriptive methods? - ✔✔Naturalistic Observation, Laboratory
Observation, Case study, surveys
Naturalistic observation - ✔✔watching animals or humans behave in their normal
environment
What is the advantage to naturalistic observation? - ✔✔realistic picture of behavior
limitations of naturalistic observation - ✔✔observer effect and observer bias
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 1
,observer effect - ✔✔tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal
when they know they are being observed
observer bias - ✔✔tendency of observers to see what they expect to see
blind observer - ✔✔people who do not know what the research question is
laboratory observation - ✔✔watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting
Advantages of Laboratory Observation - ✔✔1. Controls over environment
2. Allows use of specialized equipment
Limitations of laboratory observation - ✔✔Artificial situation that may result in
artificial behavior
Can be difficult to generalize findings to "real world" situations
case studies - ✔✔study of one individual in great detail
advantage of case study - ✔✔tremendous amount of detail
limitation of case study - ✔✔findings may not generalize to others
Phineas Gage - ✔✔railroad worker who survived a severe brain injury that dramatically
changed his personality and behavior; case played a role in the development of the
understanding of the localization of brain function
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 2
, Surveys - ✔✔a technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a
particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group
advantages of surveys - ✔✔Data from large numbers of people
Study covert behaviors
Data from hard to reach, low base-rate populations
limitations of surveys - ✔✔-people are not always accurate
-small variations in wording used or order of questions can affect outcomes
-researchers have to ensure representative sample if interested in generalizing findings
to a certain population
Sampling - ✔✔The process of selecting representative units from a total population
Correlations - ✔✔A measure of the relationship between two variables/things that
change
positive correlation - ✔✔variables move in the same direction
(increase, increase)(decrease, decrease)(temp. and sweat)
negative correlation - ✔✔variables are related in opposite direction(increase,
decrease)(decrease,increase)(gas price and driving)
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 3
