PSY 250 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Scanning Electron Microscope, Antibody, Cannula
Chapter 4: The Methods and Ethics of Research Book Notes
- Science, Research, and Theory
- Science is not distinguished by the knowledge it produces but by its method of
acquiring knowledge
- Theory and Tentativeness in Science
- Why this field is complex
- It is always possible that a study is flawed or that new data will
come along that will change how we interpret previous studies
- We base our conclusions on samples of subjects and samples of
data from those subjects
- Knowledge is changing rapidly
- Theory: integrates and interprets diverse observations in an attempt to
explain some phenomenon
- Theory explains existing facts and generates hypotheses that guide further
research
- Experimental vs. Correlational Studies
- Biological Psychologist (Naturalistic Observation): might observe
aggressive behavior in children on the playground to see if there are
differences between boys and girls
- Case Study: report on the brain scan of a patient who had violent outbursts
following a car accident that caused brain injury
- Survey: use a questionnaire to find out whether some women are more
aggressive during their premenstrual period
- Experiment: stimulate a part of rats’ brains with electricity to see what
parts of the brain control aggressive behavior
- Experimental Study: a study in which the researcher manipulates a
condition (the independent variable) that is expected to produce a change
in the subjects’ behavior (the dependent variable)
- Correlational Study: the researcher does not control an independent
variable but observes whether two variables are related to each other
- Research Techniques
- Staining and Imaging Neurons
- Staining and imaging neural tissue makes it possible to visualize neurons,
glia, and connections in the brain
- Golgi Stain: randomly stains about 5% of neurons, placing them in relief
against the background of seeming neural chaos
- Myelin Stain: take up by the fatty myelin that wraps and insulates axons;
the stain thus identifies neural pathways
- Nissl Stain: they identify cell bodies of neurons
- Anterograde and retrograde stains are taken up at the synapse and
transported to the cell body (fluorogold)
- Labeling Techniques
- Autoradiography: reveals both neuronal anatomy and function
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Document Summary
Chapter 4: the methods and ethics of research book notes. Science is not distinguished by the knowledge it produces but by its method of acquiring knowledge. It is always possible that a study is flawed or that new data will come along that will change how we interpret previous studies. We base our conclusions on samples of subjects and samples of data from those subjects. Theory: integrates and interprets diverse observations in an attempt to explain some phenomenon. Theory explains existing facts and generates hypotheses that guide further research. Biological psychologist (naturalistic observation): might observe aggressive behavior in children on the playground to see if there are differences between boys and girls. Case study: report on the brain scan of a patient who had violent outbursts following a car accident that caused brain injury. Survey: use a questionnaire to find out whether some women are more aggressive during their premenstrual period.
