PSYC 1000 Study Guide - Final Guide: Object Permanence, Hearing Aid, Inner Ear
9 Dec 2013
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Lesson 2: psychology as a science and experimental research. Theory: a set of principles, built on observations and other verifiable facts, that explains some phenomenon and predicts its future behavior. Hypothesis: a testable prediction consistent with our theory. Operational definitions: precise definitions of the relevant variables in the theory. Replication: doing the research again using the same operational definitions of the concepts and procedures. Methods of data collection: three research methods for gathering this information: case study, naturalistic observation, Case study: an in-depth investigation of a single participant using a bunch of different data collection techniques. Advantage: can be a source of support for theories about the cause of behavior. Disadvantage: results may not generalize to the rest of the population. Naturalistic observation: observing and recording the participant"s natural behavior, without influencing the participant. Disadvantage: difficult to not influence behavior; requires a lot of patience. Survey: participants are asked a series of questions about certain aspects of their behavior.
