PSYC3042 Lecture 1: Lecture 1– Introduction to research interpretation and evaluation
Document Summary
Lecture 1 introduction to research interpretation and evaluation. The ultimate goal is to explain, predict and control phenomena to modify behaviour. Phenomenon of interest can be at different levels eg. biological vs. Science is characterised by the principle of empiricism - putting weight on evidence that is collected based on observations. A causal factor is manipulated in a true experiment and influences all other contaminating factors or artefacts. To safeguard casual statements, different approaches are often combined because a single study is insufficient. Psychological research can be reduced to two main elements : some aspect of behaviour or cognition (eg. working memory) and, one or more factors the researcher suspects to have a causal influence. Threats of causation: common response when two variables are associated but there is a mediator at play which is the hidden cause of the association, and the variables are both caused by a third factor.
