Correlation Research
the study of the naturally occurring relationships among variables
Positive = up/up, Negative = up/down, No correlation = no pattern
together does not equal cause
Culture
the enduring behaviours, ideas, and attitudes (etc.) shared by a large group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next
Demand Characteristics
cues in an experiment that tell the participant what behaviour is expected
Dependent Variable
the variable being measured, depends on manipulations of the independent variable
Experimental Realism
the extent to which an artificial lab situation feels real and engaging to the participants, causing them to behave naturally and spontaneously rather than as if they are in an experiment
Experimental Research
studies that seek clues to cause-effect relationships by manipulating one or more factors (independent variables) while controlling others (holding them constant)
Field Research
research done in natural, real-life settings outside the laboratory
Hindsight Bias
“I knew it all along”
Hypotheses
an educated guess that describes relationships that may exist between events
Independent variables
experimental factors that a researcher manipulates
Informed Consent
an ethical principle requiring that research participants are told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate
Mundane Realism
the degree to which an experiment is superficially similar to everyday situations
Meta-analysis
a “study of studies” that statistically summarizes many studies on the same topic
Naturalistic Fallacy
the mistake of assuming that just because something is “natural,” it is morally right or good
Ex: Claiming humans should act aggressively because aggression exists in nature → naturalistic fallacy
Observational Research Methods
where individuals are observed in natural settings, often without awareness, in order to provide the opportunity for objective analysis of behaviour
Random Assignment
participants are assigned to different groups purely by chance to reduce bias
Random Sample
subset of a population in which every member has an equal chance of being selected
Replication
process of repeating a study to see if the same results can be obtained
Social Neuroscience
the study of how the brain and nervous system influence social behaviours, thoughts, and feelings, and how social experiences affect the brain
Social Psychology
the scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another
Social Representations
socially shared beliefs which help us make sense of our world
Theory
an integrated set of principles that explain and predict observed events
the study of the naturally occurring relationships among variables
Positive = up/up, Negative = up/down, No correlation = no pattern
together does not equal cause
Correlation Research
the enduring behaviours, ideas, and attitudes (etc.) shared by a large group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next
Culture
