PSY 321 METHODS AND STATISTICS IN PSYCHOLOGY 3

Review Questions: Chapter 1

• Describe two important features of the scientific method.
• Provide an example of (1) how social and cultural factors can influence psychologists’ choice of research topics and (2) how sociocultural factors can influence society’s acceptance of research results.
• Describe how ethnocentric bias can be a problem in research and suggest a way researchers can prevent this bias.
• Describe two ethical dilemmas that psychologists may face when conducting research.
• What are the three initial steps researchers take when starting a research project?
• Identify two reasons why it is important to look in the psychological research literature when beginning research.

Review Questions: Chapter 2

• What is the difference between an independent variable and a dependent variable? Provide an example of each that could be used in an experiment.
• What is the main advantage of using operational definitions in psychology? What two criticisms have been made of the use of operational definitions?
• What is the difference between the validity and reliability of an instrument?
• Identify the four goals of the scientific method and briefly describe what each is intended to achieve.
• What is the difference between the nomothetic approach and the idiographic approach?
• Identify the three conditions required for a causal inference.
• What is an intervening variable? Propose an example: a factor that serves as an intervening variable between “insulting” and “aggressive responses” in children. Explain how these variables can be related by proposing a hypothesis that includes the influence of the intervening variable.