Psych Review Experimental Methods & Ethical Guidelines

Psych Review Video 1.3-1.6 Experimental Methods & Ethical Guidelines Directions: Visit the Psych page on YouTube and watch Video 1.3-1.6. This lesson reviews content from Unit 1 and Myers 2e Book Unit 2. Complete the guided viewing notes and exit ticket to receive credit for today’s assignment. FRQ Review Last Lesson: Explain how Mrs. Schmidlap might study her research question: Survey Naturalistic Observation Cross-Sectional Operational Definition Definition A survey is a written or online questionnaire where participants give answers to research questions. Definition A cross-sectional study is not a research method. It is a way to compare information from two groups. Definition A naturalistic observation is when researchers watch participants in their usual routine or familiar environment, often without them knowing. Definition Clear & detailed statement about the procedures you will observe & how you will measure the dependent variable. Application Mrs. Schmidlap can give her students a survey to fill out after they complete a HW assignment asking them if it helped them learn. Application Mrs. Schmidlap could compare the test results from her 2nd period class which didnt do homework for unit 2 and her 4th period class which did homework for unit 2. Application Mrs. Schmidlap could theoretically watch her students do homework to see if they were really doing it or merely copying and pasting from the internet. Application Mrs. Schmidlap might observe her students doing their homework and taking note of their efficiency. The test comes later to prove her data. Synonyms A survey might not be the best research methods for this situation. While a survey might give Mrs. Schmidlap a lot of information, some of the survey questions might be confusing. That means that her conclusions about homework might be wrong. Synonyms A cross-sectional study is limited because it gives information at a certain moment of time. For instance, 2nd period might not do a lot of homework on unit 2. But they do homework on every other unit. A crosssectional comparison would not include that information. Synonyms A naturalistic observation might not be the best research method for this situation because Mrs. Schmidlap cannot see students learn or process the information as they do the assignment. Experiments Hypothesis Independent Variable A hypothesis is a prediction. aka ¨the treatment¨ Who receives the independent variable? Dependent Variable aka The result The IV is something the researcher does The experimental group (or treatment group). The DV is something the researcher gets What is our hope in researching? We hope that it is a significant change from baseline or from control group. Identify the IV and DV in video examples. IV = Drinking coffee DV = You will pay more attention to this video Operationalize Attn DIfferent angle of spine or eye contact or how you’re seated. Is the result we get what we think it is? Is our result true or worthwhile? Type I Error = False Alarm Type II Error = You don't notice Visit Khan FMI Practice 1: Pause Video to Answer! Jimmy thinks that watching review videos and practicing FRQs will lead to a good score on the AP Exam. Identify the… Independent Variable Jimmy watches the videos and practices the FRQs Dependent Variable He will do well on the AP Psychology exam Practice 2: Pause Video to Answer! Can you think of a scenario that involves… (Remember, be parsimonious - simplest explanation possible!) Hypothesis If students practice football everyday for five hours, then they will improve in their skills. Independent Variable Students practice football everyday for five hours. Dependent Variable They will improve on their skills. Check for Understanding - Of above terms one last time Confounding Variables Confounding Variable aka Lurking variable, research bias, or bias Define: Things that might affect the result or dependent variable. Why do confounding variables occur? They come from imperfect experimental control The problem with too much control? People and animals don't act naturally in labs. Explain the graph: The more control you have the less bias you have and vice versa. You can claim causality when... What is the Hawthorne Effect? The idea that people don't act naturally when they're being observed. There's a perfect control. How is this a CV? The Hawthorne effect effects the results needed to test your hypothesis and produce efficient data and results. Placebo Placebo Effect Fascinating!Good for an individual Frustrating!Bad for research Placebo Treatment Given to half of participants (control group) Research Design for Coffee Experiment Notes: ● Most people believe that coffee helps people pay attention ● How do we separate the biological effect of caffeine from peoples’ belief about caffeine? ● You give half the participants (control group) decaffeinated coffee - Same temperature, same taste, control for every other variable. Common CV in Experimental Design Hawthorne Effect What is it? How to avoid it? Explain... The idea that people don't act naturally when they're being observed. Experimenter Bias Representation Bias where the scientists performing the research influence the results, in order to portray a certain outcome. A decision maker has to analyze the options of a decision, he tends to recall a memory or experience that is similar to the present decision-making situation. Give an example Use a single blind technique - must deceive the participants about something ● Use a double blind technique- the researcher does not know which participant is in which group ● Researcher doesn’t know which group got the coffee There is no way to avoid a representation bias as it is an integral part of everyone's day. ● Are the participants representative of the larger population? Do the demographics match? ● ● Doesn't know what groups they're in Doesn't know the hypothesis Randomization (Additional Video Here If Questions Remain) Random Sample Random Assignment Define: subset of individuals chosen from a larger set. Each individual is chosen randomly and entirely by chance. Define: Study participants are randomly assigned to different groups, such as the experimental group or the treatment group. Ex: The names of 25 employees being chosen out of a hat out of 200 employees. Ex: You have a study group of 50 people and you write their names on equal size balls. Ethical Issues in Research Note on research studies: What is the role of an IRB? All experiments can cause anxiety and stress to participants. Protecting the rights and welfare of participants. How can we ethically study the placebo effect? The placebo effect is made to ensure their participants safety and tell their patients the truth. In the researchers view, using the placebo without telling the participant may undermine their truth and compromise the relationship. What are researcher responsibilities or What are the key principles of (psychological) research? Fiduciary Responsibility Take care of the participants Informed Consent Debriefing Voluntary Participation Confidentiality Subjects must know what they are being tested on After the experiment, researchers must tell participants everything that just happened. Participants are not being forced to be in the experiment and have the right to leave the experiment. Information must not be shared unless they are directly involved in the experiment. Check for Understanding - What are the two most important things a researcher must do? Informed consent Fiduciary responsibility Exam Practice: Mrs. Schmidlap wants to do an experiment on whether watching educational YouTube videos will increase learning. Explain how the following terms apply to Mrs. Schmidlap’s ideas for this research. ● Independent variable ● Operational definition of dependent variable ● Confounding variable ● Ethical consideration Part A: Explain how the following terms apply to Mrs. Schmidlap’s ideas for this research Independent variable Watching educational Youtube videos Operational definition of dependent variable Increased learning Confounding variable If the students actually watch the videos or if they are paying attention to the video all the way. Ethical consideration Debriefing, voluntary participation Additional Practice Create your own scenario and identify the independent and dependent variable. Scientists want to determine if eating Lay’s classic chips has effects on students' learning capabilities. The independent variable is eating the Lay’s classic chips and the dependent variable is the students learning capabilities. How would you design an experiment to test your hypothesis? Students in the same grade can participate in this experiment. I will put them into two groups, 1 eating the Lay’s chips and another group that doesn’t. The students sit and learn a topic and afterwards take the same test. Exit Ticket: I Feel Confident/Better About: I feel confident about the different types of confounding variables and how to avoid them. But I Still Have Questions Surrounding: I have a bit of trouble explaining certain types of graphs