While some of the greatest mysteries can never be solved, scientific evidence can be found for others. Psychology is a study of mental processes and behaviors. The brain and behavior can be studied because they are observable, but the mind and thought are not tangible and thus, are harder to study. Therefore, psychological research looks for scientifically derived evidence to explore theories and phenomenon, knowing that many aspects of psychology will likely never be proven. Any and all attempts to better understand psychology is what make it a science. 

The scientific attitude - curiosity + skepticism + humility - prepares us to think harder and smarter. This thinking style, called critical thinking, examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions. 

The Scientific Method:

1. Observe some aspect of the universe. 

2. Develop a theory (general idea) that is consistent with what you have observed. 

3. Use the theory to make a hypothesis (educated prediction/guess). 

4. Test those predictions by conducting experiments. Important to have operational definitions (exact specifications on how the research is conducted).

5. Evaluate the results.

6. Modify the theory in the light of your findings.

7. Replicate (do the research a second time) to ensure the reliability of the results

• Descriptive methods describe behaviors, often using case studies, surveys, or naturalistic observations.

• Correlational methods associate different factors or variables.

• Experimental methods manipulate variables to establish cause-and-effect relationships.

Deductive reasoning starts with a general statement or hypothesis and then examines the possibilities to reach a specific logical conclusion, while inductive reasoning starts with observations and using them to make generalizations. Deductive reasoning claims if the premises are true, so is the conclusion, while inductive reasoning makes the conclusion probable but not guaranteed. 

Scrolling through your media of choice, you come across a post that interests you. Hopefully, you are always a little skeptical before believing what you read/see, and before sharing, you do a little fact check. Are there other posts that support this? Who posted it? What do they have to gain from posting it? How might the subject feel about this post if they are not the author/photographer? All of these questions are components of critical thinking.

Critical thinking puts ideas to the test by examining assumptions, appraising the source, discerning hidden biases, evaluating evidence, and assessing conclusions. Applying critical thinking to psychological research supports the idea of it being a science, as theories must be thoroughly investigated to be considered valid.  

Psychological theories are explanations that apply an integrated set of principles to organize observations and generate hypotheses, which are then tested and replicated to confirm, reject, or modify the conclusions of the research. From theories, we can begin to unravel some of the mysteries of the mind. 

• Population: group that research is meant to apply to

• Sample: a variety of people from the population used as participants for research

• Representative/Random sample: participants chosen fairly to represent a population; all those in a group being studied have an equal chance of inclusion 

A case study is a descriptive technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles. Case studies have helped reveal the results of brain damage, the extent of children’s minds, and demonstrations of animal intelligence. 

Advantages:

• Provides in-depth information of a limited number of subjects

• Illustrates general principles that can be applied to others

Disadvantages:

• Misleading if individual is atypical or under represented

• Can over generalize the results

Naturalistic observation is a descriptive technique of observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate or control the situation. 

Advantages:

• Noninvasive – subjects more likely to display honest behavior in a natural setting

• Offer ideas for further research

Disadvantages:

• Can be time consuming and expensive

• Subjects may become aware of the observer and may act differently as a result

• Observer may misinterpret the actions of the subjects

A survey is a descriptive technique used to obtain self-reported attitudes and behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative random sample (participants chosen fairly represents a population {all those in a group being studied} because each member has equal chance of inclusion) of the group. 

Advantages:

• Able to collect a large amount of data in a short period of time

• Relatively inexpensive

• Flexible - online, in person, etc.

Disadvantages:

• Can be affected by poor survey questions

  • Wording effects (a.k.a. framing): how questions are worded can skew responses

• Participants can affect the outcome or try to please the researcher

• Lie to make themselves look better (self-serving bias) or have mistaken memories (misinformation effect)

• Can have a poor response rate

Naturalistic observations and surveys often show us that one trait or behavior tends to coincide with another, or correlate. A statistical measure of this is called a correlation coefficient, which is noted on a scale from -1.0 to +1.0 (r-value) and displayed through a scatter plot. The closer the correlation coefficient is to 1, the stronger the relationship. The closer the correlation coefficient is to 0, the weaker the relationship.

CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION! For example, there is a correlation between ice cream sales and instances of violent crime, but that doesn’t mean ice cream turns people into criminals. This is correlation between shoe size and vocabulary size, but if a gator bites your foot off, you won’t suddenly lose half your vocabulary. 

Positive (+1.0) If there is positive correlation, the variables trend in the same direction.

Ex:

• The more you study, the higher your grade.

• The less absences you have, the less discipline referrals you receive. 

Negative (-1.0) If there is negative correlation, the variables trend in opposite directions.

Ex:

• The more absences you have, the lower your grade.

• The less sleep you get, the more car accidents you get into.

Correlations not only make visible the relationships we might otherwise miss, but they also restrain our “seeing” nonexistent relationships. When we believe there is a relationship between variables where none exist it is called illusory correlation. This can explain gambling tactics and basic superstitions. For example, if you are an athlete who pulled off an upset victory, and associate that with a new pair of shoes, you might call them your “lucky shoes” and wear them, thinking they were the cause of your success. But we know correlation does not equal causation!

This belief can also be perpetuated by regression toward the mean, or the tendency for extreme or unusual scores/events to fall back toward the average. For example, if you bomb a test in a class you normally get As in, you will most likely get an A when retested. 

To isolate cause and effect, researchers must conduct an experiment: a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or two factors (independent  variables) to observe the effects on some behavior or mental process (dependent variables). Through random assignment (participants have equal chance of being in the experiment or control group), the researcher aims to control other relevant factors.

• Hypothesis: a prediction about the relationship between variables

• Experimental group: participants that receive the manipulated variables

• Control group: participants that do not receive manipulated variables

• Independent variable: factors that are manipulated or controlled by the researcher

• Dependent variable: factors that are measured or observed by the researcher

• Placebo: inert substance that is in place of independent variable in control group so participants do not know they are in control group

• Validity: the extent to which a test or experiment measures or predicts what it intends to

• Double-blind study: an experimental procedure in which both the research staff and the participants are ignorant of which group has received the placebo, to prevent bias from either party.

• Single-blind study: participants do not know which group they are in, but the researcher does

Advantages: 

• Able to determine the extent of the cause and effect.

• Able to generalize results.

Disadvantages:

• Can be expensive and time consuming

• Results can be from outside variables. 

• Placebo effect: experimental results caused by expectations alone (i.e. the participants acts or claims to feel a certain way because they think they have received a drug that would cause that reaction)

• Hawthorne effect: the modification of behavior by study participants in response to their knowledge that they are being observed or singled out for special treatment

• Barnum effect: the phenomenon that occurs when individuals believe that personality descriptions apply specifically to them (more so than to other people), despite the fact that the description is actually filled with information that applies to everyone. 

• Extraneous/Confounding Variables: factors that impact the dependent variable that are not the independent variable

• Hindsight bias: the tendency to believe, after learning the outcome, that one would have foreseen it → I knew it all along!

• Overconfidence: the tendency to overestimate you knowledge and/or ability

• Gambler’s Fallacy: the tendency to overestimate the occurrence of patterns in random data

• Social desirability bias: tendency for people to provide answers that may be dishonest because they are seeking approval and/or want to highlight their character strengths

• Self-report bias: participants can try to affect the outcome of the research and/or be unrealistic about themselves (or try to please the researcher or even try to purposely challenge the researcher’s hypothesis)

• Sampling bias: tendency for researchers to target their participants to increase the likelihood of proving their hypothesis, or failure to properly gather participants as a representative sample of the population, leading to skewed results

• Wording effects (a.k.a. framing): how questions are worded can skew responses

• Directionality Problems: the difficulty in determining the causal direction between two or more variables in psychological studies

  • Third-variable problem: when the relationship between two variables can be explained by a third variable

  • Ex. There is positive correlation between education and income, but this can be explained by socioeconomic status. The wealthier an individual is, the more likely they are to afford post-secondary education. The higher the academic achievement, the more likely one is to achieve a high-paying job. 

Quantitative research is a method that relies on and supplies numerical data (ex. Survey results, Test scores), while qualitative research is a method that relies on in-depth, narrative analysis that cannot be translated into numerical data (ex. Case studies, interview responses). 

Descriptive statistics are defined as numerical data used to measure and describe characteristics of groups, including measures of central tendency and variation. These can be presented through the use of histograms, or graphical representations of data points organized into user-specified ranges.

• Mean: average of scores

• Median: in a distribution of scores, the number that falls in the middle numerically

• Mode: in a distribution of scores, the number that occurs most frequently

• Range: distance from highest to lowest scores.

• Standard Deviation: the average distance from the mean for a set score

• Normal curve/distribution: a symmetrical, bell shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data where most scores fall in the middle and fewer scores fall in the extremes

• Skewed Distribution: asymmetrical data points, with more score falling to one end or the other

Inferential statistics are defined as numerical data that allow one to generalize/infer from sample data the probability of something being true of a population.  

When is it appropriate to apply findings to a population? The more data, the better!

•  Representative samples are better than biased/unrepresentative samples.

•  Bigger samples are better than smaller ones.

•  More estimates are better than fewer estimates.

  • Meta-analysis: a statistical procedure that analyzes the results of multiple studies to reach an overall conclusion

Statistical Significance (p-value)is the degree to which you are sure that the dependent variable was a result of exposure to the independent variable.  

• To be considered statistically significant, you want to be as close as you can to a  P-value= >.05  What does this mean?

  • 5% likely the results are due to chance

  • 95% Sure that the IV caused the DV

Effect size is the strength of the relationship between two variables. In other words,  the larger the effect size, the more one variable can be explained by another. 

A likert scale, or rating system, is a measurement method used in research to evaluate attitudes, opinions and perceptions. Likert scale questions are highly adaptable and can be used across a range of topics, from a customer satisfaction survey, to employment engagement surveys, to market research. In psychology, Likert scales can be used for things like personality assessments or mental health diagnoses. 

Mistakes happen, but purposely reporting incorrect, disproven, or misrepresented data will get you exiled from the scientific community. Fake science can create real harm, so it is important to do your research on all research you read. Ensure the publication is published by a reputable source and has provided legitimate sources to support their work. 

It is also why it is important to cite your own work. If you want to use someone’s ideas in your paper, you need to cite them, as both a courtesy to the author and to provide support for your work. 

As we study psychology, you’ll note that many of the famous experiments are highly unethical and cannot be replicated. The American Psychological Association (APA) established several principles to make sure all those involved in research are protected.

• Voluntary participation

• Confidentiality

• Informed consent: giving potential participants enough information about the study to enable them to choose whether or not to participate

  • Debriefing: the post-experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deception

• No long-term physical or psychological harm

• All animal participants must be well cared for

  • If an animal has lost quality of life from participation, it should be humanely euthanized.

• Approval from a research institution

Psychometrics generally refers to specialized fields within psychology and education devoted to testing, measurement, assessment, and related activities; i.e. how psychological constructs can be measured, manipulated, and observed. Whether researching, providing input, or treating patients, professionals are typically categorized by the following approaches to psychology:

• Biological: studies biological influences on behavior, such as genes, hormones, brain activity, etc. 

• Developmental: studies the physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span

• Cognitive: studies how we encode, store, and retrieve information

• Educational: studying influences of teaching and learning

• Humanistic: examines how the pursuit of fulfilling one's potential impacts behavior

• Personality: investigating our persistent traits

• Psychoanalytic: examines how the unconscious mind affects our thoughts, feelings, and actions

• Social/Cultural: the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to others, as well as, how others can change how we think, feel, and behave

How can we use psychology to become a better student?

• Get a good night’s sleep (teens are recommended to get 9 hours each night)

• Exercise (improves mood and health, alleviates stress and anxiety)

• Set long-term goals with short-term aims (work your way towards what you want while feeling accomplished)

• Distributed practice/spacing effect: review your notes for a few minutes every day to help remember the information for the test

• Testing effect: repeatedly go through information for better memory retention & retrieval

• SQ3R: a study method incorporating five steps - survey, question, read, retrieve, review

• Have a growth mindset (seek opportunities to improve & don’t get discouraged)

• Prioritize relationships (socialization is important!)