PSYCH 1X03 Lecture 2: Psychology Research Methods
5 Jun 2016
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Document Summary
Every now and again there is a dramatic change in our way of thinking called a paradigm shift. Copernicus challenged the existing dogma that the earth was at the center of the universe. Looking for anecdotal evidence: evidence gathered from others or ones self. You can"t be sure your experience is the same others will experience, or perhaps the result if due to a different factor. Experiments are used to measure the effect of one variable on another. The scientist manipulates the independent variable and observes the effect on the dependent variable. Independent variable = variable manipulated by the scientist. Dependent variable = variable being observed by the scientist. Extraneous variable = confounding variables, variable the researcher didn"t manipulate or measure but can still effect outcome. Two groups, one experimental and one control group. Ideally the two groups should be as similar as possible. This minimizes the effect of external variables.
