PSYC 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Confounding, Statistical Inference, Case Method

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 100
• Professor: Sherri Atwood

Document Summary

The scientific method: set of principles that explain the relationship between ideas and evidence. Empiricism: belief that accurate knowledge can be acquired through observation and is essential element in scientific method (how to know stuff) Rule of parsimony: simplest theory that explains all the evidence is the best one. Empirical method: set of rules and techniques for observation. People are difficult to study because of complexity, variability, and reactivity. Observation: use one"s senses to learn about the properties of an event or an object. Measure: device that can detect the property for an operational definition. Validity: extent to which a measurement and a property are conceptually related. Reliability: tendency for a measure to produce the same measurement whenever it is used to measure the same thing. Power: ability of a measure to detect the concrete conditions specified in the operational definition. Measurement requires defining the property to be measured and finding a way to detect it.