CAS PS 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Classical Conditioning, Null Hypothesis, Blind Experiment

• School: Boston University
• Department: Psychological & Brain Sciences
• Course: CAS PS 101
• Professor: Barak Caine

Document Summary

Psychology: the scientific study of the human mind and mental states, and of human and animal behavior. Psychological claims should be about facts, and thus must be determined empirically, using accepted scientific methods (gleitman) Behavior (stimulus respond): anything that an organism does involving action and response to stimulation. Theory: the analysis of a set of facts in their relation to one another. Hypothesis: a testable question with a yes or no answer (barak) Research articles and grant proposals should state the hypothesis that they are testing. Double blind study: neither the experimenter nor the subject knows the hypothesis being tested and who is receiving a particular treatment. Empirical: based on or characterized by observation and experiment rather than theory. Data: factual information (as measurements or statistics) used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation. Dependent variable: something the researcher is measuring.