PSY 202 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Observational Techniques, Cord Blood, Dependent And Independent Variables
3 Oct 2016
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Scienti c methods in psychology: what is scienti c inquiry, what, when, and why, want to know that things exist, when things come to exist, why they exist. 3 essential elements: theory: interconnected ideas or concepts used to explain prior observations and make predictions, hypothesis: a testable prediction you attempt to prove or disprove, research: conduct research, collect data to validate or invalidate your hypothesis. This is a cyclical process it has to happen over and over for science to move forward. Observation: elderly people who stay mentally active don"t seem to develop alzheimer"s at all or as severely. Research: two settings: control group: no activities, and a second group participating in cognitive activities. Subsequent examination in fmri reveals no neuronal differences. Hypotheses may have to be revised again and again and again. Also, hawthorne effect: subjects change behavior because they know they"re being watched. Just because there"s some link doesn"t mean one causes the other!
