PSYA01H3 Chapter Notes -Statistical Inference, Naturalistic Observation, Statistical Significance
Document Summary
5 steps in the scientific method: question, method, collect, analyze, publish. Types of studies: naturalistic observation: observe behaviour of people in their natural environment, correlation study: observe and see if 2 variables have a relationship. The magnitude can range from correlation coefficient -1 to +1 (either negative correlation: one goes up one goes down, or negative correlation: both go up): experiment: change one variable and see if it effects another variable. Nominal fallacy: the incorrect belief that one has explained a behaviour just by describing it. In order for an experiment to be accurately duplicated and produce the same results each time, accurate descriptions of the variables must be provided. Definitions: defining a variable in terms of the operations a researcher used to measure/manipulate it. If the operational definitions are correct, then the experiment has validity.
