Agenda for January 25th

1
Agenda for January 25th

• Administrative Items/Announcements
• Attendance
• Handouts course enrollment, RPP instructions
• Course packs available for sale in 208 Porter
  Hall
• Selection of presentation week/topic
• Anyone with special needs come see me
• Pictures on Thursday!
• Follow up from last week
• Results from in-class study
• Quiz example (feedback exercise)
• Begin this weeks topic Research Methods

2
Follow-Up From Last Week

• Quiz example
• (a) What is the central tension between emotion
  theorists who take a social constructivist
  position vs. those who take an evolutionary
  position? (b) Explain one piece of evidence that
  supports each of these positions.

3
An Open Mouth Increased Perceived Humorousness of
the Cartoon
M closed 2.92, M open 3.62, F (1) 6.61, p lt
.05
4
Scientific Method in Decision Science

• Basic belief that there are consistencies that
  can be uncovered
• Science as an ongoing process

5
Goals

• 1. Measurement and Description
• 2. Understanding and Prediction
• 3. Application and Control

6
Steps in the Scientific Investigation

• Step 1 Formulate a testable hypothesis
• Step 2 Select the research method and design the
  study
• Step 3 Collect the data
• Step 4 Analyze the data and draw conclusions
• Step 5 Report the findings

7
Hypothesis

• a tentative statement about the relationship
  between two or more variables

8
Operational Definition

• describes the actions that will be made to
  measure or control a variable

9
Subjects/Participants

• persons or animals whose behavior is
  systematically observed in a study

10
Steps in the Scientific Investigation

• Step 1 Formulate a testable hypothesis
• Step 2 Select the research method and design the
  study
• Step 3 Collect the data
• Step 4 Analyze the data and draw conclusions
• Step 5 Report the findings

11
Types of Research Methods

• A. Descriptive Research
• 1. Case Studies
• 2. Observational Studies
• a. Naturalistic Observation
• b. Laboratory Observation
• 3. Surveys
• 4. Tests
• B. Correlational Studies
• C. Experimental Research

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A. Descriptive Research

• allow researcher to describe and predict behavior
• do not show causality

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1. Case Studies

• detailed description of a particular individual
  under study or treatment

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2. Observational Studies

• researcher carefully and systematically observes
  and records behavior without interfering in any
  way with the behavior

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a. Naturalistic Observation

• used to describe behavior as it occurs in the
  natural environment
• measure behavior in a systematic way

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b. Laboratory Observation

• descriptive study
• takes place in the lab

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Types of Research Methods

• A. Descriptive Research
• 1. Case Studies
• 2. Observational Studies
• a. Naturalistic Observation
• b. Laboratory Observation
• 3. Surveys
• 4. Tests
• B. Correlational Studies
• C. Experimental Research

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3. Surveys

• questionnaires and interviews that ask people
  directly about their experiences, attitudes, or
  opinions

19
4. Tests

• procedures used to measure personality traits,
  emotional states, aptitudes, interests,
  abilities, and values

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Validity

• refers to the degree to which the content of a
  test is representative of the domain it is
  supposed to cover

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Reliability

• whether a test yields consistent results from one
  time to another

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B. Correlational Studies

• Correlation - a measure of how strongly two or
  more variables are related to each other
• Usually used when cannot control the variables to
  be measured

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Positive Correlation

• High values of one variable are associated with
  high values of another
• Low values of one variable are associated with
  low values of another

24
Scatter Plot Examples

• Put up overhead transparency

25
Negative Correlation

• High values of one variable are associated with
  low values of the other variable
• If there is no relationship between the
  variables, they are uncorrelated

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Correlation Coefficient

• Correlations are measured using the correlation
  coefficient (r)
• r ranges in value from -1.00 to 1.00.

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Causality

• Correlational studies give us information about
  relationships, but they cannot tell us anything
  about causality

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Types of Research Methods

• A. Descriptive Research
• B. Correlational Research
• C. Experimental Research

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C. Experimental Research

• Used to understand causality
• Control situation being studied

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Variables

• Two types of variables
• 1. Independent Variables
• 2. Dependent Variables

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Independent Variable

• Variable that is manipulated
• Hold everything constant except for the
  independent variable

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Dependent Variable

• Variable affected by the manipulation

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Experimental andControl Groups

• Experimental group - group exposed to the
  manipulation
• Control group - group not exposed to the
  manipulation

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Random Assignment

• Participants randomly assigned to either the
  experimental or control group. This avoids
  selection effects.
• Balances individual differences among
  participants across groups

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Avoiding Bias

• Single-Blind Study - subjects are not told what
  condition they are in
• Double-Blind Study - person running experiment
  does not know which participants are in which
  groups during data collection. This avoids
  experimental demand.

36
Statistics

• Statistical analyses used to quantify strength of
  association between variables
• Involves the use of mathematics to organize,
  summarize, and interpret numerical data

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Descriptive Statistics

• Used to organize and summarize data
• Provide an overview of numerical data
• Two main components
• Central Tendency
• Variance

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Central Tendency

• Three components to understanding the typical or
  average score
• median
• mean
• mode

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Median

• Score that falls exactly in the center of the
  distribution of scores
• Half of the scores fall above the median and half
  fall below the median

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Mean

• Arithmetic average of the scores in the
  distribution

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Mode

• the most frequent score in the distribution

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Variance

• How much the scores in the data set vary from
  each other and the mean
• Standard Deviation - index of the amount of
  variability in a set of data

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Inferential Statistics

• Used to evaluate the probability that results
  might be due to chance

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Statistical Significance

• Statistical significance - when low probability
  that observed findings are due to chance
• Very low usually means less than 5 chances in 100