Psychological Science, 2 ed.

Chapter 2: Research Methodology

Chapter Outline

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• Scientific Questions Can Be Objectively Answered
• The Empirical Process Depends on Theories, Hypotheses, and Research

• An Experiment Involves Manipulating Conditions
• Correlational Designs Examine How Variables Are Related
• Descriptive Studies Observe and Classify Behavior

• Observing Is an Unobtrusive Strategy
• Asking Takes a More Active Approach
• Case Studies Examine Individual Lives
• Response Performance Measures Stimulus Processing
• Body and Brain Activity Can Be Directly Measured
• Research with Animals Provides Important Data
• There Are Ethical Issues to Consider

• Good Research Requires Valid, Reliable, and Accurate Data
• Descriptive Statistics Provide a Summary
• Correlations Describe the Relationships between Variables
• Inferential Statistics Predict Chance Results