1. The Science of Psychology
BasicResearch: conducted to
advance scientific knowledge
Applied Research: designed to
solve practical problems

2.  Is this an
example of
basic or
applied
research?

3. The Science of Psychology:
Ethical Guidelines
Ethical Guidelines for Human
Research Participants:
• Informed consent
• Voluntary participation
• Restricted use of deception
• Debriefing
• Confidentiality
• Alternative activities

4. Research Methods
 Four key research
methods:
1. Experimental
2. Descriptive
3. Correlational
4. Biological

5. Art of Prediction

6. Four Key Research Methods
(Continued)
1. Experimental Research: carefully
controlled scientific procedure that
manipulates variables to determine
cause & effect

7. Research Methods—
Experimental (Continued)
Key features of an experiment:
 Independent variable (factor that is
manipulated) versus dependent variable
(factor that is measured)
 Experimental group (receives treatment)
versus control group (receives no
treatment)

8. Does TV
increase
aggression?
Only an
experiment can
determine
cause & effect.

9. Research Methods—
Experimental (Continued)
 Potentialresearcher problems:
 Experimenter bias (researcher influences the
research results in the expected direction)
 Ethnocentrism (believing one's culture is
typical of all cultures)

10. Research Methods—
Experimental (Continued)
Potential participant problems:
Sample bias (research participants are
unrepresentative of the larger
population)
Participant bias (research participants
are influenced by the researcher or
experimental conditions)

11. Research Methods—
Descriptive
2.Descriptive Research: observes &
records behavior without producing
causal explanations

12. Research Methods—Descriptive
Three types of descriptive research:
• Naturalistic Observation
(observation & recording of
behavior in natural state or
habitat)
• Survey (assessment of a sample or
population)
• Case Study (in-depth study of a
single participant)

13. Pause & Reflect:
Psychology at
Work
What is the advantage of studying
psychological research methods
like naturalistic observation?

14. Research Methods—
Correlational
3. Correlational Research: observes or
measures (without directly
manipulating) two or more variables
to find relationships between them

15. Research Methods—
Correlational
Positive
Correlation: two
variables move (or
vary) in the same
direction—either
up or down

16. Research Methods—
Correlational
Negative
Correlation: two
variables move
(or vary) in the
opposite
direction—either
up or down

17. Research Methods—
Correlational
Zero Correlation: no
relationship between
two variables (when
one variable
increases, the other
can increase,
decrease, or stay the
same)

18. Research Methods—
Correlational

19. Research Methods—Biological
4. Biological
Research:
scientific studies of
the brain & other
parts of the
nervous system