Research Methods in Psychology

Historical Psychology Research• Modern sophistication was not

always present• Psychology’s roots exist in

Philosophy and the natural sciences which sprung from it

• Rene Descartes’ disagreement with dualism (the concept that mind and body are separate and distinct)

Historical Psychology Research, cont.

• Wilhelm Wundt founded the first psychology laboratory in 1879

• He tried to test his theories and statements by collecting ‘scientific’ data

• Although unreliable and cumbersome, his method of introspection led to the use of the scientific method in psychology• Introspection: a method of self-observation in which

participants report their thoughts & feelings in carefully controlled situations

How Do Modern Psychologists Develop New Knowledge?

Psychologists, like researchers in all other

sciences, use the scientific method to

test their ideas empirically

What is the scientific method?

• A step-by-step process for empirical investigation of a hypothesis under conditions designed to control biases and subjective judgments

• Psychologists obtain empirical results from experiments using the scientific method

How Do Modern Psychologists

Develop New Knowledge?

The Scientific MethodGathering Objective

Data

Developing a Hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the Results

Publishing, criticizing, & replicating the Results

Gathering objective data

Developing a hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the ResultsPublish,

criticize & replicate the

results

Data: Information gathered by researcher and used to test a hypothesis

The Steps of the Scientific Method

Gathering objective data

Developing a hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the ResultsPublish,

criticize & replicate the

results

Hypothesis:A statement predicting the outcome of a scientific study

The Steps of the Scientific Method

Gathering objective data

Developing a hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the ResultsPublish,

criticize & replicate the

results

Independent variable:The variable manipulated by the experimenter

The Steps of the Scientific Method

Gathering objective data

Developing a hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the ResultsPublish,

criticize & replicate the

results

Based on statistical analyses of results, the hypothesis is accepted or rejected

The Steps of the Scientific Method

Gathering objective data

Developing a hypothesis

Perform Controlled Test(s)

Analyze the ResultsPublish,

criticize & replicate the

results

Researchers must find out whether their work can withstand the scrutiny of the scientific community

The Steps of the Scientific Method

What does empirical mean?• Relying on or derived from observation

or experiment

Psychologists use empirical investigation• An approach to research that relies on

sensory experience and observation as research data

How Do Psychologists Develop New Knowledge?

END?