The research process

Psych 231: Research Methods in Psychology

Announcements

This is the final lecture Wednesday (optional) – Review Q&A, help

with posters, etc.

Labs this week Poster presentations Turn in group ratings sheets Turn in results and reference section for

group project

Course Review: The Research Process

Get an idea

Presenting your work

A set of skills leading to knowledge & understanding A way of thinking (beware small samples, correlation is not causation, etc.)

A way of life?Stats.org: Stats in the news

The Research Process

Get an idea Often the hardest part No firm rules for how to do this

• Observations• Past research

• Review the literature

The Research Process

Review the literature What has already been done?

• What variables have people looked at• What hasn’t been looked at

How are other experiments in the area done?

What methods are used?• To measure the dependent variable• To manipulate the independent

variable• To control extraneous variables

Formulate a testable hypothesis What is a hypothesis?

• A predicted relationship between variables What does it mean to be testable?

• Must be falsifiable• Can it be replicated• Must be able to observe/measure (and manipulate for

experiments) the variables• Directly• Indirectly• Operational definitions

The Research Process

Design the research What method?

Experiment, Survey, Developmental designs, … What kind of comparisons are used

• Control groups• Baseline conditions

What are your variables?• How many levels of your Independent variable(s)• How do you measure your dependent variable(s)

What can be done to control for biases and confounds?

The Research Process

Collect Data Importance of pilot research Who do you test?

• What is your population?• Your sample?• Your sampling method?

The Research Process

Analyze the data Design drives the statistics Understanding Variables and variability

• Descriptive statistics (summarizing)• Means, standard deviations• Graphs, tables• Correlation

• Inferential statistics (drawing conclusions)• What kind of analysis is appropriate for your design• T-tests• ANOVA• Between or within versions

The Research Process

Interpret the results Correlation versus causation Reject or fail to reject null hypotheses Statistical vs. theoretical significance Support or refute the theory (or revise) Generalizability of the results

The Research Process

Present the results Getting the research “out there”

• Conference presentations• Posters• Talks

• Written reports• APA style

• Supports clarity

The Research Process

Repeat Each set of results leads to more research

questions• Refine the theory• Test a refined theory• Test alternative explanations

The Research Process

Reviewing for the final exam

Mon Dec. 10 7:50-9:50 It is cumulative, covers the entire course. The

majority is on new material (roughly 65%), the rest is material covered on Exams 1 & 2.

All multiple choice/scantron for the final

Reviewing for the final exam

Non experimental methods Survey, correlational, & developmental

Statistics Descriptive Inferential

Presentations Papers, Posters, & Talks

Final 1/3 of the course

Reviewing for the final exam

Scientific method Getting ideas Developing (good) theories Reviewing the literature Psychological Science Ethics Basic methodologies APA style

Underlying reasons for the organization Parts of a manuscript

Variables Sampling Control Experimental

Designs Vocabulary Single factor designs Between & Within Factorial designs

First 2/3 of the course