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Introduction to Research

Ways of Knowing

• Tenacity• Intuition• Authority• Reasoning (Rationalism)• Observation (Empiricism)• Science

Tenacity

• Most primitive approach• Stubbornly hold on to an idea or tradition

– No evaluation• One of the most common and dangerous

ways of accepting new information

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Intuition

• “Believe it is true because I feel it is true”• Knowledge/belief from within• Belief is unsupported by objective

evidence

Authority

• Minimally superior to the method of tenacity

• Accepting word of authority figure without skepticism– Famous person– Respected person

Disadvantages of Method of Authority

• Authority could be wrong– Nazi war atrocities– Freud and cocaine

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Disadvantages of Method of Authority

• Granting authority when it isn’t justified

Disadvantages of Method of Authority

• Granting authority when it isn’t justified– Celebrity

endorsements

Disadvantages of Method of Authority

• Granting authority when it isn’t justified– Celebrity

endorsements– Psychics

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Disadvantages of Method of Authority

• Granting authority when it isn’t justified– Celebrity

endorsements– Psychics– Radio Psychologists

Advantages of Method of Authority

• True authorities are often correct

Advantages of Method of Authority

• Obtain knowledge we don’t have time or training to acquire– Education

• Evaluate knowledge skeptically

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Reasoning

• Use individual powers of pure reason and logic– Rationalism

• Beliefs are deducted from prior assumptions according to rules of logic

• Often takes the form of a syllogism

Logical Syllogism

• True Premises– Premise:All humans are

mortal;– Premise: I am a human;– Conclusion: Therefore, I must

be mortal

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Pitfalls of Rationalism

• Incorrect premise leads to false conclusion– Premise: No woman can count– Premise: I am a woman– Conclusion: Therefore, I cannot count

• Can construct logical, eloquent arguments for both sides of a debate – Gun control

Observation

• Learning through direct observation and experience– Empiricism

• Can use other’s observations if trustworthy• Empirical evidence

– Often the cornerstone of solid argument

Pitfalls of Empiricism

• Experiences of the world are limited• Difficult to be an objective observer

– Biases or preconceived ideas influence observation

• Reasoning strategies/errors– Availability heuristic– Confirmation bias

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Availability Heuristic

• Estimate frequency or probability on the basis of how easily examples come to mind– May cause overestimation of likelihood of

vivid events• What percentage of convictions for felony crimes are

obtained through trial instead of plea bargaining?– Less than 10%

Confirmation Bias

• Search out information to confirm beliefs• Ignore contradictory information

If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to hisinstincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence. - Bertrand Russell

Empiricist Rationalist

• Empiricism: phenomena investigated by careful, objective observation

• Rationalism: phenomena understood by careful thought, and logical proof

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Science

• Combination of observation and reasoning by logic

• Advantage– Objectivity

• Observations can be verified/replicated by others

• Logical reasoning – Used to explain observed events

Scientific Method

• Building blocks– Empirical observation– Replication by other scientists– Logical explanation

• Used for experimentation– Generating hypotheses (educated guesses)– Conducting tests– Tests support or refute hypotheses

Pre-scientific Revolution

• Empiricism and rationalism used for centuries

• Method of authority– Most common means

used to answer questions of reality

• Religious dogma– Authority figures might use

empiricism or rationalism • Conclusions rarely

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Scientific Revolution (1550 – 1700)

• Scientific method developed– Used both empiricism and rationalism

• Post revolution– Scientific method became favored method of

answering substantive questions • Very successfully

– Yielded rapid advances in the sciences• Medicine, physics, chemistry

Scientific Method and Psychology

• British Associationism– School of thought

emphasizing empiricism– Human behavior is

determined by experience• Spawned many

researchers– Wilhelm Wundt– First psychology lab (1879)

Scientific Thinking

• Determinism• Objectivity• Data-driven• Empirical Questions

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Determinism

• All events have causes• Understanding causes allows us to predict

events• Determinism and free will

– Illusion of free will?– Or is free will meaningless without

determinism?

Objectivity

• Can be verified by more than one observer• Define terms and research procedures

– Allows others to replicate study and observe same outcome

• Reliable replication– Scientists trust the observation

• Failure to replicate– Outcome not believed

Data-driven

• Conclusions about human behavior– Must be supported by objective information– Objective information gathered through a

systematic procedure• Judge whether data given to support claim

are adequate

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Empirical Questions

• Can be answered through systematic observations and experiences

• Precise enough to allow specific predictions to be made

• Nonempirical– “Is there a God?”

• Empirical– “Does belief in God increase with age?”

Broad Research Approaches

• Descriptive • Relational• Explanatory

Descriptive Research

• Carefully describing behavior• Explanation of behavior is not

a goal• Necessary first step

– Establishes foundation for future study

• Observation– “Many great artists suffered

from mental illness”

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Relational Research

• Two or more variables are measured and related to each other

• Relationship– Existence– Pattern– Strength

• Observation– “More highly creative individuals experience mental

illness than noncreative individuals”

Explanatory Research

• Focuses on identifying the causes of behavior

• Manipulating conditions believed to be responsible for behavior

• Manipulation– Artists receive no recognition for work– Artists receive recognition for their work

Generating a Research Question

• Intensive Case Studies• Paradoxical Incidents• Resolving Conflicting Results• Serendipity• Observations

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Intensive Case Studies

• In- depth examination– Individual or group of

individuals• Qualities

– Meticulous records– Sharp discriminations

• Methods– Archival material– Record behavior– Report what they/others

have done

Resolving Conflicting Results

• Competing theories– Different explanations to support existing

data• Evidence in support of both theories• Resolving conflict

– Identifying influential variables/situations– Consolidation of theories

Paradoxical Incidents

• Observations of behavior/phenomena– Unexplained causes

• Examples– Zeigarnik effect– Kitty Genovese

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Zeigarnik Effect

• Memory better for incomplete tasks• Origins of research

– Coffee shop discussions– Waiter’s memory of orders

• Orders forgotten once bill was settled

• Phenomena intrigued Zeigarnik– Designed study to examine hypothesis

Kitty Genovese

Kitty Genovese

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Serendipity

• “Lucky” Discoveries– Occur when looking for something else

• Chance encounters– Velcro

• Anomalous data– Sensory store

Chance Encounters – Velcro

• George deMestral• Walk through field• Cockleburs stuck to

clothing

Invention of Velcro

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Anomalous Data – Sperling

• Harvard graduate student

• Research interest– Information

processing in visual system

• Amount of information obtained in single fixation

X B S T D H M GR L W C

Report Identity andLocation of every itemin the display

Stimulus presentedfor 50 msec (.50 sec)

Anomalous Data – Sperling

• Subjects reported they could see more than they could report

• Very short term memory store– Trace faded before subjects finished reporting

Observations

• One of the most common sources of research ideas

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Fundamental Principles of Science

• Determinism (Discussed previously)• Empiricism/Operationalism• Falsifiability• Replicability• Parsimony

Asking Empirical Questions

• What is an empirical question?– Answered through systematic

observations– Precise

• Allow specific predictions

• Operationalize terms– Defined in terms of a set of operations to

be performed• Strict definition

Operationalizing Terms

• Strict definition – Based on set of operations/procedures– Works well for some sciences

– Physics, geology

– Causes problems for other sciences– Psychology, Sociology

• Creates arbitrary limitations on concept

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Operational Definitions

• Links concepts to measurable, observable events

• Creativity– # Ss drawing animals

with the same features– Rating scale– # Features shared by

earth animals

Pre-existing Bias Problem

• Intuitive theories• Same terms used by laymen and

scientists– Technical concepts are different– Leads to misunderstandings

• “Depression”– Layperson – “Down in the dumps”– Psychologist – DSM III-r definition

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Basing Views on Intuition

• Operational approach dehumanizes people– Should base views of human beings on

intuition• Problems

– Disagreements difficult to resolve– Disagreements result in a power struggle

Operationalism: A Humanizing Force

• Truth of a knowledge claim not determined by strength of belief

• Theoretical views should be based upon observable behavior– Knowledge claims become public– Conflicting ideas can be tested

• Operational definitions evolve

Theories

• Theory– Set of logically consistent statements

about a behavioral phenomena• Can be derived from observation

– Tentative first step • Can be derived from experimental data

– Many experiments– Theory explains the whole set of data

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Characteristics of Theories

• Summarize empirical knowledge about a phenomena

• Organizes the knowledge• Provides a tentative explanation for

phenomena• Serves as a basis for making predictions

about behavior

Falsifiability

• Theory must make falsifiable predictions• Predictions must be specific

– Predict what should happen– Predict what should not happen

The Freedom to Make Mistakes

• Falsifiability allows mistakes• Falsification of predictions is progress

– Used to adjust theories– Theories accord more closely with data

• Better reflect the nature of the world

• Driving force in the evolution of a theory

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Replicability

• All experiments have flaws• New data is replicated by others to verify

results are reliable– Replication occurs

• Greater confidence in results– Replication fails

• Determine source of failure– Conditions under which effect is seen– Flaws that produced false result

Theories and Hypotheses

• Hypothesis– Can be derived from theory– Selects what the researcher observes

• “Working” hypothesis– Falsifiable– Corresponds with reality– Coherent and parsimonious

Correspondence with Reality

• Follows logically from what is known– Consistent with respected scientific

theories– Consistent with available empirical data

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Coherence and Parsimony

• Coherence– Hypothesis statement is logical

• Parsimony– Hypotheses must be a simple as possible– Occam’s razor

• “Cutting away” superfluous concepts– A prescription rather than a description

Variables

• Events or conditions– Observed or measured– Subject to change

• Three types– Independent variables– Dependent variables– Extraneous variables

Dependent Variables

• Effect or outcome of interest• Manipulate presumed causes to determine

their effect on the DV• Measurement

– Operational definitions critical

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Independent Variables

• Factor of interest to the experimenter– Hypothesized “cause” of phenomena

• Variable being manipulated

Independent Variables –Characteristics

• Minimum of two levels– Comparison between two situations

• The effects of different dosages of marijuana on reaction time– IV = amount of marijuana

• Level 1 = High dose• Level 2 = Low dose

– DV = reaction time

Context and Variables

• Variable can be an IV or a DV– Depends on presumed direction of

causality• Mental illness and Creativity

– Mental illness enables creativity• IV = degree of mental illness• DV = degree of creativity

– Creativity causes mental illness• IV = degree of creativity• DV = degree of mental illness

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Extraneous Variables

• Variable that might affect DV– Not of current interest to experimenter

• Has the potential to influence the results of the study– Experimenter needs to control variable

Extraneous Variable - Example

• Examine relationship between time spent reading the textbook and grade received in class– IV = Time spent reading– DV = Grade received in class– Extraneous variable = Reading

ability

Mediating and Moderating Variables

• Mediating variable– An intermediate variable that enables

relationship between IV and DV• Moderating variable

– Influences perceived relationship between IV and DV

SocialClass

SelfBreastExam

EducationMediating variable

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Mediating and Moderating Variables

• Mediating variable– An intermediate variable that enables

relationship between IV and DV• Moderating variable

– Influences perceived relationship between IV and DV

SocialClass

SelfBreastExam

EducationMediating variable

Mediating and Moderating Variables

• Mediating variable– An intermediate variable that enables

relationship between IV and DV• Moderating variable

– Influences perceived relationship between IV and DV

SocialClass

SelfBreastExam

AgeYounger

Moderating variable

Mediating and Moderating Variables

• Mediating variable– An intermediate variable that enables

relationship between IV and DV• Moderating variable

– Influences perceived relationship between IV and DV

SocialClass

SelfBreastExam

AgeOlder

Moderating variable