Planning Research: Generating a Question 3 Planning Research: Generating a Question

FIGURE 3.1 Continuum Representing the Development of Research Ideas Where Research Ideas Begin FIGURE 3.1 Continuum Representing the Development of Research Ideas

The Virtual Laboratory: Research on the Internet Internet Research Demographics—Who is likely to respond? Lower income people have less internet access Teens use social networking; adults do shopping online

The Virtual Laboratory: Research on the Internet Respondent Motivation In general, response rates for surveys are going down Researchers have not found incentives that work The abundance of internet research means a lot of competition

The Virtual Laboratory Advantages of Web-Based Research Less time commitment by the researcher Scheduling appointments is not an issue Data collection is automatic and accurate Wider range of participants

The Virtual Laboratory Potential Problems with Internet Research No way to help confused participants No control over quality of the data (This seems not to be a big problem relative to lab data) We do not know the nature of our sample

The Virtual Laboratory Potential Problems with Internet Research Ethical considerations Potential harm to participants Age of participants Debriefing Quality of displays on varied mobile devices

Checking on Research: The Role of Replication Reasons to Replicate Research Establish validity of constructs and measurements Spot possible errors Type I—Achieving significance by accident Type II—Failing to achieve significance when you should

Controversy: Does Music Make You Smarter—The Role of Replication Rauscher et al. (1993, 1995) reported that listening to Mozart improved test scores Subsequent researchers could not replicate the surprising findings Higher motivation and positive mood seems to be the cause, not the music Replication was important in debunking the so-called “Mozart Effect”

Don’t Reinvent the Wheel: Reviewing the Literature What is a Literature Review? Finding out what others have already published Discovering useful methods you can use Identifying measurements that you can make

Don’t Reinvent the Wheel: Reviewing the Literature What is a Literature Review? Finding suggestions for future research Avoiding problems that others have solved

How to Conduct a Literature Review Electronic Databases EBSCO Trade journals Local Publications

Starting Your Search Learning to use the databases Keys to searching You can broaden a search to find more sources You can narrow a search to eliminate irrelevant material Keys to searching By author By descriptor By publication year, population, and others

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Abstract Brief (150- to 250-word) summary of purpose, method, results, conclusions

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Introduction Statement of current knowledge of the area Brief summary of related research Logic behind the study Hypotheses to be tested

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Method Description of participants Apparatus and materials Equipment used in the study Stimuli and other materials used in the study

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Procedure What the researcher and the participants actually did during data collection

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Results Patterns of behaviors among participants Differences in behaviors across groups? Correlated measures

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Results Results of statistical tests t-tests Analysis of variance (F-test) Correlations Effect sizes Confidence intervals

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper Discussion Meaning of results Explanation of participant behavior Relation of results and conclusions to work cited in the introduction Questions still to be answered New ideas to pursue

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper References (in APA style) Work actually cited in the paper Journal articles Books Book chapters Web sites

How to Read a Journal Article Understanding the Format of a Research Paper References (in APA style) Work actually cited in the paper Personal communication Any other source Important for avoiding plagiarism

Practical Questions in Planning Research Making the research process manageable Generating operational definitions of abstract concepts Determining appropriate measurements Establishing sampling techniques

Different Ways of Studying Behavior Measuring Complex Concepts Identifying hypothetical constructs Using operational definitions to study those constructs Example: The Social Readjustment Rating Scale to measure stress Items causing stress: Death of a spouse, change in work, Christmas, change in recreation Outcomes: Greater change (positive or negative) leads to greater stress response

Different Ways of Studying Behavior Measuring Complex Concepts Examples of Operational Definitions Depression Score on Beck Depression Inventory as measurement of level of depression After reading negative statements, participants are categorized as being in depressed state

Different Ways of Studying Behavior Measuring Complex Concepts Examples of Operational Definitions Happiness Self-report score Amount of smiling and facial muscle activity

Different Ways of Studying Behavior Measuring Complex Concepts Examples of Operational Definitions Happiness Self-report score Amount of smiling and facial muscle activity

Conducting Your Study Determining the Research Setting Laboratory research Often for theoretical research Not a natural setting Greater control of the situation Field research Often for applied research More natural setting Less control of the situation

Conducting Your Study Approaches to Psychological Research Observational Usually without intervention Correlational Seeing how two (or more variables) co-vary

Conducting Your Study Approaches to Research Case studies Longitudinal Relatively rare In-depth study of a single person Longitudinal Extended study of a group over time

Conducting Your Study Approaches to Research Archival research Using existing information or data to study a behavioral question Qualitative Often focused on holistic analysis rather than detailed quantitative data

Choosing Your Participants or Subjects Population The entire set of people of interest Sample A subset of the population of interest Representative sample Sample that is like the population with respect to the measurement being made

Choosing Your Participants or Subjects Deciding on Number of Participants Homogeneity of participants affects variability in results When samples consist of people who are similar, you may need fewer participants When samples consist of people who are dissimilar, you may need more participants

Choosing Your Participants or Subjects Deciding on Number of Participants Effect size Small effects require larger samples to spot significant patterns Large effects require smaller samples to spot significant patterns

Probability Sampling Very rare in psychology Allows generalization to the population Types of Probability Sampling Simple Random Sampling (SRS) Every person has a specified probability of being included Systematic Sampling Variation on SRS that leads to satisfactory outcomes Every nth person is selected from a list

Probability Sampling Types of Probability Sampling Stratified Random Sampling Subpopulations are identified People are selected randomly from the subpopulations

Probability Sampling Types of Probability Sampling Cluster Sampling Groups of people are identified (e.g., based on location) Participants are all selected from the groups Different from stratified random sampling in that people in the groups do not share particular characteristics (other than location)

Nonprobability Sampling Representativeness of sample may be questionable Types of Nonprobability Sampling Convenience Sampling Using whatever sample is accessible

Nonprobability Sampling Types of Nonprobability Sampling Quota Sampling Creating subgroups (e.g., female, male) in convenience sample Shows the same limitations as other nonprobability sampling techniques

Nonprobability Sampling Types of Nonprobability Sampling Purposive (Judgemental) Sampling Using a sample with particular characteristics, such as expertise in some area Shows the same limitations as other nonprobability sampling techniques

Nonprobability Sampling Types of Nonprobability Sampling Chain-Referral Sampling Using one person from a group to identify a second person or multiple people who may, in turn, identify yet more participants Useful for finding hidden populations