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Exploring Experimental Methods in Psychology
Aug 15, 2024
Defining Psychological Science: The Experimental Method
Introduction
Presenter
: Mr. Sin
Topic
: Defining psychological science through the experimental method
Key Focus
: Understanding causal relationships in psychology
Causal Relationships
Definition
: When one variable causes a change in another
Variables
:
Independent Variable (IV)
: The cause
Dependent Variable (DV)
: The effect
Example
:
Using a phone before bed (IV) impacts sleep quality (DV)
Experimental Control
Purpose
: To ensure only the IV affects the DV
Method
:
Control all variables except the IV
Reduce placebo effect
Placebo Effect
Definition
: Change in participants' behavior due to expectations
Method to Combat
:
Use of a placebo: Mimics the IV without the key component
Example:
Experimental group gets ibuprofen (IV)
Control group gets a sugar pill (placebo)
Confounding Variables
Definition
: Variables other than the IV that may affect the DV
Impact
: Can skew results if not controlled
Example
: Different lunch sizes affecting headache experiment
Balance
: More control reduces confounding variables but may affect natural behavior
Bias in Experiments
Importance
: Must be reduced for accuracy
Methods
:
Single-Blind Study
: Participants unaware of their group
Double-Blind Study
: Both participants and researchers unaware of group assignments
Random Assignment
Purpose
: To ensure fair distribution into experimental and control groups
Difference from Random Selection
:
Random Selection
: Participants chosen randomly for the study
Random Assignment
: Participants randomly assigned to groups
Quasi-Experiments
Used When
: Random assignment is not ethical or possible
Limitation
: Cannot determine cause and effect
Example
: Studies on depression
Correlational Studies
Definition
: Studies that examine relationships between variables
Methods
:
Surveys, naturalistic observations, interviews, or past studies
Limitation
: Do not prove cause and effect
Visualization
: Data often represented in scatter plots
Conclusion
Review the scenario on the screen and practice answering questions
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Additional Resources
Check out the Discord server for more help with AP Psychology
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Full transcript