Material for First Exam

PSYC 201 – Spring 2010  Nomothetic approach Material for first exam  Idiographic approach  Prediction You are responsible for everything covered in  Explanation class and the labs (including the examples), as  Intervention well as the material covered in the readings.  Scientific theories Readings  Independent variables, dependent variable, Intervening variable Jackson Chapter 1 pp. 6-23, Chapter 2 pp. 38-53,  Evaluating scientific theories Chapter 3 pp. 57-62. My lecture notes are  Parsimony available on my website  Precision of prediction  Falsifiability Key Terms and topics from the readings and  Where to scientific theories come from? Class (Induction versus deduction)

The list below is NOT an exhaustive list of Chapter 2 - Ethical issues in Research topics and terms students are responsible for.  Three ethical principles from Belmont It’s a list of things that students should Report definitely make sure that they know for the o Beneficence exam. o Autonomy Justice Chapter1 o  Risk/benefit ratio  Sources of knowledge  Types of risk (physical, psychological,  Superstition financial)  Intuition  Levels of Risk Minimal risk  Authority o More than Minimal Risk  Tenacity o  Rationalism  Informed consent  Empricism  Assent to participate  Science  Inducements for research participants  Basic vs applied research  Freedom to withdraw  Hypothesis  Protection From Harm  Systematic empiricism  Deception. Under what conditions is it acceptable to use deception? When is it  Publicly verifiable knowledge not acceptable?  Emprically solvable problems  Debriefing  Characteristics of scientific and non-  Confidentiality scientific approaches to knowledge 1. General approach  Research on animals vs research with animals  Empirical approach Arguments for the use of animals in  Illusory correlation  research 2. Observation Arguments against the use of animals in  Control  research  Independent variable  Ethical standards for the use of animals  Dependent variable in research 3. Concepts  Operational definition Chapter 3 – Measurement 4. Instruments  Precision in measurements  Variables 5. Testable hypotheses o Continuous vs. Discrete 6. Skeptical attitude  Scales of Measurement  Goals of the scientific method  Description o Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, Ratio