Process of research McBride solutions manual

Instructor’s Manual: Chapter 1 Table of Contents Learning Objectives 2 Discussion Questions 3 Class Assignments 4 Lab Manual Exercises 5 Thinking About Research: Psychological Science Research Study 6 Thinking About Research: Additional Exercises 6 Test Yourself Answers 7 Web Resources 8 Video and Multimedia 8 SAGE Journal Articles 9 NOTE- If any of the links contained within are not working, please contact supplements@sagepub.com and an alternate resource will be found for you. In addition, an updated Chapter to this instructor’s manual will be uploaded to the companion website. Learning Objectives After reading Chapter 1, you will be able to: Explain why psychologists use the scientific method. Explain how psychologists use the scientific method. Identify the canons of the scientific method. Explain the difference between basic and applied research. Explain how basic and applied research interact to increase our knowledge about behavior. Discussion Questions Discussion Question #1 Do we take sources of information for granted? Discuss the importance of observations in research. As scientists, why is it important for us to carefully consider conflicting evidence from different studies? Discussion Question #2 Revisit the canons of the scientific method. Explain the role that each play in research. Is there one canon that is more important than the rest? Explain why. Discussion Question #3 Discuss the influence of Sigmund Freud on modern Psychology. Why are his theories still prevalent despite the difficulties in testing them using the scientific method? Can you think of an example of one of his theories that were not supported through research? Discussion Question #4 Does research ever prove something? What does it mean if a study cannot be replicated? Discussion Question #5 Discuss the challenges in distinguishing basic and applied research. For research in Psychology, does it seem like one is more important than the other? Is basic research a precursor for applied research? Class Assignments Assignment 1: Where does information come from? To encourage students to think some more about where information comes from, ask them to think about examples of folk wisdom or proverbs that get passed down generation to generation. Is it possible this information could be used to guide research? Have students work independently or in to pairs think of an example (e.g., absence makes the heart grow fonder, boys will be boys, etc.) and respond to the questions below: Where did this information come from? Was the source reliable? How confident are you of this statement? Can common knowledge affect research? Could this information be tested? How can research be used to validate this statement? Assignment 2: The skeptical scientist Have the students work in pairs or small groups to find a news article from a popular media source online about a topic in Psychology. It may be helpful to demonstrate by selecting a topic (e.g., cell phone addiction) and conducting a Google search to find an article. Or, you could select a topic as a class and have them search for different articles. Ask the students to read the article to determine whether research is mentioned (identify key words such as “Research shows…” or “A recent study found…”). After reading the article, have the students respond to the following questions and discuss as a class: What was the topic and where did you find the article? Was research mentioned? How was it described? How much information did they provide about the research (e.g., who were the researchers, where was the study conducted, etc.)? Did the mention of research affect your perception about the reliability of the information in the article? Assignment 3: The problem of confirmation bias in research To illustrate confirmation bias, give the students the 2-4-6 task and ask them to guess the rule that determines the relationship between these three numbers (only the instructor is aware that the rule is any list of ascending numbers). Have students work in pairs or small groups to first come up with a rule, and then have them provide a second list of three numbers to test this rule (on a piece of paper or on the board). How confident were they that they guessed the correct rule? The instructor should confirm whether this second sequence satisfies the rule or not. Have the students continue to guess the rule by providing several other sequences of three numbers to be confirmed by the instructor. Ask the students to evaluate and discuss their thinking throughout this process. How did they use observations to find the solution? Did they demonstrate confirmation bias? (Explain) How and why is this a challenge for research? Lab Manual Exercises Part I. Research Methods Exercises ?1. Knowledge Exercise: What Do We Know and How Do We Know It? ?2. Science Versus Pseudoscience Exercise ?6. Science in the News ?13. Learning Check—Basics of Psychological Research Thinking About Research: Psychological Science Research Study Research Study. Strayer, D. L., & Johnston, W. A. (2001). Driven to distraction: Dual-task studies of simulated driving and conversing on a cellular phone. Psychological Science, 12, 462–466. [Note: Only Experiment 1 of this study is described.] Thinking About Research: Additional Exercises A summary of a research study in psychology is given below. As you read the summary, think about the following questions: What behaviors are the researchers observing? How are the observations being recorded by the researchers? Were the researchers able to identify a cause of behavior from this study? Were the researchers able to answer their research questions with the observations they collected? How? What results would have falsified the explanation of behavior the authors were testing? Do you think this study qualifies as primarily basic or applied research? Why? What are some examples of real-world behaviors that the results of this study might apply to? Olson, K. R., Banaji, M. R., Dweck, C. S., & Spelke, E. S. (2006). Children’s biased evaluations of lucky versus unlucky people and their social groups. Psychological Science, 17, 845–846. Purpose of the Study. The researchers were interested in how we develop views of other people in terms of how lucky they are. Do people view lucky individuals more positively than unlucky individuals, or do they prefer unlucky individuals because they feel bad for them? Olson, Banaji, Dweck, and Spelke (2006) examined this way of thinking by measuring children’s preference for individuals portrayed as lucky or unlucky. Method of the Study. Children between 5 and 7 years old participated in the study. A group of study participants listened to stories about other children. In these stories, the children performed an intentional action that was either positive (i.e., helpful) or negative (i.e., harmful) or were involved in an uncontrollable event that was either positive (i.e., something good happened to the child that he or she had no control over—the child was “lucky”) or negative (i.e., something bad happened to the child that he or she had no control over—the child was “unlucky”). After hearing the stories, the participants were asked to rate how much they liked the child in the story by choosing one of six different facial expressions (e.g., smiling face, frowning face) that matched how they felt about the child they heard about. Results of the Study. Study participants preferred children who experienced positive events. This result was shown for both intentional actions (i.e., children who were intentionally good were preferred over children who were intentionally bad) and uncontrolled events (i.e., “lucky” children were preferred to “unlucky” children). Participants also preferred children who experienced uncontrolled negative events (i.e., “unlucky” children) as compared to children who performed an intentional negative action. However, the difference in preference for intentional positive actions and uncontrolled positive events (i.e., “lucky” children) was less clear. Conclusions of the Study. The authors concluded that children prefer lucky individuals as compared with unlucky individuals. This preference was present in children as young as 5 to 7 years old. According to the researchers, these results may help explain negative attitudes that are sometimes present for disadvantaged individuals. Test Yourself Answers (1) b, (2) d, (3) a, (4) c, (5) If we do not have conscious awareness of the conflict (if it is unconscious), then it would be difficult to support the existence of this conflict through direct observations of behavior. In other words, it is difficult to falsify this theory by directly observing behavior, (6) Parsimony (assuming that simple explanations are more likely to be correct) is useful in psychological studies because this assumption makes it easier to test explanations of behavior. It is easier to devise a study that can falsify a simple explanation than to devise a study to falsify a more complex explanation, (7a) applied, (7b) basic, (7c) basic, (7d) applied, (7e) basic, (7f) applied, (7g) basic, (7h) basic, (8) confirmation bias, (9) observation, (10) external validity. Web Resources The Scientific Method  A review of the steps of the scientific method, limitations, fallacies, and types of evidence. Psychology Research Methods  Shows the importance of research methods as well as reviews some main concepts of research methods. Video and Multimedia Video Clips The Scientific Method and Psychology  A review of the 5 aims of scientific knowledge. Basic Research and Applied Research Definitions and Differences  A discussion of differences between basic and applied research. The Scientific Method – Breaking Down the Beast  A walk through of the scientific method and it’s important components.   Audio Clips Why Reporting on Scientific Research May Warp Findings  A discussion  of the pressure to publish and the importance of replication. A New Study Says…  A review of issues involving media presentation of current research by discussing some new studies. SAGE Journal Articles SAGE Journal User Guide Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Among Adolescents.  Woidneck, M.R., Morrison, K. L., & Twohig, M. P. (2014). Behavior Modification, 38, 451-476. Abstract: The number of individuals who meet diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a small percentage of those exposed to trauma; many youth who do not meet criteria for PTSD continue to experience problematic posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptomology. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) has shown preliminary effectiveness in the treatment of adult PTSD, but its effectiveness in treating PTS in youth is unknown. Using a multiple-baseline design, this study investigated the effectiveness of 10 weeks of ACT to treat PTS in youth. Four adolescents from a community sample and three adolescents from a residential sample participated. The Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents (CAPSCA), Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS), and Comprehensive Quality of Life Scale were completed at pretreatment, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up. Individuals reported baseline data for 7 to 66 days. Symptom and process measures were completed at each session. Results revealed a decrease in PTS symptomology across both samples with mean reductions in self-reported PTS symptomology at posttreatment of 69% and 81% for the community and residential samples, respectively, and an overall 68% and 84% respective reduction at follow-up. Reductions in clinician rated Behavior Modification 38(4) measures of PTSD were observed for all participants with mean reductions of 57% and 61% in the community and residential samples at posttreatment, and 71% and 60% at follow-up, respectively. Results provide preliminary support for ACT as a treatment for adolescent PTS. Empirical and clinical implications as well as limitations and future directions are discussed. Discussion Questions: What behaviors are the researchers observing and how are they being recorded by the researchers? What is external validity and do you believe this research is externally valid? Why or Why not? Do you think this study qualifies as primarily basic or applied research? Why?   Understanding Diversity: The importance of social acceptance. Chen, J. M., & Hamilton, D. L. (2015). Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 41, 586-598. Abstract: Two studies investigated how people define and perceive diversity in the historically majority-group dominated contexts of business and academia. We hypothesized that individuals construe diversity as both the numeric representation of racial minorities and the social acceptance of racial minorities within a group. In Study 1, undergraduates’ (especially minorities’) perceptions of campus diversity were predicted by perceived social acceptance on a college campus, above and beyond perceived minority representation. Study 2 showed that increases in a company’s representation and social acceptance independently led to increases in perceived diversity of the company among Whites. Among non-Whites, representation and social acceptance only increased perceived diversity of the company when both qualities were high. Together these findings demonstrate the importance of both representation and social acceptance to the achievement of diversity in groups and that perceiver race influences the relative importance of these two components of diversity. Discussion Questions: What is testability, why is it important, and are the researchers using this technique?  If so, how? Were the researchers able to answer their research question with the observations they collected? How? Discuss some possible limitations of this study (think operational definition).