Material for First Exam

PSYC 201 – Spring 2010

Material for first exam

You are responsible for everything covered in class and the labs (including the examples), as well as the material covered in the readings.

Readings

Jackson Chapter 1 pp. 6-23, Chapter 2 pp. 38-53, Chapter 3 pp. 57-62. My lecture notes are available on my website

Key Terms and topics from the readings and Class

The list below is NOT an exhaustive list of topics and terms students are responsible for. It’s a list of things that students should definitely make sure that they know for the exam.

Chapter1

·  Sources of knowledge

·  Superstition

·  Intuition

·  Authority

·  Tenacity

·  Rationalism

·  Empricism

·  Science

·  Basic vs applied research

·  Hypothesis

·  Systematic empiricism

·  Publicly verifiable knowledge

·  Emprically solvable problems

·  Characteristics of scientific and non-scientific approaches to knowledge

1.  General approach

·  Empirical approach

·  Illusory correlation

2.  Observation

·  Control

·  Independent variable

·  Dependent variable

3.  Concepts

·  Operational definition

4.  Instruments

·  Precision in measurements

5.  Testable hypotheses

6.  Skeptical attitude

·  Goals of the scientific method

·  Description

·  Nomothetic approach

·  Idiographic approach

·  Prediction

·  Explanation

·  Intervention

·  Scientific theories

·  Independent variables, dependent variable, Intervening variable

·  Evaluating scientific theories

·  Parsimony

·  Precision of prediction

·  Falsifiability

·  Where to scientific theories come from? (Induction versus deduction)

Chapter 2 - Ethical issues in Research

·  Three ethical principles from Belmont Report

o  Beneficence

o  Autonomy

o  Justice

·  Risk/benefit ratio

·  Types of risk (physical, psychological, financial)

·  Levels of Risk

o  Minimal risk

o  More than Minimal Risk

·  Informed consent

·  Assent to participate

·  Inducements for research participants

·  Freedom to withdraw

·  Protection From Harm

·  Deception. Under what conditions is it acceptable to use deception? When is it not acceptable?

·  Debriefing

·  Confidentiality

·  Research on animals vs research with animals

·  Arguments for the use of animals in research

·  Arguments against the use of animals in research

·  Ethical standards for the use of animals in research

Chapter 3 – Measurement

·  Variables

o  Continuous vs. Discrete

·  Scales of Measurement

o  Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, Ratio