List three scientific attitudes?
Scientific Attitudes – gathering evidence – steps in the scientific process
Curiosity, skepticism and open-mindedness are driving forces behind scientific inquiry. Similar to a child constantly asking “Why”
Each claim is met with the reply “Show me your evidence” – “might there be a better explanation”
Two psychology professors John Darley and Bibb Latane wondered how 38 people could witness a criminal act and not even call the police. They believed it was unlikely that every one of the 38 bystanders could have been apathetic. As social psychologists, they knew that the immediate environment powerfully influences behavior, even though people may be unaware of this influence. They reasoned that the presence of multiple bystanders produced a diffusion of responsibility. To test their explanation they performed experiments and set out to gather evidence, they had to remain open-minded to the possibility that the findings would not support their point of view.

What is a hypothesis?
Hypotheses are a tentative explanation or prediction about some phenomenon. To develop scientists gather clues and logically analyze them. Noting that many bystanders had been present and recognizing that each one probably knew that others were watching, Darley and Latane combined these clues to arrive at a hypothesis: a diffusion of responsibility reduced the likelihood that any one bystander would feel responsible for helping. Hypothesis is tentative and must be tested. Takes on the statement “If – “Then” statement. If an emergency occurs, THEN the greater the number of bystanders, the less likely any one bystander will be to intervene. Third step is to test the hypothesis by gathering evidence. Fourth step is to analyze the information (data) and draw tentative conclusions.

How is this different from a theory?
A theory is a set of formal statements that explains how and why certain events are related to one another. Theories are broader than hypothesis and in psychology theories typically specify lawful relations between certain behaviors and their causes.
For example: to establish that diffusion of responsibility occurred across a range of situations, researchers conducted nearly 50 additional experiments in laboratories and natural settings, the vast majority of which supported the initial findings of Latane and Nida. Latane combined the principle of diffusion of responsibility with other principles to group behavior to develop a Theory of Social Impact, which he then used to explain a variety of human social behaviors.

What are the four steps in gathering scientific evidence?
Gathering scientific evidence, asking a question, forming a hypothesis, conducting research and drawing conclusions based on data analysis.

Why are some of the problems with hindsight understanding?
Hindsight –after-the-fact understanding?
The major limitation of relying solely on hindsight understanding is that past events usually can be explained in many ways and there is no sure way to determine which – if any- of the alternatives is correct.

Define the following terms/concepts?

Law of parsimony
If 2 theories can explain and predict the same phenomena equally well, the simpler theory is the preferred one.
Note: even when a theory is supported by many successful predictions, it is never regarded as an absolute truth. (Possible future observation will contradict it, or that a newer and more accurate theory will take its place.

Variable
Any characteristic that can vary. I.e. gender, age ethnicity, weight, height

Operation definition
Defines a variable in terms of the specific procedures used to produce or measure. It translates an abstract term into something observable and measurable.
i.e. whether 6 months of regular exercise reduces stress, must first decide upon definition of “regular exercise” We can operationally define “stress” as people’s questionnaire rating of how tense they feel, their level of muscle tension or frequency of fidgeting (nail biting, foot tapping) As a researcher, you would use your knowledge about exercise and stress to identify operational definitions that seem most appropriate. Operational definitions let other scientists know exactly what we mean by those terms.

Social desirability bias
The tendency of participants to give an answer that gives a good impression rather than one that reflects how they truly feel or behave.

Descriptive research
Seeks to identify how humans and other animals behave, particularly in natural settings. Provides information about the diversity of behavior – can be used to test hypotheses and may yield clues about potential cause –effect relations that are later tested experimentally. Case studies, naturalistic observation and surveys are common descriptive methods.

Methods of research
Describe each of the following research methods. What are some of the strengths and limitations of each method?

Case Study method
Is an in-depth analysis of an individual, group or event. By studying a single case in great detail the researcher typically hopes to discover principles of behavior that are true for people or situations in general.
Strengths
Vibrant source of new ides and hypotheses
Insight into diverse topics, such as brain functioning, child development, mental disorders and cultural influences
Enables scientists to study it intensively and collect a large amount of data
May challenge the validity of a theory or widely held scientific belief.
It can illustrate effective intervention programs developed by clinical psychologists to treat special populations.

Limitations
Poor method for determining cause-effect relations
Second potential drawback concerns the generalization of the findings: will the principles uncovered in a case study hold true for other people or in other situations? The question of generalization pertains to all research methods, but drawing broad conclusions from one or several case studies can be risky. Key issue: the degree to which the case under study is representative of other people or situations.
Is the possible lack of objectivity in the way the researcher gathers and interprets the data?

Naturalistic observation
The researcher observes behavior as it occurs in a natural setting. Is used extensively to study animal behavior. Also used to study human behavior.
Is used frequently to study human behavior.
Limitations
Naturalistic observation does not permit causal conclusions about the relations between variables. In the real world, many variables simultaneously influence behavior and they cannot be disentangled with this research technique.
Also a possibility of bias in the way that researchers interpret the behaviour they observe. Researchers must try to avoid influencing the participants being studied; the mere presence of a human observer may disrupt a person’s or animal’s behaviour.

Survey research
Information about a topic is obtained by administrating questionnaires or interviews to many people. Typical questions about participants attitudes, opinions and behaviours.
Two key concepts – “population” and “sample”
Strengths
Are an efficient method of collecting a large amount of information about people’s opinions and lifestyles?
Limitations
Unrepresentative samples can lead to faulty generalizations about how an entire population would respond.
Surveys rely on participants self-reports, which van be distorted by factors such as social desirability, bias, interviewer bias, or people’s inaccurate perceptions of their own behaviour.
Survey data cannot be used to draw conclusions about cause and effect