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PSYCH 111 Exam 1
Chapter 2 (blue terms)
45
Psychology
Undergraduate 1
05/12/2010

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Term
deduction-
Definition
the process of deriving a conclusion from premises already accepted
Term
induction-
Definition
the process of inferring a general principle from observations
Term
theory-
Definition
an explaination that fits many observations and makes valid predictions
Term
falsifiable-
Definition
stated in such clear, precise terms that we can see what evidence would count against it (if, of course such evidence existed)
Term
burden of proof-
Definition
the obligation to present evidence to support one's claim
Term
hypothesis-
Definition
a clear predictive statement
Term
replicable results-
Definition
those that anyone can obtain, at least approximately, by following the same procedures
Term
meta-analysis-
Definition
combines the results of many studies and analyzes them as thought they were all one very large study
Term
parsimony-
Definition
when given a choice amoung hypotheses or theories that all seem to fit the facts, scientists prefer the one whose assumptions are fewer, simpler, or more consistent with other well-established theories
Term
extrasensory perception (ESP)-
Definition
at least some people, at least some of the time, can aquire information without using any sense organ and without receiving any form of physical energy
Term
operational definition-
Definition
a definition that specifies the operations (or procedures) used to produce or measure something, ordinarily a way to give it a numerical value
Term
population-
Definition
is the group of individuals to whom we hope our conclusions will apply
Term
convenience sample-
Definition
a group chosen because of its ease of study
Term
representative sample-
Definition
closely resembles the population in its percentage of males and females, Blacks and Whites, young and old, city dwellers and farmers, or whatever other characteristics are likely to affect the results
Term
random sample-
Definition
every individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected
Term
cross-cultural samples-
Definition
groups of people from at least two cultures
Term
experiementer bias-
Definition
the tendency of an experimenter (unintentionally, in most cases) to distort or misperceive the results of an experiment based on the expected outcome.
Term
blind observer-
Definition
an observer who can record data without knowing what the researcher has predicted
Term
placebo-
Definition
a pill with no known phoarmacological effects
Term
single-blind study-
Definition
either the observer or the participants are unaware of which participants received which treatment
Term
double-blind study-
Definition
both the observer and the participants are unaware of which participants received which treatment
Term
demand characteristics-
Definition
cues that tell a participant what is expected of him or her and what the experimenter hopes to find
Term
naturalistic observation-
Definition
a careful examination of what happens under more or less natural conditions
Term
case history-
Definition
a thorough description of the person including the person's abilities and disabilities, medical condition, life history, unusual experiences , or whatever else seems relevant 
Term
survey-
Definition
a study of the prevalence of certain beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors based on people's responses to specific questions
Term
correlation-
Definition
a measure of the relationship between two varibles
Term
correlation study-
Definition
a procedure in which investigators measure the correlation between two variables without controlling either of them
Term
correlation coefficient-
Definition
a mathematical estimate of the relationship between two variables
Term
illusory correlation-
Definition
an apparent relationship based on casual observations of unrelated or weakly related events
Term
experiment-
Definition
a study in which the investigator manipulates at least one variable while measuring at least one other variable
Term
independent variable-
Definition
is the item that an experimenter changes or controls-for example, the amount of violent television that people are permited to watch
Term
dependent variable-
Definition
is the item that an experimenter measures to determine how it was affected
Term
experimental group-
Definition
receives the treatment that an experimenter is designed to test
Term
control group-
Definition
a set of individuals treated in the same way as the experimental group except for the procedure that the experiment is designed to test
Term
random assignment-
Definition
the experimenter uses a chance procedure, such as drawing names out of a hat, to make sure that every participant has the same probablility as any other participant of being assigned to a given group
Term
informed consent-
Definition
a statement that they have been told what to expect and that they agree to continue
Term
descriptive statistics-
Definition
mathematical summaries of results (such as measures of the average and the amount of variation)
Term
mean-
Definition
the sum of all the scores divided by the total number of scores
Term

normal distrubution-

(or normal curve)

Definition
a symmetrical frequency of scores clustered around the mean
Term
median-
Definition
We arrange all the scores in order from the highest score to the lowest score. The middle score is the median.
Term
mode-
Definition
the score that occurs most frequently
Term
range-
Definition
a statement of the highest and lowest scores
Term
standard deviation (SD)-
Definition
a measurement of the amount of variation amoung scores
Term
95% confidence interval-
Definition
the range within which the true population mean lies, with 95% certainty
Term
inferential statistic-
Definition
a statement about a large population based on an inference from a small sample
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