GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY Lecture 2 RESEARCH METHODS IN PSYCHOLOGY Visiting Assistant PROFESSOR YEE-SAN TEOH Department of Psychology National Taiwan University Unless noted, the course materials are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Taiwan (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

ETHICS OF RESEARCH WITH HUMAN SUBJECTS Human Participants’ Rights The right to be fully informed. The right to give informed & voluntary consent. The right not to be harmed in any way. The right to withdraw voluntarily from research. The right to be informed of the results of research. The right to confidentiality. The right to full compensation. The right to beneficial treatments.

Data Collection & Analysis Presenting the Findings THE RESEARCH PROCESS National Taiwan University, YEE-SAN TEOH Research Question Data Collection & Analysis Presenting the Findings

THE RESEARCH PROCESS What do we want to find out? Background research – What has been done/not done? Formulate research question – make a testable hypothesis. Determine feasibility of project Formulate research design – What are the independent and dependent variables; confounding variables? Research Question

Variable Definitions Independent variable (IV) Dependent variable (DV) The variable representing the value being manipulated or changed Independent variable (IV) The observed result of the independent variable being manipulated. Dependent variable (DV) The extraneous variable that correlates with the IV and/or DV, or the relationship between the IV and DV. Confounding variable

Potential Outcomes of Confounds False positive Statistical test rejects true null hypothesis (H0). Type I Error False negative Statistical test fails to reject a false null hypothesis. Type II Error National Taiwan University, YEE-SAN TEOH

RESEARCH DESIGN Laboratory Field/Natural EXPERIMENT - Possible to control factors that may influence variable of interest. - Experimental vs. control group - Randomized assignment - Poor ecological validity Field/Natural - Good ecological/external validity - Difficult or impossible to control other influences - Low manipulation of variables SUBJECTS 1. Between subjects Different groups of individuals 2. Within Subjects Same group of individuals 3. Case study National Taiwan University, YEE-SAN TEOH

The Experiment Experimental manipulation Deliberate alteration of the IV in order to learn about its effects on the dependent variable. Experimental group Group that experiences the experimental manipulation. Control group Group that does not experience the experimental manipulation.

Ecological/External Validity The degree to which a study’s participants, stimuli, and procedures adequately reflect the world as it is. Is the sample in a study representative of the broader population? Does a research method (e.g. questionnaire) measure real-world behavior/phenomena?

Between-Within Subjects Field /natural with experimental manipulation The Mixed Design Between-Within Subjects Example: Investigate memory recall of same children at 3 time-points, PLUS Compare different age groups Laboratory-Field Field study explores whether children respond differently to male and female teachers Lab study controls for age & race of teachers Field /natural with experimental manipulation In studying children’s play behaviors at home, researcher introduces new toys to some children and not others

CROSS-SECTIONAL METHOD STUDYING DEVELOPMENTAL CHANGE CROSS-SECTIONAL METHOD - Compare children of different ages at the same time Example: Compare different age groups with respect to use of emotion words in the lab LONGITUDINAL METHOD - Study the same children repeatedly at various points in their lives Examine children’s memory of a natural disaster immediately after experience , for another 3 years SEQUENTIAL METHOD - Combination of cross- sectional, longitudinal - Can overcome problems associated with longitudinal. Examine change in reading skills of 2, 4, & 6-yr-olds every 2 yrs for 6 yrs.

THE RESEARCH PROCESS What do we want to find out? Do females spend more time on the internet than males? Background research – What has been done/not done? Has this been studied before? What have others done in their research? Research Question

THE RESEARCH PROCESS Formulate research question/aim – make a testable hypothesis. To compare the amount of time spent online by male and female undergraduate students in Taiwan – males spend more time than females. Determine feasibility of project We can find undergraduate males and females, internet usage can be studied in some way. Research Question

THE RESEARCH PROCESS Formulate research design – What are the independent and dependent variables? Independent variable(s) – gender Dependent variable(s) – internet usage – amount of time online each day. Confounding variable(s) – access to computers, number of computers owned Research Question

THE RESEARCH PROCESS Background research Formulate research question Determine feasibility of project Formulate research design Research Question Select sample Select measures for behavior of interest Develop procedure for data collection Pilot testing Collect data Analyze data Data Collection & Analysis Review findings for anomalies Present findings at conferences Preparation of manuscript for publication Presenting the Findings National Taiwan University, YEE-SAN TEOH

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS Select sample Select measures for behavior of interest Develop procedure for data collection Pilot testing Collect data Analyze data Data Collection and Analysis

Selecting a Sample Who are you studying? Factors to consider: Age Gender Location (country, state, city, neighborhood, urban/rural) Ethnicity/race/culture, religion Social class or socio-economic status Education

Selecting a Sample Who are you studying? Is the sample representative of the larger population your research question pertains to? Random sampling – randomly recruit participants Convenient sampling – recruit participants at a convenient location or time. Focused sampling – recruit subjects in a very specific population (e.g. a tribe in Alishan) Using national surveys (large, demographically & geographically diverse )

Determining your study variables/measures What are you studying? E.g. memory of event, emotion understanding, biological basis of fear How have other researchers studied the same behavior/phenomena? E.g. tasks, observation, questionnaires, interview Are you going to use a pre-existing measure or develop your own?

DATA COLLECTION METHODS SELF-REPORTS Interviews or questionnaires, diary Open-ended or close-ended questions Relies on verbal ability & literacy Not for young children REPORTS BY OTHERS Information from parents, teachers, peers, family members/siblings Questionnaires, rating scales, interviews, diary Usually combined with other methods OBSERVATION Laboratory or natural setting Problem of social desirability or response bias Recording is common and useful Structured or unstructured National Taiwan University, YEE-SAN TEOH

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS Select sample First year undergraduate students at NTU. All departments or department with 50-50 guys and girls. Similar family background? Data Collection and Analysis

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS Select measures for behavior of interest Measure of internet usage 1. Self-report - Questionnaire 2. Number of hours per day spent on the internet (home, university, mobile device) 3. Purpose of online activity. Data Collection and Analysis

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS Develop procedure for data collection Subjects recruited using flyers, clubs. Explain that the study is internet behavior, but do not mention gender differences. Mention compensation if available. Subjects who wish to participate should sign an informed consent form. Data Collection and Analysis

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS The Internet Usage Questionnaire Background information. Number of hours spent on the internet. Activities or websites usually accessed. Data Collection and Analysis

Data Collection and Analysis THE RESEARCH PROCESS Pilot testing Run study on a small group of 20 students, obtain opinions about questionnaire. Make necessary changes. Collect data Collect data from larger number of students with revised questionnaire. Data Collection and Analysis

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