100% satisfaction guarantee Immediately available after payment Both online and in PDF No strings attached
logo-home

Summary

Summary Part 1 - Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences

 28 views  0 purchase
  • Course
  • Institution
  • Book

Part 1 (H1 t/m3) of the book Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences by Charles Stangor, for the course Research Methods Theory and Ethics of the Bachelor Psychology. I will upload the full summary of the rest of the book soon.

Preview 1 out of 4  pages

  • No
  • Chapter 1 - 3
  • January 24, 2021
  • 4
  • 2020/2021
  • Summary
avatar-seller
Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences by Charles Stangor
Summary of the 5th edition
For the course Research Methods: Theory and Ethics (PSBA2-08)
Femke van Rijn


Chapter 1
Introduction to Research

Behavioral research is to discover how people perceive the world, think, feel, change over time,
learn, make decisions, and interact with others, through empirical research (systematic collection
and analysis of data).
There are many cognitive and motivational biases that can influence our perceptions and lead to the
wrong conclusions. Hindsight bias = the tendency to think we could have predicted something when
we learn the outcome of an event.
The scientific method is the set of assumptions, rules and procedures that scientists use to conduct
research. It demands that the procedures are objective (free from bias and emotion), based on
previous research, and replicable. It results in an accumulation of scientific knowledge, through the
reporting of research and the addition to and modification of these reported findings through further
research by other scientists.
Values are personal statements that cannot be either true or false (and thus not be proven or
disproven), and facts are objective statements determined to be accurate through empirical study.
The distinction is not always clear, since there are often multiple ways to interpret data, especially in
the behavioral sciences. The goal of science is to be objective, but values are still important to make
decisions about what to study, how and whom to use.
Research report = a document that presents scientific findings using a standardized written format (it
is mostly APA in the behavioral sciences). The sections Introduction and Discussion are relatively
subjective (they involve questions like which topics are important and how the data should be
interpreted), while Method and Results are completely objective (they describe the procedures and
statistical analyses).
Basic research answers fundamental questions about behavior (providing underlying principles).
Applied research investigates issues that have implications for everyday life and provide solutions to
everyday problems (for example program evaluation research to study the effectiveness of
programs). The distinction between these two types of research is not clear-cut and they can inform
each other.

A research design is the specific method a researcher uses to collect, analyze and interpret data.
There are 3 basic designs used in behavioral research.
1. Descriptive research (assessing the current state of affairs)
a. Surveys and interviews
b. Naturalistic observation = the observation of everyday events
c. Qualitative research is focused on observing and describing events as they occur,
with the goal of capturing all of the richness of everyday behavior and with the hope
of discovering phenomena that might have been missed with more formal measures.
Quantitative research uses more formal measures like questionnaires and
systematic observation, which are designed to be subjected to statistical analyses
and are more objective than qualitative studies.
d. Descriptive research provides an understanding of what is currently happening, but it
only provides a static picture.

1

The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:

Guaranteed quality through customer reviews

Guaranteed quality through customer reviews

Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.

Quick and easy check-out

Quick and easy check-out

You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.

Focus on what matters

Focus on what matters

Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!

Frequently asked questions

What do I get when I buy this document?

You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.

Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?

Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.

Who am I buying these notes from?

Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller femkebvanrijn. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.

Will I be stuck with a subscription?

No, you only buy these notes for $0.00. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.

Can Stuvia be trusted?

4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)

52510 documents were sold in the last 30 days

Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now

Start selling
Free
  • (0)