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PSY200 Chapter Summaries (Research Methods in Psychology)CHAPTER 1 (WK 1): THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
1.1 Explain how the purpose of a methods course differs from other courses in the
psychology curriculum.
The research methods course is at the core of the psychology curriculum. It should be taken
by all psychology majors because it provides the foundation for doing research in
psychology, serves as a basis for understanding other content courses in psychology, makes
one a more critical thinker about research, is essential for admission to postgraduate courses
and teaches scientific thinking.
1.2 Identify and evaluate non-scientific ways of knowing about things in the world —
through authority, reasoning and experience.
Our knowledge of the world around us often derives from our experiences and how we
interpret them, our reliance on the authority of others and our use of reason. These sources of
knowledge can be quite valuable, but they can also lead to error. Our experiences can be
subject to social cognition biases (e.g., belief perseverance, availability heuristic,
confirmation bias), authorities can be wrong and while reason and logic are essential for
critical thinking, reasonable arguments in the absence of empirical evidence can be
unproductive in the search for truth. Research psychologists rely heavily on scientific
thinking as a way of knowing and understanding behaviour.
1.3 Describe the attributes of science as a way of knowing.
Research psychologists assume that human behaviour is lawful and predictable and that using
scientific methods can lead to the discovery of regularities in behaviour. Science relies on
observations more systematic than those made in everyday life and produces knowledge open
to public verification (e.g., it is said to be objective, or verifiable by more than a single
observer); historically, the emphasis on objectivity led to a shift from using introspection as a
method to using methods that measured specific behaviours. Science also requires
conclusions about the causes of behaviour to be data-based, but scientists recognise their
data-based conclusions are tentative and could change depending on the outcomes of future
studies. The questions asked by scientific researchers are referred to as empirical questions;
they are answerable through the use of recognised scientific methods. Scientists also develop
theories precise enough to meet the test of falsification. Research psychologists are sceptical
optimists — optimistic about discovering important things about behaviour but sceptical of
claims made without solid empirical support.
1.4 Distinguish science from pseudoscience and recognise the attributes of
pseudoscientific thinking.
It is important to distinguish legitimate scientific inquiry from pseudoscience. The latter is
characterised by a deliberate attempt to associate itself with true science, by relying on
anecdotal evidence (e.g., glowing testimonials), by developing theories too vague to be
adequately tested with scientific methods and that fail the test of falsification, and by a
tendency to explain complicated phenomena with simplistic concepts.
, 1.5 Describe the main goals of research in psychology and relate them to research
strategies to be encountered later in the text.
Research in psychology aims to provide clear and detailed descriptions of behavioural
phenomena, to develop laws that enable scientists to predict behaviour with some probability
greater than chance and to provide adequate explanations of the causes of behaviour. The
results of psychological research can also be applied to change behaviour directly.
Psychological scientists tend to be intensely curious about behaviour and passionate about
their work. As a relatively young discipline, psychology has more questions than answers, so
doing research in psychology can be enormously rewarding. The joy of doing research can be
seen in the lives and work of famous psychologists such as Eleanor Gibson (the visual cliff
studies) and B. F. Skinner (the discovery and promotion of operant conditioning).
CHAPTER 2 (WK 2): ETHICS
2.1 Describe the origins of the National Health and Medical Research Council’s
National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research and articulate the
statement’s four values and principles as they apply to research in psychology.
The NHMRC developed its initial ethics code using the Helsinki Declaration as its
framework. The National Statement for research using human participants was first published
in 1966 and has been revised or updated periodically since then, most recently in 2015. It
consists of general principles guiding the requirement of ethically sound research (e.g., that
the benefits of the research outweigh the risks) and specific requirements (e.g., ensuring
informed consent).
2.2 Identify the essential features of a researcher’s ethical responsibility when
completing psychological research using human participants — including adults,
children and those from special populations.
The National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research provides guidance for
researchers in planning and carrying out their study. Planning includes doing a cost–benefit
analysis that weighs the degree of risk imposed on participants against the scientific value of
the research. The Code also requires that participants be given sufficient information to
decide whether or not to participate (e.g., informed consent). Special care must be taken with
particular participant populations including children, people with a mental illness and with
people who might feel coerced into participation (e.g., prisoners). Participants must be told
they are free to withdraw their participation and their data from the study at any time without
penalty, and they must be assured of the confidentiality of their responses. At the conclusion
of their participation, they must be given the opportunity to receive feedback and be given a
full debriefing if deception has been used. Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECs) are
responsible for ensuring research studies with human participants are conducted according to
the National Statement. Certain forms of deception are acceptable in psychological research,
but the researcher must convince an HREC that the legitimate goals of the study can be met
only through deception.
2.3 Identify the essential features of a researcher’s ethical responsibility when
completing psychological research using animal subjects and describe the arguments
for and against the use of animals in psychological research.
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