PSY100 Midterm #1 UofT UPDATED
ACTUAL Questions and CORRECT
Answers
Empiricism - CORRECT ANSWER The view that knowledge comes from observed/sensory
experience
Empirical evidence - CORRECT ANSWER Refers to the data that has been collected (or the
knowledge that has been gained) by scientific observation
What is the role of theories? - CORRECT ANSWER Scientific theories typically explain the
relationship between two or more variables.
What must scientific theories be? - CORRECT ANSWER Testable, falsifiable, parsimonious
What is the intergroup contact theory by Pettigrew? - CORRECT ANSWER That under certain
circumstances, positive intergroup contact can reduce prejudice toward the outgroup
What is the social comparison theory by Festinger? - CORRECT ANSWER When more objective
measures are unavailable, people will evaluate their own abilities/qualities by comparing themselves to
similar ones
What is an Operational definition - CORRECT ANSWER Definition of theoretical constructs that
are stated in terms of concrete, observable procedures
What is a construct? - CORRECT ANSWER Internal attributes or characteristics that cannot be
directly observed but are useful for describing and explaining behaviour such as intelligence and anxiety
What are the different types of research? - CORRECT ANSWER Descriptive research - involves
observations and case studies, and may result in claims regarding the frequency of some behavior.
,Correlational research - May lead to claims regarding the association between two variables and looking
at the relationships between two things
Experimental research - May lead to claims regarding the causal relationship between two variables and
finding out what causes what
What is a confound? - CORRECT ANSWER Anything that may unintentionally vary along with
the independent variable, they limit our ability to make causal claims. For example if the independent
variable is amount of caffeine and the dependent variable is how well students perform on test, a
confound could be amount of time preparing for test, or amount of classes attended that would affect the
results.
What is Random assignment? - CORRECT ANSWER Each participant has an equal chance of
being assigned to each experimental condition. It ensures groups are equivalent on average.
What is a random sample? - CORRECT ANSWER Each member of the population you are
interested in has an equal chance of being chosen to participate
What is a population? - CORRECT ANSWER The group that you want to be able to generalize
your findings to
What is a sample? - CORRECT ANSWER The group of individuals from this population who are
actually a part of your study
Discuss Quasi-Experiments - CORRECT ANSWER Look a lot like "real" experiments, but they
have no random assignments to conditions and the risk of potential confounds limits the claims that a
researcher can make. However they can be very useful for studying variables where manipulation isn't
possible or ethical.
Discuss correlational studies - CORRECT ANSWER They tell us about relationships between
variables. For example " There is a relationship between academic success and self esteem" or " There is a
relationship between outdoor temperatures and ice cream sales". These are positive examples meaning
, both variables change in the same direction. However remember that Correlation is not causation. There
could be a third variable problem or a directionality problem.
What are the different types of data collection methods? - CORRECT ANSWER Observational
technique, Self report method, Response performance.
What are the different types of observation? - CORRECT ANSWER Naturalistic observation:
Passive, observers do not change or alter anything intentionally.
Participant observation: Active observation. The researcher is actively involved in the situation.
Laboratory observation: Systematic observations are made within a laboratory setting rather than in the
real world.
Discuss Self-Report bias - CORRECT ANSWER People will respond in a socially desirable way,
what they think others would want to hear instead of how they actually feel. People will also rate their
abilities to do something if asked, better than average.
Discuss response performance. - CORRECT ANSWER Things are tested like reaction time,
response accuracy and stimulus judgements. These things are used to quantify perceptual or cognitive
processes in response to a specific stimulus.
For example how long does it take you to name the colour of a word?
What is the stoop effect? - CORRECT ANSWER Words that spell out a different colour than the
colour of the font are presented and you are asked to name the colour of the font. However your responses
are delayed because we automatically read the words and this causes a mismatch of information in our
brains.
How do we know that we have good data? - CORRECT ANSWER Good date must be:
- Accurate
- Valid
ACTUAL Questions and CORRECT
Answers
Empiricism - CORRECT ANSWER The view that knowledge comes from observed/sensory
experience
Empirical evidence - CORRECT ANSWER Refers to the data that has been collected (or the
knowledge that has been gained) by scientific observation
What is the role of theories? - CORRECT ANSWER Scientific theories typically explain the
relationship between two or more variables.
What must scientific theories be? - CORRECT ANSWER Testable, falsifiable, parsimonious
What is the intergroup contact theory by Pettigrew? - CORRECT ANSWER That under certain
circumstances, positive intergroup contact can reduce prejudice toward the outgroup
What is the social comparison theory by Festinger? - CORRECT ANSWER When more objective
measures are unavailable, people will evaluate their own abilities/qualities by comparing themselves to
similar ones
What is an Operational definition - CORRECT ANSWER Definition of theoretical constructs that
are stated in terms of concrete, observable procedures
What is a construct? - CORRECT ANSWER Internal attributes or characteristics that cannot be
directly observed but are useful for describing and explaining behaviour such as intelligence and anxiety
What are the different types of research? - CORRECT ANSWER Descriptive research - involves
observations and case studies, and may result in claims regarding the frequency of some behavior.
,Correlational research - May lead to claims regarding the association between two variables and looking
at the relationships between two things
Experimental research - May lead to claims regarding the causal relationship between two variables and
finding out what causes what
What is a confound? - CORRECT ANSWER Anything that may unintentionally vary along with
the independent variable, they limit our ability to make causal claims. For example if the independent
variable is amount of caffeine and the dependent variable is how well students perform on test, a
confound could be amount of time preparing for test, or amount of classes attended that would affect the
results.
What is Random assignment? - CORRECT ANSWER Each participant has an equal chance of
being assigned to each experimental condition. It ensures groups are equivalent on average.
What is a random sample? - CORRECT ANSWER Each member of the population you are
interested in has an equal chance of being chosen to participate
What is a population? - CORRECT ANSWER The group that you want to be able to generalize
your findings to
What is a sample? - CORRECT ANSWER The group of individuals from this population who are
actually a part of your study
Discuss Quasi-Experiments - CORRECT ANSWER Look a lot like "real" experiments, but they
have no random assignments to conditions and the risk of potential confounds limits the claims that a
researcher can make. However they can be very useful for studying variables where manipulation isn't
possible or ethical.
Discuss correlational studies - CORRECT ANSWER They tell us about relationships between
variables. For example " There is a relationship between academic success and self esteem" or " There is a
relationship between outdoor temperatures and ice cream sales". These are positive examples meaning
, both variables change in the same direction. However remember that Correlation is not causation. There
could be a third variable problem or a directionality problem.
What are the different types of data collection methods? - CORRECT ANSWER Observational
technique, Self report method, Response performance.
What are the different types of observation? - CORRECT ANSWER Naturalistic observation:
Passive, observers do not change or alter anything intentionally.
Participant observation: Active observation. The researcher is actively involved in the situation.
Laboratory observation: Systematic observations are made within a laboratory setting rather than in the
real world.
Discuss Self-Report bias - CORRECT ANSWER People will respond in a socially desirable way,
what they think others would want to hear instead of how they actually feel. People will also rate their
abilities to do something if asked, better than average.
Discuss response performance. - CORRECT ANSWER Things are tested like reaction time,
response accuracy and stimulus judgements. These things are used to quantify perceptual or cognitive
processes in response to a specific stimulus.
For example how long does it take you to name the colour of a word?
What is the stoop effect? - CORRECT ANSWER Words that spell out a different colour than the
colour of the font are presented and you are asked to name the colour of the font. However your responses
are delayed because we automatically read the words and this causes a mismatch of information in our
brains.
How do we know that we have good data? - CORRECT ANSWER Good date must be:
- Accurate
- Valid
