PSYC 3650 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS AND VERIFIED
ANSWERS
What are the canons of the scientific method? - Answers - empiricism, determinism,
parsimony, testability
Define empiricism - Answers - gaining knowledge through systematic observation of the
world
Define determinism - Answers - the assumption that phenomena have identifiable
causes
Define parsimony - Answers - the assumption that the simplest explanation of a
phenomenon is most likely to be correct
Define testability - Answers - the assumption that explanations of behavior can be
tested and falsified through observation
What are the components of a research article? - Answers - 1. Abstract 2. Introduction
3. Method 4. (sometimes) Data Analysis 5. Results 6. Discussion 7. References
What should the abstract consist of? - Answers - It should include the general topic, a
description of the methodology, the results of a study, and what was learned
What should the introduction consist of? - Answers - The intro introduces the topic of
the study. It should also consist of background info, justification for the study, the
problem that the study addresses, and the hypothesis.
What should the method consist of? - Answers - 4 subsections: participants (number &
type), design of the study, materials, and procedure
What does the data analysis section do? - Answers - it explains the statistical
procedures used, gives enough info that someone else could run the same analyses, &
sometimes justifies the use of the statistical techniques
What does the results section have? - Answers - It has a summary of the data and a
stats heavy description of findings as a result of the analyses.
What does the discussion section have? - Answers - it typically starts with a brief
summary, explains the results in laymen's terms, compares findings to the hypotheses,
limitations, & future directions for the study
ANSWERS
What are the canons of the scientific method? - Answers - empiricism, determinism,
parsimony, testability
Define empiricism - Answers - gaining knowledge through systematic observation of the
world
Define determinism - Answers - the assumption that phenomena have identifiable
causes
Define parsimony - Answers - the assumption that the simplest explanation of a
phenomenon is most likely to be correct
Define testability - Answers - the assumption that explanations of behavior can be
tested and falsified through observation
What are the components of a research article? - Answers - 1. Abstract 2. Introduction
3. Method 4. (sometimes) Data Analysis 5. Results 6. Discussion 7. References
What should the abstract consist of? - Answers - It should include the general topic, a
description of the methodology, the results of a study, and what was learned
What should the introduction consist of? - Answers - The intro introduces the topic of
the study. It should also consist of background info, justification for the study, the
problem that the study addresses, and the hypothesis.
What should the method consist of? - Answers - 4 subsections: participants (number &
type), design of the study, materials, and procedure
What does the data analysis section do? - Answers - it explains the statistical
procedures used, gives enough info that someone else could run the same analyses, &
sometimes justifies the use of the statistical techniques
What does the results section have? - Answers - It has a summary of the data and a
stats heavy description of findings as a result of the analyses.
What does the discussion section have? - Answers - it typically starts with a brief
summary, explains the results in laymen's terms, compares findings to the hypotheses,
limitations, & future directions for the study
