AP Psychology



AP Psychology

Unit 1

Critical Thinking & Research Strategies Part 1

Key Themes and Terms

Hindsight Bias

Overconfidence

Critical Thinking

The Scientific Method

Theory

Hypothesis

Testable Questions

Operational Definition

Psychology as a Science

In these next several classes we will discuss:

science - a method for understanding

limits of common sense

methods of science

description

correlation

experimentation

evaluating data with statistics

sources of error and bias in research

Science vs. Common Sense

Common sense and intuition often tell us about psychology

e.g., suppose a study tells us that ‘separation weakens romantic attraction’

common sense may tell us - “out of sight, out of mind”

or common sense may say the opposite - “absence makes the heart grow fonder”

Common sense can be inconsistent and based on hindsight

Science vs. Common Sense

Science helps build explanations that are consistent and predictive rather than conflicting and postdictive (hindsight)

Science is based on

knowledge of facts

developing theories

testing hypotheses

public and repeatable procedures

Intuition and Common Sense

How we know what might not be so!

Hindsight Bias

tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

the “I-knew-it-all-along” phenomenon

ACTIVITY - Milgram Study

Overconfidence

we tend to think we know more than we do

Critical Thinking Skills

Critical Thinking: Avoids blind acceptance of arguments and conclusions but instead closely examines evidence (mirrors the key values of scientific method)

never jump to conclusions

examine assumptions

keep an open mind

evaluate evidence

ask how the data were gathered

ask why the data were interpreted a certain way

Scientific Method

Scientific Method: Systematic gathering of data in an objective manner

Theory- framework for explaining events

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes and predicts observations

Hypothesis- testable prediction

Essential components of science

accuracy- careful, precise

objectivity- unbiased

skepticism- testable, data can be replicated

open-mindedness- ability to change views

Asking Testable Questions

Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior, but not all questions about the mind or behavior can be answered in psychology.

Psychology, for the most part, has adopted the scientific method which means that it only studies questions that can be tested in a precise, objective, publicly verifiable fashion.

The first step in doing psychology scientifically is learning how to ask testable questions.

Operationally Define the Variables

Operational Definition

a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables

for example, intelligence may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test measures

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