Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences 3rd edition by Gregory Privitera ISBN 1071876053 9781071876053

SECTION I • SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY

Chapter 1 • Introduction to Scientific Thinking

1.1 Science as a Method of Knowing

1.2 The Scientific Method

1.3 Other Methods of Knowing

1.4 The Goals of Science

1.5 Approaches in Acquiring Knowledge

1.6 Distinguishing Science From Pseudoscience

Chapter 2 • Generating Testable Ideas

2.1 Generating Interesting and Novel Ideas

2.2 Converting Ideas to Hypotheses and Theories

2.3 Developing Your Idea: Deduction and Induction

2.4 Performing a Literature Review

2.5 Ethics in Focus: Giving Proper Credit

2.6 The “3 Cs” of an Effective Literature Review

2.7 Testing Your Idea: Confirmation and Disconfirmation

2.8 Ethics in Focus: Publication Bias

Chapter 3 • Research Ethics

3.1 Ethics in Behavioral Research

3.2 The Need for Ethics Committees in Research: A Historical Synopsis

3.3 Ethics in Focus: Examples From Psychology

3.4 Human Participant Research: IRBs and the APA Code of Conduct

3.5 Ethics in Focus: Anonymity and Confidentiality

3.6 Animal Subject Research: IACUCs and the APA Code of Conduct

3.7 Additional Ethical Considerations: Scientific Integrity

SECTION II • DEFINING AND MEASURING VARIABLES, SELECTING SAMPLES, AND CHOOSING AN APPROPRIATE RESEARCH DESIGN

Chapter 4 • Identifying Scientific Variables

4.1 Criteria for Defining and Measuring Variables

4.2 Constructs and Operational Definitions

4.3 Types of Variables

4.4 Scales of Measurement

4.5 Reliability of a Measurement

4.6 Validity of a Measurement

4.7 Selecting a Measurement Procedure

4.8 Ethics in Focus: Replication as a Gauge for Fraud?

4.9 SPSS in Focus: Entering and Coding Data

Chapter 5 • Sampling From Populations

5.1 Why Do Researchers Select Samples?

5.2 Subjects, Participants, and Sampling Methods

5.3 Methods of Sampling: Nonprobability Sampling

5.4 Methods of Sampling: Probability Sampling

5.5 Sampling Error and Standard Error of the Mean

5.6 SPSS in Focus: Estimating the Standard Error of the Mean

5.7 Potential Biases in Sampling

5.8 Ethics in Focus: Participant Pools

5.9 SPSS in Focus: Identifying New Populations Using the One-Sample t Test

Chapter 6 • Choosing a Research Design

6.1 Designing a Study to Answer a Question

6.2 Categories of Research Design

6.3 Internal and External Validity

6.4 Demonstrating Cause in an Experiment

6.5 Ethics in Focus: Beneficence and Random Assignment

6.6 Threats to the Internal Validity of a Research Study

6.7 Threats to the External Validity of a Research Study

6.8 External Validity, Experimentation, and Realism

6.9 A Final Thought on Validity and Choosing a Research Design

SECTION III • NONEXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGNS

Chapter 7 • Naturalistic, Qualitative, and Existing Data Research Designs

Naturalistic Observation

7.1 An Overview of Naturalistic Observation

7.2 The Research Setting: Natural and Contrived Settings

7.3 Techniques for Conducting Naturalistic Observation

7.4 Ethics in Focus: Influencing Participant Behavior

Qualitative Designs

7.5 An Overview of Qualitative Designs

7.6 Qualitative Research Designs

7.7 Ethics in Focus: Anonymity in Qualitative Research

Existing Data Designs

7.8 An Overview of Existing Data Designs

7.9 Existing Data Designs

7.10 Ethics in Focus: Existing Data and Experimenter Bias

Chapter 8 • Survey and Correlational Research Designs

Survey Designs

8.1 An Overview of Survey Designs

8.2 Types of Survey Items

8.3 Rules for Writing Survey Items

8.4 Administering Surveys

8.5 Surveys, Sampling, and Nonresponse Bias

8.6 Ethics in Focus: Handling and Administering Surveys

Correlational Designs

8.7 The Structure of Correlational Designs

8.8 Describing the Relationship Between Variables

8.9 Limitations in Interpretation

8.10 Correlation, Regression, and Prediction

8.11 SPSS in Focus: Correlation and Linear Regression

SECTION IV • QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGNS

Chapter 9 • Quasi-Experimental and Single-Case Experimental Designs

Quasi-Experimental Designs

9.1 An Overview of Quasi-Experimental Designs

9.2 Quasi-Experimental Design: One-Group Designs

9.3 Quasi-Experimental Design: Nonequivalent Control Group Designs

9.4 Quasi-Experimental Design: Time Series Designs

9.5 Quasi-Experimental Design: Developmental Designs

9.6 Ethics in Focus: Development and Aging

Single-Case Experimental Designs

9.7 An Overview of Single-Case Designs

9.8 Single-Case Baseline-Phase Designs

9.9 Validity, Stability, Magnitude, and Generality

9.10 Ethics in Focus: The Ethics of Innovation

Chapter 10 • Between-Subjects Experimental Designs

10.1 Conducting Experiments: Between-Subjects Design

10.2 Experimental Versus Control Group

10.3 Manipulation and the Independent Variable

10.4 Variability and the Independent Variable

10.5 Ethics in Focus: The Accountability of Manipulation

10.6 Comparing Two Independent Samples

10.7 SPSS in Focus: Two-Independent-Sample t Test

10.8 Comparing Two or More Independent Samples

10.9 SPSS in Focus: One-Way Between-Subjects ANOVA

10.10 Measuring the Dependent Variable

10.11 Advantages and Disadvantages of the Between-Subjects Design

Chapter 11 • Within-Subjects Experimental Designs

11.1 Conducting Experiments: Within-Subjects Design

11.2 Controlling Time-Related Factors

11.3 Ethics in Focus: Minimizing Participant Fatigue

11.4 Individual Differences and Variability

11.5 Comparing Two Related Samples

11.6 SPSS in Focus: Related-Samples t Test

11.7 Comparing Two or More Related Samples

11.8 SPSS in Focus: One-Way Within-Subjects ANOVA

11.9 An Alternative to Pre-Post Designs: Solomon Four-Group Design

11.10 Comparing Between-Subjects and Within-Subjects Designs

Chapter 12 • Factorial Experimental Designs

12.1 Testing Multiple Factors in the Same Experiment

12.2 Selecting Samples for a Factorial Design in Experimentation

12.3 Types of Factorial Designs

12.4 Ethics in Focus: Participant Fatigue and Factorial Designs

12.5 Main Effects and Interactions

12.6 Identifying Main Effects and Interactions in a Graph

12.7 Including Quasi-Independent Factors in an Experiment

12.8 Reasons for Including Two or More Factors in an Experiment

12.9 Higher-Order Factorial Designs

12.10 SPSS in Focus: General Instructions for Conducting a Factorial ANOVA

SECTION V • ANALYZING, INTERPRETING, AND COMMUNICATING RESEARCH DATA

Chapter 13 • Analysis and Interpretation: Exposition of Data

13.1 Descriptive Statistics: Why Summarize Data?

13.2 Frequency Distributions: Tables and Graphs

13.3 Measures of Central Tendency

13.4 Measures of Variability

13.5 SPSS in Focus: Central Tendency and Variability

13.6 Graphing Means and Correlations

13.7 Using Correlation to Describe Reliability

13.8 SPSS in Focus: Cronbach’s Alpha and Cohen’s Kappa

13.9 Ethics in Focus: Deception Due to the Distortion of Data

Chapter 14 • Analysis and Interpretation: Making Decisions About Data

14.1 Inferential Statistics: What Are We Making Inferences About?

14.2 Types of Error and Power

14.3 Parametric Tests: Applying the Decision Tree

14.4 Nonparametric Tests: Applying the Decision Tree

14.5 SPSS in Focus: The Chi-Square Tests

14.6 Effect Size: How Big Is an Effect in the Population?

14.7 Estimation: What Are the Possible Values of a Parameter?

14.8 Confidence Intervals, Significance, and Effect Size

14.9 Issues for Interpretation: Precision and Certainty

14.10 Ethics in Focus: Full Disclosure of Data

Chapter 15 • Communicating Research: Preparing Manuscripts, Posters, and Talks

15.1 Elements of Communication

15.2 Writing a Manuscript: Writing Style and Language

15.3 Elements of an APA-Style Manuscript

15.4 Literature Reviews

15.5 Reporting Observations in Qualitative Research

15.6 Ethics in Focus: Credit and Authorship

15.7 Presenting a Poster

15.8 Giving a Professional Talk

Appendix A: APA-Style Writing, Sample Manuscript, and Posters

A.1 Essentials for Writing APA-Style Research Papers

A.2 Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling (GPS) Writing Guide

A.3 Sample APA-Style Manuscript

A.4 Poster Template and Sample Poster

Appendix B: Instructions for Randomizing and Counterbalancing

B.1 Random Numbers Table

B.2 Constructing a Latin Square

Appendix C: SPSS General Instructions Guide and Statistical Tables

C.1 General Instructions Guide for Using SPSS

C.2 Statistical Tables

Glossary

References

Index