Research Methods Review (Assignment)

Below, you will find a series of claims supported by real-life evidence. Your task is to apply your knowledge of AP Psychology by connecting a relevant psychological concept, theory, or research finding to support each claim.

For each question, complete the following:

1. Identify a relevant psychological term, concept, theory, or research finding that supports the claim. The answers will come from the terms on the unit vocabulary list. You may use a term more than once.
2. Explain how the evidence provided supports the claim using the psychological concept you identified. Be specific and connect your explanation to the real-world scenario in the evidence.

Vocabulary Words

1. hindsight bias
2. hypothesis
3. operational definition
4. replication
5. case study
6. naturalistic observation
7. survey
8. sampling bias
9. population
10. random sample
11. convenience sampling
12. Likert scales
13. social desirability bias
14. correlation
15. correlation coefficient
16. positive correlation
17. negative correlation
18. scatterplot
19. illusory correlation
20. regression toward the mean
21. Directionality Problem (in correlation)
22. Third variable Problem (in correlation)
23. experimental group
24. control group
25. random assignment
26. double-blind procedure
27. placebo effect
28. independent variable
29. confounding variable
30. dependent variable
31. informed consent
32. institutional review board
33. debriefing
34. Qualitative Research
35. Quantitative Research
36. descriptive statistics
37. histogram
38. central tendency
39. mode
40. mean
41. median
42. percentile rank
43. skewed distribution
44. range
45. standard deviation
46. normal distribution
47. inferential statistics
48. statistical significance
49. Effect Size
50. bimodal distribution

HAPPINESS

CLAIM: Researchers need precise ways to measure abstract psychological concepts.

EVIDENCE: Instead of simply saying they studied "happiness," a research team defined it as participants’ average score on a 10-question life satisfaction scale.

PREDICTIONS

CLAIM: Researchers often want to draw conclusions that extend beyond the sample.

EVIDENCE: In a study of 300 teenagers, researchers used statistical tests to predict how likely the results on social media use and anxiety would apply to the larger teenage population.

RISKS

CLAIM: Ethical research requires that participants know what they are agreeing to before the study begins.

EVIDENCE: Before participating in a study on exercise and mood, volunteers were told the purpose of the research, what activities they would complete, potential risks like muscle soreness, and their right to withdraw at any time. They signed a form agreeing to participate.

GET YOUR POPCORN

CLAIM: People sometimes believe there’s a relationship between variables when none exists.

EVIDENCE: A parent noticed that on weekends when their child ate popcorn, the child then had hyperactivity—and concluded popcorn causes hyperactive behavior, even though days without popcorn often had similar behavior.

FAULTY SURVEY

CLAIM: Sometimes research results cannot be generalized to the larger population.

EVIDENCE: A survey about teen social media habits was conducted only with students from an elite private school, yet the results were reported as representing all U.S. teenagers.

ANALYZING DATA

CLAIM: Averages alone do not always give a full picture of data.

EVIDENCE: Two classrooms had the same average score of 80 on a math test, but in one class, most students scored between 78 and 82, while in the other, scores ranged from 50 to 100.

MEMORY LOSS

CLAIM: Sometimes researchers examine one individual in great depth to better understand unusual conditions.

EVIDENCE: Psychologists studied the patient H.M., who lost the ability to form new memories after brain surgery, to learn more about the role of the hippocampus.

ETHICS

CLAIM: Research studies must be reviewed for ethical concerns before being conducted.

EVIDENCE: A university’s ethics committee evaluated a proposed study on sleep deprivation to make sure it did not put participants at serious risk of harm before granting approval.

POP QUIZZES

CLAIM: Extreme scores on one occasion tend to move closer to the average upon retesting.

EVIDENCE: A student who scored exceptionally high on a pop quiz (98%) dropped down to an 85% on the next one—even though their average performance is around 88%.

PLAYGROUND TIME

CLAIM: Psychologists often learn by observing people in their normal environments without interference.

EVIDENCE: A researcher spent several months watching children play on a school playground, recording patterns of sharing and cooperation without telling the children what was being studied.

SLEEP

CLAIM: Large amounts of information can be gathered by asking people directly about their thoughts and behaviors.

EVIDENCE: Gallup’s December 2023 poll found that the average American sleeps between six and seven hours per night, with only 25% reporting an average of eight or more hours, and 20% sleeping five or less. Additionally, 57% of adults said they would feel better if they got more sleep

SOCIAL MEDIA HABITS

CLAIM: Research is sometimes conducted using participants who are easiest to access, even if they aren’t representative of the whole population.

EVIDENCE: A psychology professor surveyed only students in her own morning class about their social media habits and assumed the findings represented all college students. In reality, students enrolled in early classes often have different routines or responsibilities than those in later ones.

1…5

CLAIM: Researchers often measure attitudes using standardized rating scales.

EVIDENCE: In a study on stress, participants were asked to rate their agreement with the statement “I feel overwhelmed during the workweek” on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

WHAT'S THE CAUSE

CLAIM: Correlation cannot determine which variable is influencing the other.

EVIDENCE: A study showed a strong correlation between stress levels and lack of sleep among college students. However, it is unclear whether high stress leads to less sleep, or if lack of sleep causes higher stress.

LIAR

CLAIM: People may give responses that make them look good, rather than being fully honest.

EVIDENCE: In a workplace survey about on-time arrivals, 80% of employees reported they were rarely late—even though attendance records showed a 25% tardiness rate

VIOLENT SHOWS

CLAIM: Sometimes a hidden factor explains the relationship between two variables.

EVIDENCE: Research found that children who watch more violent TV shows are more likely to act aggressively. However, a third factor—such as lack of parental supervision—might be the true cause of both increased screen time and aggressive behavior.

EXERCISE AND GRADES

CLAIM: Two variables may be related without one necessarily causing the other.

EVIDENCE: A study found that students who exercised more often also tended to have higher GPAs—but the study didn't test whether exercise directly caused better grades.

STUDYING WORKS

CLAIM: The strength and direction of relationships between variables can be quantified numerically.

EVIDENCE: Researchers calculated that the relationship between hours studied and exam scores was r = 0.65, indicating a moderately strong positive relationship.

MEAN SCORE

CLAIM: Researchers use certain tools to summarize and describe data sets.

EVIDENCE: After testing 200 students on a memory task, researchers calculated the mean score, standard deviation, and frequency distribution to summarize how students performed.

CAFFEINE STUDY

CLAIM: To eliminate bias, participants must be equally likely to end up in any group.

EVIDENCE: In the caffeine study, students were randomly assigned by a computer program to either the caffeinated or decaffeinated group, ensuring individual differences (like natural energy levels) were spread evenly across groups.

STRESS LEVELS

CLAIM: Visualization tools help us see patterns between two continuous variables.

EVIDENCE: Researchers graphed students’ weekly exercise hours (x-axis) versus their stress levels (y-axis), visually showing that those who exercised more often tended to report lower stress—but with some outliers.

DECAF

CLAIM: Sometimes outside factors interfere with research results.

EVIDENCE: In a caffeine and memory experiment, students in the caffeine group were also tested in the morning, while the decaf group was tested in the afternoon—meaning time of day, not caffeine, might explain performance differences.

CONFORMITY

CLAIM: Participants should be fully informed about the purpose and details of a study after it concludes.

EVIDENCE: In a social psychology experiment that involved deception, participants were initially told the study was about problem-solving. At the end, researchers explained the true purpose—how people conform to group pressure—and answered questions.

INTERVIEWS

CLAIM: Some research focuses on describing and understanding experiences rather than measuring numbers.

EVIDENCE: Psychologists conducted in-depth interviews with war veterans to understand their personal experiences with PTSD, analyzing themes in their responses.

SAT SCORES

CLAIM: Scores are often interpreted by comparing them to the performance of others.

EVIDENCE: A student’s SAT math score placed them in the 90th percentile, meaning they scored higher than 90% of test-takers nationwide.

BEDTIME

CLAIM: Sometimes data have two distinct peaks instead of one.

EVIDENCE: A psychologist studying bedtime habits found that one group of adults consistently went to bed around 10 p.m., while another group stayed up until after midnight. The data showed two clear peaks.