Discussion 2-Neuroscience & Behavior Your challenge: Demonstrate your ability to
ID: 3446339 • Letter: D
Question
Discussion 2-Neuroscience & Behavior Your challenge: Demonstrate your ability to discriminate between observation (systematically observe and describe behavior), correlational (how strongly two factors are related), and experimental research (cause- and-effect relationship between two variables) methods by providing your own examples of each from a biopsychology or neuropsychology perspective. Based on your readings from Chapter 1 and 2, propose three separate biopsychology studies, each utilizing a different research methodology. For each study, state the hypothesis and your research design.Explanation / Answer
PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH METHODS
There are three major research methods in psychology. They are:
Observation / Descriptive
Correlational
Experimental.
What is exactly a research? Case studies, extensive surveys, observation, laboratory observations are few examples through which research is conducted. Research is an extensive study on a particular subject or topic through a pre-determined hypothesis. Sometimes a research is also based on a particular question, which the research tries to answer. However, choosing the research method depends on the samples available and suitable path to reach the answer of the question.
The following table draws a clear distinction between the 3 important research methods:
Methods
TASK
ADVANTAGES
DISADVANTAGES
OBSERVATION
To create a cognitive blueprint by observing through our senses of a current state of affair.
To have a first hand and authentic information
The observation may mislead if the participants are aware that they are being observed and also unethical, at the same point of time, if the participants are not informed.
CORRELATIONAL
To test the connection between and two or more variables.
Everyday life events can be utilized.
Inferences cannot be drawn between casual relation among and between variables.
EXPERIMENTAL
To access the casual impact between experimental manipulation on a dependent variable.
Builds a connection between all the casual variables.
Could be time consuming and expensive.
OBSERVATION METHOD
Case studies, naturalistic observation and survey fall under this category. Observation can be participant or non-participant observation. Observation method is often experimented on small group of people or few individuals. For example case studies, that is an extensive study on a very small number. Case studies are very detail studies. For example, a participant observation can be on a class of school students and the factor such as fear while the teacher is in the class. This research could include a vast range of variable. Fear on the first hand is a cognitive matter also supported by social teaching through which our body get associated.
The steps of observational method are:
Selection: selecting a particular behavior for observation.
Recording: while observing, a researcher records the selected behavior using different means making tallies, taking notes, videos, photograph, etc.
Analysis of data: after the observations, have been made, psychologist, analyses whatever they have recorded with a view to derive some meaning out of it.
Types of observational methods:
Naturalistic and controlled observation
Non participant and participant.
CORRELATIONAL METHOD
In this kind of research, there are two or more variables and a relation is drawn among them. First there is a predictor variable and an outcome variable. For example, the relation between height and weight. This is a very relatable and important and understandable phenomena today. For example, one might analyses the amount of study time is related to the students’ academic achievement. Here you find out the relationship between two variables to determine whether they associated or covary or not. The strength and direction of the relationship between the two variables is represented by a number, known as correlational coefficient. A positive correlation indicates the value of one variable, (X) increases the value of other variable (y) also increase, if one decrease the other will also decrease. In a negative correlation, if one variable, (x) increases, the other variable (y) will decrease.
EXPERIMENTAL METHOD
Experimental are generally conducted to establish cause-effect relations between, two sets of events or variables in a controlled setting. It is a carefully regulated procedure in which changes are made in one factor and its effect is studied on another factor, while keeping other related factors constant. In the experiment, cause is the event being changed or manipulated. Effect is the behavior that changes because of manipulation.
For example, students who eat well are studious. Eating is the cause and effect is the good result of studies. There are independent and dependent variable. Like eating is independent and result is dependent on how or what one eats.