AP Psychology Homework

Experimental Design

 

Name: _____________________________________

Scientific problem solving has FOUR components:

  • Forming Hypotheses—We develop tentative predictions about the causes of behavior; hypotheses represent an attempt to resolve a discrepancy in our formal knowledge about the causes of behavior.
  • Operational Definitions—We define how we will measure our variables in order to promote objectivity and obtain precise measurements.
  • Conducting systematic and controlled investigations—We strive to reduce cause-effect explanations to their simplest possible forms. We often emphasize experimental comparisons as a preferred methods for developing the most truthful cause-effect relationships. We carefully use CONTROL procedures to eliminate alternative explanations for any observed results.
  • Interpreting Results Statistically—We use statistical analysis to help determine whether we have isolated the most important variable that contribute to a "cause—effect" scenario.

Homework Assignment: Please fill-in-the-blanks. Be as specific as you need to be in order to get your point across.

THE COLORFUL BOSS

Arlene wanted to increase the productivity of the clerical staff in her plant. She thought painting their cubicles blue (her favorite color) would increase their rate of work completion but that painting the cubicles yellow (a color she thought was "harsh") would have no effect or might even slow down the clerical staff’s rate of completion. To test this idea she had the work cubicles in the Sales Department painted blue and the cubicles in the Public Relations Department painted yellow. Then, she kept track of how many projects each department completed over the next three months. For the two-month period following the painting, the Sales clerical staff dramatically outperformed the Public Relations clerical staff in the number of projects completed.

What is the independent variable? ______________________________________________

What is the dependent variable? ________________________________________________

How was the independent variable manipulated? (Operational definition) ________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

How was the dependent variable measured? (Operational definition) ___________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Identify the control group: ______________________________________________________

 

Identify the experimental group: _________________________________________________

List TWO variables that were controlled: __________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

List TWO variables that were not controlled: _______________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Did Arlene’s study support her hypothesis? (Why or why not) __________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 

THE BAD DRIVER

John is intrigued by the relationship between frustration and aggression. He proposes to study whether socioeconomic status is a factor in how drivers express their aggression when they are frustrated. John decides to employ a "high-status" car (a shiny new Mercedes) and a "low-status" car (a rusty, dented 1982 Ford Pinto) as the stimuli in a "field" experiment on the roads near his home during a sunny April afternoon. He plans to drive the "high status" car from 1 to 3 PM and the low-status car from 3 to 5 PM. During these periods, he will linger when he has to stop for red lights and will move forward only when the driver behind him honks. His research assistant, riding on the passenger side, will time how long it takes the driver of the cat behind the experimental car to honk. John believes that drivers will take longer to honk when they are behind the Mercedes than when they are behind the Pinto. He thinks frustrated people will suppress their frustration and aggression when the person causing the frustration is of high socioeconomic status.

 

What is the independent variable? _______________________________________________

What is the dependent variable? ________________________________________________

How was the independent variable manipulated? (Operational definition) ________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

How was the dependent variable measured? (Operational definition) ___________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Identify the control group: ______________________________________________________

Identify the experimental group(s): _______________________________________________

List TWO variables that were controlled: __________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

List TWO variables that were not controlled: _______________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

How can the experiment be improved? ____________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 

GOING FOR THE GOLD

Rita, a sports psychologist, has applied for a huge grant sponsored by the American Olympiad Organization. She wants to identify variables that will produce more winners in the next international competition. She plans to build a special camp where athletes can train for two weeks each summer with other athletes. She will fly all the volunteer athletes to the camp and will randomly assign each of them to one of three conditions. Rita will host only one type of group at a time. In Condition 1, which meets during the first two weeks of the experiment, the athletes get no special treatment beyond the opportunity to train in the specially designed camp. In Condition 2, during the second two weeks, the athletes will receive a well-regulated diet and low-dose steroids. In Condition 3, during the last two-week period, the athletes will sleep with a self-esteem training tape under their pillows. Rita believes that unconscious sleep preparation will be superior to other forms of training in producing winning athletes. She plans to measure her success by contrasting the number of medals the three groups of athletes win in their next competition.

What is the independent variable? ______________________________________________

What is the dependent variable? ________________________________________________

How was the independent variable manipulated? (Operational definition) ________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

How was the dependent variable measured? (Operational definition) ___________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Identify the control group: ______________________________________________________

Identify the experimental group(s): _______________________________________________

List TWO variables that were controlled: __________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

List TWO variables that were not controlled: _______________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 

Would you fund this proposal? (If so, give your reason). If not, describe some ways in which the study could be improved:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

 


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