Social Psychology: Methods, Attribution, and Attitudes
Methods
Social psychology is an empirical science that attempts to answer questions about human behavior by testing hypotheses, both in the laboratory and in the field. Careful attention to sampling, research design, and statistical analysis is important. Results are published in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Social psychology studies also appear in general
Read MoreMeasurement, Sampling, Research Design, and Surveys in Quantitative Research
Unit 6: Chapter 5: Principles of Measurement
Define Measurement and Understand its Role in Quantitative Research
- Measurement involves assigning numbers to data to mark characteristics, linking conceptual ideas to empirical observations. In quantitative research, measurement is used to gather data to answer questions. It serves as both a descriptive and evaluative device.
Distinguish Between Categorical and Continuous Data (Nominal vs. Ordinal, Interval, Ratio)
- Categorical data includes nominal and ordinal
Animal Research: Ethics, Regulations, and Neurotransmission
Animal Research: Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages:
- Animals are simpler, more likely to reveal fundamental brain/behaviour interaction.
- Allows comparative research.
- Some experiments are not possible in humans.
Disadvantages:
- Humans are more efficient and cheaper to test.
- Animal lives should be as respected as humans.
Animal Research Regulations
Animals Act 1986: Strict regulation of all research involving vertebrates and cephalopods, no great apes. Only authorised if no other animal can be used (dogs,
Read MoreNeural Computation and Decision-Making in Saccadic Eye Movements
Neural Computation of Log Likelihood in Control of Saccadic Eye Movements
Latency is related to the evaluation of the existence of a signal. Neural integration of the signal’s existence: if the threshold is reached (→), the signal exists. Changing the prior by changing how many times it goes left/right changes the latency. For low latency, we assume express saccades. The prior changes, so the slope changes, converging to the same threshold.
Neuronal Correlates of a Perceptual Decision
Decision-making
Read MoreStatistical Analysis: Multiple Regression, MANOVA, Factor Analysis, and SEM
Multiple Regression (MR)
Standard MR is used when wanting to know the proportion of variance in a dependent variable (DV) that can be predicted by a set of independent variables (IVs). It is used to examine the importance of IVs using standard regression coefficients and semi-partial correlations. The semi-partial correlation is the unique variance in the DV predicted by an IV in the context of the total amount of variance the IV shares with the DV (square of the correlation between IV and DV). To
Read MoreRelevance in Cognition: Interest and Mental Effort
Defining Relevance
A. Interest (Cognitive Effects)
The criterion for evaluating possible interpretations that Sperber and Wilson propose in Relevance develops from a basic assumption about human cognition. The assumption is that human cognition is relevance-oriented: our whole cognitive system is geared to picking out information that is potentially relevant to us.
Information can be relevant without being communicated at all. Sperber & Wilson want to define a notion of relevance that applies not
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