Psyc 105 Midterm 1
Study Guide
Chapter 1
Understand the following terms and the role they play in the scientific process:
- Empiricism
- Falsifiability (this was covered in lecture 2 as well)
- Sunk cost fallacy
- The Dunning-Kruger effect
- Confirmation bias (this was covered in the Science vs. Pseudoscience lecture as well)
Be familiar with the scientific method. What are the steps? What is its purpose?
What differentiates scientific hypotheses from non-scientific hypotheses? What are the important
ingredients of scientific theories/hypotheses covered in lecture? These ideas were expanded upon in
chapter 2 as well.
Understand the definitions of basic and applied research, and be able to compare/contrast them.
Chapter 2
Understand the following terms and the role they play in the scientific process:
- Parsimony
- Random assignment
- Directionality
- Confounds
- Critical region
Know the differences between each of these pairs. Be able to identify examples of each term.
- Variables vs. constants
- Quantitative vs. categorical
- Discrete vs. continuous
- Populations vs samples
- Type I error vs. Type II error
Be able to define and recognize examples of each scale of measurement:
- Nominal
- Ordinal
- Interval
- Ratio
Be familiar with correlations and the correlation coefficient (r). Given a particular value of r, be able to
identify whether the correlation is strong, moderate, weak, positive, or negative.
Be familiar with the three criteria for causation. Know why each point is important in establishing causal
relationships.
Be able to define and calculate each measure of central tendency. Calculations will not be particularly
difficult (e.g., what is the mean of the following data set: 1, 3, 4, 8?)
- Mean
- Median
- Mode
Chapter 3
We covered a handful of real-world examples in this lecture. Understand the role the following two
examples played in the evolution of research ethics guidelines in America (e.g., The Tuskegee
Experiments led to the Belmont Report):
- Nazi medical experiments
- The Tuskegee Experiments
And understand why the following examples were unethical:
- The Stateville Malaria Experiment
- The Willowbrook Hepatitis Study
- The U.S. Navy Mustard Gas Trials
What precedent of guidelines did each of the following documents establish? What order did they occur
in historically (i.e., which came first, second, and last)?
- The Nuremberg Code
- The Belmont Report
- The APA Ethical Principles for Human Research
Be able to define and recognize examples of each of the following as they pertain to the ethical
principles covered in lecture:
- Justice
- Respect for persons
- Beneficence
- Fidelity and responsibility
- Integrity
- Protection of vulnerable populations
o What are some examples of vulnerable populations?
Be able to define each of the following terms and explain their role in research ethics:
- Informed consent
- Deception
- Debriefing
What is the role of and IRB? What is the role of an IACUC? What are the “Three R’s” as they pertain to
animal research?
Science vs. Pseudoscience
Know how the following techniques are used to make pseudoscientific ideas more convincing:
- Confirmation bias
- Symbols of legitimacy
- The illusion of consensus and expert support
- Falsification/fabrication of data
The following examples of pseudoscience were included in this lecture because they exemplified one of
the above techniques. Know which technique(s) they used, and understand why they were so damaging
and dangerous (e.g., phrenology was used to support slavery).
- Dragan Dabic
- Phrenology
- Alan Sokal’s publication (he was one of the “good guys” but understand the point he was
trying to make)
- Thalidomide
- Hyung-In Moon
- Andrew Wakefield
- Holding Therapy
- The Secret
- True Frequency’s “magic bracelets”
How does the scientific method help us combat pseudoscience and false claims? What are the steps it
entails?
What role do data, falsifiability, and parsimony play in the formation of sound scientific theories?
