chapter 1
psychology, research, and you

Chapter Outline		2
Learning Objectives		4
Lecture Enhancers
	Psychology and Common Sense	5
	Fact-of-the-Month Club	7
	African Americans and Psychology	7
	Deception in Research: The Case Against It	7
	An Historical Perspective on Research Ethics	7
	Improving Informed Consent	8
	Is Animal Research Cruel and Unjustified?	9
Student Assignments
	Exploring Psychology Through Art	11
	Psychology and the Media	11
	Using Sherlock Holmes to Teach Observation and Inference	11
Demonstrations and Activities
	Using Memory to Demonstrate Methodology	13
	Perceptions of the Professor	13
	Misconceptions About Psychology	14
	Are Psychologists Scientists?	15
	Careers in Psychology	15
	Understanding Random Assignment	16
	Promoting Cultural Awareness	17
	Wonder Horse Dials 911 to Save Boy's Life	17
	Soften Hands While You Do Dishes	18
	Debate: Is It Ethical to Use Animals in Psychological Research?	18
Video		19
Transparencies		24
Handout
	Knowledge of Psychology Test	25

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chapter outline

I. Becoming a Psychological Detective

A. Psychology is the science of behavior and mental processes

1. As scientists, we approach this topic in a particular way

a. Much like a detective, psychologists look for clues, evaluate evidence, form hypotheses, make deductions, and so on

B. Arthur Conan Doyle and the photographs of fairies
1. Spirit mediums in the early part of this century bamboozled a number of people who should have known better

a. Biased toward believing, Doyle thought fairies were real

C. Mentalism revealed
1. The claims of mentalists provide practice for critical thinking skills

2. The Law of Parsimony advises us on what type of explanations to adopt

a. All things being equal, the simpler of two accounts is preferred

D. Guidelines for the psychological detective
1. What is the claim and who is making it?

2. Is the claim based on scientific observations?

3. What do statistics reveal?

4. Are there plausible alternative explanations for the claim?

II. Research Methods in Psychology

A. Like all sciences, psychology relies on the scientific method
1. Theories, hypotheses, and predictions are used in investigation

B. Case study
1. A single individual is studied in great detail

C. Naturalistic observation
1. The study of naturally-occurring behavior in its typical setting

D. Correlational research
1. Scatterplots and coefficients tell us the degree of relationship between variables

E. Survey research
1. A representative sample is polled on particular issues

F. The experimental method
1. The effect of independent variables on dependent variables is measured

2. Comparing the outcomes of a control group and an experimental group

G. Statistics and psychologists
1. Descriptive and inferential statistics allow psychologists to reach conclusions from research

H. Research ethics
1. APA guidelines for human and animal participants are closely followed

III. The Origins of Modern Psychology

A. Wundt and Structuralism
1. A focus on the basic elements of conscious experience, using introspection

B. Functionalism
1. A focus on the functions of consciousness - what the mind does and why

C. Gestalt psychology
1. Perception of wholes, seeking good form

D. The Behavioral perspective
1. An emphasis on observable behavior and the learned nature of behavior

E. Sigmund Freud and the psychodynamic perspective
1. A focus on unconscious forces influencing thought and behavior

F. The Humanistic perspective
1. Free will, personal growth, self-control of behavior are emphasized

G. The physiological perspective
1. The physiology of the body is used to explain thought and behavior

H. The cognitive perspective
1. Thinking, reasoning, memory, information processing are emphasized

I. The cultural and diversity perspective
1. The contributions of female and African American psychologists are increasingly appreciated

IV. Present-day psychology

A. Currently, many psychologists adopt an eclectic approach to studying behavior
1. In part, this reflects the growing diversity among psychologists

a. Previous barriers of race, gender, are being overcome

V. Psychological Specialties

A. Clinical and counseling psychology
1. This largest subspecialty attracts those interested in studying and treating disorders

a. Psychiatry is a related, yet distinct, medical specialty

B. Other specialties
1. Research psychologists study a wide variety of topics

a. Animal behavior, development, cognition, biopsychology, education, personality, motivation, social processes, psychometrics, sensation

b. School psychologists apply psychology in educational settings

c. Industrial and organizational psychologists focus on the workplace

i. Some specialize in ergonomics

d. Consumer psychologists study consumer choices and consumer behavior

e. Health psychologists focus on biopsychosocial factors related to health

2. Emerging specialties

a. Forensic psychologists apply psychology to the legal system

b. Sport psychologists study athletes and leisure pursuits

c. Neuropsychologists focus on the brain

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learning objectives

Students should be able to:

1. Explain how an awareness of personal bias and of the law of parsimony can help in assessing claims made by others.
2. List and explain four guidelines for evaluating psychological information.
3. Explain the significance of structuralism, functionalism and the work of the Gestalt psychologists in the early history of psychology.
4. Describe the behavioral perspective and summarize the contributions of Pavlov, Watson, and Skinner.
5. Describe the psychoanalytic perspective and discuss the contributions of Sigmund Freud.
6. Explain the humanistic perspective and discuss the contributions of Maslow and Rogers.
7. Describe the goals of the physiological and cognitive perspectives.
8. Explain the eclectic approach in modern-day psychology and describe the barriers that have limited the access to psychology for minorities and for women.
9. Explain the importance of clinical and counseling psychology in modern psychology.
10. Describe the followings areas of psychology: research psychology, school psychology, industrial and organizational psychology, consumer psychology, forensic psychology, sport psychology and neuropsychology.
11. Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the case study method and naturalistic observation as research techniques.
12. Explain the nature of correlational research and describe the type of information summarized in the correlation coefficient.
13. List and describe the factors that influence the accuracy of survey research.
14. Describe the components of the experimental method and explain why it is considered a powerful research technique.
15. List and describe ethical principles relevant to research with human participants and with animals.

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lecture enhancers

Psychology and Common Sense

A common refrain voiced by laypeople and scientists is that most, if not all, of behavioral science "is just common sense." Introductory psychology students are particularly apt to make this claim, given that much of their prior exposure to psychology is likely to have been very common-sensical (though perhaps not well-established) claims by a variety of "professionals" on the talk-show circuit. In a nutshell, it's difficult to counter the "common-sense" stigma when so much of behavior seems to be explainable at an intuitive surface level.

Mark Leary shares some suggestions for discussing this issue with your students. It is true that the subject matter of psychology is much more familiar to most people than is the subject matter of subatomic physics or gastroendocrinological biology; we see behavior all around us, but rarely trip over a gluon. Psychology would be an odd science of thought and behavior if it only considered thoughts and behaviors completely foreign to people's experiences, or if its findings always ran counter to most people's beliefs. But neither greater visibility of subject matter nor popular consensus guarantee greater understanding. Many people believed whole-heartedly in flat Earths and cheese moons only to find their common-sense views dismantled in the face of scientific evidence. So too with psychology. Although most people would like to believe that large rewards produce greater liking for a boring task, that the behavior of men and women is determined by their biology, or that absence makes the heart grow fonder, researchers studying cognitive dissonance, sex-role stereotypes, and close relationships would be happy to share their findings to the contrary. In short, the popularity of a common-sense belief may not always support the weight of scientific evidence.

More importantly, psychologists (like all scientists) are primarily engaged in the task of explaining behavior, rather than merely cataloging it. The difference between theory and description -"why" versus "what" - echoes the difference between science and common sense. Common sense certainly helps describe what takes place in behavior, but doesn't compel us to understand why it takes place. The development of theory in understanding behavior sets science apart from everyday, common-sense accounts.

Leary, M. (1995). Behavioral research methods (2nd ed., pp. 24-25). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

Fact-Of-The-Month Club

The American Psychological Association celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1992. To commemorate this occasion, Warren Street compiled historical citations relevant to psychology for each day of the year. A handful of these are presented below for you to share with your students; a daily citation can be found at: www.cwu.edu/~warren/today.html.

January 2, 1925		APA is incorporated
8, 1902		Carl Rogers' birthdate
9, 1878		John B. Watson's birthdate
11, 1842		William James' birthdate
29, 1954		Gordon Allport's The Nature of Prejudice is published
February 1, 1844		G. Stanley Hall's birthdate
18, 1896		Fritz Heider's birthdate
28, 1939		Dollard, Doob, Miller, Mowrer, and Sears publish Frustration and Aggression
March 4, 1888		Howard Long, early Black psychologist, is born
7, 1897		J. P. Guilford's birthdate
18, 1959		Festinger and Carlsmith publish "Cognitive consequences of forced compliance"
20, 1904		B. F. Skinner's birthdate
30, 1863		Mary W. Calkins' birthdate
April 14, 1886		Edward C. Tolman's birthdate
15, 1880		Max Wertheimer's birthdate
16, 1943		Albert Hoffman "feels odd" after absorbing LSD-25 in his lab
25, 1968		Darley and Latane publish "Bystander intervention in emergencies"
May 6, 1907		Kenneth Spence's birthdate
8, 1919		Leon Festinger's birthdate
13, 1893		Henry Murray's birthdate
15, 1917		Eleanor Maccoby's birthdate
24, 1884		Clark Hull's birthdate
June 2, 1922		Lange and James publish The Emotions
7, 1890		Karl Lashley's birthdate
14, 1920		Francis Sumner, first Black Ph.D., Clark University
26, 1878		G. Stanley Hall, first American psychology Ph.D., Harvard
July 11, 1857		Alfred Binet's birthdate
16, 1965		Robert Zajonc publishes "Social facilitation" in Science
25, 1871		Margaret Floy Washburn's birthdate
August 5, 1903		Rensis Likert's birthdate
9, 1896		Jean Piaget's birthdate
15, 1933		Stanley Milgram's birthdate
16, 1832		Wilhelm Wundt's birthdate
25, 1974		Journal of Black Psychology published
September 4, 1929		Psi Chi founded
9, 1890		Kurt Lewin's birthdate
13, 1890		James' Principles of Psychology published
17, 1904		Carl Stumpf studies Clever Hans, the wonder horse
26, 1849		Ivan Pavlov's birthdate
October 9, 1981		Roger Sperry awarded Nobel Prize for split-brain research
11, 1885		Freud leaves to study with Charcot in Paris
30, 1942		MMPI first published
31, 1905		Harry Harlow's birthdate
November 6, 1929		E. G. Boring publishes A History of Experimental Psychology
11, 1897		Gordon Allport's birthdate
20, 1875		Wundt's first lecture at Leipzig
December 1, 1847		Christine Ladd-Franklin's birthdate
11, 1893		Psychological Review published
22, 1903		Magda B. Arnold's birthdate
27, 1892		First annual APA convention at University of Pennsylvania

Street, W. R. (1992). American Psychological Association 1992 centennial calendar. Washington, DC: APA.

African Americans and Psychology

Like women, African Americans faced many obstacles to their education and participation in psychology. Most white institutions would not accept African American students, and when they were able to enroll, they often experienced discrimination. In addition, few undergraduate black colleges offered a major in psychology until after the 1940s. Howard University, the only major black university offering graduate study, awarded 32 Ph.D.s to African Americans from 1920 to 1950. During the same period only eight African Americans earned a Ph.D. from one of the ten most prestigious white universities. Not only was earning the Ph.D. difficult, employment opportunities were scarce for African American psychologists since neither white universities nor organizations in the private sector would hire them. Most taught at black colleges where opportunities to engage in research were limited, thus restricting opportunities for professional recognition. The situation for African American students has improved dramatically in recent years. Kenneth B. Clark, best known for his research on the effects of racial segregation, became the first African American elected as APA president in 1970.

Guthrie, R. V. (1976). Even the rat was white: A historical view of psychology. New York: Harper and Row.

Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (1992). A history of modern psychology (5th ed.). Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.

Reprinted from Hill, W. G. (1995). Instructor's resource manual for Psychology by S. F. Davis and J. J. Palladino. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Deception in Research: The Case Against It

The ethical principles of the American Psychological Association allow for the use of deception in research as long as it is justified by the study's prospective value, no alternatives are available, and the participants are given a full explanation of the study as soon as possible. Diana Baumrind, however, argued strongly against any use of intentional deception in psychological research (such as withholding information to ensure that subjects will participate, using deceptive instructions, or using staged manipulations in naturalistic settings). She attributed its justification to the adoption of an act-utilitarianism meta-ethic. That is, a particular action, in this case deception, is perceived as being acceptable if no other action would have better consequences. She criticized act-utilitarianism on the basis that it fails to account for long-range costs, the rights of the minority, and its subjectivity. She argued that deception is morally wrong on the basis of three generally accepted ethical rules in Western society: the right of informed consent, the obligation of researchers to protect the welfare of the subject, and the responsibility of researchers to be trustworthy. Furthermore, she argued that the costs of deception to the research participant (for example, undermining their trust in their own judgment), profession of psychology (loss of community support for their research or suspicion of always trying to "trick" the research participant), and society (the potential that trust in authority will be undermined) outweigh its use in research. Alternatives to using deception proposed by Baumrind included conducting naturalistic rather than experimental research, introspection about the phenomenon by researchers and their confederates rather than experimental manipulations, and detailed debriefing by a skilled and concerned professional.

Baumrind, D. (1985). Research using intentional deception: Ethical issues revisited. American Psychologist, 40, 165-174.

Reprinted from Hill, W. G. (1995). Instructor's resource manual for Psychology by S. F. Davis and J. J. Palladino. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

An Historical Perspective on Research Ethics

When discussing the ethical treatment of human research participants several "classic" studies, which would be ethically questionable by today's standards, serve as examples. For instance, many instructors discuss Stanley Milgram's studies of obedience, Philip Zimbardo's prison simulation, or Stanley Schachter's studies of autonomic arousal and attribution. Students often have mixed reactions to these examples. Some find them relatively innocuous, whereas others have strong reactions to the treatments participants were asked to endure. The fact that such studies took place within relatively recent times compounds the issue. Some students see these 1960s experiments as "long ago and of a different time," whereas others see them as examples of the "unethical treatment psychologists still foist on people to this day."

To provide a context for these types of issues, your students might be interested in hearing about older examples of ethically questionable research. For example, Carney Landis, a noted psychologist of the 1920s and 1930s, conducted a series of studies dealing with the experience and expression of emotion. In one set of studies he was particularly interested in capturing facial expressions of emotion, and used strong elicitors of emotion to produce them. For example, one situation involved dropping a lit firecracker underneath an unsuspecting subject's chair, whereas another involved showing participants pornographic (for their day) photographs and photos of horribly disfiguring skin diseases.

Although these manipulations may seem harsh, Landis used stronger ones as well. For example, participants were instructed in one situation to plunge their hand into a pail of shallow water that, unbeknownst to them, contained 3 live frogs. (This manipulation was presumably used to evoke disgust.) To quote Landis, however..."After the subject had reacted to the frogs the experimenter said, 'Yes, but you have not felt everything yet, feel around again.' While the subject was doing so he received a strong...shock from an induction coil, attached to the pail by concealed wiring."

And for the coup de grâce:

"The table in front of the subject was covered with a cloth. A flat tray and a butcher's knife were placed on the cloth. A live white rat was given to the subject. He (sic) was instructed, 'Hold this rat with your left hand and then cut off its head with the knife.'...In five cases where the subjects could not be persuaded to follow directions the experimenter cut off the head while the subject looked on."

Mention is also made of a final experiment involving shock which "...varied from a just noticeable intensity to a strength which caused the subject to jump from the chair," as well as other studies. Landis' participants, in passing, included graduate students, a stenographer, a school teacher, and a thirteen-year-old boy with high blood pressure.

Although Landis has been singled out for examination here, there certainly are no lack of experiments from the 1920s through the 1960s work mentioned above that can provide examples of ethically dubious research. Discussing such studies, especially in light of current APA standards, should produce spirited discussion among your students.

Landis, C. (1924). Studies of emotional reactions II: General behavior and facial expression. Comparative Psychology, 4, 447-509.

Improving Informed Consent

Informed consent is one of the hallmarks of the ethical treatment of research participation. But for some participants, reviewing information about a study and agreeing to participate may not be the seamless act we assume it to be. In particular, considerable concern has been raised over the ability of individuals with severe psychological disturbances to fully appreciate the risks and benefits of their research participation. A recent study, however, suggests that some techniques may boost patients' understanding of their role in the research process.

A team of investigators led by psychiatrist Donna A. Wirsching of the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs Medical Center recruited 49 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and who were already participating in clinical trials of several antipsychotic medications. The patients were read an informed-consent document that presented information about an upcoming clinical trial, then were given a survey designed to gauge how well they had understood what they heard. The survey asked about the study's goals and procedures, as well as the patients options as potential participant, the responsibilities of the physicians, and any potential side effects of the antipsychotic medication being tested. Five patients answered all of the survey questions correctly. The researcher immediately explained any items that were answered incorrectly to the remainder of the patients and readministered the survey. Twenty-six patients correctly answered all items on the second pass, and eighteen patients did so after three or more attempts. Importantly, all patients answered the majority of questions correctly when tested one week later, including those patients with the most severe thought disturbances and hallucinations.

These results suggest that relatively simple procedures can be enacted to assure that informed research participation really is informed. They also suggest that with a collaborative effort between the researcher and potential participant, even those individuals plagued by severe psychological disturbances can more fully appreciate their contributions to research.

Bower, B. (1998, December 5). Schizophrenia: Consenting adults...Science News, 154, 367.

Is Animal Research Cruel and Unjustified?

"The tools of the experimental psychologist are mutilation, castration, agony, starvation, and insanity" (Mobilization for Animals, 1984). Animal rights groups are making such claims as this with greater and greater frequency, and the morality of behavioral research using laboratory animals is being fiercely questioned. What are psychologists doing to their animals, and should they be allowed to continue doing it? Is animal research justified?

Behavioral research labs are being portrayed as chambers of horrors, and John McArdle of the Humane Society of the United States has suggested that torture is the central principle of psychology. Mobilization for Animals, a coalition of over 400 protectionist groups, has accused psychologists of giving intense, inescapable shocks to animals, mutilating and amputating their limbs, of killing them through food or water deprivation, of driving animals insane from the terror and despair of total isolation, and of smashing animals' bones and internal organs. Possibly most important is the claim that the research is done merely out of curiosity, with no purpose, justification, or likelihood of useful results. A 1984 Humane Society Close-up Report urged Humane Society members to demand the elimination of federal funding for behavioral research involving animals. It said, "Remember, experimental psychology is one area of research in which it is clear that no human good results from the unspeakable suffering of animals."

Aversive techniques are used in some behavioral research, but they are relatively uncommon and certainly not performed out of idle curiosity. A survey of the 608 articles published from 1979 to 1983 in journals of the American Psychological Association that report animal research indicated that none of the most extreme accusations are justified (Coile & Miller, 1984). For example, only 10 percent of the studies used any electric shock, and only 3.9 percent used inescapable shock of greater than .001 ampere (which can easily be tolerated on the fingertips). Also, 80 percent of the studies using shock or deprivation were funded by respected organizations that require thorough justification of all procedures and a statement of purpose. Experiments performed out of mere curiosity are not funded.

Coile and Miller admit that their survey might not represent a perfect evaluation of animal research, because they did not examine non-APA journals and because instances of cruelty might have occurred without being reported. Still, it is clear that since no cases of abuse appeared in the major psychology journals, abusive treatment of animals cannot be considered a central characteristic of psychology. Also, there are mechanisms that attempt to prevent the inhumane, irresponsible treatment of animals. Most research institutions and universities have ethics committees that evaluate research proposals. Rules and guidelines for the care and treatment of animals have been established by the Federal Animal Welfare Act and by the National Academy of Sciences, and these rules are enforced through inspections by federal and funding agencies.

The accusation that behavioral research on animals has not resulted in any benefit to humans is also unjustified. Such research has been responsible for major advances in human well-being (Miller, 1985). For example, the principles of learning established originally with animals have been used to improve classroom instruction and to provide more advanced treatments of enuresis (bed-wetting), anorexia nervosa (self-starvation), and scoliosis (curvature of the spine). Animal research has given rise to techniques to recover lost function in partially paralyzed limbs and to treat hypertension and headaches. Research on early visual deprivation in animals has shown that permanent neurological changes occur, leading the medical community to emphasize earlier detection and treatment of visual defects in human infants. Deprivation of normal and emotional contact in infancy has been associated with a growth hormone deficiency that can cause dwarfism. As a result, physical contact with premature infants is encouraged both for the emotional "bonding" of the parent and child and the physical development of the child.

Both sides have been guilty of distortion in their arguments on this issue. Abuse probably does occur, but it is not common. Some research may be of questionable validity, but animal research has resulted in many benefits, and besides, in many cases, no reasonable alternative exists (Gallup & Suarez, 1985). As Herzog (1988) has pointed out, the decisions being made concerning humanity's moral obligations to other species are often inconsistent and illogical. The moral status and rights of a mouse are greatly influenced by whether it is labeled lab animal, pest, or food source for other animals. To kill the lab animal might be criticized, whereas to kill "bad mice" (pests) or to use live mice as food for snakes or other animals is likely to produce little protest. We need neither complete prohibition nor complete license, but rather a calm, informed, and objective (as far as possible) evaluation along with reasonable standards and the means to enforce those standards. (Note: Suggestions for a student debate on this topic are given in the following Demonstrations and Activities section of this manual.)

Coile, D. C. & Miller, N. E. (1984). How radical animal activists try to mislead humane people. American Psychologist, 39, 700-701.

Gallup, G. G., Jr. & Suarez, S. D. (1985). Alternatives to the use of animals in psychological research. American Psychologist, 40, 1104-1111.

Herzog, H. A., Jr. (1988). The moral status of mice. American Psychologist, 43, 473-474.

King, F. A. (1984, September). Animals in research: The case for experimentation. Psychology Today, 18, 56-58.

McArdle, J. (1984, Spring). Psychological experimentation on animals: Not necessary, not valid. Humane Society News, 20-22.

Miller, N. E. (1985). The value of behavioral research on animals. American Psychologist, 40, 423-440.

Mobilization for Animals (1984, February). Direct Action Program 1984. Columbus, OH: Mobilization for Animals.

Rollin, B. E. (1985). The moral status of research animals in psychology. American Psychologist, 40, 920-926.

Reprinted from Whitford, F. W. (1995). Instructor's resource manual for Psychology: Principles and applications by S. Worchel and W. Shebilske. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

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student assignments

Exploring Psychology Through Art

Maureen Pierce suggests a unique ice-breaking assignment that encourages students to explore their ideas about psychology through the creation of a piece of artwork. After you have discussed the definition of psychology during the first or second class session, ask your students to create a piece of art that expresses and reflects their own ideas about the definition of psychology, some topic in the field of psychology, or something they hope to learn in the course. Tell your students that as long as the object reflects a psychological theme, the choice of materials and media is up to them. They should also include a short (1-2 page) summary statement that describes how the art reflects their understanding or definition of psychology. They should explain how and why they chose the media and materials used as well as how their creation specifically expresses their unique interpretation of psychology. Pierce reports that students are typically very creative in using a wide variety of media (including fabrics, modeling clay, and paints) to create sculptures, mobiles, and collages. She also notes that in addition to the fact that students are enthusiastic about the assignment, it gives them an opportunity at an early stage in the course to think critically, to explore the textbook, and to carefully consider their ideas about psychology.

Pierce, M. C., & Davis, S. F. (1995). Exploring psychology through the visual realm. Paper presented at the 103rd annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, New York, August.

Psychology and the Media

Do the media present a distorted image of psychology? The answer to this question is explored in a good first-week assignment suggested by Lester Sdorow. Instruct your students to spend a week or two observing and noting any coverage of psychology in the media (including radio and television, newspapers and magazines, and motion pictures). Place a copy of Benjamin's article on this topic on reserve in the library, and ask students to write a short (2-3 page) paper discussing the "popular" image of psychology from the perspective of their own observations as well as from those noted by Benjamin. Sdorow suggests that students' papers address the following questions: (a) Do the media present psychology more as a science or more as a form of common sense? (b) Do the media present the diverse fields of psychology or only a few? (If only a few, which are overrepresented and which are underrepresented?) (c) Do the media rely more on psychologists or self-proclaimed experts for information? (d) Do the media present psychological information more in a sober manner or in a sensationalistic manner?

Benjamin, L. T. (1986). Why don't they understand us? A history of psychology's public image. American Psychologist, 43, 87-94.

Sdorow, L. (1994). The Frankenstein course: Teaching assistants, laboratory exercises, and papers in introductory psychology. Paper presented at the Southwest Regional Conference for Teachers of Psychology, Fort Worth. Used by permission of the author.

Using Sherlock Holmes to Teach Observation and Inference:
Elementary, My Dear Watson

Chapter 1 discusses naturalistic observation as a research method as well as the importance of critical thinking in psychology. Jane Halonen suggests an excellent exercise that incorporates both of these ideals. In this assignment, students are asked to test their critical thinking and observation skills by assuming the identity of detective Sherlock Holmes. The basic premise is that Sherlock Holmes has carefully examined one of the student's personal environments (e.g., home, work, car, health club) and is attempting to find and meet the student based on clues derived from his investigation. Students are asked to write a short paper that consists of the letter that Sherlock Holmes might write to Dr. Watson describing his pursuit in detail, including the reason for it and the specific elements from the environment that justify his leads. This exercise should be assigned after you have talked about naturalistic observation and inference, and Halonen suggests that students' read Webb et al.'s (1981) excellent chapter on physical evidence in their Nonreactive Measures in the Social Sciences. According to Halonen, students react very enthusiastically to this assignment, as they enjoy the opportunity to disclose about themselves as well as to role-play the clever Holmes. Importantly, students' papers are typically very thoughtful and reveal many instances of critical thinking, such as extensive observations, use of concepts from the Webb chapter (e.g., erosion, garbology), logical but purposefully inaccurate inferences to add humor, and attention to the ethical dilemma of exploring private environments.

Halonen, J. S. (1986). Teaching critical thinking in psychology. Milwaukee: Alverno Productions.

Webb, E. J., Campbell, D. T., Schwartz, R. D., Sechrest, L., & Grove, J. B. (1981). Nonreactive measures in the social sciences (2nd. ed.). Boston: Houghton-Mifflin.

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demonstrations and activities

Using Memory to Demonstrate Methodology

This demonstration introduces the concept of the experimental method; however, it is equally applicable to the material on memory in Chapter 7. Students are given the question "Can we improve memory by using a mnemonic technique?" and are asked to design an experiment to test the hypothesis. The experiment is then conducted using procedures summarized below. Through this procedure, students are guided through a typical psychological experiment and are introduced to the concepts of independent variable, dependent variable, experimental and control groups, and control procedures.

Prepare a mnemonic technique and write it on small slips of paper to hand to some of the students (half of the class). Construct a list of common words to use in conjunction with the mnemonic. Here is one of many mnemonic techniques:

Begin a discussion of the experimental method by asking for definitions of a hypothesis. After discussing the students' definitions tell them that they are going to conduct an experiment in class and provide them with the question above as the hypothesis. After defining mnemonic techniques, inform the class that you have a mnemonic technique but need to know how to proceed from this point. Students are asked for input as to how to test the hypothesis. Usually someone proposes that the class be divided into two groups: one that receives the mnemonic and one that does not. Ask how the students should be assigned to each group. This leads us to a discussion of random assignment.

The experiment begins by passing out the slips of paper with the mnemonic to the "experimental" group. All students are then given the following instructions: "I am going to read a list of words; when I'm finished I want you to recall as many words as you can IN THE SAME ORDER AS THEY WERE READ." Tell the experimental group how to use the mnemonic: "The letters of the word correspond to the first letter of each word in the list, so you can use the word to help you remember the order of the words in the list."

Read the list of words, pausing about 4 seconds between words. Then tell the students to write down as many words as they can remember in the same sequence as they were read. Allow about three minutes of recall time, then ask the students to correct their own paper and tabulate the results on the board. This demonstration typically yields a large difference between the two groups. If desired, you can initiate a discussion of statistical inference and perhaps conduct some preliminary analyses. Discuss how the results pertain to the original hypothesis.

Adapted from Davis, S. F., & Palladino, J. J. (1994) Interactions: A newsletter to accompany Psychology, 1(Win), 1.

Perceptions of the Professor

This activity is both a good "ice-breaker" for the first class and an opportunity to generate some data for a discussion of impression formation. A basic principle of impression formation is that we form our opinions of others from very limited information (for example, physical appearance, tone of voice, age, occupation). In this activity, you'll have the students in your class share their inferences about you. At the start of the first class, enter the classroom and go through the normal routine of stating your name, the course title and number, and then go over the syllabus in detail. Immediately after discussing the syllabus, ask students to take out a blank sheet of paper and tell them that you are going to ask a series of questions about yourself in order to help them get to know you. Explain that it is their task to write down their best guess about what the answers are, and assure them that you will later give them all the "correct" answers. Then, proceed to ask them several questions that relate to concrete behaviors or characteristics or even about more abstract aspects of your personality. Although the questions may vary from class to class (and may depend on what you are comfortable revealing), potential questions include: How old do you think I am? Am I married? What kind of music do I like? What kind of car do I drive? What are some of my favorite TV shows? What are my hobbies or favorite leisure time activities? Do I like sports? Do I play any musical instruments? Am I liberal or conservative? Am I a Mac user or a PC fan? Am I a vegetarian? Am I an "outdoorsy" kind of person? Did I go to a large university or a small liberal arts college?

You can also give them the opportunity to ask additional questions (with the caveat that you can decline to answer a particular question for personal reasons). Instead of collecting their answers, go through the questionnaire by first asking them to share their answers and then giving them the correct answer. You can then use their answers to discuss impression formation and introduce them to social psychology as a field of study. This exercise, besides being fun for all involved, tends to be effective in "relaxing" the students and encouraging classroom discussion from the outset of the course. Lashley proposed a similar exercise to the one described above using a personality inventory that is designed to assess the class's perceptions of the professor and illustrate aspects of person perception.

Lashley, R. L. (1987). Using students' perceptions of their instructor to illustrate principles of person perception. Teaching of Psychology, 14, 179-180.

Adapted from Hill, W. G. (1995). Instructor's resource manual for Psychology by S. F. Davis and J. J. Palladino. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Misconceptions About Psychology

One of the most popular and venerable activities for the introductory course is the administration and subsequent discussion of misconceptions about psychology. Although a new 65-item multiple-choice test was developed by McCutcheon (1991), the most popular test is the Test of Common Beliefs developed by Vaughan (1977). Vaughan's test, however, has been criticized for the ambiguity of some of the items (Brown, 1984; Gardner & Dalsing, 1986; Ruble, 1986), the fact that all items have "false" as the correct response, which may lead to a response set tendency (Vaughan, 1977), and the finding that many of the items are not really misconceptions since they are often correctly answered (Gardner & Dalsing, 1986; Lamal, 1979). Griggs and Ransdell (1987) compared responses to Vaughan's Test of Common Beliefs from students that had taken an introductory psychology course in high school to those of several other studies (Lamal, 1979; Gardner & Dalsing, 1986; Vaughan, 1977). Using a criterion of at least a 50% error rate for an item (that is, they were answered as "true"), they identified 15 questions that met the criterion in at least two studies and had not been subject to earlier criticisms of ambiguity. These items are reproduced in Handout 1-1 and are ordered from highest to lowest with respect to their average error rate. You can administer these items to your class and use the responses as a starting point for a discussion on common sense notions and misconceptions about psychology. You may want to note to your students that many of these items are also answered incorrectly by psychologists and other social scientists (see Gardner & Hund, 1983). You can also tell your students that the correct answers to many of these items are discussed in their textbook.

Brown, L. T. (1983). Some more misconceptions about psychology among introductory psychology students. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 207-210.

Brown, L. T. (1984). Misconceptions about psychology aren't always what they seem. Teaching of Psychology, 11, 75-78.

Gardner, R. M., & Dalsing, S. (1986). Misconceptions about psychology among college students. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 32-34.

Gardner, R. M., & Hund, R. M. (1983). Misconceptions of psychology among academicians. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 20-22.

Griggs, R. A., & Ransdell, S. E. (1987). Misconceptions tests or misconceived tests? Teaching of Psychology, 14, 210-214.

Lamal, P. A. (1979). College students' common beliefs about psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 6, 155-158.

McCutcheon, L. E. (1991). A new test of misconceptions about psychology. Psychological Reports, 68, 647-653.

Ruble, R. (1986). Ambiguous psychological misconceptions. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 34-36.

Vaughan, E. D. (1977). Misconceptions about psychology among introductory psychology students. Teaching of Psychology, 4, 138-141.

Reprinted from Hill, W. G. (1995). Instructor's resource manual for Psychology by S. F. Davis and J. J. Palladino. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Are Psychologists Scientists?

Before introducing students to the various subfields of psychology, make the point that all psychologists, regardless of their area of expertise, are indeed scientists. This brief exercise (adapted from Smith, 1982) also illustrates students' stereotypical view of psychologists as clinicians. First, write the word "psychologist" on the board and ask students to describe some characteristics and traits of the typical psychologist. With encouragement to freely answer with any words or images that come to mind, the following responses frequently come up: caring, patient, warm, lying on a couch, soothing, good listener, giving advice, etc. After erasing these responses, write the word "scientist" on the board and ask students to do the same for the typical scientist. Their responses clearly indicate that their perceptions of "scientists" (which include traits like analytical, brilliant, and achieving, and images of conducting research and wearing lab coats and pocket protectors) are markedly different from their perceptions of "psychologists." Near the end of in the exercise, a few students will invariably catch on and ask, "But aren't psychologists scientists?", which leads the class into a discussion of why their perceptions are so divergent. By this time, the idea that psychologists are scientists that study the mind and behavior rather than genes, chemicals, or subatomic particles makes perfect sense, and I can then describe cognitive psychologists as scientists who study human mental processes, developmental psychologists as scientists who study changes in capacities throughout the lifespan, and so on. [As a side note, I also ask students whether the images they conjured up were male or female, and most confess that their images of both the psychologist and the scientist were male. This is always intriguing because I, a female psychologist, am leading the demonstration. - TG]

Smith, G. (1982). Introducing psychology majors to clinical bias through the adjective generation technique. Teaching of Psychology, 9, 238-239.

Careers in Psychology

In a mad rush to begin covering the tremendous amount of material in introductory psychology, many instructors overlook more practical issues that would be of interest to introductory students, especially those who think they might major in psychology . It's never to early to introduce students to psychology as a profession, and even students who do not major in psychology are bound to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for the field. After discussing the various subfields of psychology, devote some time (perhaps a class session) to issues pertaining to psychology as a career choice. There are a variety of activities and topics you could introduce, and several suggestions are given here.

To promote early student involvement in psychology, describe the goals and activities of Psi Chi, the National Honor Society in Psychology. Tell students (or better yet, bring in the Psi Chi President to tell students) about the requirements for joining (e.g., psychology major or minor, 3.0 GPA overall and in all psychology courses, completion of 3 semesters or 5 quarters of college courses) and the benefits of membership (e.g., interaction with psychology faculty and majors, participation in worthwhile activities related to psychology, an important honor that will be noticed by graduate schools). Along the same lines, explain to students how they might become student affiliates of the two biggest professional organizations in psychology, the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society (APS). Both organizations have student application forms that you can make available (Call APA at 800-374-2721; APS at 202-783-2077). Stress to students the benefits of presenting their research (perhaps in their sophomore or junior years) at one of these national conferences or perhaps at a regional one (e.g., Southwestern Psychological Association, Western Psychological Association).

Give your students the "straight dope" about graduate school -- how to get in, what it's really like, and what opportunities it affords. Tell students how you got interested in your major field and what life in graduate school was like. Explain degree plans (including how many years it takes, what is expected in the way of course work and research), funding opportunities (many students are surprised that teaching and research assistantships actually cover most graduate school expenses), and research and teaching opportunities. Bring in the latest edition of APA's Guide to Graduate Study in Psychology and give an overview of its purpose. Briefly outline for students what they should be doing during each year of their undergraduate career if they are interested in going to graduate school (e.g., when to study and take the GRE, when to send for applications, when to get research experience, when to ask for letters of recommendation). Encourage students to seek out a close relationship with a faculty member whose research interests coincide with theirs.

Finally, discuss career opportunities in psychology. Bring to class recent issues of the APA Monitor and APS Observer and show students representative job listings and requirements for consideration. Show either of two excellent APA-produced videos, Careers in Psychology: Your Options are Open (a brief, 9-minute segment that features a panel of psychologists from different specialties discussing career opportunities) or Career Encounters in Psychology (a longer, 28-minute segment that provides an overview of the diverse specializations and careers in psychology through interviews with several different types of psychologists). Have someone from your career counseling center give a talk on opportunities for psychology majors (he or she may also have data on the current employment status of recent psychology graduates). Better yet, invite to class (a) a psychologist from an applied setting (e.g., a clinician in private practice, an industrial/organizational psychologist, a sports or forensic psychologist) and (b) a psychologist who works in an academic setting (this could be you, another faculty member at your college or university, or someone outside your institution) to talk about career opportunities and experiences.

Understanding Random Assignment:
The In-Class Basketball Team

Expand on the text's treatment of research methods by discussing the procedure by which participants are assigned to conditions in an experiment. Explain that random assignment involves placing participants in experimental conditions in such a way that every participant has an equal chance of being placed in any condition. Participants can be assigned to conditions by any number of random methods, including flipping coins, drawing slips of paper out of a hat, or by using a random number table. Random assignment is a key feature of experiments because it ensures that the experimental groups are roughly equivalent (e.g., in age, intelligence, personality, attitudes, appearance, and so on) before the independent variable is manipulated. As a result, experimenters can be more confident that differences in behavior at the end of the experiment are due to the effects of the independent variable rather than to any preexisting differences between participants.

David Watson suggests a simple but clever exercise to demonstrate this principle (which can be difficult to understand in the abstract). Tell your class that you have invented a superior new way of coaching basketball and you would like to test the effectiveness of your method in an experimental context. One team (the experimental group) will be trained by your new method and the other team (the control group) will be trained by traditional methods. If your training method is indeed superior, then the team trained by your method should do better than the traditional team in a tournament. Explain to your class that you are worried about controlling for height, a variable that is obviously important in basketball (i.e., if all the tall players ended up, say, on the control team, the experimental team may lose the tournament and the loss might be attributed to failure of the new training method rather than to height, the true cause). Tell the class that you will randomly assign students to two teams by flipping a coin. Watson suggests using only one sex to avoid too much variation in height (he uses females because they are more plentiful in psychology classes). Randomly approach students in the class and flip a coin for each so that "heads" go to Team A and "tails" go to Team B. Ask students to stand on different sides of the room as they are assigned to one of the two teams. After 10 students are assigned to each team, Watson suggests lining up the members of each team (so that Team A is standing directly behind Team B) from tallest to shortest. Randomization should have ensured that the teams are clearly equal in height, and everyone will be satisfied that the height variable is eliminated from your experiment.

Watson, D. L. (1990). A neat little demonstration of the benefits of random assignment of subjects in an experiment. In V. P. Makosky, C. C. Sileo, L. G. Whittemore, C. P. Landry, & M. L. Skutley (Eds.), Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology: Vol. 3 (pp. 3-4). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Promoting Cultural Awareness

Lani Fujitsubo suggests an exercise that can be used profitably in Introductory Psychology as well as several other courses. Ask students to play the roles of family members and one or two newspaper reporters. The family is a group of aliens from outer space who have arrived on this planet, and the reporters are interviewing them for a story of interest to their readers. Fujitsubo provides the following script for the family member volunteers to rehearse:

"You are a family (mother, father, and child) from outer space whose spacecraft recently landed in the United States. You are doing your best to assimilate into this society and are being interviewed because your child won the local spelling bee. On your planet of origin you show respect by laughing out loud before answering a direct question. Men are not allowed to speak directly to others, and must whisper their requests to women who will then communicate directly. It is traditional to offer a gift or compliment to someone before making a request or asking for anything. If offended you use nonverbal communication to express your hurt feelings, the most common form of which is to briefly turn your back to the person. Apologies are made by briefly dipping your head. No one on your planet is considered more important than anyone else, and competition is an unknown concept. Eye contact with males is considered offensive. A question is usually never answered directly because this implies that someone is an expert and causes others to lose face."

After the demonstration poll the reporters and family members for their reactions. Reporters often feel frustrated, confused, misunderstood, or helpless in the face of this interaction where they don't know the "rules." Family members might also find themselves misunderstood, offended, or frustrated at the inability of the reporter to understand their situation. Class discussion of this activity can focus on the importance of appreciating differences among others and understanding where and how miscommunications might arise.

Fujitsubo, L. C. (1999). The importance of cross-cultural sensitivity in psychology. In L. T. Benjamin, B. F. Nodine, R. M. Ernst, and C. B. Broeker (Eds.), Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology (Vol. 4). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Wonder Horse Dials 911 to Save Boy's Life

Jane Halonen suggests a fun class exercise that tests students' understanding of experimental methodology principles. Once you have covered the basics of correlation, experimentation, and causal inference, challenge your students to apply these principles by examining the outrageous claims made in tabloid headlines, many of which imply a causal relationship (e.g., dreaming in black-and-white improves your sex life; garlic diet improves memory...but not breath; large gopher presence precedes volcano eruptions). For this exercise, bring in a variety of headlines from the Star, National Enquirer, Weekly World News, Globe, etc. that are psychology-related and causal-sounding (or ask students to bring in examples). Challenge students to design simple studies that will accurately test whether or not the relationship claimed in the headline is a valid one. Halonen reports that students enjoy the opportunity to "think like scientists" in response to humorous and outrageous claims and that this exercise helps stimulate them to scrutinize causal claims from all sources and to design experiments more carefully and creatively (and, if that isn't enough, they can practice their newfound skills in line at the grocery store!)

Halonen, J. S. (1986). Teaching critical thinking in psychology. Milwaukee: Alverno Productions.

Softens Hands While You Do Dishes

A variation of the tabloid exercise suggested above encourages students to apply experimental principles to claims they are bombarded with on a daily basis--television and magazine advertising. For this exercise, bring in (or have your students bring in) samples of advertising and have students critique the product claims of success according to principles of experimental methodology. Ads can be critiques on several grounds, including the problem of personal testimony as unreliable, the absence of a control or comparison group, the presence of extraneous variables, the presence of plausible alternative explanations, unclear or undefined variables, and a lack of supporting statistics. Jane Halonen reports that students become enthusiastic about the usually dreaded topic of experimental methodology when they realize it has the potential to make them smarter consumers.

Halonen, J. S. (1986). Teaching critical thinking in psychology. Milwaukee: Alverno Productions.

Debate:
Is It Ethical to Use Animals in Psychological Research?

There currently exists a heated controversy over the use of animals in psychological research, and an in-depth consideration of this important issue would make an excellent introduction to the topic of research ethics. This debate raises the question of whether the benefits of animal research outweigh the moral costs. On one hand are animal-rights supporters who allege inhumane treatment of laboratory animals and argue that the welfare of humans should not be placed above that of animals. On the other hand are researchers and scientists who argue that animal research is necessary and beneficial for society and that strict laws and guidelines are in place to protect laboratory animals. Use the debate procedures suggested at the beginning of this manual (or develop your own) and assign students to research and defend the sides of this issue. Excellent background resources for this discussion can be found in Taking Sides (Issue 3), American Psychologist, Psychological Science, and Newsweek (full references are given below).

Devenport, L. D., & Devenport, J. A. (1990). The laboratory dilemma: A solution in our backyards. Psychological Science, 1, 215-216.

Johnson, D. (1990). Animal rights and human lives: Time for scientists to right the balance. Psychological Science, 1, 213-214.

Miller, N. E. (1991). Commentary on Ulrich: Need to check truthfulness of statements by opponents of animal research. Psychological Science, 2, 422-423.

Rollin, B. E. (1985). The moral status of research animals in psychology. American Psychologist, 40, 920-926.

Slife, B. (1996). Taking sides: Clashing views on controversial psychological issues (9th ed.). Guilford, CT: Dushkin Publishing Group.

Staff (1988, December 26). Of pain and progress. Newsweek, 50-59.

Ulrich, R. E. (1991). Animal rights, animal wrongs and the question of balance. Psychological Science, 2, 197-201.

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video

African American Gender Roles (1994, 60 min, IM). The gender roles of African American men and women are traced to patterns established under slavery.

Against All Odds: Inside Statistics, Part 12: Experimental Design (1989, 30 min, ANN/CPB). Distinguishes between observational and experimental research and addresses basic principles of experimental design including comparison, randomization, and replication.

Against All Odds: Inside Statistics, Part 14: Samples and Surveys (1989, 30 min, ANN/CPB). Describes the importance of sampling within the context of administering and interpreting surveys.

Aspects of Behavior (1971, 31 min, IM). Describes subdivisions of psychology. Includes discussion by Stanley Milgram, John Darley, and Bibb Latane.

Behavioral Sciences (23 min, FHS). Social behavior, behavior in the workplace, and innate versus acquired behavior serve as themes in this exploration of why we do what we do. This video may be suitable for introducing students to psychology or for a discussion of genetic and biological influences on behavior.

Between Two Worlds (1998, 30 min, UC). A documentary of the lives of young Asian Americans grappling with their social and cultural identities in the US.

Black and White America (1988, 26 min, FHS). Five students of different races negotiate their lives based on how they feel about their own race, and how they perceive others feel about theirs.

Can You See the Color Gray? (1997, 54 min, UC). This video is really two 27-min segments that can be shown together or separately. Each deals with issues of racial attitudes and racial identity from the perspective of several young people who confront these issues.

Career Encounters: Psychology (1991, 28 min, IM). Provides an overview of specializations and careers in psychology through interviews with various types of psychologists, including research, clinical, sports, community, industrial/organizational, school, and health psychologists.

Cross-Cultural Communication in Diverse Settings (1992, 60 min, IM). Values, beliefs, and world views can influence the communication patterns between people, especially between members of different cultures. This video examines this important issue.

Culture (1991, 30 min, IM). A sociological look at cultural differences in the US. Profiles of Cajun society, Cherokee Indians, and Chinese settlements in the South are included.

Databases, Boolean Searches, and CD-ROMs (1994, 17 min, IM). A brief overview of how to perform database searches using techniques applicable to PsycINFO, ERIC, and other common systems.

Discovering Psychology, Part 1: Past, Present, and Promise (1990, 30 min, ANN/CPB). Provides a brief overview of the field of psychology, including its history and relationship to several other disciplines.

Discovering Psychology, Part 2: Understanding Research (1990, 30 min, ANN/CPB). Describes the scientific method, data collection and analysis, and the role of critical thinking in research.

Discovering Psychology, Part 26: New Directions (1990, 30 min, ANN/CPB). A discussion of future directions in the field of psychology by prominent psychologists.

Do Scientists Cheat? (1988, 60 min, MICH). Demonstrates that research misconduct can take many forms, "from sloppily done studies and negligence, to flagrant manipulation or fabrication of scientific data." This NOVA production examines why scientific fraud (which is still relatively rare but seemingly on the rise) is difficult to identify and details the many factors that inspire fraud. Analyzes how scientists instill and maintain quality control, and explores the scientific community's reaction to research fraud.

Domino: Interracial People and the Search for Identity (44 min, FHS). Six people of interracial backgrounds discuss how history, family politics, gender roles, and race hierarchies influenced their definitions of who they are.

Experimental Design (Parts I and II, 1989, 30 min each, ANN/CPB). Observation, experimentation, randomization, control groups, and causality are explored in this 2-tape set.

Experiments in Human Behavior (1985, 35 min, IM). This video uses several well-known studies to illustrate concepts such as independent variables, experimenter bias, or the differences between field and lab studies.

The Great Ideas of Psychology (48 parts, 1997, 45 min each, IM). This new series includes something for everyone. Daniel Robinson of Georgetown University delivers lectures on the history of psychology, major theories and systems, intelligence, testing, and biological determinism.

How We Study Children (1996, 24 min, IM). Observational and experimental techniques for gathering data from children are compared.

I'm Normal, You're Weird: Understanding Other Cultures (1997, 23 min, IM). As a group of extraterrestrial aliens prepares to take on human form, they begin to understand the complexities of cultural and individual differences.

Inferential Statistics: Hypothesis-Testing -- Rats, Robots, and Roller Skates (1975, 28 min, MEDIAG). Humorous sketches explain control groups, random assignment, and the formation of hypotheses.

Landmarks in Psychology (1980, 50 min, IM). Highlights the contributions of Freud, Jung, Adler, Pavlov, Horney, Maslow, Watson, and Skinner to the development of psychology using a historical narrative style and dramatizations.

Methodology: The Psychologist and the Experiment (1975, 30 min, IM). Discusses independent and dependent variables, control groups, random assignment. Schachter's "fear and affiliation" study is used as an example.

Observation (1993, 28 min, IM). The focus is on observing children, but a good primer on naturalistic observation in general.

Protecting Human Subjects: Balancing Society's Mandates (38 min, OPRR/NIH). Illustrates the basic ethical criteria used in evaluating research through following a research proposal through review by an Institutional Review Board (IRB).

Protecting Human Subjects: Evolving Concern (23 min, OPRR/NIH). Examines the historical developments that led to the current federal guidelines and programs to protect human subjects.

Psychology: Scientific Problem Solvers - Careers for the 21st Century (1995, 14 min, APA). This fast-paced, MTV-ish video provides a broad overview of psychology, presents interviews with psychologists working in a range of areas, and suggests strategies for pursuing a career in psychology.

Psychology: Understanding Ourselves, Understanding Each Other (1992, 29 min, APA). A walk through the recent popular museum exhibit of the same name. An engaging way to introduce students to psychologists' breadth of interests and laypeople's reactions to psychological information.

Research Methods (1990, 30 min, IM). Presents the basics of conducting sound research. The importance of solid theorizing combined with supporting data is emphasized.

Research Methods for the Social Sciences (1995, 33 min, IM). A variety of methods in a variety of social sciences are explored. Students should appreciate the basics of correlational, observational, and experimental research.

The Scientific Method (1988, 23 min, ANN/CPB). This Blue Ribbon winner at the American Film and Video Festival presents the research process from developing a hypothesis through testing it experimentally.

Scientific Method (1999, 15 min, FHS). This brief film presents the basics of the scientific method. A good refresher or a nice introduction.

Sociobiology: Doing What Comes Naturally (1976, 20 min, DOC). The sociobiological interpretation of behavior is presented in this brief film.

Speaking for Ourselves: Portraits of Gay and Lesbian Youth (1994, 27 min, IM). Five gay and lesbian youth from different cultural and economic backgrounds discuss substance abuse, alienation, HIV, homelessness, and activism.

Statistics and Psychology (24 min, FHS). This recent video uses data from the Applied Psychology Unit of Cambridge University to demonstrate correlations and how they are used in the conduct of science.

Teaching in a Diverse Classroom (30 min., CIDR). Four general strategies are described for teaching effectively in a diverse classroom. These include creating an environment of respect and openness, using curriculum choices to recognize diversity, responding to a variety of learning styles, and helping students feel connected to the university.

Two Research Styles (1991, 24 min, IM). Experimentation and observation are compared using profiles of two research programs. A good introduction to the array of research strategies available to psychologists.

Understanding Cultural Differences (1996, 30 min, IM). Interviews with students from a variety of cultural backgrounds help the viewer understand other cultural practices and values.

Understanding Our Differences: Mexicans and Americans (1998, 25 min, IM). Stereotypes of these two cultures often spark mistrust and conflict. The Petersons and the Garcias, two neighboring families, discuss their experiences.

Understanding Research (1990, 30 min, IM). This video draws on examples from psychology to present the basics of scientific methodology.

Using Samples (20 min, FHS). The differences between samples and populations, and the differences between different types of sampling, are explored. Confidence intervals, variability, and standard errors are also presented.

Valuing Diversity: Multicultural Communication (1994, 49 min, IM). Although this examination of similarities and differences in communication across cultures could be profitably used in a number of contexts, showing the video early in the semester may set the stage for later discussions of diversity issues.

What Is Psychology? (1990, 30 min, IM). A brief look at some major approaches, historical developments, and methodology in the discipline.

The Way of Science (58 min, FHS). Science and myth are both ways of explaining the world around us. How to choose one path versus the other, and why, are examined in this generalist approach to discussing the workings of science.

World Song (1993, 15 min, PYR). A collection of images from around the world, celebrating the diversity of different cultures. A novel way of introducing the topic of multiculturalism.

Writing for the Social Sciences (1991, 30 min, IM). Some extra help for students wanting to master the basics of effective communication in the social sciences.

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transparencies series IV

1.1 Psychology and Related Disciplines
As the study of individual human behavior, psychology is closely related to three other social and life sciences: sociology, anthropology, and biology.

1.2a Areas of Psychology: Basic
1.2b Describes typical research questions for various areas of psychology.

1.3a Areas of Psychology: Applied
1.3b Describes research questions in various applied areas.

1.4 Areas of Work of Psychologists
This transparency shows a breakdown of the percent of psychologists engaged in work in major fields. (1993 APA Directory Survey; Office of Demographic, Employment, and Educational Research, APA Education Directorate)

1.5 Basic Methods of Research: Correlational Research

This transparency describes correlational research and its advantages and limitations.

1.6 Examples of Actual Correlations from Psychological Research

Positive, negative, and 0 correlations are illustrated.

1.7 Basic Methods of Research: Experimental Research

This transparency describes experimental research and its advantages and limitations.

1.8 Anatomy of an Experiment

This transparency illustrates the process of experimental research using a study on the effects of watching violent television programs on children's aggression. The concepts independent variable, dependent variable, experimental group, and control group are covered.

1.9a Looking for Causes: Experimental Research

1.9b This transparency stresses that experimental research is the only research method that allows conclusions about cause and effect. The terms independent and dependent variable are compared and contrasted.

1.10 Basic Methods of Research: Naturalistic Observation

This transparency describes naturalistic observation and its advantages and limitations.

1.11 Results of a Naturalistic Observation of Distance and Social Dominance

If a sailor addressed a superior, he chose a distance that was farther away than if he addressed an equal or subordinate. Distance between the men was measured by observing the number of floor tiles between them (Dean, Willis, & Hewitt, 1975).

1.12 Basic Methods of Research: Surveys

This transparency describes survey research and its advantages and limitations.

1.13 Basic Methods of Research: Case Studies

This transparency describes case studies and their advantages and limitations.

1.14 Characteristics of Correlational and Experimental Research

These two methods are compared and the relative advantages of each are listed.

1.15a Ethical Principles of Research

1.15b Some of the guidelines for ethical treatment of research participants are described.

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transparencies series V

1. Fields of Specialization in Psychology
   This pie chart shows the fields of specialization for members of APA in 1997
2. Employment Settings for Psychologists
   This pie chart shows where psychologists work. The data are drawn from over 82,000 APA members
3. Basic Methods of Research: Correlational Research
   This transparency defines correlational research and states the advantages and limitations of this approach.
4. Examples of Actual Correlations from Psychological Research
   Examples of positive, negative, and zero correlations between two variables.
5. Basic Methods of Research: Experimental Research
   Defines the experiment and lists the advantages and limitations of this method.
6. Basic Model of an Experiment
   Presents the basic components of an experiment: population, sample, random assignment, experimental and control groups, independent and dependent variables.
7. Basic Methods of Research: Naturalistic Observation
   The advantages and limitations of naturalistic research are presented.
8. Basic Methods of Research: Surveys
   The advantages and limitations of this method are presented.
9. Basic Methods of Research: Case Studies
   The case study method is presented, listing the advantages and limitations of this approach.
10. a. Ethical Principles of Research
    b. This two-part transparency identifies the basic APA guidelines for conducting research.

74. Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Research
    This transparency contrasts these two research designs.

Handout 1-1

Instructions: Read each item carefully and then circle whether you believe the statement to be true or false.

T		F	To change people's behavior toward members of ethnic minority groups, we must first change their attitudes.
T		F	By feeling people's faces, blind people can visualize how they look in their minds.
T		F	Children memorize much more easily than adults.
T		F	Unlike humans, the lower animals are motivated only by their bodily needs--hunger, thirst, sex, etc.
T		F	"The study of the mind" is the best brief definition of psychology today.
T		F	The more you memorize by rote (e.g., poems), the better you will become at memorizing.
T		F	The best way to ensure that a desired behavior will persist after training is completed is to reward the behavior every single time it occurs throughout training (rather than intermittently).
T		F	Fortunately for babies, human beings have a strong maternal instinct.
T		F	The ability of blind people to avoid obstacles is due to a special sense that develops in compensation for their absence of vision.
T		F	By giving a young baby lots of extra stimulation (e.g., mobiles and musical toys), we can markedly increase its intelligence.
T		F	Psychiatrists are defined as medical people who use psychoanalysis.
T		F	Boys and girls exhibit no behavioral differences until environmental influences begin to produce such differences.
T		F	The high correlation between cigarette smoking and lung cancer proves that smoking causes lung cancer.
T		F	Genius is akin to insanity.
T		F	In love and friendship, more often than not, opposites attract one another.

Reprinted with permission from R. A. Griggs and S. E. Ransdell (1987), Misconceptions Tests or Misconceived Tests?, Teaching of Psychology, 14, 210-214. Copyright 1987 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.