What is research methods.ppt

What is research methods? Reviewing the ads What sorts of methods are used in the advertisements? Which of these is the most trustworthy method? Why? Thinking more about research methods Designed to help prevent mistakes that people naturally make when trying to find out about the world Human nature… As part of human nature, people want to find out about the world But people also want to feel like they’re correct And to be able to predict and control what will happen Consequences of human nature… Illusory correlation: people want to feel like they can predict what will happen in the world ? they try to figure out what’s related to outcomes that they care about ? they see relationships that aren’t really there E.g., lucky t-shirt, lucky pen More consequences of human nature… Confirmation bias: people want to be correct in their ideas of the world ? pay the most attention to evidence that supports their ideas ? pay little, if any, attention to evidence that doesn’t support their ideas E.g., every time wash car it rains – only notice times when wash car and it rains More consequences of human nature… Changing definitions: people want to be right, or want to make a particular conclusion about the world ? they may strategically change their definitions E.g., good students, good professors, good drivers More consequences of human nature… Ignoring the need for comparison groups: people tend to think that they know more than they do ? focus on what’s in front of them, and ignore other potentially relevant information E.g., Today show: who proposes; who’s a serial killer Making some decisions A panel of psychologists has interviewed and administered personality tests to 30 engineers and 70 lawyers, all successful in their respective fields. On the basis of this information, brief descriptions of these 100 individuals have been written. You will find below the description of one of these individuals, chosen at random from the 100 available. Please indicate what you think