Strengths And Weaknesses Of Social Psychology

Dunbar, G. (2005). Evaluating Research Methods in Psychology. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Research methods are “the various specific tools or ways data can be collected and analysed, e.g. a questionnaire, interview, etc.” (Neville, C, 2007).

Observational methods involve an investigator viewing users as they work and taking notes on the activity which takes place. Observation may be either direct, where the investigator is actually present during the task, or indirect, where the task is viewed by some other means such as through use of a video camera.

"Correlation is a measure of association that tests whether a relationship exists between two variables. It indicates both the strength of the association and its direction (direct or inverse). The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient, written as r, can describe a linear relationship between two variables" Correlation (n.d). As a human service professional and completing research there are advantages and disadvantages to correlational research methods, such as using correlational research it allows us to collect data and determine the strength and direction of what it is we

Psychological research describes investigations psychologists undertake in order to review and analyse a specific hypothesis, (a theory about the relationship between defined variables). Research allows theories to be confirmed, amended or rejected and often leads to further research as requirements evolve. Psychological research can take many forms, from laboratory based experiments to non-invasive viewing of subjects in their own environment. This research can take place using human or non-human subjects and the analysed results applied to human behaviour or experience within many disciplines including, education, legal or occupational.

139). It is an assumed linear association between two variables that is quantified by a single statistical number. The correlation coefficient measures the strength of the association between the two variables, 0 means there is no correlation, 1 means there is a perfect positive correlation, -1 means there is a perfect negative correlation. "The sample correlation coefficient, denoted r, ranges between -1 and +1 and quantifies the direction and strength of the linear association between the two variables. The correlation between two variables can be positive (i.e., higher levels of one variable are associated with higher levels of the other) or negative (i.e., higher levels of one variable are associated with lower levels of the other) (bumc.bu.edu, 2013)." Correlation is the most appropriate because it is easy to calculate and easy to

Observational methods involve an investigator viewing users as they work and taking notes on the activity which takes place. Observation may be either direct, where the investigator is actually present during the task, or indirect, where the task is viewed by some other means such as through use of a video camera.

variety of topics. Social psychologists study a variety of topics, including views of the self,

The principles and theories of Social Psychology are important and useful in assessing behaviors in situations. These social psychological principles and their applications can be seen in fictional films which can also be attributed to everyday life. One such film that holds certain social psychological perspectives is Will Gluck’s 2010 production of Easy A. A film about high school student Olive Penderghast and how a sudden change in popularity and financial status, after an unintentional rumor about how she supposedly lost her virginity to a college guy spread through the entire her school. The film draws on the behavioral connections of pronounced hussy Olive Penderghast and her English class’s assigned reading of The Scarlet Letter.

Six of the most popular sociological research methods (procedures) are the case study, survey, observational, correlational, experimental, and cross‐cultural methods, as well as working with information already available.

In Psychology 101 we learned that research methods are used in order to understand our mental and behavioral processes by making observations in a systematic way, following strict rules of evidence and thinking critically about that evidence. This scientific research is based on theories (tentative explanations of observations in science), hypotheses (predictions based on a theory) and replication (testing a hypothesis in more than one study). Some of the different research methods are firstly, descriptive studies. Descriptive studies are studies that use survey methods, naturalistic observation and clinical methods. Another research method is correlational studies. Correlational studies are studies that help one to determine if a relationship exists between two or more variables and if so it tells one how strongly those two variables relate to one another. With in correlational studies one can have positive correlation (as one variable increases or decreases so does the other), negative correlation (variables go in opposite directions) or zero correlation (no relationship between the variables). Another research method is formal experiments. Formal experiments are studies that allow us to draw conclusions about how one variable may cause or have an effect on another variable. With in formal experiments there are four elements, which are the independent variable (variable that is manipulated or controlled), the dependent variable (variable that is measured), the experimental

My whole life people wouldn’t consider me as a regular human being. I’m weird, awkward, and sensible. Since my childhood I’ve been called a nerd and a geek only because I was fascinated by how water is one of our greatest components or how space could one day save mankind, but if I look back on how I was so mesmerized by such beauty that surrounded our planted I would say I was up to something. Before college I enjoyed almost everything about what I was doing with myself.

What judgments do we make about others? Everyday we make judgments in our social interactions about why others act the way they do, which is known as

Case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observations are a few research methods used by psychologists to facilitate the understanding of behavior. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages that are used in particular research scenarios. Techniques like observation or interactions between the researcher and the subject(s) such as extensive interviews to restrained experiments are what some research methods heavily rely on to be validated.

There are three main types of descriptive methods: observational methods, case-study methods and survey methods. This article will briefly describe each of these methods, their advantages, and their drawbacks. This may help you better understand research findings, whether reported in the mainstream media, or when reading a research study on your own.