CHAPTER 1: Introduction, Acquiring Knowledge • apply the hypothesis to a specific, observable, real-

& the Scientific Method world situation

• Deduction (deductive reasoning) - uses a general
statement as the basis for reaching a conclusion about
specific examples
METHODS OF KNOWING AND ACQUIRING o Step 4: Evaluate the Prediction by Making Systematic,
KNOWLEDGE
- ways in which a person can know things or discover answers to Planned Observations
questions • evaluate the prediction using the empirical method
(direct observation)
1. The Method of Tenacity - information is accepted as • data collection phase of the scientific method
true because it has always been believed or because variables
superstition supports it. o Step 5: Use the Observations to Support, Refute, or
2. The Method of Intuition - information is accepted on Refine the Original Hypothesis
the basis of a hunch or “gut feeling” • The final step of the scientific method is to compare
3. The Method of Authority (method of faith) - a person the actual observations with the predictions that were
relies on information or answers from an expert in the made from the hypothesis.
subject area. • the scientific method is not a linear process but rather
o Ex. consulting an expert directly, going to a library a circular process
or a website to read the works of an expert.
4. The Rational Method (rationalism) - seeks answers by
THE RESEARCH PROCESS
the use of logical reasoning
o premise statements - describe facts or o Quantitative Research - based on measuring variables
assumptions that are presumed to be true for individual participants to obtain scores, usually
o argument - a set of premise statements that are numerical values, which are submitted to statistical
logically combined to yield a conclusion analysis for summary and interpretation.
o Qualitative Research - based on making observations
5. The Empirical Method (empiricism) - uses
that are summarized and interpreted in a narrative
observation or direct sensory experience to obtain
report.
knowledge.
• The Steps of the Research Process
THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
- an approach to acquiring knowledge involving the formulation o Step 1: Find a Research Idea: Select a Topic and
of specific questions and systematically finding answers Search the Literature to Find an Unanswered
Question
- a developed system for asking and answering questions to
ensure the accuracy of the answers o Step 2: Form a Hypothesis
When you are selecting an answer to serve as your
hypothesis, you should pick the answer that seems
o Step 1: Observe Behavior or Other Phenomena
most likely to be correct.
• it begins with casual or informal observations. It does
not necessarily start with a well-planned, systematic o Step 3: Determine How You Will Define and
investigation Measure Your Variables
• Induction (inductive reasoning) - involves using a
relatively small set of specific observations as the basis o Step 4: Identify the Participants or Subjects for the
for forming a general statement about a larger set of Study, Decide How They Will Be Selected, and
possible observations. Plan for Their Ethical Treatment
o Step 2: Form a Tentative Answer or Explanation (a (human – participants, nonhumans – subjects)
Hypothesis) plan for the safety and well-being of the research
• begins by identifying variables that are associated participants and inform them of all relevant aspects
with your observation. of the research
• Variables - characteristics or conditions that change
or have different values for different individuals have o Step 5: Select a Research Strategy
a hypothesis or possible explanation
• Hypothesis - statement that describes or explains a
relationship between or among variables. It is not a
final answer but a proposal to be tested and
evaluated.
o Step 3: Use Your Hypothesis to Generate a Testable
Prediction
CHAPTER 2: Research Ideas & Hypothesis
• Using Online Databases
• Steps in the Research Process - typical database contains about 1 million publications,
o First - identify a general topic area that is interesting or records, that are all cross-referenced by subject words
to you. and author names
o Second - explore previous research in that topic area o full text - each record is a complete, word-for-word
to discover a specific research idea or question. copy of the original publication.
o non full text - provides more complete coverage of a
• Common Sources of Research Topics topic area
o Personal Interests and Curiosities
o Casual Observation • Screening Articles During a Literature Search
o Reports of Others’ Observations 1. Use the title of the article as your first basis for
o Practical Problems or Questions screening.
• Applied research- intended to answer practical 2. Use the abstract of the article as your second screening
questions or solve practical problems device.
• Basic research-intended to answer theoretical 3. Look for full-text article
questions or gather knowledge for the sake of new 4. Read the article carefully and/or make a copy for your
knowledge personal use.
o Behavioral Theories 5. Use the references from the articles that you found

SEARCH THE EXISTING RESEARCH LITERATURE • Conducting a Literature Search

o o narrow down your general idea to a specific research
IN A TOPIC AREA
question
o find all the published information documenting and
• Things you can do to Start a Review of Literature supporting the question
o Do your Homework - Read books and journal articles o start with a recently published secondary source in
to familiarize yourself with the topic the area of your idea
• Do not panic!
o Keep an Open Mind - -Begin with a general topic area • Helpful starting points:
and then let your background reading lead you to a 1. Subject words - list the correct terms, or subject
more specific idea. words, used to identify and describe the variables
o Focus, Focus, Focus - The goal is to develop one in the study and the characteristics of the
research question and to find the background participants.
information that is directly relevant to that question. 2. Author names
o Take One Step at a Time - It is not necessary to do
the whole thing at once. FINDING A RESEARCH IDEA FROM
A PUBLISHED ARTICLE
• Primary and Secondary Sources
o Primary Source - first hand report of observations or Finding Research Ideas
research results
Example: empirical journal articles, theses and o Find Suggestions for Future Research
dissertations, and conference presentations of • Look for explicit statements in the journal articles
research results. you already have
o Secondary Source - a description or summary of • Usually, a set of suggestions for future research
another person’s work is at the end of discussion section of most
Example: books and textbooks in which the author research reports.
describes and summarizes past research, review o Combine or Contrast Existing Results
articles or meta-analyses, newspaper and
magazine articles that report on previous
research.

• The Purpose of a Literature

2 basic goals

o to gain with the current research in your specific area

of interest
o to find a small set of research studies that will serve
as the basis for your own research idea.
• Components of a Research Article-Critical Reading
1. Introduction
• discusses previous research that is
fundamental to the current research study
• presents a clear statement of the problem
being investigated.
2. Methods
presents details regarding the participants and the
procedures used in the study
3. Results
presents the details of the statistical analysis
4. Discussion
begins by summarizing the results of the study,
stating the conclusions, and noting any potential
applications
5. Reference
lists complete references for all items cited in the
report

USING RESERARCH IDEA TO FORM A HYPOTHESIS

AND CREATE A RESEARCH STUDY
• Characteristics of a Good Hypothesis
1. Logical
• founded in established theories or developed from
the results of previous research
• logical conclusion of a logical argument
2. Testable
• one for which all of the variables, events, and
individuals can be defined and observed.
3. Refutable
• it must be possible to obtain research results that
are contrary to the hypothesis
• falsifiable hypothesis, is a critical component of
the research process.
4. Positive
• it must make a positive statement about the
existence of usually a relationship, the existence
of a difference, or the existence of a treatment
effect.

• Using a Hypothesis to Create a Research Study

• transform the general hypothesis into a specific
research study
CHAPTER 3: Defining & Measuring Variables • Validity of Measurement
- the degree to which the measurement process measures
the variable that it claims to measure.
CONSTRUCTS & OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS
• Theories and Constructs o Face Validity- an unscientific form of validity
o Theory - a set of statements about the mechanisms demonstrated when a measurement procedure
underlying a particular behavior superficially appears to measure what it claims to
o Constructs - hypothetical attributes or mechanisms measure.
that help explain and predict behavior in a theory. o Concurrent Validity- demonstrated when scores
obtained from a new measure are directly related to
• Operational Definitions scores obtained from an established measure of the
• a procedure for indirectly measuring and defining a same variable.
variable that cannot be observed or measured directly. o Predictive Validity-demonstrated when scores
obtained from a measure accurately predict behavior
• Limitations of Operational Definitions according to a theory.
o Construct Validity- requires that the scores obtained
- primary limitation is that there is not a one-to-one
from a measurement procedure behave exactly the
relationship between the variable that is being measured
same as the variable itself. It is based on many
and the actual measurements produced by the
research studies that use the same measurement
operational definition
procedure and grows gradually as each new study
1. It is easy for operational definitions to leave out contributes more evidence.
important components of a construct. o Convergent and Divergent Validity
2. They often include extra components that are not part 1. Convergent validity- demonstrated by a
of the construct being measured. strong relationship between the scores
obtained from two (or more) different
• Using Operational Definitions methods of measuring the same construct.
o Whenever the variables in a research study are 2. Divergent validity- demonstrated by showing
hypothetical constructs little or no relationship between the
o This does not mean creating your own operational measurements of two different constructs
definition.
o The best method of determining how a variable • Reliability of Measurement
should be measured is to consult previous research - the stability or consistency of the measurement
involving the same variable. - The inconsistency in a measurement comes from error.
- The more common sources of error are as follows:
• Consistency of a Relationship o Observer error: The individual who makes the
• The validity and reliability of measurements are measurements can introduce simple human
established by demonstrating the consistency of a error into the measurement process, especially
relationship between two different measurements. when the measurement involves a degree of
• To show the amount of consistency between two human judgment.
different measurements, the two scores obtained for o Environmental changes: there are small
each person can be presented in a graph called a changes in the environment from one
scatter plot. measurement to another, and these small
changes can influence the measurements.
• Scatter Plot o Participant changes: The participant can
o The two scores for each person are represented as a change between measurements.
single point, with the horizontal position of the point
determined by one score and the vertical position
determined by the second score. • Types and Measures of Reliability
o Often, the consistency of a relationship is determined 1. Successive measurements:
by computing a correlation between the two o test-retest reliability: established by comparing
measurements. the scores obtained from two successive
measurements of the same individuals and
calculating a correlation between the two sets of
scores.
o parallel-forms reliability: when different versions
of the instrument are used for the test and the
retest
 2. Simultaneous measurements: MODALITIES OF MEASUREMENT
o When measurements are obtained by direct
observation of behaviors, it is common to use
two or more separate observers who o Self-Report Measures
simultaneously record measurements. - most direct way to assess a construct
o inter-rater reliability: the degree of agreement - a direct question and its answer have more face
between two observers who simultaneously validity than measuring some other response
record measurements of the behaviors. - negative side, it is very easy for participants to distort
3. Internal consistency: self-report measures
o No single item or question is sufficient to provide
a complete measure of the construct. o Physiological Measures
o Split-half reliability -obtained by splitting the - they are extremely objective. The equipment
items on a questionnaire or test in half, provides accurate, reliable, and well-defined
computing a separate score for each half, and measurements that are not dependent on subjective
then calculating the degree of consistency interpretation.
between the two scores for a group of - disadvantage of such measures is that they typically
participants. require equipment that may be expensive or
unavailable
• The Relationship between
Reliability and Validity o Behavioral Measures
o Reliability is a prerequisite for validity; that is, a - Constructs often reveal themselves in overt
measurement procedure cannot be valid unless it is behaviors that can be observed and measured.
reliable. - Provide researchers with a vast number of options,
o A measure cannot be valid unless it is reliable, but a making it possible to select the behaviors that seem
measure can be reliable without being valid. to be best for defining and measuring the construct.

o
SCALES OF MEASUREMENT OTHER ASPECTS OF MEASUREMENTS
• Different types of measurement scales: o Multiple Measures
- One method of obtaining a more complete measure
1. Nominal Scale
of a construct is to use two (or more)
- Categories with no logical order or ranking. No numeric - advantage of this multiple-measure technique is that
significance, only labels. it usually provides more confidence in the validity of
the measurements.
o Gender (male, female, non-binary)
o Types of fruits (apples, bananas, oranges) o Sensitivity and Range Effects
o Shirt colors (red, blue, green) - important concern for any measurement procedure is
that the measurements are sensitive enough to
2. Ordinary Scale
respond to the type and magnitude of the changes
- Ordered categories without equal intervals that are expected.
1. range effect-the measurement procedure is
o Movie ratings (1 star, 2 stars, 3 stars, 4 stars, 5 stars) insensitive to changes that may occur in one
o Education level (high school, bachelor’s, master’s, PhD) direction
o Race placement (1st, 2nd, 3rd) 2. ceiling effect -the clustering of scores at the
high end of a measurement scale, allowing little
3. Interval Scale
or no possibility of increases in value.
- Ordered, with equal intervals but no true zero 3. floor effect - the clustering of scores at the low
- temperature, IQ scores end of a measurement scale, allowing little or
no possibility of decreases in value.
4. Ratio Scale
o Artifacts: Experimenter Bias and Participant
- Ordered, with equal intervals and a true zero
Reactivity
- weight, height
- artifact is an external factor that may influence or
distort the measurements

o Experimenter Bias
- when the measurements obtained in a study are
influenced by the experimenter’s expectations or
personal beliefs regarding the outcome of the study.
 - One option for limiting experimenter bias is to
standardize or automate the experiment
- Another strategy for reducing experimenter bias is to
use a “blind” experiment: the researcher does not
know the predicted outcome. A research study is
double-blind if both the researcher and the
participants are unaware of the predicted outcome.

o Demand Characteristics and Participant Reactivity

- Demand characteristics- any of the potential cues or
features of a study that:
(1) suggest to the participants what the purpose and
hypothesis is
(2) influence the participants to respond or behave in
a certain way.
- Reactivity - when participants modify their
natural behavior in response to the fact that
they are participating in a research study or the
knowledge that they are being measured.

• Four different subject roles have been identified (Weber &

Cook, 1972
o good subject role - These participants have identified the
hypothesis of the study and are trying to produce
responses that support the investigator’s hypothesis.
o apprehensive subject role - These participants are overly
concerned that their performance in the study will be used
to evaluate their abilities or personal characteristics.
o negativistic subject role - These participants have
identified the hypothesis of the study and are trying to act
contrary to the investigator’s hypothesis.
o faithful subject role - These participants attempt to follow
instructions to the letter and avoid acting on any
suspicions they have about the purpose of the study.

• Selecting a Measurement Procedure

o Review past research reports involving the variables or
constructs to be examined.
o If more than one procedure exists for defining and
measuring a particular variable, examine the options and
determine which method is best suited for the specific
research question.
o Critically examining and questioning a published
measurement procedure can lead to new research ideas.
CHAPTER 4: Ethics in Research & Selecting 2. Understanding
Participants 3. Voluntary Participation

3. Deception - It occurs when a researcher purposefully

• Ethical Concerns Throughout the Research withholds information or misleads participants with regard
Process to information about a study.
- ethics is the study of proper action (Ray, 2000) o Passive deception (or omission) -withholding or
- Research ethics concerns the responsibility of omitting of information; the researcher
researchers to be honest and respectful to all individuals intentionally does not tell participants some
who are affected by their research studies or their reports information about the study.
of the studies’ results. o Active deception (or commission) -presenting of
misinformation about the study to participants.
The most common form of active deception is
• The Basic Categories of Ethical Responsibility: misleading participants about the specific
o Responsibility to ensure the welfare and dignity of the purpose of the study.
individuals, both human and nonhuman, who participate 4. Confidentiality - the practice of keeping strictly secret and
in their research studies private the information or measurements obtained from an
o Responsibility to ensure that public reports of their individual during a research study.
research are accurate and honest.

ETHICAL ISSUES AND HUMAN ETHICAL ISSUES AND NONHUMAN

PARTICIPANTS IN RESEARCH SUBJECTS IN RESEARCH
• Ethical Issues and Nonhuman Subjects in
• Historical Highlights of Treatment of Human Research
Participants Researchers who use nonhumans as subjects do so for a
o The major impetus for a shift from individualized ethics to variety of reasons including:
more formalized ethical guidelines was the uncovering of o to understand animals for their own sake
the brutal experiments performed on prisoners in Nazi o to understand humans (many processes can be
concentration camps. generalized from nonhumans to humans)
o Out of these trials came the Nuremberg Code, a set of 10 o to conduct research that is impossible to conduct using
guidelines for the ethical treatment of human participants human participants.
in research.
o In 1974 Congress passed the National Research Act. • Major Ethical Issues
o In 1979, the National Commission published The Belmont o Qualified individuals must conduct research, the
Report summarizing the basic ethical principles which are research must be justified, and the researcher must be
used even to this day. responsible for minimizing discomfort or harm.
o The code refers to federal, state, and local regulations
• 10 ethical standards in APA Ethics Code that govern housing conditions, food, sanitation, and
medical care for research animals.
1. No Harm
2. Privacy & Confidentiality
3. Institutional Approval ETHICAL ISSUES AND SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY
4. Competence
• Error versus Fraud
5. Record Keeping
o Error is an honest mistake that occurs in the research
6. Informed Consent to Research
process.
7. Dispensing with Informed Consent
o Fraud is the explicit effort of a researcher to falsify or
8. Offering Inducements for Research Participation
misrepresent data.
9. Deception in Research
10. Debriefing
• Safeguards against Fraud:
o Replication is repetition of a research study using the
• Major Ethical Issues
same basic procedures used in the original.
1. No Harm - The researcher is obligated to protect
o Peer review which takes place when a researcher
participants from physical or psychological harm.
submits a research article for publication.
2. Informed Consent - Requires the investigator to provide all
• Plagiarism
available information about a study so that an individual
o Plagiarism is the unethical representation of someone
can make a rational, informed decision to participate in the
else’s ideas or words as one’s own.
study.
o Reference citations (giving others credit when credit is
o three components of informed consent;
due) must be included in your paper whenever someone
1. Information
 else’s ideas or work has influenced your thinking and PROBABILITY SAMPLING METHODS
writing.
o Whenever using direct quotations or even paraphrase • Probability Sampling
someone else’s work, give that person credit. If an idea or o Simple random
information you include in a paper is not originally yours, - A sample is obtained using a random process to
cite the source. select participants from a list containing the total
population.
• Pl guidelines to prevent plagiarizing (Myers & - The selection process is fair and unbiased, but there
Hansen, 2006): is no guarantee that the sample is representative.
o Take complete notes, including complete citation of the o Systematic
source. (For articles, include author’s name, year of - A sample is obtained by selecting every nth
publication, title of the article, journal name, volume participant from a list containing the total population
number, and page numbers. For books, also include the after a random start.
publisher’s name and city.) - An easy method for obtaining an essentially random
Within your paper, identify the source of any ideas, sample, but the selections are not really random or
words, or information that are not your own. independent.
o Identify any direct quotes by quotation marks at the o Stratified random
beginning and end of the quotes, and indicate where you - A sample is obtained by dividing the population into
got them. subgroups and then randomly selecting equal
o Be careful about paraphrasing (restating someone else’s numbers from each of the subgroups.
words). It is greatly tempting to lift whole phrases or - Guarantees that each subgroup will have adequate
catchy words from another source. Use your own words representation, but the overall sample is usually not
instead, or use direct quotes. Be sure to give credit to representative of the population
your sources. o Proportionate stratified
o Include a complete list of references at the end of the - A sample is obtained by subdividing the population
paper. References should include all the information into strata and then randomly selecting from each
listed in Item 1. stratum a number of participants so that the
o If in doubt about whether a citation is necessary, cite the proportions in the sample correspond to the
source. You will do no harm by being especially cautious. proportions in the population.
o Cluster
SELECTING RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS - Instead of selecting individuals, a sample is obtained
• Populations and Samples by randomly selecting clusters (preexisting groups)
o A population is the entire set of individuals of interest to a from a list of all the clusters that exist within the
researcher. population.
1. Target population -The entire set of individuals who - An easy method for obtaining a large, relatively
have the characteristics required by the researcher. random sample, but the selections are not really
2. Accessible population -A portion of the target random or independent.
population consisting of individuals who are
accessible to be recruited as participants in the • Probability Sampling
study o Convenience
o A sample is a set of individuals selected from a - A sample is obtained by selecting individual
population and usually is intended to represent the participants who are easy to get.
population in a research study. An easy method for obtaining a sample, but the
sample is probably biased.
• Sampling Basics o Quota
o Sampling is the process of selecting individuals to - A sample is obtained by identifying subgroups to be
participate in a research study. included, then establishing quotas for individuals to
o 2 categories: be selected through convenience from each
- probability sampling - the entire population is known, subgroup.
each individual in the population has a specifiable - Allows a researcher to control the composition of a
probability of selection, and sampling occurs by a convenience sample, but the sample probably is
random process based on the probabilities. biased.
- nonprobability sampling - the population is not
completely known, individual probabilities cannot be
known, and the sampling method is based on factors
such as commonsense or ease, with an effort to
maintain representativeness and avoid bias.
CHAPTER 5: Research Strategies & Validity • Determining a research design requires decisions
about three basic aspects of the research study:
1. Group versus individual.
RESEARCH STRATEGIES
Will the study examine a group of individuals, producing
• The Descriptive Research Strategy: Examining an overall description for the entire group, or should the
Individual Variables study focus on a single individual?
- The only strategy that focuses on individual variables. 2. Same individuals versus different individuals.
- This strategy intends to answer questions about the Some research examines changes within the same group
current state of individual variables for a specific group of individuals. Other research uses a different group of
of individuals. individuals for each.
- The goal is to obtain a description of specific 3. The number of variables to be included.
characteristics of a specific group of individuals. The simplest study involves examining the relationship
between two variables.
• Five Research Strategies Organized by the Data
Structures They Use
o Category 1: Strategies that examine individual variables. • Research Strategies, Research Designs, &
- Descriptive Purpose: Produce a description of individual Research Procedures
variables as they exist within a specific group. o Research Procedures - An exact, step-by-step
- Data: A list of scores obtained by measuring each description of a specific research study, including a
individual in the group being studied. precise determination of:
o Category 2: Strategies that examine relationships - exactly how the variables will be manipulated,
between variables by measuring two (or more) variables regulated, and measured.
for each participant. - exactly how many individuals will be involved.
- Correlational Purpose: Produce a description of the - exactly how the individual participants or subjects
relationship between two variables but do not attempt to will proceed through the course of the study.
explain the relationship.
- Data: Measure two variables (two scores) for each • Data Structures and Statistical Analysis
individual in the group being studied o Experimental, quasi-experimental, & non-
o Category 3: Strategies that examine relationships experimental studies all involve comparing groups of
between variables by comparing two (or more) groups of scores. The comparison involves looking for mean
scores. differences or differences in proportions.
- Experimental Purpose: Produce a cause-and-effect o Correlational studies do not involve comparing
explanation for the relationship between two variables. different groups of scores. It measures two different
- Data: Create two treatment conditions by changing the variables (two different scores) for each individual in a
level of one variable. Then measure a second variable for single group and then looks for patterns within the set of
the participants in each condition scores
o Quasi-Experimental o Descriptive studies are intended to summarize single
Purpose: Attempt to produce a cause-and-effect variables for a specific group of individuals.
explanation but fall short.
Data: Measure before/after scores for one group that EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL VALIDITY
receives treatment and for a different group that does not
• External Validity
receive the treatment
- the extent to which we can generalize the results of a
o Nonexperimental
research study to people, settings, times, measures,
Purpose: Produce a description of the relationship between
and characteristics other than those used in that study
two variables but do not attempt to explain the relationship.
- Threats to external validity:
Data: Measure scores for two different groups of
o Generalization from a sample to the general
participants or for one group at two different times
population.
o Generalization from one research study to another.
• Research strategies, research designs, & o Generalization from a research study to a real-world
research procedures
situation.
o Research strategy - The general approach and goals of
a research study. Usually determined by the kind of
• Internal Validity
question you plan to address and the kind of answer you
- A research study has internal validity if it produces a
hope to obtain.
single, unambiguous explanation for the relationship
o Research Designs - It specifies whether the study will
between two variables.
involve groups or individual participants, will make
- A threat to internal validity is any factor that allows for
comparisons within a group or between groups, and
an alternative explanation.
how many variables will be included in the study.
 provides an alternative explanation for the observed
relationship between the two variables and, therefore, is a
THREATS TO EXTERNAL VALIDITY threat to internal validity.
• Category 1: Generalizing across Participants or
Subjects
o Selection bias: The sampling procedure favors the
selection of some individuals over others.
o College students: Evidence is accumulating to suggest
that many of the characteristics of college students
limit the ability to generalize the results to other adults.
o Volunteer bias: Volunteers are not perfectly
representative of the general population.
Participant characteristics: When a study uses
participants who share similar characteristics.
o Demographic characteristics such as gender, age, race,
ethnic identity, and socioeconomic status can limit the
ability to generalize the results.
o Cross-species generalizations: External validity is also
in question when research is conducted with
nonhumans and presumed to be readily applicable to
humans.

• Category 2: Generalizing across Features of a

Study
o Novelty effect: Participating in a research study is a
novel, often exciting or anxiety-provoking experience
for most individuals.
o Multiple treatment interference: When individuals are
tested in a series of treatment conditions,
participation in one condition may have an effect on
the participants that carries over into the next
treatment and influences their performance or
behavior. (ex. fatigue and practice)
o Experimenter characteristics: the results of a study
are demonstrated with a specific experimenter
conducting the study.

• Category 3: Generalizing across Features of the

Measures
o Sensitization: the process of measurement, often called
the assessment procedure, can alter participants so
that they react differently to treatment.
o Generality across response measures: The results of
the study may be limited to that specific measurement
that the researcher selects and may not generalize to
other definitions or other measures.
o Time of measurement: In a research study, the scores
for individuals are measured at a specific time after (or
during) the treatment. The actual effect of the treatment
may decrease or increase with time
THREATS TO INTERNAL VALIDITY
• Extraneous Variables
Any variable in a research study other than the specific
variables being studied.
• Confounding Variables
An extraneous variable (usually unmonitored) that changes
systematically along with the two variables being studied. It