¶ … attributes of operational variables as used in empirical research. In addition, information is provided about experimental designs, probability, experimental bias, the placebo effect, and pseudoscience.
Identify a variable for scientific study that can be operationally defined. One of the most common variables that is operationally defined in psychology is intelligence. Intelligence is measured through the use of standardized tests, and reported according to the test outcomes on verbal and other scales. Intelligence is a difficult construct to pin down, so associating the construct of intelligence with the instrumentation that will be used to measure the variable known as intelligence provides a measure of control and agreement about just what is meant by intelligence in a particular study..
Create an operational definition for the variable. The operational definition of intelligence is that intelligence is an attribute and capacity of the human mind that is measured by intelligence tests. Using the Stanford Binet to measure intelligence, both mental age and an intelligence...
Mental age refers to the chronological age of children at which an average IQ test score is in a particular range. Intelligence measurement is derived by dividing mental age by chronological age and multiplying by four.
Identify what aspects of the variable would be observable and measurable. A non-scientific definition of intelligence would refer to the ability to think abstractly, rationally, act purposefully, and interact with the environment in an effective manner.
• Lecture on non-experimental designs (ex post facto, correlational, survey method: Four criteria, and case study), role of chance, experimental bias, placebo effect, and pseudoscience.
Non-experimental designs (ex post facto, correlational, survey method: Four criteria, and case study). The four types of non-experimental research designs are: Descriptive, relationships (comparative relationships & correlational relationship), causal-comparative, and survey. In ex post facto research, the independent variable is not manipulated and subject "sampling" is based on naturally…
