Analyzing Research Methods and Statistics

¶ … Statistics

The claim has been made that chocolate operates upon the brain in much the same way as an antidepressant drug. Generate specific predictions based on this general hypothesis and provide operational definitions of the variables involved.

Chocolate releases a unique neurotransmitter called phenylethylamine or chocolate amphetamine, which fluctuate the blood and sugar levels, causing euphoria and attentiveness. Unlike amphetamines, however, it doesn't cause addiction to the consumer, but it does act as an anti-depressant by lightening the mood of a person. According to Coveleskie (2004), phenylethylamine in chocolate gives you the same feeling you get when you're in love and therefore, it's also called a love drug.

Chocolate also releases the lipid anandamide, similar to the chemical THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) which is found in the drug, marijuana. The THC as well as the lipid anandamide produce the neurotransmitter 'dopamine' which makes people happy and high. The chemical anandamide is already present in the human brain, when a person eats chocolate, the amount of anandamide increases and the rate at which it's broken down decreases. Thus, slowing down and extending the period of high. Two more chemicals in chocolate have the same function. However, the THC and anandamide are not completely similar as we can see that THC has a stronger effect since it activates more receptors in the brain and reacts with more widely spread reactors. The difference is so much that in order to achieve as much stimulation as that brought about by marijuana, a person will have to eat twenty pounds of chocolates.

A chemical that is like caffeine, Theobromine, is also present in chocolate. Apart from giving feelings of mental and physical repose, it aids in the reduction of headaches and increases alertness of the consumer. There is no such proof that caffeine exists in chocolate; some scientists hold the belief that chocolate contains theobromine which has a similar structure to that of caffeine and is the sole reason why we feel effects similar to caffeine when we consume chocolate (Coveleskie, 2004).

However, it can be concluded that chocolate does act as an anti-depressant by increasing feelings of excitement and elation while decreasing stress and pain.

Part 2

A therapist hypnotizes a client and asks many questions about her childhood. During hypnosis, the client remembers being sexually abused by her father. At the urging of her therapist, the client sues her father in a court of law. Briefly discuss the issues involved in this case from a research perspective. Is the client's memory under hypnosis evidence that childhood abuse occurred?

Video recordings of a witness while in a hypnotic state are not played during court sessions. There are several reasons to justify this: firstly, the witness' claims might be influenced by someone and secondly, courts strictly disallow hear-say evidence and until or unless there is substantial evidence and guaranteed trustworthiness of the witness' statements, such recordings are rejected. As Hlavaty (1983) claims: hypnosis techniques, which are used prior to court trials for helping a witness, are considered flawed.

Presenting evidence obtained through hypnosis has several shortcomings. Such testimony is inadmissible in court. During a hypnosis, the person goes into a trance-like state losing any control over his voluntary actions and becomes highly responsive to the hypnotist's directions. And thus, there are high chances that the statements by the witness are greatly influenced by the hypnotist. Moreover, these statements are hear-say and thus, not reliable. Despite these rationales, some states still hold this evidence as admissible. To justify the use of evidence produced by witness under hypnosis, there are two issues to be considered: the proper foundation which must be laid for hypnotic evidence and secondly, the hypnotic techniques that are used must be reliable.

It is true that in some cases, a witness may not have any reason to lie, nevertheless, evidence through hypnosis is not a legitimate method of distinguishing the truth from deception. According to court law, evidence obtained from hypnosis, lie detector, truth serum and any other method of this kind, is not permitted to be presented in court as evidence.

Part 3

Suppose that you are interested in examining the effects of televised violence on behaviour. From a research perspective, discuss some positive and some negative consequences of choosing to conduct your study in a juvenile detention centre.

Pros:

Accessibility and readiness of the participants is the biggest advantage of conducting a study on juvenile detention inmates. Since they are locked up, they are always available at whichever time they are required (Bernard, 1991). Moreover, it is also financially cheaper and easier to carry out research in a juvenile detention centre as the offenders are only interviewed for the offence they committed. Identification of the crime is all that's required.

Cons:

Heightened Vulnerability to Coercive Circumstances

It is an established fact that the youth is powerless as compared to adults when it comes to freeing themselves from or standing for their rights in criminogenic settings. The adults are authoritative enough to assert their own decisions, they also exert the young into getting indulged in criminal activities. They fear punishment from their criminal supporters and thus, can't extricate themselves (Flaherty, 1983). Peer pressure is also the cause of juvenile crimes as adolescents are more vulnerable and would go to lengths to earn popularity among their groups of friends. Juvenile crimes usually occur in groups or gangs and this signifies how peer pressure influences crimes.