Research Methods for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

A comprehensive introduction to research methods and best practices for designing,conducting, interpreting, and reporting findings This text is designed to develop in students a passion for conducting research and an understanding of the practical value of systematic information- gathering and decision-making. It features step-by-step coverage of the research process including research design, statistical considerations, and guidance on writing up and presenting results. Recognized leaders in the field—authors Bart Weathington, Christopher Cunningham, and David Pittenger—present: Introductions to multiple research designs—including single-participant, multi-group, longitudinal, correlational, and experimental designs—accompanied by examples Bibliographic research and methods for appropriate sampling Identifying, developing, and evaluating reliable and valid approaches to measurement The issues and steps common to all single-factor and multifactor studies, as well as single-subject and nonexperimental methods How to summarize research in writing that conforms to the editorial guidelines of the American Psychological Association A comprehensive review of research methods and the statistical concepts that support them, Research Methods for the Behavioral and Social Sciences offers the best techniques for studying behavior and social phenomena.

Table of Contents:
Preface xv Acknowledgments xix Part I Overview of the Research Process 1 Chapter 1 Research and the Social Sciences 3 Introduction 3 Why Is Understanding Research Methods So Important? 6 The Role of Science in Everyday Life 6 The Scientific Method 8 Brief History of the Science of Behavior 8 Bacon’s Legacy 13 Other Important Historical Figures 13 Assumptions of Science 16 Requirements for Scientific Research 17 Research in Action: The Case of Facilitated Communication 23 Chapter Summary 26 Chapter Glossary for Review 29 Chapter References 30 Chapter 2 Ethics and Research 32 Introduction 32 What Is Ethics? 34 Approaches to Ethical Analysis 36 Making Ethical Decisions 41 The Ethical Code of the American Psychological Association 42 Seeking Approval for Research: The Institutional Review Board 44 Milgram’s Experiment Revisited 52 Research with Animals 56 Research in Action: Ethical Dilemmas 58 Chapter Summary 62 Chapter Glossary for Review 64 Chapter References 64 Chapter 3 The Foundations of Research 66 Introduction 66 The Hypothesis in Research 67 Types of Hypotheses 72 Measurement 78 Reliability of Measurement 84 Validity of Measurement 87 Populations and Samples 90 Research in Action: Measuring Sexism 94 Chapter Summary 96 Chapter Glossary for Review 97 Chapter References 100 Chapter 4 An Overview of Empirical Methods 101 Introduction 101 Internal, Statistical Conclusion, and External Validity 102 Survey of Empirical Methods 113 Intact Groups Designs and Quasi-Experimental Studies 117 Surveys 120 Correlational Studies 121 Single-Participant Research Methods 122 Meta-Analysis 124 Computers and Statistics 126 Research in Action: Effectiveness of Psychotherapy 128 Chapter Summary 133 Chapter Glossary for Review 135 Chapter References 137 Part II Nuts and Bolts of Research 139 Chapter 5 Writing the Research Report 141 Introduction 141 What Do Readers Appreciate in Good Writing? 143 Elements of APA Style 143 Special Grammatical Issues 147 Academic Integrity 152 Parts of the Research Report 156 Proofreading 173 Chapter Summary 174 Chapter References 174 Chapter 6 Reviewing the Literature and Forming Hypotheses 175 Introduction 175 Bibliographic Research 175 The Internet 179 Developing a Search Strategy 181 Searching the Literature: The Library 182 Research in Action: Does Listening to Mozart Make You Smarter? 186 Statistical Inference and Testing Hypotheses 190 Chapter Summary 193 Chapter Glossary for Review 194 Chapter References 194 Chapter 7 Sampling: The First Steps in Research 196 Introduction 196 The Nature of Samples 197 Probability Sampling 199 Sampling Methods 201 Nonprobability Sampling 205 Central Limit Theorem 207 Applications of the Central Limit Theorem 211 Sources of Bias and Error: A Reprise 217 Research in Action: Trends in HIV-Related Risk Behaviors 220 Chapter Summary 224 Chapter Glossary for Review 225 Chapter References 227 Chapter 8 Creating and Using Assessments, Surveys, and Objective Measures 228 Introduction 228 Purpose of Measurement 228 Caveat Assessor 229 Creating a Measurement Scale and Developing a Data Collection Strategy 231 Interviews, Questionnaires, and Attitude Surveys 232 Question Response Formats 236 Writing Good Questionnaire and Survey Items 241 Determining the Sample Size for a Survey 246 Naturalistic Observation 249 Research in Action: Analysis of Assaults 255 Chapter Summary 260 Chapter Glossary for Review 261 Chapter References 262 Chapter 9 A Model for Research Design 265 Introduction 265 A Model for Research Design 266 What Is the Independent Variable? 272 What Is the Dependent Variable? 274 Are There Any Confounding Variables? 277 What Are the Research Hypotheses? 279 Mathematical Hypotheses 280 Evaluating Hypotheses 282 Evaluating Hypotheses: Practical Matters 284 Research in Action: Sex Differences and Memory for Emotional Events 289 Research in Action: Changing Attitudes by Writing Essays 290 Chapter Summary 291 Chapter Glossary for Review 293 Chapter References 295 Part III Common Research Designs 297 Chapter 10 Correlational Research 299 Introduction 299 Conceptual Review of Correlation 300 Pearson’s r 302 Interpreting the Correlation Coefficient 302 Factors That Corrupt a Correlation Coefficient 304 Sample Size and the Correlation Coefficient 308 Applications of the Correlation Coefficient 310 Regression Analysis 315 Introduction to Mediation and Moderation 317 Regression to the Mean 318 Research in Action: Searching Short-Term Memory 321 Statistics behind the Research 323 Chapter Summary 331 Chapter Glossary for Review 333 Chapter References 334 Chapter 11 Between-Subjects Designs 335 Introduction 335 Student’s t-Ratio for Independent Groups 336 Review of Hypothesis Testing 338 Testing Statistical Hypotheses 340 Common Errors in the Interpretation of p 348 The Power of a Test 350 Estimating Sample Size 355 Research in Action: Word Meaning and Memory 357 Statistics behind the Research 359 Chapter Summary 368 Chapter Glossary for Review 369 Chapter References 369 Chapter 12 Single-Variable Between-Subjects Research 371 Introduction 371 Independent Variable 372 Cause and Effect 374 Gaining Control over the Variables 375 The General Linear Model 379 Components of Variance 382 The F-Ratio 384 H0 and H1 387 F-Ratio Sampling Distribution 388 Summarizing and Interpreting ANOVA Results 389 Effect Size and Power 391 Multiple Comparisons of the Means 392 Research in Action: Detecting Lies 396 Statistics behind the Research 398 Chapter Summary 403 Chapter Glossary for Review 404 Chapter References 406 Chapter 13 Between-Subjects Factorial Designs 407 Introduction 407 The Logic of the Two-Variable Design 408 Advantages of the Two-Variable Design 409 Factorial Designs: Variables, Levels, and Cells 413 Examples of Factorial Designs 414 Main Effects and Interaction 418 Designing a Factorial Study 426 Identifying Samples and Estimating Sample Size 429 Interpreting the Interaction: Advanced Considerations 431 Research in Action: Reinforcing Creativity 432 Statistics behind the Research 434 Chapter Summary 441 Chapter Glossary for Review 441 Chapter References 442 Chapter 14 Correlated-Groups Designs 443 Introduction 443 Logic of the Correlated-Groups Research Design 444 Repeated-Measures Design 445 Matched-Groups Design 455 Mixed-Model Design 460 Research in Action: Memory for Related Words 461 Statistics behind the Research 463 Chapter Summary 465 Chapter Glossary for Review 468 Chapter References 469 Part IV Special Research Designs 471 Chapter 15 Single-Participant Experiments, Longitudinal Studies, and Quasi-Experimental Designs 473 Introduction 473 Single-Participant Experiments 475 Research in Action: Treatment for Panic Disorder 484 Longitudinal Designs 487 Research in Action: Onset of Bulimia 491 Quasi-Experiments 493 Research in Action: Traffic Laws and Safety 496 Chapter Summary 498 Chapter Glossary for Review 499 Chapter References 499 Chapter 16 Research with Categorical Data 502 Introduction 502 Goodness-of-Fit Test 504 x2 Test of Independence 508 x2 Test of Homogeneity 511 Further Analysis of the x2 513 McNemar Test 516 Research in Action: Long-Term Effects of Childhood Abuse 519 Chapter Summary 522 Chapter Glossary for Review 523 Chapter References 523 Chapter 17 Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Research 525 Introduction 525 Qualitative versus Quantitative Research 526 Theory and Perspectives Guiding Qualitative Research 527 Mixing Methods: Quantitative and Qualitative Combined 528 Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Data Collection and Analysis 530 Benefits and Challenges of Mixed-Methods Research 537 Sources of Published Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Research 541 Research in Action: Gender- and Job-Based Differences in Work Stress 542 Chapter Summary 545 Chapter Glossary for Review 545 Chapter References 546 Appendix A Statistics behind the Research or, “What Was I Supposed to Remember from My Statistics Class Anyway?” 548 Appendix B Statistical Tables 566 Appendix C Answers to Knowledge Check Questions 606 Author Index 637 Subject Index 641 

About the Author :
Bart L. Weathington, PhD, is a UC Foundation Associate Professor of Psychology at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He is an industrial-organizational and sport psychology researcher, teacher, and consultant on applied psychological issues. Christopher J. L. Cunningham, PhD, is a UC Foundation Assistant Professor of Psychology at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He is actively engaged in industrial-organizational and occupational health psychology research, teaching, and consulting. David J. Pittenger, PhD, is Dean of the¿College of¿Liberal Arts¿at Marshall University. His primary research interests and publications focus on the partial reinforcement extinction effect, psychometric properties of personality inventories, the coping strategies of caregivers, and ethical issues related to the behavioral sciences.