Methods of Enquiry in Psychology — Chapter Summary

Psychology aims to describe behaviour accurately

Psychology aims to describe behaviour accurately, predict future behaviour, explain causes, control behaviour by changing conditions, and apply knowle

Objectivity means independent researchers studying

Objectivity means independent researchers studying the same event should reach the same conclusion. Scientific research follows a systematic process:

Psychological data may be demographic

Psychological data may be demographic, physical, physiological, or psychological. Data can be in the form of categories, ranks, scores, verbal reports

Observation involves selecting a behaviour

Observation involves selecting a behaviour, recording it carefully, and analysing it later. It may be naturalistic or controlled, and participant or n

Experiments study cause

Experiments study cause-effect relationships by changing one variable and observing its effect on another while keeping other factors constant. The in