Research Methods
A Tool for Life

This comprehensive text introduces current scientific research with interesting, familiar issues to engage students.

Bernard C. Beins (Author)

9781108470841, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 November 2018

534 pages, 50 b/w illus. 30 tables
25.5 x 18 x 2.7 cm, 1.22 kg

Research Methods is an introduction to the importance of scientific research in everyday life and uses familiar examples to keep students engaged. The text analyzes controversies in psychology to stimulate student interest while explaining crucial methodological concepts. It presents ethical issues related to research, as well as social and cultural factors that might affect it, and provides a comprehensive introduction to a wide variety of methodologies. Through this book, students will learn how to generate research questions and select appropriate methodology, as well as to write a successful research report.

Preface
Part I. Understanding Research: 1. Psychology, science, and life
2. Ethics in research
3. Planning research: generating a research question
4. Practical issues in planning your research
5. Measurement and sampling
Part II. Experimental Approaches: 6. Conducting an experiment: general principles
7. Experiments with one independent variable
8. Experiments with multiple independent variables
9. Expanding on experimental designs: repeated measures and quasi-experiments
Part III. Correlational and Nonexperimental Designs: 10. Principles of survey research
11. Correlational research
12. Studying patterns in the natural world: observational approaches
13. Research in depth: longitudinal and single-case studies
Part IV. Culture and Research: 14. People are different: considering culture and individual differences in research
Appendix A. Writing a research report
Appendix B. Statistics review
Appendix C. Statistical tables
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Psychological methodology [JMB], Psychology [JM], Research methods: general [GPS]