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Book Description: While Research Methods in Psychology is fairly traditional— making it easy for you to use with your existing courses — it also emphasizes a fundamental idea that is often lost on undergraduates: research methods are not a peripheral concern in our discipline; they are central. For questions about this textbook please contact [email protected]

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Research Methods in Psychology is adapted from a work produced by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution. This adapted edition is produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing through the eLearning Support Initiative. For questions about this textbook please contact [email protected]

Research Methods in Psychology Copyright © 2016 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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With significant new and updated content across dozens of chapters, this second edition presents the most exhaustive treatment available of the techniques psychologists and others have developed to help them pursue a shared understanding of why humans think, feel, and behave the way they do.

The initial chapters in this indispensable three-volume handbook address broad, crosscutting issues faced by researchers: the philosophical, ethical, and societal underpinnings of psychological research. Next, chapters detail the research planning process, describe the range of measurement techniques that psychologists most often use to collect data, consider how to determine the best measurement techniques for a particular purpose, and examine ways to assess the trustworthiness of measures.

Additional chapters cover various aspects of quantitative, qualitative, neuropsychological, and biological research designs, presenting an array of options and their nuanced distinctions. Chapters on techniques for data analysis follow, and important issues in writing up research to share with the community of psychologists are discussed in the handbook’s concluding chapters.

Among the newly written chapters in the second edition, the handbook’s stellar roster of authors cover literature searching, workflow and reproducibility, research funding, neuroimaging, various facets of a wide range of research designs and data analysis methods, and updated information on the publication process, including research data management and sharing, questionable practices in statistical analysis, and ethical issues in manuscript preparation and authorship.

Volume 1. Foundations, Planning, Measures, and Psychometrics

Editorial Board

About the Editors

Contributors

A Note from the Publisher

Introduction: Objectives of Psychological Research and Their Relations to Research Methods

Part I. Philosophical, Ethical, and Societal Underpinnings of Psychological Research

Chapter 1. Perspectives on the Epistemological Bases for Qualitative Research Carla Willig
Chapter 2. Frameworks for Causal Inference in Psychological Science Peter M. Steiner, William R. Shadish, and Kristynn J. Sullivan
Chapter 3. Ethics in Psychological Research: Guidelines and Regulations Adam L. Fried and Kate L. Jansen
Chapter 4. Ethics and Regulation of Research With Nonhuman Animals Sangeeta Panicker, Chana K. Akins, and Beth Ann Rice
Chapter 5. Cross-Cultural Research Methods David Masumoto and Fons J. R. van de Vijver
Chapter 6.Research With Populations that Experience Marginalization George P. Knight, Rebecca M. B. White, Stefanie Martinez-Fuentes, Mark W. Roosa, and Adriana J. Umaña-Taylor

Part II. Planning Research

Chapter 7. Developing Testable and Important Research Questions Frederick T. L. Leong, Neal Schmitt, and Brent J. Lyons
Chapter 8. Searching With a Purpose: How to Use Literature Searching to Support Your Research Diana Ramirez and Margaret J. Foster
Chapter 9. Psychological Measurement: Scaling and Analysis Heather Hayes and Susan E. Embretson
Chapter 10. Sample Size Planning Ken Kelley, Samantha F. Anderson, and Scott E. Maxwell
Chapter 11. Workflow and Reproducibility Oliver Kirchkamp
Chapter 12. Obtaining and Evaluating Research Funding Jonathan S. Comer and Amanda L. Sanchez

Part III. Measurement Methods

Chapter 13. Behavioral Observation Roger Bakeman and Vicenç Quera
Chapter 14. Question Order Effects Lisa Lee, Parvati Krishnamurty, and Struther Van Horn
Chapter 15. Interviews and Interviewing Techniques Anna Madill
Chapter 16. Using Intensive Longitudinal Methods in Psychological Research Masumi Iida, Patrick E. Shrout, Jean-Philippe Laurenceau, and Niall Bolger
Chapter 17. Automated Analyses of Natural Language in Psychological Research Laura K. Allen, Arthur C. Graesser, and Danielle S. McNamara
Chapter 18. Objective Tests as Instruments of Psychological Theory and Research David Watson
Chapter 19. Norm- and Criterion-Referenced Testing Kurt F. Geisinger
Chapter 20. The Current Status of "Projective" "Tests" Robert E. McGrath, Alec Twibell, and Elizabeth J. Carroll
Chapter 21. Brief Instruments and Short Forms Emily A. Atkinson, Carolyn M. Pearson Carter, Jessica L. Combs Rohr, and Gregory T. Smith
Chapter 22. Eye Movements, Pupillometry, and Cognitive Processes Simon P. Liversedge, Sara V. Milledge, and Hazel I. Blythe
Chapter 23. Response Times Roger Ratcliff
Chapter 24. Psychophysics: Concepts, Methods, and Frontiers Allie C. Hexley, Takuma Morimoto, and Manuel Spitschan
Chapter 25. The Perimetric Physiological Measurement of Psychological Constructs Louis G. Tassinary, Ursula Hess, Luis M. Carcoba, and Joseph M. Orr
Chapter 26. Salivary Hormone Assays Linda Becker, Nicholas Rohleder, and Oliver C. Schultheiss
Chapter 27. Electro- and Magnetoencephalographic Methods in Psychology Eddie Harmon-Jones, David M. Amodio, Philip A. Gable, and Suzanne Dikker
Chapter 28. Event-Related Potentials Steven J. Luck
Chapter 29. Functional Neuroimaging Megan T. deBettencourt, Wilma A. Bainbridge, Monica D. Rosenberg
Chapter 30. Noninvasive Stimulation of the Cerebral Cortex Dennis J. L. G. Schutter
Chapter 31. Combined Neuroimaging Methods Marius Moisa and Christian C. Ruff
Chapter 32. Neuroimaging Analysis Methods Yanyu Xiong and Sharlene D. Newman

Part IV. Psychometrics

Chapter 33. Reliability Sean P. Lane, Elizabeth N. Aslinger, and Patrick E. Shrout
Chapter 34. Generalizability Theory Xiaohong Gao and Deborah J. Harris
Chapter 35. Construct Validity Kevin J. Grimm and Keith F. Widaman
Chapter 36. Item-Level Factor Nisha C. Gottfredson, Brian D. Stucky, and A. T. Panter
Chapter 37. Item Response Theory Steven P. Reise and Tyler M. Moore
Chapter 38. Measuring Test Performance With Signal Detection Theory Techniques Teresa A. Treat and Richard J. Viken

Volume 2. Research Designs: Quantitative, Qualitative, Neuropsychological, and Biological

Part I. Qualitative Research Methods

Chapter 1. Developments in Qualitative Inquiry Sarah Riley and Andrea LaMarre
Chapter 2. Metasynthesis of Qualitative Research Sally Thorne
Chapter 3. Grounded Theory and Psychological Research Robert Thornberg, Elaine Keane, and Malgorzata Wójcik
Chapter 4. Thematic Analysis Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke
Chapter 5. Phenomenological Methodology, Methods, and Procedures for Research in Psychology Frederick J. Wertz
Chapter 6. Narrative Analysis Javier Monforte and Brett Smith
Chapter 7. Ethnomethodology and Conversation Analysis Paul ten Have
Chapter 8. Discourse Analysis and Discursive Psychology Chris McVittie and Andy McKinlay
Chapter 9. Ethnography in Psychological Research Elizabeth Fein and Jonathan Yahalom
Chapter 10. Visual Research in Psychology Paula Reavey, Jon Prosser, and Steven D. Brown
Chapter 11. Researching the Temporal Karen Henwood and Fiona Shirani

Part II. Working Across Epistemologies, Methodologies, and Methods

Chapter 12. Mixed Methods Research in Psychology Timothy C. Guetterman and Analay Perez
Chapter 13. The "Cases Within Trials" (CWT) Method: An Example of a Mixed-Methods Research Design Daniel B. Fishman
Chapter 14. Researching With American Indian and Alaska Native Communities: Pursuing Partnerships for Psychological Inquiry in Service to Indigenous Futurity Joseph P. Gone
Chapter 15. Participatory Action Research as Movement Toward Radical Relationality, Epistemic Justice, and Transformative Intervention: A Multivocal Reflection Urmitapa Dutta, Jesica Siham Fernández, Anne Galletta, and Regina Day Langhout

Part III. Sampling Across People and Time

Chapter 16. Introduction to Survey Sampling Roger Tourangeau and Ting Yan
Chapter 17. Epidemiology Rumi Kato Price and Heidi H. Tastet
Chapter 18. Collecting Longitudinal Data: Present Issues and Future Challenges Simran K. Johal, Rohit Batra, and Emilio Ferrer
Chapter 19. Using the Internet to Collect Data Ulf-Dietrich Reips

Part IV. Building and Testing Models

Chapter 20. Statistical Mediation Analysis David P. MacKinnon, Jeewon Cheong, Angela G. Pirlott, and Heather L. Smyth
Chapter 21. Structural Equation Modeling with Latent Variables Rick H. Hoyle and Nisha C. Gottfredson
Chapter 22. Mathematical Psychology Parker Smith, Yanjun Liu, James T. Townsend, and Trisha Van Zandt
Chapter 23. Computational Modeling Adele Diederich
Chapter 24. Fundamentals of Bootstrapping and Monte Carlo Methods William Howard Beasley, Patrick O'Keefe, and Joseph Lee Rodgers
Chapter 25. Designing Simulation Studies Xitao Fan
Chapter 26. Bayesian Modeling for Psychologists: An Applied Approach Fred M. Feinberg and Richard Gonzalez

Part V. Designs Involving Experimental Manipulations

Chapter 27. Randomized Designs in Psychological Research Larry Christensen, Lisa A. Turner, and R. Burke Johnson
Chapter 28. Nonequivalent Comparison Group Designs Henry May and Zachary K. Collier
Chapter 29. Regression Discontinuity Designs Charles S. Reichardt and Gary T. Henry
Chapter 30. Treatment Validity for Intervention Studies Dianne L. Chambless and Steven D. Hollon
Chapter 31. Translational Research Michael T. Bardo, Christopher Cappelli, and Mary Ann Pentz
Chapter 32. Program Evaluation: Outcomes and Costs of Putting Psychology to Work Brian T. Yates

Part VI. Quantitative Research Designs Involving Single Participants or Units

Chapter 33. Single-Case Experimental Design John M. Ferron, Megan Kirby, and Lodi Lipien
Chapter 34. Time Series Designs Bradley J. Bartos, Richard McCleary, and David McDowall

Part VII. Designs in Neuropsychology and Biological Psychology

Chapter 35. Case Studies in Neuropsychology Randi C. Martin, Simon Fischer-Baum, and Corinne M. Pettigrew
Chapter 36. Group Studies in Experimental Neuropsychology Avinash R Vaidya, Maia Pujara, and Lesley K. Fellows
Chapter 37. Genetic Methods in Psychology Terrell A. Hicks, Daniel Bustamante, Karestan C. Koenen, Nicole R. Nugent, and Ananda B. Amstadter
Chapter 38. Human Genetic Epidemiology Floris Huider, Lannie Ligthart, Yuri Milaneschi, Brenda W. J. H. Penninx, and Dorret I. Boomsma

Volume 3. Data Analysis and Research Publication

Part I. Quantitative Data Analysis

Chapter 1. Methods for Dealing With Bad Data and Inadequate Models: Distributions, Linear Models, and Beyond Rand R. Wilcox and Guillaume A. Rousselet
Chapter 2. Maximum Likelihood and Multiple Imputation Missing Data Handling: How They Work, and How to Make Them Work in Practice Timothy Hayes and Craig K. Enders
Chapter 3. Exploratory Data Analysis Paul F. Velleman and David C. Hoaglin
Chapter 4. Graphic Displays of Data Leland Wilkinson
Chapter 5. Estimating and Visualizing Interactions in Moderated Multiple Regression Connor J. McCabe and Kevin M. King
Chapter 6. Effect Size Estimation Michael Borenstein
Chapter 7. Measures of Clinically Significant Change Russell J. Bailey, Benjamin M. Ogles, and Michael J. Lambert
Chapter 8. Analysis of Variance and the General Linear Model James Jaccard and Ai Bo
Chapter 9. Generalized Linear Models David Rindskopf
Chapter 10. Multilevel Modeling for Psychologists John B. Nezlek
Chapter 11. Longitudinal Data Analysis Andrew K. Littlefield
Chapter 12. Event History Analysis Fetene B. Tekle and Jeroen K. Vermunt
Chapter 13. Latent State-Trait Models Rolf Steyer, Christian Geiser, and Christiane Loßnitzer
Chapter 14. Latent Variable Modeling of Continuous Growth David A. Cole, Jeffrey A. Ciesla, and Qimin Liu
Chapter 15. Dynamical Systems and Differential Equation Models of Change Steven M. Boker and Robert G. Moulder
Chapter 16. A Multivariate Growth Curve Model for Three-Level Data Patrick J. Curran, Chris L. Strauss, Ethan M. McCormick, and James S. McGinley
Chapter 17. Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis Keith F. Widaman and Jonathan Lee Helm
Chapter 18. Latent Class and Latent Profile Models Brian P. Flaherty, Liying Wang, and Cara J. Kiff
Chapter 19. Decision Trees and Ensemble Methods in the Behavioral Sciences Kevin J. Grimm, Ross Jacobucci, and John J. McArdle
Chapter 20. Using the Social Relations Model to Understand Interpersonal Perception and Behavior P. Niels Christensen, Deborah A. Kashy, and Katelin E. Leahy
Chapter 21. Dyadic Data Analysis Richard Gonzalez and Dale Griffin
Chapter 22. The Data of Others: New and Old Faces of Archival Research Sophie Pychlau and David T. Wagner
Chapter 23. Social Network Analysis in Psychology: Recent Breakthroughs in Methods and Theories Wei Wang, Tobias Stark, James D. Westaby, Adam K. Parr, and Daniel A. Newman
Chapter 24. Meta-Analysis Jeffrey C. Valentine, Therese D. Pigott, and Joseph Morris

Part II. Publishing and the Publication Process

Chapter 25. Research Data Management and Sharing Katherine G. Akers and John A. Borghi
Chapter 26. Questionable Practices in Statistical Analysis Rex B. Kline
Chapter 27. Ethical Issues in Manuscript Preparation and Authorship Jennifer Crocker

Harris Cooper, PhD, is the Hugo L. Blomquist professor, emeritus, in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University. His research interests concern research synthesis and research methodology, and he also studies the application of social and developmental psychology to education policy. His book Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis: A Step-by-Step Approach (2017) is in its fifth edition. He is the coeditor of the Handbook of Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis (3 rd ed. 2019).

In 2007, Dr. Cooper was the recipient of the Frederick Mosteller Award for Contributions to Research Synthesis Methodology, and in 2008 he received the Ingram Olkin Award for Distinguished Lifetime Contribution to Research Synthesis from the Society for Research Synthesis Methodology.

He served as the chair of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University from 2009 to 2014, and from 2017 to 2018 he served as the dean of social science at Duke. Dr. Cooper chaired the first APA committee that developed guidelines for information about research that should be included in manuscripts submitted to APA journals. He currently serves as the editor of American Psychologist, the flagship journal of APA.

Marc N. Coutanche, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology and research scientist in the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Coutanche directs a program of cognitive neuroscience research and develops and tests new computational techniques to identify and understand the neural information present within neuroimaging data.

His work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, American Psychological Foundation, and other organizations, and he has published in a variety of journals.

Dr. Coutanche received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, and conducted postdoctoral training at Yale University. He received a Howard Hughes Medical Institute International Student Research Fellowship and Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral National Research Service Award, and was named a 2019 Rising Star by the Association for Psychological Science.

Linda M. McMullen, PhD, is professor emerita of psychology at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. Over her career, she has contributed to the development of qualitative inquiry in psychology through teaching, curriculum development, and pedagogical scholarship; original research; and service to the qualitative research community.

Dr. McMullen introduced qualitative inquiry into both the graduate and undergraduate curriculum in her home department, taught courses at both levels for many years, and has published articles, coedited special issues, and written a book ( Essentials of Discursive Psychology ) that is part of APA’s series on qualitative methodologies, among other works. She has been engaged with building the Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology (SQIP; a section of Division 5 of the APA) into a vibrant scholarly society since its earliest days, and took on many leadership roles while working as a university professor.

Dr. McMullen’s contributions have been recognized by Division 5 of the APA, the Canadian Psychological Association, and the Saskatchewan Psychological Association.

Abigail Panter, PhD, is the senior associate dean for undergraduate education and a professor of psychology in the L. L. Thurstone Psychometric Laboratory at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is past president of APA’s Division 5, Quantitative and Qualitative Methods.

As a quantitative psychologist, she develops instruments, research designs and data-analytic strategies for applied research questions in higher education, personality, and health. She serves as a program evaluator for UNC’s Chancellor’s Science Scholars Program, and was also principal investigator for The Finish Line Project, a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education that systematically investigated new supports and academic initiatives, especially for first-generation college students.

Her books include the  APA Dictionary of Statistics and Research Methods  (2014), the APA Handbook of Research Methods in Psychology  (first edition; 2012), the Handbook of Ethics in Quantitative Methodology  (2011), and the SAGE Handbook of Methods in Social Psychology (2004), among others.

David Rindskopf, PhD, is distinguished professor at the City University of New York Graduate Center, specializing in research methodology and statistics. His main interests are in Bayesian statistics, causal inference, categorical data analysis, meta-analysis, and latent variable models.

He is a fellow of the American Statistical Association and the American Educational Research Association, and is past president of the Society of Multivariate Experimental Psychology and the New York Chapter of the American Statistical Association.

Kenneth J. Sher, PhD, is chancellor’s professor and curators’ distinguished professor of psychological sciences, emeritus, at the University of Missouri. He received his PhD in clinical psychology from Indiana University (1980) and his clinical internship training at Brown University (1981).

His primary areas of research focus on etiological processes in the development of alcohol dependence, factors that affect the course of drinking and alcohol use disorders throughout adulthood, longitudinal research methodology, psychiatric comorbidity, and nosology. At the University of Missouri he directed the predoctoral and postdoctoral training program in alcohol studies, and his research has been continually funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism for more than 35 years.

Dr. Sher’s research contributions have been recognized by professional societies including the Research Society on Alcoholism and APA, and throughout his career, he has been heavily involved in service to professional societies and scholarly publications.

Research Methods in Psychology - 2nd Canadian Edition

(2 reviews)

Rajiv S. Jhangiani, Kwantlen Polytechnic University

I-Chant A. Chiang, Quest University Canada

Publisher: BCcampus

Language: English

Formats Available

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Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Bettina Spencer, Professor of Psychology, Saint Mary's College on 12/4/23

This book covers all of the main topics in research methods for psychology students. I appreciate that it also includes sections on qualitative methods as well as how to present results. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This book covers all of the main topics in research methods for psychology students. I appreciate that it also includes sections on qualitative methods as well as how to present results.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

All of the information on methods is accurate, but the book references 6th edition APA style rather than 7th edition. As such, instructors will have to modify this particular portion although the general information about writing in APA style is good.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Aside from the 6th edition APA style, this book is generally relevant and up to date. It does, however, often reference classic social psychology studies without addressing the limitations in the sampling.

Clarity rating: 5

This book is very clearly written and easily accessible. The sections on statistics are especially clear and organized, which is useful because this is an area students often need extra support in. All of the technical terminology throughout the book is thoroughly explained.

Consistency rating: 5

There is consistent writing and clarity throughout this book. The technical terms are consistent throughout the book which is good because we, psychologists, do sometimes use different jargon for the same thing depending on our subfield. The sections all build off of one another and reference back to each other in a way that makes the book easy to use.

Modularity rating: 5

An instructor could easily assign certain sections of the book. For example, you could just assign the chapter on experimental design, or research ethics, etc. without assigning the whole. There are times where a later section will reference a study that was used an example earlier, but it always restates the results so the reader does not have to actually go back and read the previous section,

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

This book is very well organized, beginning with theories and ethics, moving into the range of designs and approaches, and ending with how to present research and write statistics. The statistics sections almost feel like a bonus because students will most likely have taken a statistics course before taking a research methods course, so these parts serve as a good refresher.

Interface rating: 5

In the PDF version, sections are linked from the table of contents, and you can search and find specific sections quite easily.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The writing is very clear with no grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

This book references many classic social psychology studies for it's examples, but many of those studies were conducted with white, middle-class Americans. These old studies can't be changed, but instructors should address the problems and limitations with these findings, and the book does not do that. It generally takes a "color blind" approach and does not really mention cultural differences, which is a problem for teaching. For example, topics such as how to collect and report demographics is much more complicated than reported in the book.

Reviewed by Lisa Elliott, Assistant Teaching Professor, Pennsylvania State University- The Behrend College on 2/1/18

The book covers all of the standard research methods topics that I cover in class. I believe that it is more comprehensive than most commercial texts as it includes how to write survey questions, a chapter on the significance/replicability discussion, and qualitative methodologies with grounded theory. In the past, I have added a separate lecture to discuss qualitative methodologies. I am glad to see it covered with comprehensiveness in this book. I also liked the indepth discussion of measurement in relation to statistical analysis, operationalizing, and developing new measures. This is a finer point that I cover in class but rarely see covered indepth in the text.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

My measure of accuracy, comprehensiveness, and clarity in a research methods textbook is how well the authors describe type I and type II errors. In this book, they use the metaphor of pregnancy: a type I error is a false positive such as when a man is diagnosed as pregnant; a type II error is a false negative such as when a clearly pregnant woman is diagnosed as not pregnant. This was illustrated very clearly with wonderful, tasteful photos. This difficult concept is the keystone for discussions on power and p value which are the topics that the authors tackle next. This example defines how carefully and well this book is written. If I were to place it next to publishers volumes of the same material. This book is better. It does a better job of describing important points in a coherent and clear manner. If there are mistakes, they must be very minor. All that I could find was a misspelled website url.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The only concern about longevity is over the permanence of the urls referred to in the book. However, the book functions without the urls and they are easily updated by the instructor during the lecture. With the exception of the significance/replicability discussion, the material covered in a current methods course has remained consistent over the past decade. I don't foresee the significance/replicability discussion resolved in the near future. This is a challenge that students should be prepared to face as they begin as junior researchers. I appreciate the authors including this chapter in the book as I will use this book if only for these chapters. No commercial textbook that I know about has this information presented in such a clear and objective manner.

I enjoyed the writing. It was very clear and concise. It was much better than the usual textbooks that students are forced to muddle through. The authors used good examples which should be accessible to an undergraduate audience. I particularly like that the authors gave good examples and bad examples of important concepts. Then, they went into detail as to why particular items were good and what was good about them. They detailed why particular items were bad and what made them poor choices. Finally, they describe the outcome of bad choices in the larger scheme. There is much jargon in every methods textbook. These authors define things well in concrete terms. I particularly liked the clarity of writing in this book.

The chapters in this book all have the same format. The authors begin with a brief paragraph which focuses on a modern experiment or study. Then, they use that as a basis to describe the topic in detail. This approach introduces students to a variety of research in a very accessible way. Each chapter is formatted in this way. All of the chapters have sections which focus in detail on a particular topic. Then these topics are cross listed across the different chapters through hyperlinks. Each topic is short with a summary and a suggestion for exercises at the end.

Often, authors in Methods textbooks are unclear where to put important topics such as reliability, validity, operationalizing, what a p-value really means, and sampling. In the textbook that I currently use, the authors have put all of these items into one omnibus chapter. I find that I must go back to this chapter again throughout the semester and then search for the particular item within the chapter. I like how this book separates these items and concentrates on explaining them in depth. I also like how the authors chose to create hyperlinks to the other places in the book that used these items. This allows me, as the instructor, to reorder the chapters in a way that fits with the class. In some courses, not all chapters will be needed. I could use some chapters for a graduate course in methods along with another book. Then, I could use the same book in its entirety for the undergraduate course. Sometimes, I have students in a more advanced course who took Methods at a different university or not at all. I like that this book is free and modular. I can refer these students to this book for review before a qualifying exam or before an important lesson that relies on pre-existing methods knowledge.

I liked the order of the chapters. This is how i prefer to teach methods with the experiment chapters before the qualitative chapters. However, other instructors may like the opposite. The modularity of this book allows either approach. I also like that the book has hyperlinks between the chapters. Often, students will need to review reliability and validity when they get to quasi experimental designs (several chapters ahead). They will have forgotten this information. The hyperlinks make it easy to go back and review. The short sections also create an easiness that encourages exploration. Within the chapters, I like how the authors begin with a description of a study and then use that description to illustrate the points throughout the entire chapter. The descriptions are brief and interesting. Then, there is the APA citation at the bottom of the page. It is easy to look up the article this way. Other textbooks put all of the references at the back of the book. It is much more effortful to find an interesting article when the references are at the back. By the time that you have found it, you forget what you just read.

I liked that the book was available in a variety of formats. I downloaded the pdf on my smart phone and found it fairly easy to read. Although I could not set bookmarks and that was frustrating. I also like to make comments and notes in my books. I think with a different app, I would be able to do these things just fine. Maybe there could be a few recommendations for apps on the website and which format works best with which app. I like that students can download the book on their phone. Most of them do this anyway from the publishers website. For the important classes (in their mind), they also have the printed copy or they rent the printed copy too. With the pdf, they have the option to print it out.

I found no grammar or spelling errors. There was a link that seemed to be misspelled on page 71 the link to Hanover's Rescorla Wagner page.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

As an instructor who is a woman at a male dominated engineering school, sometimes the examples in psychology textbooks make me uncomfortable to discuss in class. This book's examples would not make me uncomfortable. There seems to be an equal number of men and women portrayed in the book as researchers and I don't sense a bias against any particular group. The writing is objective and sticks to the point without an agenda.

I wish that you had added a bit more about noisey data and maybe used some examples that had outliers. I also wish that you had discussed the issue of cherry picking.

Many commercial textbooks focus on research as a student's exploration or journey in science. Students misunderstand this perspective. I was very glad that you urge students to look for research ideas in the discussion section of peer reviewed articles, to base their methods on those that are previously published, and to use validated measures in their work. This approach trains students to rely on previous research and build on sound scientific foundations using theory. Thank you.

Chapter 1: The Science of Psychology

Understanding Science
Scientific Research in Psychology
Science and Common Sense
Science and Clinical Practice

Chapter 2: Getting Started in Research

Basic Concepts
Generating Good Research Questions
Reviewing the Research Literature

Chapter 3: Research Ethics

Moral Foundations of Ethical Research
From Moral Principles to Ethics Codes
Putting Ethics Into Practice

Chapter 4: Theory in Psychology

Phenomena and Theories
The Variety of Theories in Psychology
Using Theories in Psychological Research

Chapter 5: Psychological Measurement

Understanding Psychological Measurement
Reliability and Validity of Measurement
Practical Strategies for Psychological Measurement

Chapter 6: Experimental Research

Experiment Basics
Experimental Design
Conducting Experiments

Chapter 7: Nonexperimental Research

Overview of Nonexperimental Research
Correlational Research
Quasi-Experimental Research
Qualitative Research

Chapter 8: Complex Research Designs

Multiple Dependent Variables
Multiple Independent Variables
Complex Correlational Designs

Chapter 9: Survey Research

Overview of Survey Research
Constructing Survey Questionnaires
Conducting Surveys

Chapter 10: Single-Subject Research

Overview of Single-Subject Research
Single-Subject Research Designs
The Single-Subject Versus Group “Debate”

Chapter 11: Presenting Your Research

American Psychological Association (APA) Style
Writing a Research Report in American Psychological Association (APA) Style
Other Presentation Formats

Chapter 12: Descriptive Statistics

Describing Single Variables
Describing Statistical Relationships
Expressing Your Results
Conducting Your Analyses

Chapter 13: Inferential Statistics

Understanding Null Hypothesis Testing
Some Basic Null Hypothesis Tests
Additional Considerations
From the “Replicability Crisis” to Open Science Practices

Ancillary Material

About the book.

The present adaptation constitutes the second Canadian edition and was co-authored by Rajiv S. Jhangiani (Kwantlen Polytechnic University) and I-Chant A. Chiang (Quest University Canada) and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Revisions include the following:

Chapter 1: Added a description of the “Many Labs Replication Project,” added a reference to the Neurobonkers website, and embedded videos about open access publishing, driver distraction, two types of empirical studies, and the use of evidence to evaluate the world around us. Chapter 2: Updated the exemplar study in the chapter overview, added relevant examples and descriptions of contemporary studies, provided a link to an interactive visualization for correlations, added a description of double-blind peer review, added a figure to illustrate a spurious correlation, and embedded videos about how to develop a good research topic, searching the PsycINFO database, using Google Scholar, and how to read an academic paper. Chapter 3: Added in LaCour ethical violation. Revised chapter headings and order to reflect TCPS-2 moral principles. Chapter 4: Added in difference between laws and effects and theoretical framework. Chapter 5: Added fuller descriptions of the levels of measurement, added a table to summarize the levels of measurement, added a fuller description of the MMPI, removed the discussion of the IAT, and added descriptions of concurrent, predictive, and convergent validity. Chapter 6: Added in construct validity, statistical validity, mundane realism, psychological realism, Latin Square Design. Updated references. Chapter 7: Added in mixed-design studies and fuller discussion of qualitative-quantitative debate. Chapter 8: Added an exercise to sketch the 8 possible results of a 2 x 2 factorial experiment. Chapter 9: Added information about Canadian Election Studies, more references, specific guidelines about order and open-ended questions, and rating scale. Updated online survey creation sites. Chapter 11: Updated examples and links to online resources. Chapter 13: Added discussion of p-curve and BASP announcement about banning p-values. Added a section that introduces the “replicability crisis” in psychology, along with discussions of questionable research practices, best practices in research design and data management, and the emergence of open science practices and Transparency and Openness Promotion guidelines.

Glossary of key terms: Added.

In addition, throughout the textbook, we revised the language to be more precise and to improve flow, added links to other chapters, added images, updated hyperlinks, corrected spelling and formatting errors, and changed references to reflect the contemporary Canadian context.

About the Contributors

Rajiv S. Jhangiani . Faculty member in the Department of Psychology at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, where I conduct research on open education, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and political psychology.

I am also an Open Learning Faculty Member at Thompson Rivers University, an OER Research Fellow with the Open Education Group, and an Associate Editor of Psychology Learning & Teaching. I formerly served as the Associate Editor of NOBA Psychology and as a Faculty Fellow with the BC Open Textbook Project

My professional affiliations include the Association for Psychological Science, the Society for the Teaching of Psychology, the Society for Personality & Social Psychology, the Social Psychology Network, Sigma Xi, and the International Society of Political Psychology.

I-Chant A. Chiang . Growing up in a bilingual environment was the start of I-Chant’s interest in the intersection of language, culture, and thinking. Through studying English, she pursued her love of literature, writing and words. At the same time, I-Chant became fascinated with studying human behaviour through psychology. She received a BA and BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign before heading to Stanford University for an MA and PhD in psychology. Her dual interests are combined by studying the psychology of language in the context of other disciplines, such as political science, communication, and education. Prior to Quest, I-Chant was at Aberystwyth University in Wales where she was a founding member of their psychology department. She recently published a textbook, Research Methods in Psychology – 2nd Canadian Edition, and an edited volume, Explorations in Political Psychology.

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Research Methods for Psychology

A free textbook on research methods for the social sciences, an open educational resource.

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Book Title: Research Methods in Psychology – 2nd Canadian Edition

Authors: I-Chant A. Chiang; Rajiv S. Jhangiani; and Paul C. Price

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Book Description: Note: An updated edition of this book was published October 2020. You can find it here: Research Methods in Psychology - 4th Edition . With this textbook, we introduce students to the fundamental principles of what it is like to think like a psychology researcher. We also hope to connect with the Canadian audience to show them the fantastic research being generated in Canada as well as provide them with an accurate picture of the Canadian context for ethical human research.

Book Information

Book description.

Note: The second edition of this book was published October 2020. You can find it here: Research Methods in Psychology – 4th Edition

With this textbook, we introduce students to the fundamental principles of what it is like to think like a psychology researcher. We also hope to connect with the Canadian audience to show them the fantastic research being generated in Canada as well as provide them with an accurate picture of the Canadian context for ethical human research.

Research Methods in Psychology - 2nd Canadian Edition Copyright © 2015 by Paul C. Price, Rajiv Jhangiani, & I-Chant A. Chiang is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Research methods: general

This textbook is an adaptation of Research Methods of Psychology written by Paul C. Price (California State University, Fresno) and adapted by The Saylor Foundation under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License without attribution as requested by the work’s original creator or licensee.

This adaptation constitutes the second Canadian edition and was co-authored by Rajiv S. Jhangiani (Kwantlen Polytechnic University) and I-Chant A. Chiang (Quest University Canada) and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License .

The CC licence permits you to retain, reuse, copy, redistribute, and revise this book—in whole or in part—for free providing it is not for commercial purposes, any material shared is shared under the same licences, and the authors are attributed as follows:

If you redistribute all or part of this book, it is recommended the following statement be added to the copyright page so readers can access the original book at no cost:

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